Anime-zing Number of Fans Descend on Con

Interesting recap in the Vancouver Sun of this past weekend's anime conference here in the Lower Mainland. Anime Evolution saw about 5,000 people drop by, which is pretty impressive for an SF-related con in this town. The annual V-Con (Vancouver Science Fiction, Fantasy and Gaming Convention) doesn't see anywhere near those numbers. Didn't go to AE myself because, while I enjoy anime from time to time, I don't think I'd be in for a solid three days of it. That being said, I think it's great that they can draw that kind of support.

It was disheartening though to see some of the comments that accompanied the article on the paper's website when I first saw it earlier today (it appears they now have been taken off). There were at least two jackasses who'd left snotty remarks making fun of the con-goers for their interests and for dressing up. I don't dress up at cons, but I certainly don't have a problem with people who do. If that's your thing, cool. Some people put a lot of work into their costumes and some of them are pretty impressive. A friend of mine put together her own Aeon Flux costume for a Hallowe'en party a while ago, and not only did she do a good job on the costume itself, but (and I say this in a purely platonic way) she was smokin' in that thing. I don't think anyone would have objected to seeing her wearing that getup. So why make fun of some other people for wearing their costumes to a con? Why a couple of losers feel the need to go to the comments section and make the effort to mock these folks is beyond me. Why is it acceptable for sports fans to go to their favourite team's games in jerseys, face paint (or, worse yet, no jerseys and body paint to accentuate their decidely unathletic forms) and stupid foam fingers (I can make fun of those things because I've owned one of those foam fingers myself in the past, and wore it at a game or two), but people who dress up at a con are somehow fit only for cruel, childish insults? Ultimately, there are always going to be assholes in the world who feel the need to pick on others because their interests are different. But it's comforting to know that geeks can walk past the assholes and go to cons where they can meet others with similar interests, have fun and know they're not alone.