Convention Report - Anime Boston 2026
I'm back home from Anime Boston, had a good time.
Yoko Kanno's concert on Friday was great, albeit mostly if not entirely songs from the Cowboy Bebop soundtrack (there were a couple that I'm fairly sure I've heard before but couldn't immediately place so could be something else). If I'd planned further ahead I would have considered going to her concerts in NYC next weekend for more. One neat thing was that her piano was covered in while fabric and acted as a projection screen for a couple of pieces.
At an "anime according to misleading AMVs" panel I was apparently the only person in the room who had seen Kanon and was willing to describe what the actual plot is. As I broadly put it because it's been a while and I forgot some specifics: it's a visual novel adaptation where boy visits cousin and supernatural things happen with various girls. I declined to include a comparison to the similar but much more well-known Clannad (another Key VN with a KyoAni adaptation) or my own opinion on it since I wasn't a fan. The same panel had this Haruhi AMV and sadly there were a lot of people raising their hands when they asked who hadn't seen it. The people running it had to explain how people used to do the Hare Hare Yukai dance at random in the halls at the con.
I picked up a few prints that I need to get framed, including a trio of Kids on the Slope, Chihayafuru, and Princess Tutu from the same artist. I think that was the only instance of the former two series I noticed in the artists' alley but the latter's had surprising longevity for its age/popularity and was at a few different booths; I got small wooden charms of Tutu and [Cardcaptor] Sakura which I wore on my badge for the rest of the con.
I have no idea how much is specific to AB but it's interesting to me seeing which series have a lasting presence in fandoms beyond the mainstream (and usually shounen) titles. Ouran's still big and a group doing the character intros of that series won grand prize at the masquerade with a lot of people cheering for them. Conversely it's also interesting seeing which popular shows are completely absent, though those are also ones that I generally don't watch so I wouldn't necessarily know unless someone else pointed out a lack of them. Plenty of Frieren and Fern cosplayers though so no surprise there. One less popular cosplay that I noticed and enjoyed in passing was someone going as Utage which I recognized by the "Tamon = God" sign she was carrying.
I saw some discussion yesterday on Akane-banashi getting a dub which I found amusing after watching an English rakugo performance by Katsura Sunshine earlier today (and three of his apprentices, Katsura Sunny, Katsura Moonlight, and Katsura Sunflower who opened the show with the classic Jugemu). Since he regularly performs in NYC I might have to make it down there for a show sometime.
One part of the con that I'm making a point to do every year now is the AMV contest. Last year's batch was great but this year was no slouch.
Out the gate the best short was May I Ask For One Everlast Thing though I also liked the meta aspect of AMV Editor MasterClass.
Best drama goes to spoilers for a show I haven't seen yet, Fallacy (Delicious in Dungeon) though I can appreciate the story told without context. My vote went to use of a KPop Demon Hunters song I expect we'll see a lot more of in the future with Weightless (Beyond the Boundary).
Linkin Park continues to be relevant with Faith in the Feral (Uma Musume) though it didn't win in the action category; that went to A Gunmatic Irony while my vote went to Yet (Little Witch Academia).
Best sentimental (and best concept) went to Who's Gonna Tell Him? (My Dress-Up Darling) which was fun though that category was stacked in my opinion. The other finalists had some classic songs with Cardcaptors in Love (Cardcaptor Sakura) and Downtown Delivery (Kiki's Delivery Service), though my vote went to Firsts (After School) (Insomniacs After School) and there was what seemed like an AMV custom-made to show starry skies, Love Beneath the Stars.
Another creative song choice was in First Love (Zenshu) and it made me want to go back and pick the show back up, though the winner of the upbeat category was Spandex Butterfly (Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann).
The fun/humor category winner "I've Created a Pokemonster!" (My Dress-Up Darling/Pokémon) is a delightful abomination to spring on the world. I'll also highlight what got my vote which was the somewhat NSFW The Struggle.
The "other" category had a pair of film trailers spliced with anime in The Angel (Rebuild of Evangelion) and winner Anya: The Musical (Spy x Family).
The coordinator's choice award went to something featuring my favorite romance of last year in Good Boy(friend) (With You Our Love Will Make It Through).
But no doubt the best in show winner (and best editing) was The Vertical Expression of a Horizontal Desire which also got my vote, a fantastic compilation all around.