It was interesting to find a report or a postmortem or one person’s view about AX 2022 and what they thought of it. They laid out a laundry list of issues that needed to be addressed before the next one, but it seemed to acknowledge that a lot of the problems appeared to be endemic to the nature of expos and may not be solvable, like the long lines. (more…)

Part and parcel of shindigs like this is waiting in line. I mean, unless you can find a venue here that doesn’t clear out the room for the next event, you may find yourself sitting in the broiling sun (we ARE in July, we ARE in Los Angeles) and those stupid tents or awnings or projecting roofs are of zero help. And even if you get in line for an evening event, that concrete is unfriendly to back and legs and whatnot. (more…)

In years past, I avoided the Entertainment Hall, as I felt it was just a place to go to play customizable card games. I could not think of anything more wasteful than to purchase a four-day pass and then, come into this location and play Yu-Gi-Oh or Pokemon non-stop. Why buy such an expensive pass? I know you can find a card room of sorts closer to where you live (up in my neck of the woods, it’s Black Diamond Games), where you can do all of this, and perhaps WarHammer 9000 or whatever it’s called (“It’s over 9000!”) and not shell out that caliber of money you would to be at an Expo. But I was drawn in for other reasons. (more…)

This was something that I had not seen before at AX, or maybe I did, but I paid it no heed. It’s just this was a very popular stand that I needed to find out more about, as there was always a line in front of it, even worse than trying to see the “Trash Taste” boys. (more…)

Now, unless you got a hotel room at the J W Marriott or the Ritz-Carlton (so close to the venue, you could spit on the people down below. Note: Please don’t do that, OK?), you’re going to have to avail yourself of the shuttle buses. Now, this, in and of itself, is not all that bad. They come at regular-ish intervals, so you need not wait too long, especially in front of your hotel, early in the morning. A lot of the street people will stare at you, because you look like Sailor Moon (still a very popular cosplay option) or Sephiroth and his ten-mile sword. It’s just that you ARE dealing with humanity and things can go south faster than you realize, both outside and inside. (more…)

Now, with AX being at the Staples Center crypto.com Arena, it is somewhat easy to get to. There is a subway line that runs close to it (provided you are near a stop. The Biltmore is.) and the shuttle buses are, for the most part, reliable and safe (but more on that later). Driving your car to the venue gets pricey, at $20 a day. But one mode of transportation that was as ubiquitous about the area as discarded Starbucks cups were eScooters. (more…)

In years past, one of the harder panels to get into were all those 18+, FAKKU, hentai fun shows. Even if they put them in ever larger and larger venues, there never seemed to be enough seats for all the perverted people who wanted to show up and ogle and stare and hoot and holler and stomp and enojoy the ‘adult’ activities so presented. And since the Fire Marshal did not allow standing for these things, it got tough, When I got the preliminary schedule for AX, there was one panel that I really, really felt that I had to get into. (more…)

I have been coming to the Expo for 13 years (although I’ve only been four times), but I am only vaguely aware of the costs. I decided to see how much it would actually cost a person to come to this shindig. I will be basing a lot on what it costs me, but your mileage may vary. Also, I am pro-rating things, as I do this for three people, which is a better way to go, as the costs are spread further around. Doing this as a solo is a costly proposition. Let’s do the math. Grasp your calculator. (more…)

Now, I rarely get to drive, even in town. The wife thinks I motor-mouth too much about the other crappy drivers. Well, they ARE crappy drivers. If your car looks like the winner from the Destruction Derby, maybe your skills are not up to snuff. She also thinks I panic when it gets too trafficky. I don’t panic; I get frustrated. Do YOU like sitting in traffic, not moving at all, listening to the thumping bass of the car which is half-a-mile back? However, her knees were hurting, so I was given the honors. I usually use the six-plus hour drive to think about what went down at the convention, but not this time. I spent the drive trying to get around about 100 trucks and keeping an eye on the gas gauge, but I did think. (more…)

Getaway Day is always the worst, as the real trick is packing up your car, but leaving it in a safe place while you amuse yourself with the Last Day. Fortunately, our hotel understands this and lets you keep your car there and then leave for home. (more…)