AnimeExpo is over and it’s good to be back home! Although day 3 and 4 definitely much slower compared to the running around I did the first two days. I went to bed day 2 wondering what else I could possibly do. I feel like I saw what I wanted to and bought what I wanted to, and really made the most of my time. Somehow, I found a way anyways.
I realized I didn't do Yokura's Honkai Star Rail trash rally! 12 artists had a free sticker to give out on a card (on the bottom right) and once you got 6 you can come back for a free clear fil- erm, 5* light cone! It was really fun to run around artist alley with some purpose and seeing all the other artists with Honkai merch! I got a sticker of her OC Mofuko and slapped it on my water bottle and ended up picking up some prints from Belindraws during the rally! The Black Rock Shooter really sucked me in. (╯✧ ∇ ✧)╯
Funny story about the water bottle, I actually applied the sticker at Yokura's table but lost the bottle sometime at the beginning of Day 3. Near the end of Day 4 I coasted back at her table and there it still was, in a corner very out of the way and hidden but just sitting on her table... oops. She didn't notice either but I still feel like a menace. I'm honestly very surprised it didn't get swiped!
McDonalds had a booth there and I was very confused! So confused in fact that I just got in line for the hell of it to find out! It seemed the primary purpose was for cosplay photoshoots, having a mock drive through window, birthday table and ordering counter all to pose behind with staff helping with photos. You're given a poster and a pin for your time upon exiting. Seeing a Zero Two and Luffy posing behind a birthday table filled with McDonalds jargon was an experience. It also wasn't until the very end of the last day that I notiecd a giant Grimace behind the entire stand... oh no. ＼(º □ º l|l)/
Day 3 was also the only day I went out and ate real food! Most of my meals were Doordash sandwiches, Chipotle and the like but a handful of friends got together for some JBBQ! There's a nice little place not too far from AnimeExpo called Gyu-Kaku that has gluten free sauces and seem pretty good with not killing me (I have celiac) so it's sort of becoming a tradition to eat here at least once when in the Downtown LA area.
Let me tell you something about myself; I love figurines. It's a trap I constantly struggle with NOT falling into. There are so many cool anime figures but it's such a financial trap when I'm already losing to my game collecting and skeb addiction. Yet somehow, I'm slowly slipping farther into getting nendoroids and model kits. Model kits are so hands on so it's like an activity and nendoroids are so flippin' cute and both of them are WAY cheaper than most figures. SO WHEN I SEE AN ADVERTISING SCREEN WITH THIS MIKU FACE ON IT,
I caved. I even did a good job staying away from the Good Smile booth knowing I'd get suckered in day 1 and 2 but this was mostly helped by the fact that it had a large line. Day 3 there was no line to be found. BUT LOOK AT HOW CUTE SHE IS. The prices were also completely fair too. I rarely buy these sorts of things from cons because the prices get jacked up and they're cheaper online, but this was a non-issue buying it directly from Good Smiles booth. I love them.
And those are the main things that come to mind that I can accompany with pictures! There are other stories I'm excited to share on stream today that don't have photos. Needless to say, it was really fun and I'm looking forward to a AX 2024! But for now, I'm just happy to be home. It's been a very busy last month and AnimeExpo marked the end of being so busy. So really, I just can't wait to focus on streaming and personal projects.
I did actually spend a 5th day in LA and went into Little Tokyo! While it was brief, I did spend way too much on Japanese chips and snacks! I have this cute idea where I set up a handcam on the side and open every stream with a new snack sampling and review. I'll see about showing off all the different snacks I got next post! (ง'̀-'́)ง
