Cafe Anime Tampa

On a hot day in August with Summer coming to an end, I went to the Grand Opening of Cafe Anime. I arrived early, as is in my nature to do so, thirty minutes till the 11am opening. It was the calm before the storm.

Soon, at 5 minutes till 11, a line formed, the doors opened and everyone rushed in. The first thing I saw was T-shirts and cosplay costumes, I looked at the small figures for sale and spotted a SD Gundam model that was tempting.

My main shopping interest is the DVDs and seeing Blue Submarine No. 6 took me back to my Toonami days. I also saw Kite and the Excel Saga box set. Overall, a great section to start off with.

Next to the DVDs was the manga section. On the top shelf were import Japanese CDs and I was glad to see Cowboy Bebop, some of the best anime music ever. Just below the DVDs were manga like the usual suspects, Attack on Titan and FCLC.

I then browsed the plush toys and looked inside the cases. Cafe Anime even carries Japanese snacks like Pocky and Ramune soda.

I remember when Cafe Anime started out as just a booth at Cons. The larger Cons want a lot of money just to be there but that is where Nathan and Scarlet are smart, they wisely shifted their focus to smaller cons. I like the smaller cons because you get to know people and you are not just pushed around in a crazy fan mob.

Nathan and Scarlet helped me out back when I needed someone to help me host my panel called A Brief History of Anime in the US that covers major US anime releases from 1961 to the present. Scarlet went the extra mile with the Miyazaki Trivia Panel and I am grateful that Cafe Anime donated prices. That panel was set up like Jeopardy with audience members volunteering to compete against each other by answering trivia questions on anime's greatest director, Miyazaki Hayao.  Both panels went over well at Tampa Bay Comic Con a few years ago.

So I am glad Tampa has a legitimate brick and mortar anime store because the only other options are Anime Fix in Downtown St. Pete and Anime Orlando. Both are lengthy drives for me. The best part of Cafe Anime is that you don't have to pay shipping and handling and you don't have to wait around for the mail, instant gratification is better.

It was a great turn out and I saw a few cosplayers. I am looking forward to seeing Cafe Anime grow and add a unique store that has been missing from Tampa for far to long. I wish Nathan and Scarlet all my best. They have both worked extremely hard to get to this point. Good luck to both of you.  

Tampa Bay Comic Con 2016: Con Report

2016 is my 4th consecutive trip to Tampa Bay Comic Con and that is a reason to celebrate. I remember back in 2012, when Comic Con was still held at the Doubletree on Cypress back when attendance was moderate and unlike the 3-day event it has become. It used to be about talking to comic vendors in the dealer's room and buying comics to read, but with the addition of celebrity guests, the astonishing popularity of The Walking Dead, and the unstoppable force of comic movie blockbusters it has blossomed from grassroots origins to a nerd mecca.  Sure, ticket prices were lower in '12 but you were only paying to walk around a dealer's room. The increased price has brought better security, panels, events, more celebrity guests, and a better experience for all at the Tampa Convention Center.

Saturday, August 6th, I was out the door at 6 and outside the main entrance at 6:35am, wound up and ready to go. Here was my view.

Why was I up so early? Was it because I was a die hard fanboy desperate to start spending my life savings? No, this was my second time around hosting a panel, the first was back in 2014. I had a 9am start time and had to arrive an hour early to get in, find my room, and set up.

It was good to see my old high school buddy, Will Robinson, a fellow fan of Star Wars, Cyberpunk, and military history. After a brief misunderstanding with security that was thankfully quickly resolved it was time to find room 5 that was near the river. I got set up and then IT helped me connect my laptop to the projector so I could show my clips.

For a while it was just Will and I, reminiscing about the old days, then fellow panelist, Tina called. She was on the second floor and I had to find her to give her an access wristband. After several minutes of talking I found her and we were off, back to room 5. One more panelist was scheduled to help but was MIA for the time being.

Soon it was 15-minutes to 9 and I cast aside my last minute jitters and we got on stage, ready to start at exactly 9am. The room was packed with people and no seats were left. 9am was such a great time and made me nostalgic for Saturday morning cartoons. We all picked a decade and were quietly preparing by reading over my notes when it was suddenly 9 and we haven't even test the mikes yet. So after everyone tapped their mikes it was showtime. We all introduced ourselves and Tina introduced our panel called A Brief History of Anime in the US. There are several histories of anime online and in books, but none tackle the US solely. Tina is an expect on Osamu Tezuka and she started things off with the 60's. Will and I handled the 70's. because we lived through it. Then one minute past 9 and Jocelynne called and was lost, so I helped her find the room. She found it and our panelists were all accounted for. I talked about the 80's because I am the Robotech fanboy and contributed a lot of my own personal experiences. Will spoke on Star Blazers and explored the military aspects and what made that show such a great space opera. All throughout our panel, I was wondering how we were doing. At the end, the room was still filled, people were cheering and clapping, and we got a standing ovation. It was a hit after all. If you get the chance come see us. A big special thanks to Tina, Will, and Jocelynne. Jocelynne was a great speaker on the 90's. I'm already looking forward to hosting this panel again.

After the panel, I hung out with Will and his wife. We just randomly roamed the dealers room, taking cosplay pictures. Hit Girl was my favorite this year.

Also being a huge fan of The Force Awakens, I flipped out over this one.

The Dynamic Duo took me back to watching Batman reruns on Saturday mornings.

I HAVEN'T HAD MY MUFFIN YET!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Standing in line and waiting for my Diet Coke refill I met the one called Sailor Moon. She wore a beautiful figure necklace.

Close to 6pm, after lugging my laptop and camera it was time to head home. I said goodbye to the Robinsons and hiked back to my car at Fort Brooke Garage.

I had a great time and will definitely return for my 5th year anniversary in 2017.

 "Da-dum-duuummmm! I, am Captain Chaos! And this, this is my faithful companion, Cato... Say hello, Cato!"

All my pictures are available here.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/genkigaijin/albums/72157672094769175

Tampa Natsumatsuri 2016

It is that time of year for Tampa Natsumatsuri, the Japanese Summer Festival that authentically recreates a traditional Japanese Festival in Tampa. This was the first time at night from 6pm - 9pm. I assumed my usual job of judging the cosplay contest. 2016 was a great turn out with lots of artisans, craft makers, and dealers selling ceramics, paintings, vintage kimono, and anime goods. Renny's Oki Doki food truck supplied visitors with traditional Okinawan cuisine. Also for those with a sweet tooth, Kona Ice provided shaved ice.

There were a variety of events such as the UF Japanese Club showing off fancy dance moves.

Energetic dancers danced to traditional music. This was followed by an Aikido demonstration.

Next was a lively Kenjutsu, sword demonstration.

My event, the cosplay contest, was rapidly approaching in the evening. As is usually the case, cosplayers do not sign up until the last minute. We had two people signing up just as the contest was beginning and that caused the MC to have to keep speaking to stall for time. Soon we were actually started. We recruited an audience member to have three judges in the event of a tie.

Here were the lovely contestants.

 This was a really easy contest to judge because one cosplayer put so much detail into her costume and really brought her character to life.

And the winner is...

 ...who received the Grand Prize, a 4-day pass to Tampa Bay Comic Con.

2nd Place also had a great look.

She got a Gurren Lagann DVD box set.

At 3rd Places were these two ladies who demanded to cosplay together. They won two free anime shirts. They had a great look, however they were not based on any anime characters. So that being the case, third place was the best option.

The last event was the Raffle with local vendors donating many quality prizes. IACE Travel contributed the grand prize, free tickets to Universal Studios in Orlando.

It was a fun festival this year, with many JET alumni taking pictures together, catching up with old friends, and making new ones. I walked out with Jesse and Hiromi and another successful festival was over.

Roots of Anime Fandom in Tampa, FL.

As my 44th birthday is coming up quick, a few days in fact, I spent this Saturday afternoon pondering how anime fandom has evolved over the years. There are many places I once visited in my youth that are no longer around and so their story must be told. So let the adventure begin!

One Christmas back in the 80's, I got an electric wok. I also received a cookbook called Oriental Cuisine. It was broken down into different parts of Asia, China, Korea, Southeast Asia, and Japan. Each chapter had maps and drawings and a short history of the region. It also had tasty looking recipes. I was at Joto Japanese restaurant, and couldn't decide what I wanted and took a chance  on sukiyaki. Well, the Asian cookbook I had did have a sukiyaki recipe and I tried it at Joto's so I started my culinary journey with Japan. Some of the ingredients were hard to find at Publix so riding around one day, I saw Kotobuki on Dale Mabry, just past Neptune, and next door to Wright's. I went inside and with the help of the employees found everything I needed to make sukiyaki, still one of the best sauces I have ever had. Also, I noticed that Kotobuki had candy and ramen with pictures of Ultraman. I also saw cute cartoon characters. So I bought a few anime snacks mainly because Ultraman was one of my favorite Saturday morning shows. The stage was set.

A few years later I was in the 9th grade and met Patrick Conroy who was a big fan of Robotech. In the mid 80's, Robotech was on broadcast. Anyway, Pat would ride his bike to my house and we played Metal Gear on the NES, before Solid was added to the name. Sometimes we would go to Kotobuki because they rented anime tapes that were all in raw Japanese, and sometimes, the commercials were left in. The toy commercials were amazing. At the time I had no idea what I was watching. I had two VCRs and I would dub shows like Jo-Jo's Bizarre Adventures, Ranma 1/2, and whatever Sci-Fi or Fantasy posters I saw hanging up inside Kotobuki. This was back when to buy anime, tapes were expensive and had to be mail ordered. I mainly watched anime but would sometimes watch the Japanese comedy shows, such as, The Drifters, and Shimura Ken no Bakatono-sama, a crazy show that reminded me of The Benny Hill Show. Comedian Ken Shimura played a foolish prankster that was always in trouble. He wore white Kabuki makeup with his hair sticking up. It was so good back in middle school. Now I was helplessly hooked on Japanese entertainment.

In that same area, on Dale Mabry, just before Neptune and across from Plant High School used to be a comics and gaming store called Merlin's. The first time I went inside I bought two Tokusatsu magazines for the Ultraman and Kamen Rider pictures. You couldn't find them in magazines like Starlog, so I had to by the import magazines. They even had Japanese toys like the Zentradi Battlepods and you could also buy Gundam model kits. Then suddenly Merlin's vanished. They reopened on Fowler near USF for a few years before closing for good.

It was hard to find anime outside Asian markets. You had to buy Starlog and request a catalog from an Anime company. Then, you would probably end up getting two episodes for $30 to $40 and that was steep as a junior high student without a job. So the best place to feed your addiction were cons. My first real con experience was at Necronomicon at their old location and not at Sable Park. There were no cosplayers. It was at the Holiday Inn Cypress on Cypress Ave. The big guest was Piers Anthony. I remember going to a panel by author Peter David called Does Humor Belong in Science Fiction? David was discussing humor in the unexpected, then an army of Pizza Hut delivery guys marched in carrying stacks of pizza. David told them to feed the attendees and they handed out boxes to everyone. I have never laughed that hard during a panel. He must have ordered 100 pizzas because boxes were everywhere. I'll never forget that moment. Anyway, I bought a bad copy of Akira at Necronomicon for $5. Despite how bad the quality was, I still have it as a reminder of the struggle.

I used to spend Saturday afternoons driving to Largo to go to Camelot Comics & Gifts. It was the only place to get Robotech on videotape at $30 for only 2 episodes. The last time I checked, you can order the entire series for $41.30 and compared to the good old days that is a steal. Just as Merlin's went so did Camelot. This was pre Sunset video and Blockbusters in Tampa didn't even have a Anime section. There was nothing. I was so jealous when my friend returned from a trip to Simi Valley, CA and told me that Blockbusters had an Anime section and so many titles.

The last place was so small that I don't even remember the name. There used to be shops in Feather Sound and there was an anime store. I'm not sure how long it lasted back in '92. It seems like I blinked and then it was gone. Anyway, inside that store I discovered a magazine called Mangajin that taught Japanese through comics. There were ads for teaching English in Japan. Around 92 anime was drying up in Tampa so I decided to go to college and go to Japan to keep my anime dreams alive. When I was in junior high and then high school, there was only two anime fans, my friend and I. No one was interested in Ultraman, MS Gundam, Dominion Tank Police, or Kung Fu movies. That has changed for the better today. I was just at Publix and the cashier saw my Godzilla shirt and told me he was a kaiju fan. I never thought the word kaiju would be used and understood all this time later. What was once only for nerds has branched out further then I ever thought possible. So if you wanted to know about anime fandom in Tampa from 1978, the year I first saw Battle of the Planets, to 1992, this is how it really was.

Manga Memories

Where to begin? It is hard to look back into my past and find out when I first began collecting comics. I can't remember the first comic I bought but I'm guessing it was Spiderman. The old cartoon from the 60's was syndicated in the 70's and I remember watching it in elementary school during the after school cartoon block that also showed another of my favorites, Star Blazers.

One favorite TV show came on Saturdays at 6am and I was up early to catch the Batman TV series with Adam West and Burt Ward. I prefer the fun and camp of Batman '66 to the later gloom and doom Dark Knight and Christopher Nolan movies. After Batman was Ultraman about Hayata, a member of the Science Patrol, who is given a magical Beta Capsule by a mysterious alien, that transforms him into Ultraman. This started my kaiju love affair that is still going on strong today.

My life changed during the Summer of '77 when I was four years old watching Star Wars at a small movie theater on Hillsborough Ave. I was obsessed with collecting Star Wars toys and comics. So, TV shows and movies greatly influenced me with comic buying. In the 70's I was reading Star Wars, any comic about sharks, thanks to Jaws, Rom the Space Knight, and I loved the Micronauts. Of course, some of the coolest toys in the 70s were the Shogun Warriors with the flying fists so I had the comics also.

Then in 1978 the Superman movie came out and I loved it. That started a Superman comics buying craze. Also that year I started watching Battle of the Planets about a team with five members who must work together to save the earth from the evil Zoltar. Gold Key put out the comics and I had to have them.

I was raised on a unique blend of Western comics and Japanese comics that at that time and still under 10, I didn't know those comics were Japanese or care. So when did the transition to manga begin?

That happened in '87, I was placed in Advanced Art at Monroe Middle School in South Tampa, and a friend of mine from elementary school, John Holland, was also into comics and we were in the same art class. We used to go the Book Worm, a tiny comics and used bookstore on Manhattan, just past the McDonald's on Gandy Blvd. John got me interested in being a serious collector and introduced me to Eastman and Laird's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, back before the silly cartoon, the turtles were dangerous and had a niche cult following. We were interested in the Ninja Turtles because the first issue was already commanding a high price on the market. So we were looking for anything that would be the next hit like Adolescent Radioactive Black Belt Hamsters and Geriatric Gangrene Jujitsu Gerbils. This started me on the path towards indie books and away from Marvel and DC.

However what really grabbed me was eating lunch at Monroe in the cafeteria. I was with Ed Jenkins and we were talking comics. Ed was talking about a cool book he was reading that was filled with crazy action and like nothing I had ever read before. I took interest and went to my local comics shop to get it. That was Ben Dunn's Ninja High School. This manga/anime inspired comic hooked me in and wouldn't let go. I had grown up with Sho Kosugi ninja movies on HBO and Storm Shadow from G. I. Joe but wasn't prepared for the impact that Ninja High School would have.

There was the all to common high school setting, that was actually new and fresh in 1987, with cute girls who could actually fight, sometimes in bikinis, with great artwork and a good story.

Also in '87, John and I were shopping at Goodwill, we loved browsing thrift stores on the Weekends, and found a gorgeous comic with killer cover art by Frank Miller that was deep in Japanese history called Lone Wolf and Cub. Here is the issue I bought for only 15 cents.

Worth every penny and I read it multiple times. This led me to start reading books on Japanese history.

At that time Robotech was broadcast on TV and my friends and I were big fans. We used to go to Merlin's Comics that used to be in South Tampa near the Publix on Dale Mabry and Neptune. It was here that I first discovered Eternity's Robotech comic.

A few years later I was in college at the University of South Florida and had Japanese roommates. I was taking Japanese 4 and my Japanese friends would give me their manga magazines after they finished. This helped my Japanese reading level immensely. The manga mags had Samurai stories that reminded me of Lone Wolf and Cub.

 

In 1999 I was accepted in USF's Study Aboard program, which meant I would be studying Japanese at Kansai Gaidai University in Hirakata City, near Osaka, in Japan. One of my friends, Midori, who was a 19-year old girl back in 1999, gave me my first Japanese manga in tankoubon, (paperback book form,) and that was Detective Conan. Known in the US as Case Closed, this was the manga I took with me for the long plane ride to Japan. Stayed tune for more manga adventures. The seeds were already planted throughout my life and then I was in Japan seeking out manga.

 

 

 

 

Mobile Suit Gundam Part 1: Blu-Ray Collection Review

Prepare for multiple Christmases throughout 2016 and beyond as the good people at Right Stuf release more Gundam series on Blu-Ray.

Right Stuf teamed up with Sunrise and all the series are going to be released, finally, in North America. This is great news for me because for years all I had was the movie trilogy on DVD, which basically took the entire 43 episodes of Mobile Suit Gundam and condensed it all down into three movies. I am a completest so I craved more. I don't care if some of the episodes are considered filler, if I love a series, I have to have all of it, warts and all. Now I can put away the movies and my old video cassettes of various Mobile Suit Gundam random episodes and Victory Gundam that I've had since I was a teenager. Back then I didn't care if I had the entire run of a series, in the late 80's you were lucky to have one episode. The episodes I had were from a Japanese market in raw Japanese with the commercials left in. Just like they were broadcasted in Japan. It was cool and an extra bonus to see Japanese toy and McDonald commercials.

Some will be hating on the 70's artwork and design, but I prefer the personal touch of hand drawn animation to the crystal clean and over processed CGI art today that is so bland and uninspired. In 70's anime, a lot of detail went into the vehicles, mechas, and spaceships that was so cool. Mobile Suit Gundam looks just as good as other 70's anime such as Battle of the Planets, (aka Gatchaman,) and Star Blazers (aka Space Battleship Yamato.) Who cares if the fashion and characters looked funky, it was the 70's and fit in perfectly.

Mobile Suit Gundam was created by Tomino Yoshiyuki who was inspired by the 1959 Robert Heinlein Science Fiction novel called Starship Troopers. Both are great examples of military Sci-Fi, involving humans who pilot robotic suits. Set in the Universal Century, MS Gundam tells the story of the gift and hot tempered teenager, Amuro Ray. The Principality of Zeon becomes independent from the Earth Federation and so starts the Year One War. In the midst of fighting, young Amuro, stumbles onto the giant mobile suit called Gundam. As Zeon attacks, Amuro climbs inside as an inexperienced military man to stop them. Even in these early action scenes, you can tell that Amuro has a knack for piloting a giant mecha.

However, Zeon will not be easy to beat due to the quick-witted and strategic genius, Char Aznable. A wonderful villain who frustrates Amuro throughout the series. Char is my personal favorite villain in all anime. He always manages to dodge Amuro's angry attacks with excellent counterattacks and witty dialogue. It is so much fun watching Amuro and Char battle each other. You need both to provide the perfect dramatic angle.

How does it look on Blu-ray? Excellent. Along with Gatchaman on Blu-Ray, 70's anime has never looked so fresh. Mobile Suit Gundam is beautiful to see in HD. This is coming from someone who watched it originally on VHS, with so many lines running down the screen.

The audio is fantastic. A quality surround sound system will make you feel like you are watching Gundam inside a movie theater. For the sub vs dub debate, I will answer both. I am watching MS Gundam in the English dub so I can catch all the delicious details and art without reading. Then I will watch it again in Japanese for the complete effect.

The only thing lacking is Special Features and that is typical for anime. You get the usual stuff like clean openings and closings.

Interestingly, MS Gundam during its initial run failed to find an audience and was in danger of being cancelled. Bandai bought the copyrights and quickly has plastic models out on the market. Then the anime took off and spawned an empire of toys, video games, and a series that continues on and on.
The popularity of Gundam has had a tremendous influence that led to Robotech, Evangelion, and countless mechas shows.

If you get the chance, I highly recommend traveling to Tokyo to visit the Gundam Café in Akihabara and also Tokyo Diver City in Odaiba. The later is a mall with a 59-foot Gundam greeting you at the entrance. Inside, there is Gundam Front, a museum that also has a IMAX-style theater that features two Gundam anime shorts. Tokyo Diver City also has a Gundam Café, I'm not sure if it is the same as the one in Akihabara. In Osaka, you can visit Gundams, a huge store devoted to Gundam in Den Den Town aka Nipponbashi.

So MS Gundam on Blu-Ray comes with my highest recommendation. Next up for me is Part 2 and Zeta Gundam Part 1 that is coming soon. Thank you Right Stuf on a job well done.