Let’s Go To Another Anime Convention: My Experience Going to Oni-Con 2022

Hey guys how’s it going? Today’s post is going to be my experience at Oni-Con 2022. This will be my play-by-play of my experience with some photos to correspond.

First, I want to thank the Oni-Con Press Coordinator for the opportunity to attend the convention as press. I truly appreciated this opportunity as someone who is local to see what this convention had to offer.

Travel/Accommodations

I was able to travel after work on Friday (the venue was near where my work was). I also stayed at the Holiday Inn with my dear friend nearby on Saturday and that was a good place to go to although the walls are super thin. We also had difficulty getting some television going so we ended up watching YouTube (Dope or Nope most of the time). Overall, though, would recommend staying there. if you could not get the nearest hotel next to the Venue.

At the Convention

At the start of the convention, it seemed to be very disorganized when it came to registration and programming. Things were not labelled, and essentially the entrance of the convention was Artist Alley and not registration. It was very chaotic to say the least. I waited about 20 minutes in order to receive my badge but that could have been because it was the first day. I also was a little disappointed in the One-day pass being a wristband rather than a laminated badge. There was also an aspect I wasn’t a fan of that you had to be in a certain club to participate in that took up most of the Con space and I never understood why it was a part of it or what made it so cool.

Exhibition Hall/Artist Alley

This is probably the part of the con that I visited the most and probably the one I loved the most. There were a variety of artists and vendors that I was able to visit and take photos for an upcoming blog post and everyone was very kind as far as talking to me and making me feel like I was not bothering them at all. I think my only issue that I had with them was that there was not a lot of fandom choices personally. I mean don’t get me wrong there was a ton of items there and tons of beautiful art and vendors, it just felt like there should have been more fandoms represented for me personally.

Food

Lunch

Rainforest Cafe

Because of the lack of non-snack food that the convention provided, we decided to eat out both meals. First was Lunch at the Rainforest Cafe nearby. The timing of the food was fine, and the atmosphere was standard for the cafe for a Saturday afternoon. I picked out The Creole Mac & Cheese and I liked it, but I think there was personally too much spice for what I wanted so my mouth was feeling funky afterwards. My friend also got the new Meatloaf and they said that there was way too much meat in it for their liking as well.

Dinner

Joe’s Crab Shack

For Dinner, we went to Joe’s Crab Shack and truly was a 180 experience from Lunch. It could have been the timing; it could have been the waitress who knows? But the point was that dinner was fantastic with the simple shrimp platter. My friend got the variety platter, and they enjoyed it as well.

Overall, I truly wished that the convention provided a variety of food other than snacks but, the restaurant experiences we had weren’t bad per say but I wanted more from them both.

Fashion Show/Concert

Now looking at the schedule that was provided and advertised on the Oni-con website, this was the panel I was looking forward to especially since one of the models was a Jpop singer from Scandal the artist that did Shuken Sentimental from Full Metal Alchemist. Honestly, I loved the Fashion Show it was fun it was unique and comfortable and took only 10 minutes to complete. The Concert with the Scandal artist was where it took a nosedive. The acoustics provided for her stunk and made her sound like there was feedback all over the place and after two songs, we had to leave because it was so painful. I wished they had made things easier, and sound checked first.

Trying out Snacks After The Convention

At the end of the day, my friend and I checked into the hotel and just chilled out. There was nothing more to do. However, we definitely wanted to try out some Japanese snacks that a couple of the Exhibition Hall booths had and at least according to us, the mochi was ok, the ramune was ok (that particular flavor anyway), and the chips were interestingly delicious haha. It was though very fun to try all of this out with a friend so if you see a food booth at a convention, I challenge you to try some unique snacks with a friend.

Haul

Perler Bead Sculpture from Hooked and Beyond

I remember Perler Bead art being around for years and years, but I never found anything as unique as this piece. Kiki’s Delivery Service was a movie I saw the trailer so many times before I knew what Anime was and definitely having this piece makes me want to rewatch and read the story. Wonderful quality plus a great price. Check out the shop they also do crochet work.

Faerie Earrings from Tradeship Odessa

The booth that I received these earrings from was definitely the most unique one with terrariums and overall whimsy. They had a variety of Faerie earrings and ultimately because of the outfit I was wearing the day I bought them, I picked this pair. They also were a fantastic price for being handmade. Highly recommend them.

Lore Olympus Print from OSC Studios

Honestly this artist found me in the vendor hall and wanted my friend and I to check them out. They had this piece and a Spider Gwen one that I wanted, but ultimately, I chose the Lore Olympus one because it was the only Lore Olympus item, I saw there plus I love this pose. The artist also explained to me how he created the pieces digitally and I was intrigued. Check them out if you’re interested.

My Dress-Up Darling Pillows from No Shrinking Violet

Last but most certainly not least I bought these pillows from an artist and honestly at first, I just wanted Marin because when I fangirl, I feel like I make the face that Marin does all the time. But after looking and thinking about Gojo as well and how beautiful both of the pillows are, I had to get them both. They had a variety of fandoms and kawaii art on pillows and other handmade goods that were so soft and high quality, that I had to get them. Check them out if you are interested.

Wrap-up/Reflections

Overall, I have had a lot of time to think about this convention while writing this post, and I did not hate the convention, but I was largely disappointed based on the panels, the lack of certain aspects of a well-rounded anime convention, and the locale of the convention as far as room to maneuver everywhere. Would I visit this convention again? Honestly, if I do, it would be either as a press person or a very cheap ticket because this was definitely not worth 45 dollars to attend. I enjoyed my time seeing new vendors and making some minor connections and seeing (although very little) unique fandom items around the convention. But I wanted more from it especially for showing my friend an anime convention for the first time.

Have you guys been to a Convention? What did you guys think of posts like this? Let’s talk about it!!

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