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[Celebrating An Era - 1990's! Slayers (1995)]

Good morning old schoolers!

Yeah, yeah, it's Saturday rather than Friday again.  Anyway... wow, a lot of interest (via Facebook) in the gathering already!  This week we're a few days shy of four months until FanimeCon, which means I personally need to get myself in gear and get moving on cosplay work.  I'm good for the Old School Cosplay Gathering but there's a ton to do still for the rest of the weekend's cosplay plans - and of course all of them are old school.

Today another one of those massively popular series of its time, and a reminder that all that great anime from the 1990's is outstanding basis for cosplay and falls well within the time range for the Old School Cosplay Gathering.  I meet people every year that had their anime interest expanded by the second western anime boom in the 1990's, including myself as my teenage years fell into the end of that range.

Celebrating An Era - 1990's!  Slayers (1995)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lR0DOfE3Hso

Rotating civilian Motoki Furuhata and Makoto Kino out for 2018 but my wife and I will be there as another civilian Sailor Moon couple.

[Celebrating An Era - 1960's! Gegege no Kitaro (1968)]

Good morning old schoolers!

With Fanime housing now cycled through for the early registrants (I sincerely hope you all were able to book housing if needed or at least have booked something and registered on the waitlist), we're starting to see convention activity begin to spin up for 2018.  To that end, I thought I would get things going here as we're now a little more than four months away from Fanime!

As in previous years, the weekly old school anime opening (OP) posts are back.  I know they're not everyone's cup of sake but I really enjoy searching them out and it keeps me in the habit of updating the gathering event page and forum thread.  Generally these will be one OP per week (usually on Friday) right up until Fanime, along with any gathering updates for the week.  The information posted here is also cross-posted in the gathering thread on the Fanime forums.

Today may be Saturday but I seem have a tradition of sorts in kicking things off on a non-Friday.  So here we go with a series that had its anime premiere fifty years ago this month!

Celebrating An Era - 1960's!  Gegege no Kitaro (1968)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NWAtSxvoe4g
*** 50th Anime Anniversary ***

That's the thing, we didn't get a junior suite. There were 4 options with the marriott: king with rollaway, double bed room, junior suite and then a king room with no rollaway. The website and CMR customer service rep confirmed that the room can hold 4 people. So again, are they expecting 4 people to sleep on one bed or are 2 people sleeping on the floor???

Exactly.  It's a single king but the fire regulation occupancy for the room is four.

As I said in the unofficial group on Facebook -

If you NEED a room for the entire weekend, book at one of the airport hotels and waitlist with the other location choices you'd like to have. Then at least you have a place to stay all weekend, worst case.

If you're a room-optional person, book a single day at the hotel you want most, and waitlist for more days / full weekend at another location.

I did the latter as I don't need a room but some parts of my group MAY need housing as the convention gets closer, but would simply change their plans (attending for a single day rather than all weekend) if full on-site housing doesn't pan out.

Just remember, if you want to bail on a reservation you have until April 27th (may change) to cancel without penalty.

First and foremost - help yourself by waitlisting for the locations / rooms you need.  If you go back to the housing site after you finish your booking, go to the room availability list, and you will notice that some of the "Reserve / Unavailable" buttons have changed to "Waitlist." Click one of those and it'll take you to the Waitlist form.  Complete that, then it'll e-mail you the waitlist details confirmation after that.

The 18th at 10am for me.  I registered on November 11th, if anyone is curious.  Could have done it immediately (and should have done it immediately anyway - stupid I didn't) but I needed to see how big the attending group was going to be after the "no group reg" change this year.

Merp, my plans keep changing, as of now I'm not doing anything old school. :C I might still take photos, though!

*Kicks self for changing a lot* Scratch what I keep saying, and because of my recent change, I may be there as Michiru from Sailor Moon. xD (I've had the wig for what feels like ages but haven't cosplayed her yet so I'm gonna try to stick with this plan XD )

Hehe, that's no problem.  Fanime is still almost five months away so I'm sure your plans may shift again.  I always enjoy seeing Sailor Moon characters at the Old School Cosplay Gathering!

I know the Sailor Moon Gathering absorbs most of them however, including my wife and I as Makoto Kino and Motoki Furuhata over the past two years.  We're rotating Makoto and Motoki (still my favorite anime couple that never was, until the live action series but they made Motoki such a dope in that!) out for 2018 but plan on being at the Sailor Moon Gathering as an early days Michiru and Haruka... because I love obscurity even with mainstream titles.

For the Old School Cosplay Gathering we'll probably be wearing our Mobile Police Patlabor uniforms (Shinobu Nagumo and Kiichi Goto specifically) once more.  We were going to give them a rest in 2018 but it's the 30th anniversary of Patlabor, along with a new anime series "Patlabor EZY" slated for 2018, so that's our Friday plan.

Good morning old schoolers!

It looks like many returning FanimeCon cosplay gathering organizers have begun to stir their interest threads on the Fanime forums.  Still don't expect a lot of movement here until into the New Year (no changes planned, Fanime Friday as usual) but I did want to touch base once more, and wish everyone a happy holiday season.

As the FanimeCon 2018 theme is "Gaming" I want to extend a reminder that pre-2001 video game cosplay is absolutely good to go for the Old School Cosplay Gathering.  And as this is the Friday prior to Christmas, an appropriate piece of old school video game music...

From the Winter season of 1999 and DanceDanceRevolution 3rdMIX, Silent Hill -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8q6FPZcIJSE

Clockwork has grown into a separate independent event.

Our Gaming departments are definitely interested in ideas. What do you have in mind?

A couple rows of candy cabs (traditional Japanese sit-down arcade cabinets prevalent since the JAMMA standard was introduced in 1985) like was seen at AOD this year.  It would be cool to have an area of the arcade super-themed to be like an old style Japanese game center or even a separate room that was like that.  And of course you can run anything on those cabinets, shooters, fighting games, run and guns, classic arcade titles, etc.

Or, you know, this could be another instance of confusing the "Art Gallery" with "Artist's Alley."

Oh I also have a question, I know there is a lot of people who are either over 17 or 18 and do not have their license yet, for they either haven't taken their test or gotten their license yet, and cannot use the license as proof of their age. What should we do about that if they are trying to prove that they are their age, i've seen many people at the con over the years who had a problem with this

Then they should adult over to the DMV and get a state ID card.

I have two I can potentially wear for this. I have umbreon from pokemon, but I'll probably be wearing that a different day. I'll be wearing Fred Weasley from Harry Potter that day though and the book was pre-2001. :)

Still a long way off but we could always use early generation Pokemon representation if things work out differently!

Sadly I'm not doing anything old school next year, but I'll probably take pictures, anyway. :)

Scratch that, I am bringing Boi from Zyuranger, which is old school. XD

Woohoo!  We don't have nearly enough live action representation! :)

[Photo Galleries From OSCG 2017 (Previous Year) :]

Photo Galleries From OSCG 2017 (Previous Year) :

Updated Photography Order As It Was Called / Shot:

1960's or earlier.
1960's - 1970's (no 1970's cosplayers this year at the start).
1960's - 1980's.
1960's - 2000 (all eras group shot).
Sword wielders.
Fighters.
Spacefaring characters.
Military / rank and file / special forces / tactical background / etc.
Characters with psychic powers / espers / spiritual power / magic / etc.
Pilots / drivers / craft operators / machine operators / etc.
Characters known to carry firearms / laser guns / shooters / etc.
Robots / androids / synthetic people.
Teachers / students / faculty / school attendants / etc.
Magical girls.
Battle teams.
Characters who are on the run / fugitives / scoundrels / etc.
Heroes.
Villains.
Civilians.
Aliens.
Video game characters.
Manga only characters (none this year).
Live action only characters (none this year).
Series groups.

Mixed requests:
Gentlemen.
Ladies (and one mokkori sweeper - sorry, couldn't resist being in character).
Pairings / couples.
Playboys and ladies.


Unofficial Gallery of pictures taken by the co-host can be found here:
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.671897979666014.1073741833.496398453882635&type=3

These are high quality, untouched, non-watermarked pictures, essentially everything she shot.  Feel free to tag, share, download, etc. and if you are a cosplayer in a picture you are absolutely welcome to reupload pictures of yourself elsewhere!  If anyone has issue with a specific picture, just let me know here (a PM is fine) and I'll take care of it.


Tye / Imperal, FanimeCon Friday, 4pm - 7pm Gatherings OFFICIAL Gallery -
https://fanimecon.slickpic.com/albums/FanimeCon-Friday-4pm-7pm/?wallpaper
(scroll down to see an awesome set of official pictures from the gathering)
Thank you for taking pictures at the gathering, assisting with countdowns, and being an all around awesome Head of the Cosplay Gatherings Department!


Stormfalcon, Day One Gallery -
Day One: https://stormfalcon.smugmug.com/CosplayPhotography/FanimeCon-2017-05-26/
(Old School Cosplay Gathering photos begin on page 16)
Thank you for taking pictures at the gathering!


OSCG 2017 Fanime Forums Thread:

http://forums.fanime.com/index.php/topic,20867.0.html

[Old School Cosplay Gathering 2018 Photo Gallery Index]

Old School Cosplay Gathering 2018 Photo Gallery Index

Updated Photography Order As It Was Called / Shot (we always improvise a little but here it is for reference) :

By era - 1960's (or earlier).
By era - 1970's.
By era - 1980's.
By era - 1990's (to 2000).
Timeline group shot by era / cumulative group shot by era.
Characters who use swords / knives / blades / etc.
Characters known to get physical / fighters / brawlers.
Military / rank and file / soldiers.
Characters with psychic powers / spiritual powers / espers / magic / etc.
Pilots / drivers / craft operators / mech jockeys.
Teachers / students / faculty / school attendants / etc.
Characters who use firearms / laser guns / projectile weapons / etc.
Magical girls.
Spacefaring characters / those who live off-world.
Robots / androids / synthetic people / mecha.
Characters who are mysterious / shadowy.
Animals / pets.
Public servants / government organizations / secret organizations.
Dead / expired / lifeless characters.
Characters with secret identities.
Characters in uniform of any type.
Battle teams.
Characters who are on the run / fugitives / scoundrels / bounty hunters.
Monsters / demons / youma / etc.
Characters who are technically minded / deductive / intelligent / geniuses.
Heroes.
Villains.
Heroes vs Villains.
Great warriors / legendary masters.
Civilians.
Aliens.
Age vs Youth / old characters vs young characters.
Video game characters.
Pairings / couples.
Requests.
Final group shot for late attendees (regular / humorous).


Unofficial Gallery of pictures taken by the co-host can be found here:
https://www.facebook.com/496398453882635/photos/?tab=album&album_id=836074006581743

These are high quality, untouched, non-watermarked pictures, essentially everything she shot.  Feel free to tag, share, download, etc. and if you are a cosplayer in a picture you are absolutely welcome to reupload pictures of yourself elsewhere!  If anyone has issue with a specific picture, just let me know here (a PM is fine) and I'll take care of it.  We were without an official FanimeCon photographer this year, so I suppose our photos have become the "official" photos.


ephemient via Fanime Forums, Old School Gathering Gallery -
https://photos.app.goo.gl/EwahLoiM7ompvnzH3
Thank you for taking pictures at the gathering!


bahamutknightzero via Fanime Forums, Fanime 2018 Gallery -
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10160530130130296.1073741850.828005295&type=1&l=bce098e028
Thank you for taking pictures at the gathering!


Studio Stormfalcon, FanimeCon 2018-05-25, Old School Gathering beginning on page 8 -
https://stormfalcon.smugmug.com/CosplayPhotography/FanimeCon-2018-05-25/
Thank you for taking pictures at the gathering!


If anyone has pictures of the Old School Cosplay Gathering, please post the link to your gallery and I will add them to this post!

Thank you again to all who attended or expressed interest in this gathering!  We can't wait to do it again for 2019 as FanimeCon celebrates a legacy of its own with the 25th anniversary of the convention!

[Fanime 2018 Old School Cosplay Gathering!]

Greetings old school cosplayers!  Last year's Old School Gathering was an absolute blast, thank you all for your amazing attendance, awesome cosplay, and for putting up with me as everyone's favorite middle-aged nanpa boy - Ryo Saeba!  Last year was my second time hosting the gathering and of course I'm doing it again!  Continuing the tradition of the gathering that got me into cosplay, I announce the...

Fanime 2018 Old School Cosplay Gathering!

Come celebrate the rich history of Japanese entertainment culture!

This is a hugely open gathering for those of you / us who cosplay as characters from the previous century.  Essentially if your cosplay character appears in Anime, Manga, Video Games or Live Action (resident beings of Nebula M78 are welcome) that began prior to 2001, then this is the gathering for you!  Although I like to have a decidedly Japanese lean to this gathering, it is not completely exclusive.

2018 is a big year with...
...the 50th anniversary of Golgo 13 and the 50th anime anniversary of Cyborg 009 and Gegege no Kitaro.
...the 40th anime anniversary of Space Pirate Captain Harlock and Galaxy Express 999.
...the 30th anime anniversary of Samurai Troopers, Mobile Police Patlabor, and GunBuster.
...the 20th anime anniversary of Card Captor Sakura, His and Her Circumstances, Cowboy Bebop, Trigun, Outlaw Star, Initial D, and Serial Experiments Lain.


Day : Friday, May 28th (Day 1)
Time : 6PM - 7PM
Meeting Place (MP) : Same as Location, G3
Location (L) : Gatherings G3, Downstairs Tiered Platform (on the lower floor, the wooden steps close to video) this is a NEW location for 2018!

This will be our third year hosting!  Please note we will be at a slightly different location than last year - turn right from the main Convention Center entrance, and head down the stairs to the video rooms on the lower level.  We will be on the downstairs wooden tiered platforms.

Gatherings G3 is the wooden tiered platform area along the stairs that lead down to the video rooms on the lower level.  This location will give us more space to spread out, even lighting, lower stair platforms, and a protected backdrop wall.  It's all around more convenient and if it works out well I would like it to become the new permanent location for the gathering.

Cosplayers : If you would like, please post who your cosplay character is, what title it is from and what year you are representing!  As this gathering is a total wildcard mix of different characters, series, studios, and genres - spanning time rather than properties - a definitive list is otherwise not provided.  Part of the fun of the OSCG is seeing just who shows up.


Legal Statement : Fanime will be taking group pictures during the Gathering/Event this year. If you do not want to be included in those pictures please step aside for those photos. By remaining with the group when the pictures are being taken you give your consent to be photographed.


Photography Order : If there is any specific setup or shot you would like, just let me know!  This gathering is to celebrate all of us as cosplayers who keep the vintage fire alive.

By era - 1960's (or earlier).
By era - 1970's.
By era - 1980's.
By era - 1990's (to 2000).
Group shot.
Timeline group shot by era / cumulative group shot by era (dependent on gathering size).
Characters who use swords / knives / blades / etc.
Characters known to get physical / fighters / brawlers.
Military / rank and file / soldiers.
Characters with psychic powers / spiritual powers / espers / magic / etc.
Pilots / drivers / craft operators / mech jockeys.
Teachers / students / faculty / school attendants / etc.
Characters who use firearms / laser guns / projectile weapons / etc.
Magical girls.
Spacefaring characters / those who live off-world.
Robots / androids / synthetic people / mecha.
Characters who are mysterious / shadowy.
Public servants / government organizations / secret organizations.
Dead / expired / lifeless characters.
Characters with secret identities.
Characters in uniform of any type.
Battle teams.
Characters who are on the run / fugitives / scoundrels / bounty hunters.
Monsters / demons / youma / etc.
Characters who are technically minded / deductive / intelligent / geniuses.
Heroes.
Villains.
Heroes vs Villains.
Great warriors / legendary masters.
Civilians.
Aliens.
Animals / pets.
Age vs Youth / old characters vs young characters.
Video game characters.
Manga only characters.
Live Action only characters.
Pairings / couples.
Series groups (dependent on attendance / request).
By studio / production team (dependent on attendance / request).
Solo shots (dependent on request).
Additional requests (cosplayer requested).
Final group shot for late attendees (regular / humorous).

I am always up for future ideas to add to the list!  A good portion of the photo order is built upon suggestions from previous years.


Facebook Event Link: https://www.facebook.com/events/314735342281455


This is an excellent gathering to psyche you up for the convention weekend.  If you're an old school cosplayer, stop by and join us!  Feel free to pop in for a moment to say hi, see some incredible cosplay, pose for some pictures, and continue to prove that just because it's old doesn't mean it isn't awesome!


Thank you so very much.  Let's have another great turnout and continue this wonderful Fanime tradition!

[Shinya Arino]

An even bigger long shot than my request for Cibo Matto for Musicfest but.....

Shinya Arino - Japanese comedian and media personality probably best known these days as the star of GameCenter CX.  For a convention such as FanimeCon with the theme for 2018 as gaming, there is no better guest of honor you could hope to have.  GameCenter CX is a celebration of Japanese video gaming, gaming culture, classic gaming lifestyle, video game related skits, just everything wonderful about classic gaming and the peak of the Japanese video game industry as a whole.  At present, GameCenter CX has run for 14 years and is in the middle of its 21st season.

The show has a massive following in the USA, after a rough start with a handful of episodes loosely localized by Kotaku and released as RetroGame Master.  At the end of this run, GameCenter CX actually had a USA trip, visiting San Francisco and Los Angeles in 2011.  Desiring a more complete and accurate experience, a number of fan translation groups began translating episodes, most famously the Something Awful GCCX Team (SA-GCCX).  SA-GCCX developed a wonderful relationship with the show, staff, and production company.  The head translator for SA-GCCX eventually re-translated the Kotaku package episodes and others for the official RetroGame Master GameCenter CX Collection North American DVD boxset.  SA-GCCX continues to fan translate episodes to this day.  Additionally the first of the three GameCenter CX video games had an official localized release in North America as RetroGame Master, itself a celebration of gaming with friends.

Again, I'm sure it's a total long shot but it would be awesome if FanimeCon could make an attempt to get the Kacho back to the states for one more challenge.  Show cameraman Kouichi Abe would be a pretty big draw as well, I'm sure.


Alternately -

Mamoru Oshii - visionary writer, director, and master craftsman of the anime that makes you think as it entertains you.  Honestly I'm sure a great deal of Fanime attendees are already familiar with the man and his works.  Storyboard artist on the Urusei Yatsura anime, as well as the director of the first two films - and writer on the second, Beautiful Dreamer.  Directed Dallos, essentially the first OVA ever created.  Worked briefly with Isao Takahata and Hayao Miyazaki before bailing due to creative differences (some of Oshii's musings about Miyazaki are hilarious, true opinions from someone in the trench of anime production).  Founded studio Headgear and created Mobile Police Patlabor in 1988.  In 1995 Oshii created what is generally regarded to be the high point in the Ghost In The Shell productions, the original animated film adaptation.  He's continued to be very active to this day, contentiously one of the most influential writers and directors not just in anime and manga, but in film and popular culture.  Patlabor 2 The Movie being one of the greatest, if not the single greatest outright, anime film ever created.

2018 will be the 30th anniversary of the first Mobile Police Platlabor OVA (early days), with an upcoming new series (Patlabor EZY) on the horizon.  Additionally I can't think of a time when Ghost In The Shell was more (for good or bad) in the public mainstream.  I know it's a pretty big stretch but I can't think of a bigger name to have as a guest of honor.  He's a terribly busy man so I know it is a total shot in the dark.


Tsukasa Hojo - Creator of Cat's Eye, City Hunter, and Angel Heart.  No big over-reaching reason here other than I really like the man's works.  More or less the guardian of slick, stylized action manga with heart.  Dashing men, glamorous women, and over the top adventures with extraordinary people.  Everything he creates is chock full of humor yet very serious at the same time.  Not as well-known in the West as he should be, but a lot of the anime adaptations of his work have been released subtitled over the years.  Most recent being Cat's Eye by Discotek.  The second Angel Heart manga series concluded in 2017, so if this was ever going to happen, I figured now would be the best chance.

[Cibo Matto]

A long shot, but...

Cibo Matto

Still 50 years ahead of their time and 3 dimensions ahead of their space!  It amazes me that there are still people who don't know about this amazing band.  Their biggest mainstream exposure in the US is probably when the song "Birthday Cake" off their debut album, "Viva! La Woman" was included in Jet Set Radio Future.  They reunited in 2011 and released a third album in 2014 and continue to perform live.  From the few people I've talked with who've had the privilege of seeing them live over the years, they pour energy and sound and are unlike any other duo.  Even if they're not viable for Music Fest, if you're reading this and you are not familiar with Cibo Matto, go check them out right now.

PLEASE.

(I write as I'm sitting here listening to King of Silence...heh)

At least, I can dream, right? I would love to see them live, especially now that they're back together.

Now, if only someone could convince GUITAR VADER to get back together so we can get that long-thwarted Fanime concert that was cancelled from over 10 years ago...

Concerning Guitar Vader, I'd be happy if their entire catalog could be collected into one massive anthology, maybe with a couple interviews, and then be given wide physical release.  At least that way their music would go out with an exclamation point rather than a fuzzy question mark.

For Cibo Matto, yeah, outstanding band with a very unique sound and both involved in a bunch of other projects during their hiatus from Cibo Matto - it's pretty crazy when you see how much music these ladies had a hand in creating.  US-based, have a history of touring to all kinds of venues around the world, essentially still active, and amazingly everyone seems to like their music.  I'm sure they would love to perform at an event like Fanime.  Still, I know it would be quite a stretch to see it happen.

[Cibo Matto]

A long shot, but...

Cibo Matto

Still 50 years ahead of their time and 3 dimensions ahead of their space!  It amazes me that there are still people who don't know about this amazing band.  Their biggest mainstream exposure in the US is probably when the song "Birthday Cake" off their debut album, "Viva! La Woman" was included in Jet Set Radio Future.  They reunited in 2011 and released a third album in 2014 and continue to perform live.  From the few people I've talked with who've had the privilege of seeing them live over the years, they pour energy and sound and are unlike any other duo.  Even if they're not viable for Music Fest, if you're reading this and you are not familiar with Cibo Matto, go check them out right now.