2018 Old School Cosplay (Pre-2001) Gathering

[Angelx624]

I've been giving things a lot of thought, and while I want to do Michiru, I think it would be better if I did Boi instead because I'm already in the middle of that cosplay since I was trying to have it done for Sac-Anime last year, and if I did him for Fanime, I would have him done for PMC.

So yeah. ><" Next year though I'll probly do Michiru. :3

[InsaneDavid]

I've been giving things a lot of thought, and while I want to do Michiru, I think it would be better if I did Boi instead because I'm already in the middle of that cosplay since I was trying to have it done for Sac-Anime last year, and if I did him for Fanime, I would have him done for PMC.

So yeah. ><" Next year though I'll probly do Michiru. :3

Hehe, cool. ^_^

At least with Sailor Moon characters, they're pretty timeless in the vibe of current anime fandom, so they usually don't have the urgency to complete that some other cosplays may cause.

[PrincessSquib]

I'm still figuring out my cosplay lineup, but if all goes well, I'll be Shaina from Saint Seiya. It was a 1980s-1990s manga/anime. Hope to see you there!

[InsaneDavid]

I'm still figuring out my cosplay lineup, but if all goes well, I'll be Shaina from Saint Seiya. It was a 1980s-1990s manga/anime. Hope to see you there!

Cool!  We had a couple of Saint Seiya cosplayers at the gathering last year. ^_^

[InsaneDavid]

Good evening old schoolers!

FanimeCon gatherings submissions are now live, so if anyone here is hosting a gathering of their own, check out the forums for an official post and link to the gathering form.  The Old School Cosplay Gathering has been submitted and upon hearing confirmation of our date, time and location it will be made official.  In the meantime, the tentative plan is still for Friday evening as usual, 6pm, but we should be moving around the corner to the lower wooden riser staircase that leads down to the video rooms.  There we should have way better and more consistent lighting, less foot traffic behind the gathering, and easier accessibility (no climbing up and down the huge stair platforms).

As the voyage to gatherings for FanimeCon 2018 sort of officially began today, I thought this OP was appropriate.  Next weekend we'll pick up with more OPs and EDs each Friday, Saturday and Sunday as March begins.

Celebrating An Era - 1970's!  Space Battleship Yamato (1974)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7BkppT5YNjU

[InsaneDavid]

Good afternoon old schoolers!

Here we are at the beginning of March, just about three full months until FanimeCon 2018! Crazy rain and wind in Fanime's backyard right now - let's hope for cool temperatures and clear skies come the end of May.

As we're within three months of the convention, I'm going to expand the old school anime openings and endings to a couple every day, every Friday, Saturday and Sunday. As a courtesy the Fanime Forums thread will only be bumped once with OPs / EDs each Friday along with the initial post weekly, with all the following OPs / EDs for that weekend being added as a post edit.

I'm kicking things off this time with my favorite of Hideaki Anno's works, which will be celebrating its 30th anniversary this October.

Celebrating An Era - 1980's! Aim for the Top! / GunBuster (1988)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLr3b2bDBZg
*** 30th Anime Anniversary ***

Celebrating An Era - 1990's! The Irresponsible Captain Tylor (1993)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8W7eF49xv4

Celebrating An Era - 1960's!  Ribon no Kishi / Princess Knight (1967)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=664Wfc0Y7KA


Keeping things rolling along this Saturday with more OPs and EDs...

Celebrating An Era - 1990's! Martian Successor Nadesico (1996)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XphjF-fHZkM

Celebrating An Era - 1970's! Science Ninja Team Gatchaman (1972)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_sxKcF4VE9s

Celebrating An Era - 1980's! Ranma 1/2 (1989)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Syd129Vla0Q


'Morning everyone, here are a few more OPs for Sunday...

Celebrating An Era - 1990's! Outlaw Star (1998)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQ7ufQugU6w
*** 20th Anime Anniversary ***

Another one of those once super well-known and highly regarded series that sort of just faded out of the fandom as time rolled on.

Celebrating An Era - 1990's! Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water (1990)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bC-ZOme1UEA

Rounding out the classic OPs for this Sunday, one that just got re-uploaded ten hours ago! Glad to see this one back up because it has a great theme song and a cool intro. For whatever reason it gets pulled down all the time. Makes no sense, it's not like the Dairugger was very big in Japan or the USA, the subtitled DVD release was notoriously limited and of poor quality, and WEP hasn't done anything with their localized Vehicle Voltron version in forever. Oh well, check it out while you can!

Celebrating An Era - 1980's! Armored Squadron Dairugger XV (1982)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OdXTQ3ElkRQ

[Red_Eye]

I remember being around two years ago as Moonlight Knight.  Long as my schedule and plans don't clash, wouldn't mind making a comeback.

[InsaneDavid]

I remember being around two years ago as Moonlight Knight.  Long as my schedule and plans don't clash, wouldn't mind making a comeback.

That would be great, we'd love to see you return!

[olingamer]

On another post you said HxH cosplayers were welcome on Friday evening. What time exactly? I'll be there as Killua

[Solbadgreg]

If I can find it (and still fit in it =P), I'll go as Mickey Simon from Area 88.

[InsaneDavid]

On another post you said HxH cosplayers were welcome on Friday evening. What time exactly? I'll be there as Killua

You are correct, Hunter x Hunter is good to go as it began in 1998.  Until final confirmation of gathering slots is given by the Cosplay Gatherings Department, times are tentative.  However we're always on Friday evening and the plan is to have the gathering at 6pm (again) as it accommodates more people getting off work and getting through registration.  I'd assume we'd retain that time slot as the gathering has a long history at that time.

If I can find it (and still fit in it =P), I'll go as Mickey Simon from Area 88.

Ah, that would be freaking awesome!!  We had Shin Kazama there two years ago!

[InsaneDavid]

Good afternoon old schoolers!

There are so many awesome pre-2001 cosplayers at Fanime every year and the amount of interest this gathering has generated is testament to that.  I am truly blown away with the amount of people that are looking at attending the Old School Cosplay Gathering, something that celebrates all of us and the media that created the fandom we all share in.  Speaking of sharing, thank you so much to everyone who has shared the event page!

In honor of Ryotaro Okiayu being announced as a FanimeCon 2018 guest of honor last week, I though I'd lead off the old school anime OPs and EDs this time around with my all time favorite shojo series, which he happens to voice the lead in.  Marmalade Boy was recently re-licensed and re-released, making the long out of print series affordable and available once more.

Celebrating An Era - 1990's!  Marmalade Boy (1994)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R5VzUAMWL5o

Celebrating An Era - 1980's!  Hokuto no Ken (1984)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s15JKP_TpIY

Celebrating An Era - 1970's!  Space Pirate Captain Harlock (1978)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FphXw7YBqoo
*** 40th Anime Anniversary ***

Doing one more OP for Friday as it appears that it began thirty years ago to this day!  It's also in my top three anime series I'd like to see an English fansub or official English subtitled release of, awesome opening song as well...

Celebrating An Era - 1980's!  F (1988)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iflsELvgrfw
*** 30th Anime Anniversary ***


Good morning! Let's do three from Go Nagai this Saturday, beginning with my personal favorite of his works.

Celebrating An Era - 1970's! Cutey Honey (1973)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wiMnOsdv7xI

Continuing on with another massively influential Go Nagai creation -

Celebrating An Era - 1970's! Mazinger Z (1972)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lB7dgrsOTzk

And fishing up Saturday with what is currently the most well-known Go Nagai property outside of Japan -

Celebrating An Era - 1970's! Devilman (1972)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQF_dw2eivM


Let's begin Sunday's OPs with one of my favorite series. Yes, I'm one of the five people on the planet who likes Orguss more than Macross. The link features both the OP and the awesome ED as well!

Celebrating An Era - 1980's! Super Dimension Century Orguss (1983)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dX3x-TuYGxU

Another of my absolute favorites, crazy to think this first aired 40 years ago this September.

Celebrating An Era - 1970's! Galaxy Express 999 (1978)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mBLpwLRmuRI
*** 40th Anime Anniversary ***

Another favorite of mine to round out Sunday. Then again, I have a soft spot for Tsukasa Hojo's works. All kinds of crazy photographic tricks in this opening, I can't think of another anime series that has this much composite work in the OP, but there's a subtlety to it.

Celebrating An Era - 1980's! Cat's Eye (1983)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZNv6IVXAGE

[InsaneDavid]

Good (very early) morning old schoolers!

*** Important Gathering Update ***

The Old School Cosplay (Pre-2001) Gathering has been officially confirmed! We are set for Friday, May 25th (Day 1) at 6PM. This year we will be moving just around the corner from last year to the ~new~ Gatherings G3 location.

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.

Additionally the Photography Order has been expanded once again! If anyone has any ideas for photography order additions, any time from now until right up to at the gathering, let me know and I will add them to our extensive list!

Thank you all so much for your interest! Keep spreading the word, join us on Fanime Friday and continue to prove that just because it's old doesn't mean it isn't awesome!

[InsaneDavid]

Good morning old schoolers!

With the first draft of the FanimeCon 2018 Gatherings List posted it's nice to see so many returning gatherings - including this one!  Although slots are tentative until closer to the convention weekend, I suspect we'll stay right where we are on Friday evening at 6pm, as is tradition.

Starting out today's old school anime OPs with a pretty awesome one.  This is Moonlight Mask, a property that began in the late 1950's as a live-action TV series, one of (if not the first) Japanese TV superheroes.  He's kind of like a cross between Zorro and The Lone Ranger - but set in then modern Japan.  This anime adaptation from 1972 just blows my mind.  This has to be Mamoru Chiba's (Tuxedo Mask / Moonlight Knight) father in some alternate continuity.  Wham! Whip to the face!

Celebrating An Era - 1970's!  Moonlight Mask (1972)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yo1XroNfkiE

Continuing on, here's an OP that I'm glad to see online again. At one point Albegas was slated to be localized as "Voltron II" along with Dairugger (Voltron I / Vehicle Voltron) and Golion (Voltron III, Lion Voltron).  Of course the continuing popularity of Lion Voltron in the wake of Vehicle Voltron prompted World Events Production to commission localization-specific continuation episodes of Lion Voltron, abandoning the original three-series concept.  Voltron II being limited to a few early toy sales of rebranded Albegas robots as "Voltron II."

Celebrating An Era - 1980's!  Lightspeed Electroid Albegas (1983)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XeVqpi4gziw

Rounding out Friday with one of my favorite series, especially for its time period.  A bold combination of a super robot hero functioning in the world of a real robot series.  Built by a private security company (who was also the lowest bidder for the contract) and operated by the marketing department, the hero robot is a lumbering behemoth that barely works. Dai-Guard turns the mecha genre on its ear, with a realistic parody of bureaucratic red tape, a loving nod at the history of the super robot genre, and a wink at the audience concerning how ridiculous it is to use giant robots for anything.  Also features an unexpected and somewhat polarizing conclusion.

Celebrating An Era - 1990's!  Earth Defense Corporation Dai-Guard (1999)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qg8jMx95cn0


Here are a few Saturday anime OPs, leading off with an outstanding and sadly overlooked OVA.  Really beautiful and moody opening as well.  If you like Iria, do check out the two live action movies (the anime OVA is a prequel of sorts).  The live action movies are corny but fun small cast sci-fi monster movies.

Celebrating An Era - 1990's!  Iria: Zeiram the Animation (1994)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBZuBUw_F68

Yet another series that World Events Productions reworked for American audiences.  Following the success of their Golion rework into Voltron, Star Musketeer Bismark was adapted as Saber Rider and the Star Sheriffs.  In addition to the usual rewrites, renames and censoring, Saber Rider changed a supporting character (Richard Lancelot) into the titular hero, Saber Rider.  WEP also commissioned six unique episodes to better blend their localized narrative and changed the airing order of nearly every episode of the series.  Bismark is still number one of all the series I would like to see an English subtitled release of.

Celebrating An Era - 1980's!  Star Musketeer Bismark (1984)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WA8OYMwqkM8

Finishing off OPs for Saturday with a modern classic.  Such a cool opening theme that plays perfectly with the moody visuals.  Also one of the last series one may assume would air on expanded basic cable, but that's exactly what happened in 2003 when it aired on TechTV.  A good match for the upcoming overcast and rainy night here in Fanime's backyard.

Celebrating An Era - 2000! Boogiepop Phantom (2000)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PRNW70gWKjE


Starting this Sunday's three old school anime OPs with comedy, style, and destruction.

Celebrating An Era - 1980's! Dirty Pair (1985)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZ4qMgIz6x0

Continuing the 80's cool with one of my all-time favorite series, City Hunter.  While Mokkori Cosplay will not be wearing Ryo and Kaori at the Old School Cosplay Gathering again this year, we will be doing so on Fanime Saturday.  So if you attended the gathering last year and was wondering what was up with the host wearing a blue suit jacket with women's underwear hanging out of the pockets - well then, here you go.  And yes, this is where our cosplay pair got its name (and primary logo) from.

Celebrating An Era - 1980's!  City Hunter (1987)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J80W32pVFXw

Finishing off this weekend's OPs with another 80's-tastic series.  Sonic Soldier Borgman first aired just about thirty years ago.  While the series has never been released in the USA, the two short OVA films were.  The series is worth checking out and can be found subtitled online but the subs are pretty bad, even by HK subtitle standards.  The biggest brush with the mainstream Borgman had in the West was when the Sega Mark III game based on the series was localized as "Cyborg Hunter" and released on the Sega Master System in the USA.

Celebrating An Era - 1980's!  Sonic Soldier Borgman (1988)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5WvRo8dloo
*** 30th Anime Anniversary ***

[Solbadgreg]

Ooo! Question: I just realized that my Area 88 Mickey Simon cosplay is based on the 2000s version, not the 1980s version (the color and symbols of the uniform changed). Would I need to revise my cosplay to the older version, or is just being part of the same series good enough?

[InsaneDavid]

Ooo! Question: I just realized that my Area 88 Mickey Simon cosplay is based on the 2000s version, not the 1980s version (the color and symbols of the uniform changed). Would I need to revise my cosplay to the older version, or is just being part of the same series good enough?

No need to revise, as it all sprung from the same source work and lineage, it's all good.  Doubly so for a character like Mickey Simon, who has always been part of the franchise since the beginning, no matter the variation.

Technically Area 88 was created in 1979, making it a 70's property, although the first animated adaptation wasn't until 1985 with English issues of the manga even later.  For a franchise that never gained "mainstream" popularity, it sure spanned a lot of years and a lot of media!

Although, full disclosure, while I love the arcade and Super Famicom / Super Nintendo games based on Area 88, the otherwise unrelated arcade sequel Carrier Air Wing (U.S. Navy in Japan) takes the spot as my all time favorite shooter. hehe

[InsaneDavid]

Good morning old schoolers!

Finally a break from the rain in Fanime's backyard!  I'm almost at a loss for words concerning how much interest this gathering has garnered so far this year.  If you're still on the fence about attending, or your cosplay plans have changed, still feel free to join us, take some pictures, and see the awesome breadth of pre-2001 cosplay at FanimeCon!

Starting off Friday OPs with an outstanding one.  The Dominion Tank Police OVA will have premiered thirty years ago this FanimeCon Sunday.  A prequel of sorts to Masamune Shirow's Dominion from 1986 (which has to be the longest continuously published manga in English - seriously, you can still buy it new), it became an instant classic within the two big anime booms in the West, being one of those titles that stretched between them.

I mention anime booms a lot - In my opinion the first big Western anime boom was in the early 1980's where there was a huge underground interest, which then culminated in the second boom in the mid 1990's when there was a public explosion of interest in anime, manga, and Japanese culture - massively helped along by the fansite era of the Web.  The opening here is the dubbed English version, which I have a tremendous fondness for all around.  There are few anime dubs that I love more than Dominion Tank Police, you can tell they were having fun.

Celebrating An Era - 1980's!  Dominion / Dominion Tank Police (1988)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eGTZLuuTPi8
*** 30th Anime Anniversary ***

Continuing on, a franchise that's deserving of a sixth series. Cyber Formula moves beyond a standard car racing anime in that the characters really grow and change throughout its series and many years of competition and racing development. Additionally Ryotaro Okiayu, who voiced Franz Heinel (owner / driver of Sturozech Project) throughout all the Cyber Formula anime, is a FanimeCon 2018 Guest of Honor.

Celebrating An Era - 1990's! Future GPX Cyber Formula (1991)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_3WAWOGESu8

And to close out Friday a reminder, all Evangelion cosplayers are welcome at the Old School Cosplay Gathering. I didn't see a specific Eva gathering submitted this year so far (and I don't believe there was one last year but I could be wrong) but you're all welcome at this gathering. If you know an Eva cosplayer, please let them know!

Celebrating An Era - 1990's! Neon Genesis Evangelion (1995)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYZfeY8Vg0E


Good morning, let's kick off Saturday OPs with a good one. I have to give full disclosure, my first brush with Saint Seiya came in the form of the terrible Famicom games - you can imagine how lost I was! Thankfully they didn't turn me away from the series.

Celebrating An Era - 1980's! Saint Seiya (1986)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=icmOvrKdpQo

Let's get super old school for the next OP. Way ahead of its time, Eight Man essentially established the cybernetic superhero genre and had a massive influence on early anime art design. Unfortunately the series is without a Western release, outside of a few VHS tapes of the watered-down 1965 American rework as "8th Man" and are long out of print. The 1993 OVA sequel 8 Man After is one of my favorite anime productions - although I know opinion in it is quite mixed. Getting this series English subtitled is one of my otaku pipe dreams.

Celebrating An Era - 1960's! Eight Man (1963)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CE6V_PLn2IU

While not a Gundam series everyone likes (that would be The 08th MS Team), War In The Pocket is a Gundam side story that really stretches beyond the mecha genre and paints a much more personal tale about life away from the front lines of interstellar war. If you enjoy anime that makes the viewer think, then this is one to definitely check out. I do hope you have all had a wonderful Saturday and we'll be back again tomorrow for three more OPs.

Celebrating An Era - 1980's! Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War In The Pocket (1989)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VYZrS4mhYkc


As of today there are exactly two months until the Old School Cosplay Gathering, which also means there are exactly two months until FanimeCon 2018! For this Sunday's three OPs, I'm starting out with the series in which your gathering hosts will be cosplaying from. After the success of the 1988 OVA, Patlabor continued with its first feature film in 1989 and a TV series that followed a similar but different continuity. All of Patlabor was re-licensed and re-released a few years ago, including the original English dub of the TV series, and is well worth taking a look at if you enjoy anime where regular people drive the narrative.

Celebrating An Era - 1980's! Mobile Police Patlabor - Patlabor On Television (1989)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9UtUzjUA5Q

While a new small Gunsmith Cats production may be in the works, it'll never match the slickness of the classic OVA's opening. The energy of this OP makes it stand out from most anything else, quite possibly one of the most perfect anime openings of all time.

Celebrating An Era - 1990's! Gunsmith Cats (1995)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J7HPyUcy37I

Closing out the weekend with another OP that drips cool and style.

Celebrating An Era - 1980's! Space Cobra (1982)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dt6XXfcdVY0

[InsaneDavid]

Good morning old schoolers!

I hope this upcoming holiday weekend will give everyone a chance to relax and work on cosplay and if you are working this weekend then I hope your workdays go smoothly.  Starting off this weekend's OPs with a series that is probably better-known by its American localization as Samurai Pizza Cats.  One of the few cases where the original and the dub are radically different takes but both are equally as enjoyable.

Celebrating An Era - 1990's!  Kyatto Ninden Teyandee (1990)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-jelS4x-hI

Continuing along with my favorite hard sci-fi anime series, which went on to become a franchise. I don't want to reveal much about this title for those who are unfamiliar with it as there are a lot of plot twists, but if you want a gritty and unapologetic tale about a soldier finding himself and his humanity - check this one out. Additionally I love the utilitarian design of the VOTOMS (Vertical One-man Tank for Offense and ManeuverS) mechs. Super cool jazzy opening theme as well!

Celebrating An Era - 1980's! Armored Trooper VOTOMS (1983)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AjJt58geu9U

Closing out Friday with a very popular series of the late 1990's. Modern as it may still seem, it is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year.

Celebrating An Era - 1990's! Serial Experiments Lain (1998)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=79MN_w0VMPE
*** 20th Anime Anniversary ***


Kicking off Saturday with a true juggernaut of 1980's anime. Regular people in extraordinary situations. And for the record, Roy Focker and Claudia LaSalle are my favorite couple in the series and one of my favorite anime couples alongside Ryo Saeba and Kaori Makimura (City Hunter), and Osamu Sugo and Clair Fortran (Cyber Formula).

Celebrating An Era - 1980's! The Super Dimension Fortress Macross (1982)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zjkXzHzUIGA

Continuing with an entertaining little series that apparently had a very limited animation budget. Seriously, this is one of those series that while good looking, has long sequences of still frames while advancing dialogue. There's also a fun Super Famicom game based on the series that has an English fan-translation available.

Celebrating An Era - 1990's! Violinist of Hameln (1996)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4d7wM6A1KtY

Finishing out Saturday with an interesting one. Daltanious was originally slated, along with Dairugger and Albegas, to form the basis of the Voltron production. When World Events Productions was acquiring the rights to robot team shows, they requested "the one with the lion" - as Daltanious features a single robot-shaped lion as part of its team. The Japanese distributor misunderstood and sent them Golion instead - which was a more modern series WEP ended up liking more and adapting into Lion Voltron. Many years ago I swear I saw a "Future Robot Daltanious" VHS tape at a Suncoast store, knew it sounded familiar but never bought it. To this day I have been unable to confirm any North American VHS release of Daltanious, outside of my memory of that one encounter at Suncoast.

Celebrating An Era - 1970's! Future Robo Daltanious (1979)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_AkWxxnMF10


What better way to celebrate the Easter holiday today than with donuts? Twenty years ago today the anime adaptation of Trigun premiered!

Celebrating An Era - 1990's! Trigun (1998)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4OxFSy8G5wk
*** 20th Anime Anniversary ***

Another series that exploded in the middle of the 1990's anime fandom, especially in North America. Twenty years ago this Tuesday, Cowboy Bebop premiered!

Celebrating An Era - 1990's! Cowboy Bebop (1998)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NRI_8PUXx2A
*** 20th Anime Anniversary ***

Closing out the classic anime OPs for this weekend with another big upcoming anniversary. Fifty years ago this Thursday, the original anime adaptation of Cyborg 009 premiered!

Celebrating An Era - 1960's! Cyborg 009 (1968)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQjUipJdKuY
*** 50th Anime Anniversary ***

[Love Sign Master Spark]

Officially Fridey?  I'll be pulling Laguna Loire (Final Fantasy 8) out of the closet for this.  Most likely will leave before it's over to catch public transit; so it goes when being a commuter.

[InsaneDavid]

Officially Fridey?  I'll be pulling Laguna Loire (Final Fantasy 8) out of the closet for this.  Most likely will leave before it's over to catch public transit; so it goes when being a commuter.

Yes, date and time are confirmed.  This gathering is always held on Friday evening.  6pm has been our time since last year to allow the most people to attend, being late enough for people to get off work / out of school / checked in to hotel / through registration / etc.

It would be great to see you there if possible, even if you have to depart early! ^_^