AniMedia East - Blog

 Bringing Anime, Manga, Gaming and Cosplay to East Anglia. Posts by Raye

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Fresh new look for 2018

I am excited to announce that AniMedia East has undergone a makeover! I have been busily drawing some brand new mascots for us and the superb Dom has done an amazing job photoshopping them! It took a while, but I finally got creative and I hope the fresh new look will encourage more people to join in and attend the meets :)

[rayerayechan]

My one and only CMV! This video bundles together many years of my crazy cosplaying shenanigans at conventions along with my amazing friends, so it’s a story book of memories! x The song is perfect for the video

Films and photos supplied by me, Raye

Co-creator / Editor is Dom Thorby (who is amazing!)

Visit his page! http://domgraphics.tumblr.com/

The events footage was taken at: Kitacon, Manga Norfolk, Norwich Gaming Festival, MCM ComicCon, JapanEx, Yorkshire Cosplay Con, Hyper Japan, AniMedia East cosplay meets and can include photos from this list as well as Ayacon and Amecon.

Music used: Owl City ‘When Can I See You Again?’

Photos are a combination of those taken on my own camera, thanks to my husband and friends and from various photographers such as: Paul Jacques, Emma Diamond, Mark Harper, Akraru.

http://www.RayeRayeChan.webs.com

Twitter: RayeRayeChan

Facebook: RayeRaye Cosplay

- This video was entered into the Kitacon AMV/CMV comp 2016 and was well received! (It was in top 2 fan favourite videos and just missed out on clinching the winning fan fav video!)

[rayerayechan]

AniMedia East Cosplay Party - York Tavern  - 21 Nov 2015

The last AniMedia East meet of 2015 was a little turbulent! We lost one of our favourite venues for hosting indoor meets, The Griffin Pub in Norwich, but luckily we had the York Tavern offer us a space at the last minute!

The day was filled with people gaming, either handheld or using a console, Sak ran off some AMV’s for AMV:UK and brought lots of geeky goodies for people to buy including figurines (one of which now lives in my cabinet!) and we also had the attendees bring their items they wanted to sell and find a new home – oh and people brought cakes to sell for charity.

We had a successful Super Smash Bros Tournament with Flickie crowned champion and we finished the day off over burgers at the pub.

Safe to say, the struggles on finding a new venue may mean less AniMedia East meets in 2016, but I hope the next meet will be just has fun filled and will likely be around the summer time when things get warmer! http://animediaeast.webs.com/ Oh and this is my fav photo from my cosplay shoot on the day! It’s of my Akame cosplay from Akame Ga Kill - Taken by Josie Pointer Photography 

[rayerayechan]

AniMedia East Cosplay Picnic - Waterloo Park 22 Aug 2015

Our AniMedia East Cosplay picnic in Norwich for the summer was held at Waterloo Park and it was an eventful day! We took to the grounds to play volleyball and badminton and ended up spending most of our time chasing the volleyball out of the fountain!

This wasn’t the first time holding a picnic at this park, we have been there a few times before due to he beautiful surroundings and the local amenities like a chip shop / corner shop and resident ice cream van!

We held a little quiz in the afternoon and shared around snacks and cakes that we baked for charity! All in all it was a very peaceful and fun filled day, roll on the next one!

http://www.AniMediaEast.webs.com

[animediaeast]

Cosplay meet and PARTY! 21/11/2015

Our final Cosplay meet of the year will celebrate with a fun party after a full day indoor meet where we will be running a gaming tournament, showing AMVs and allowing people to Bring and Buy goodies! We hope to give attendees a memorable day and a safe place to cosplay with friends. Please come and support your group AniMedia East! As always cosplay is optional but always encouraged. The Griffin Pub - 12 mid day – 10pm **Event is for over 18s, so if you are under this age you must have an adult with you.** **Those people with disabilities must bring their own chaperone to accompany them.** **No cosplay props or weapons are permitted – unless given consent by Raye Springall or Mark Harper .** **You’re responsible for your own possessions and any damages.** Bring and Buy!! Instead of a charity auction, there will be limited space set out indoors for Bring and Buy – all items must be brought on the day, and must be marked up on arrival using the provided labels to the exact amount for each item. This way we can log and pay accordingly. If you want to give proceeds to charity we will be raising money for E.A.C.H. Feel free to post beforehand on this event page, any items you would like to share to get any interested people before bringing. This could save you bringing larger items! Cake sales will be available on all day – proceeds to E.A.C.H. Feel free to bring your own, or even savoury snacks. Tech: AMV’s to run on separate TV screens by AMV: UK – John Sakuraslight Astle is open for AMV suggestions. Tech: General gaming area open all day with Daniel Heath running it all on Raye’s TV – Tournament (likely SuperSmashBros on WIIU) will be at 3pm sharp! **Bring your 3DS consoles to swap data! Gaming will be available all day in between times events. Timed schedule 12 open – Welcomes – Game sections set up, Bring and Buy tables and labelling, cakes ready. 1pm Lunch – And a chance to sit down and watch AMV’s by AMV:UK After lunch - Photoshoot – Speak to Mark to arrange shoots. 3pm Gaming Tournament – A chance to show off your gaming skills! Bring your Amiibo’s for some super smashing fun! 6pm Dinner time (food may be available at the bar, but if not there is a chippie and supermarket nearby). After dinner…. The fun doesn’t have to end yet…Who is the best dancer??? IT’S PARTY TIME! Our evening party is FREE to attend, Raye is sorting through a playlist so there will be J-pop, anime tracks, a bit of punk-rock, and even some Nightcore! So we expect to see lots of dancing! Please do come to this party, we really hope for a good turn-out to celebrate 2015! Best dancer will receive a prize!!! 10pm – Party ends and event ends – everyone goes home! Pub closes 11pm. Facilities: We will have the back room of the venue, complete with electricity, tables and chairs – the venue has toilet facilities and a bar as well as a garden area and car park. Drinks can be purchased at the main bar – they ID each time – alcohol is available – just be sensible as we are in a public pub they have the right to remove people from the premises. Food orders are un-certain at this point, but we are near a chippie and Sainsbury’s. Sadly, as the Griffin Pub has been recently taken over (this meet has been officially booked), if they do cancel our booking for any reason, AniMedia East and those who run the event are not liable for any costs – it would be out of our hands. Money!!! There is a cash machine available at the nearby Sainsbury’s (5 minute walk) should anyone run out on the day, please bring as much cash and change as possible for the pub, bring and buy, cakes! Transport! Morning/Afternoon If you are coming from the Norwich Train Station/Castle Meadow/St Stephens then there is an easy bus route to The Griffin Pub on 212 Yarmouth Road - NR7 0SN (Bus examples are Konnect 52 or First Bus 15/15A) As you will see on Google maps the bus stop is just after the pub, so ask to be dropped off at the Griffin when you board the bus (sometimes they will do that!) Evening transport – keep in mind buses stop running around 5pm. So if you plan on staying later, you might want to pre-book a taxi. (Beeline Taxis 01603 767676) Unless you get the Anglian bus that runs until around 6:15pm (see below) Konnect: http://www.konectbus.co.uk/timetables-fares/52 First: http://www.firstgroup.com/ukbus/suffolk_norfolk/journey_planning/timetables/timetable.php?day=2&source_id=2&service=14%2F14A%2F15%2F15A&routeid=12023041&operator=22&source=sp If you are coming from Norwich Bus Station, there is an Anglian Bus (Number 7) that also runs through Castle Meadow and the Norwich Train Station. Anglian Bus: http://www.anglianbus.co.uk/timetables/7 Let’s all make this a fantastic meet and a fully packed party as our last meet of 2015. This meet is brought to you by Raye and Mark, the committee of AniMedia East, for you all! We would both like to thank everyone for their attendance in advance :) please spread the word of this event! Queries: Speak to the AniMedia East Committee: Raye Springall and Mark Harper To see this event you must be part of the group so if there are others you want to invite please direct them to our website where the info is also available Web: http://www.AniMediaEast.webs.com/ Twitter @AniMediaEast FB like page is AniMedia East FB group page is here https://www.facebook.com/groups/89855394486/ AniMedia East was started in July 2009 by Raye Springall and Melissa Joy There will be a write up of each event just in case you miss it available on Raye's blog (when she can!) which you can find on http://www.RayeRayeChan.webs.com/orvia the Fb page RayeRaye Cosplay – The write ups for the past AniMedia East events are also available on Tumblr https://www.tumblr.com/blog/rayerayechan

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Anime Review: Baka and Test

Happy Friday one and all! As the Bank Holiday weekend approaches, it's likely many of you will be either gaming or watching some anime! With this in mind, here is the latest anime review, this time its written by me, Raye Springall and is spoiler free so read on and see whether Baka and Test is an anime you would like to check out wink emoticon Brought to you by Manga and Funimation.

Spoiler Free! Also known as Baka and Test Summon the Spirit Beasts

Baka and Test Summon the Spirit Beasts is split by two seasons, its available English dubbed and Japanese subbed through Manga Entertainment. The general story is based on the protagonist Akihisa Yoshii and a school full of students designated to classes ranging from in the best in A to the slackers in F, where in F is where are protagonist is presently. This school is different because good grades won’t just get you in better places later in life, it will also help you win battles. Basically each student has their own mini avatar and they fight battles with each other, there stats are based on how well they perform in certain subjects.

It’s a happy go lucky anime but it is very addictive, you instantly fall for the characters and sit in wonder what will happen to Akihisa in his love triangle mess with pink haired cutie Mizuki Himeji and tough pony-tailed Minami Shimada. Oh and the psychotic Shouko will make you both frightened and laugh your head off as she relentlessly chase Yuki Its one of those anime’s you read on paper that sounds okay but you really need to watch to really love it.

Now I am a sub or dub fan when its done right, so I am glad to say that the English dub voice cast is fantastic, Greg Ayres as the panty photo taker Kouta is hilarious and when the girls get angry their cutest voices are replaced by cackling revenge seekers.

Season two really changes things as its much more relationship driven, the ending is very sweet but I warn you, you’ll want to see a series three for closure…

Visuals 9/10 - Great animation Audio 8/10 - Very catchy tunes Plot 8/10 - Same plot in season 2 really, but still fun! RayeRaye's rating 8/10 - Very enjoyable and worth a watch, but the ending could have been wrapped up a little better!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cO86Oral5hc

[animediaeast]

Steins;Gate - Anime Review - 8/10

This review has been made and submitted by Mark Harper and is a review of the White Fox anime Steins;Gate. 

This anime series is your typical time travel themed show, By using a method of communication referred to as D-Mail, The main protagonist and self-proclaimed ‘Mad Scientist’ Rintaro Okabe, can successfully re write history. With assistance from his fellow friends of Future Gadget Laboratory, his experiments lead to his discovery and creation of an actual time machine (and a rather large pile of gooey green bananas!) joined by the brilliant Kurisu Makise, Itaru Hashida the computer expert, and the eternally cheerful Mayuri Shiina. They embark upon tests and trials to refine the discovery which could change the world. 

However, these experiments come at a significant and catastrophic cost… With every D-Mail sent, the ramifications grow and grow until Rintaro faces the full horrifying consequences of his discovery. An event that he cannot change. Through the help of his friends, and many events that occur along the way Rintaro slowly learns to undo the effects of his actions and discovers more about himself and his lab mates than he could have dreamed. 

Unlike most Time Travel shows, this one is most unique in its focus is not of the adventure of changing the past, but more the consequences of each and every action. Imagine a world where Akihabara was not a shrine to Anime and manga but just another prefecture. And remains one of the most thought provoking series to date. 

Pros; Pretty animation style Sublime and well planned story Deep and well-designed characters

Cons;

The story is somewhat slow to start, taking a few episodes to settle Some parts of the series do seem a little laboured in places.

Visuals 8/10 Audio 7/10 Plot 10/10

 Overall rating 8/10

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJEGb4MPV6I

[rayerayechan]

Cosplay Picnic June 2015 - AniMedia East meet

I’m now in my sixth year of organising meets for AniMedia East, how time flies! This latest meet was held at Chapelfield Gardens in Norwich 13th June 2015, not only did we have a fun picnic but we also visited some local stores (such as Komikku and GAME at Chapelfield Mall) and on top of that we had a group photo shoot and an afternoon quiz! The only downside to the day was the weather, it was a rainy day but this didn’t stop us from having a fun time together! We welcomed the Norfolk Fur’s to our meet and was really happy they stayed as long as they did (the weather was very unforgiving for their fluffy tails!).

We really enjoyed visiting the local stores, especially Komikku. It’s really important that I can show how much Norwich has to offer for anime fans and Komikku is a must-see store with a wealth of merchandise for lots of tastes. They even hold card tournaments and also advertise local meets.

The afternoon quiz we held was run by my current group co-runner Mark, he did a great job compiling some tricky questions but also threw in a few easy ones. He even got some Pocky for the winners! Well done to all the teams and thank you for a great turnout (I believe we had approx 30 people for this latest quiz!).

Sadly, the day couldn’t last forever and before we knew it the meet was over, but that didn’t stop me dragging a few people to Wagamama’s nearby – that pork ramen bowl was so good. I hope I can find somewhere that will offer an ultimate meat bowl challenge someday, like they have in Persona 4… That would be amazing! Especially on a rainy day!

The next AniMedia East meet is scheduled for late August, but I’ll put more information out on social media when it’s ready to be announced!

[rayerayechan]

Cosplay Easter Norwich - AniMedia East meet 18th April

Our AniMedia East Cosplay Easter event was held at The Griffin Pub in Norwich on Saturday 18th April and we raised money for two charities including Air Ambulance and E.A.C.H – totalling £116.01. I decided to dress up as Super Sonico for this meet, with a light blue 1950’s style cocktail dress and denim jacket!

Throughout the day we had a gaming area with a Wii U set up with Super Smash Bros and Mario Kart 8, as well as the option of Just Dance. In addition we had the awesome AMV:UK running anime music videos for us (thanks to Sak!) and I baked some cupcakes for charity (om nom nom carrot cake catnip).

This meet was also special as we set up some tables for merchants, who sold anime goods, cute trinkets and art! Links to those businesses can be found on our website links page. Big thanks to Emily, Brittany and Sophie and Lizzy for bringing along their goodies.

Not only this, but we had a fun Easter Egg Hunt, which I drew up scattered around the pub with riddle clues I made up, with the ultimate find a big easter egg supplied by AMV:UK – runners up got mini eggs which me and fellow AE host Mark contributed to as well.

Later in the afternoon we held our second AniMedia East Quiz, run by quizmaster Mark while I helped and our winners won even more chocolate! This was followed by our group photo which can be found on our website!

Lastly, nearing the end of the day we had the mini Charity Auction with the proceeds split 50/50 between Air Ambulance and E.A.C.H, followed by some quick pub grub before heading home. More information on our upcoming meets and photos can be found on our website http://www.AniMediaEast.webs.com where you can find and join our groups on Facebook and follow us on Twitter, so please keep supporting us with your attendance!

Our next meet is a Cosplay Picnic to be held on Saturday 13th June at Chapelfield Gardens in Norwich from 11am.

[rayerayechan]

AniMedia East Cosplay Ball Norwich - Feb 2015

21st February 2015 was the much anticipated Cosplay Ball that I ran with my fellow bud Mark Harper at AniMedia East along with other much needed volunteers. I made some pretty paper orb decorations and put up some purple drapes to give us a little ball feel, which was greatly appreciated! The meet was held at a venue we had been to before, The Griffin Pub in Norwich and it was such as fantastic day, we raised almost £200 in aid of charities, here is my round-up.

The meet ran from 12 mid day and we have AMV:UK (Sak) showcasing some fantastic AMV’s on two screens in the dance floor area.

Myself and a few others baked some delicious cupcakes which were on sale for the charity E.A.C.H (East Anglia Children’s Hospice) – in addition we collected a few pounds from people who wanted to participate in the Cosplay Ball that evening – in total we managed to raise £39.21 for E.A.C.H – thank you everyone!

We had a Super Smash Bro’s knock-out tournament with Joshua (Flickie) winning an item of his choosing from the charity auction goodies – big thanks to Daniel Heath who ran the gaming section!

In the afternoon, Quiz Master Mark Harper ran the first official AniMedia East Quiz – trophies were handed out to the three teams that did the best and the winners won some candy too! There was also a consolation prize for last place.

Later in the day we popped out of the venue to get some photos with Mark our official photographer – some brilliant shots were taken and shared – if anyone wants to buy prints, do shout! I adored the Totoro Girl ones that Mark took of me, very appropriate in a random field and the sunset was stunning.

Lastly we had the hugely successful Charity Auction in aid of Air Ambulance, we had some great fun bidding on items that people had kindly donated, myself included! It was a strange feeling seeing people outbid each other from my old PS1 DBZ and Kotobuki games! We raised a total of £150.76 in aid of Air Ambulance.

The end of the daytime event meant the start of the Cosplay Ball – we had some brilliant music and videos from AMV:UK – All thanks to Sak! We then ended the evening by crowning the King and Queen of the Cosplay Ball (Jason and Alex) and I created some handmade medals for them to wear as proof.

All in all it was a great day but we really hope even more people will stay for the ball next time! The next AniMedia East meet is scheduled for 18th April 2015. http://rayerayechan.webs.com/apps/blog/

[animediaeast]

Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet - Anime Review - 8/10

This review has been made and submitted by Mark Harper and is a review of the I.G Production anime Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet

The story-line of this unusual anime starts just the same as most other mecha style anime. The Galactic Alliance of Humans, armed with grand space warships and AI equipped mechanized combat suits known as Machine Calibers, fight against a powerful race of intelligent ‘Space Squids’ known as the Hideauze.

During a battle to destroy a Hideauze super weapon a young silver haired soldier, Ledo and his Machine Caliber Chambers, become separated from their forces after a calamitous battle. Instead of following the fleet through a wormhole back to their home of Avalon, he becomes cast through space. 6 months later he is awakened from stasis to find himself on a strange water planet. Chambers and himself are salvaged from the bottom of the ocean by a fleet of ships known as Gargantia and their primitive crew. Unable to understand their language and being confused Ledo flees taking Amy, one of the crew hostage. Eventually Chambers translates the inhabitants language and through discussion Ledo learns that the planet is in fact Earth.

The true story does not focus on the mecha aspect, yet more on the growth of Ledo and the A.I Chambers. Through their experiences and being guided by the young courier Amy, they become accustomed to this strange planet and the inhabitants. From other fleets to gangs of pirates. Ledo learns to work and live peacefully alongside with the native humans. However his primary mission and instilled training re emerges when he discovers that the Hideauze may already be on this planet. Further political opinions in the crew of the Gargantia cause divisions and discoveries that shock Ledo to the core and shakes the very ideologies he holds dear.

Pros;- Overall the animation style is rather pretty, the combat effects are colourful and well choreographed. The musical composition is subtle and complimentary and the storyline is well thought out with many twists and kinks in the plot.

Cons;- Some characters background and history are weaker than others, with very little in the way of development or depth and some elements are poorly explained. However the additional specials do help provide a little more growth in certain characters. Some episodes do seem to drag by with little progression towards the story, giving the feel of it being Filler material.

All in all it is a worth while watch. Not your typical Spacey Mecha show, but still has your daily dose of giant robot for the fans out there! But the growth of the core characters is the true jewel of this show.

Visuals 8/10 Audio 7/10 Plot 9/10

Overall rating 8/10

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rY2yISt4yMk

[animediaeast]

Norwich Cosplay Meet - October 2014

Hi everyone! Our next meet is at Chapelfield Gardens in Norwich from 10:30am til 5pm on Saturday 4th October. Full details can be found here on our event page.

  http://www.facebook.com/events/527030217442291 

*All who are under the age of 16 must have an adult with them.*

*People with disabilities must bring their own chaperone to accompany them.*

*No cosplay props or weapons are permitted.*

*Cosplay is encouraged but it is not mandatory.*

If you need to contact us for any reason please do so via our social media or by emailing me!

Thanks!

Raye

AniMedia East www.animediaeast.webs.com 

The AniMedia East committee

(Raye Springall - Head of events/PR, liaison, joint founder, webmistress, treasurer.

Mark Harper - liasion/photographer.

Melissa Joy joint founder, liaison and administration)

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Celebrating 5 Years of AniMedia East

Welcome to our new page for news and reviews! :)

We have just celebrated our 5 year anniversary of AniMedia East - thank you everyone for all the memories, we hope to make even more in the years to come! 

Our last meet!

Just another big thank you from me and the rest of the team for our successful meet in Lowestoft in June!

We raised a total of £20 for the EACH charity http://www.each.org.uk/

It was a great day and as always we will let you all know when the next meet will be very soon!

Raye  AniMedia East www.animediaeast.webs.com