I create a world of finite somethings

So, pretty much everything I did was Madoka or Fate related.

I skipped opening ceremonies to go to the dealer's room when it opened. I ran into xDistantAvalonx almost immediately by chance. She and her boyfriend were dressed as Natalia and Kiritsugu. We wandered around and found the F/Z light novel reprints rather cheap with a hitch: they were selling them all except volume 2. Without the complete set, I just decided to buy 3 (which finishes act 8) and 6 (ending), since they had some of my favorite Fate artwork on them. xDistantAvalonx also got CM 5.

After a while, I wandered on my own for a bit, got some Madoka stuff, then headed for the Aniplex panel. Met back up with xDAx and ran into another person I'd met last year--the Avenger in the photos I put in 7th, also the same Avenger that you can see images of on ANN's coverage of the con. We were so far ahead in the line that when we got into the panel, we were in the second row--the first row occupied by the guests and media coverage. My eye would occasionally wander to the ANN writer that later posted the transcripts of the next panel as they wrote stuff on their laptop.

Then the panel immediately following was for Urobuchi as well as anime producer Iwakami and novel editor Ota. And while we waited, three Japanese people came and sat right in front of us: one of which was wearing a purple and white jacket with Homura on the back. As xDAx put it, we were close enough then to Gen Urobuchi to lick his face. They announced the guests, fired up the Q&A, and everyone got distracted when a person pulled a Charlotte cosplay into the room that was the size of one of those dragons at Japanese New Years that comes up and bites people for luck. If only the mouth opened and the person inside were cosplaying Mami, it would have been perfect. The panel transcript is (for the most part) up on the ANN coverage.

From there, I got food, met up with the girlfriend, and headed in for the Stereopony concert. I have to say, this topped HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR two years ago for me as a concert. It was absolutely gorgeous. While they didn't play my favorite song of theirs, "Smilife," the anime-related songs really got the crowd going. Especially "Hitohira no Hanabira" since it is a serious ear-worm.

The girlfriend and I were going to get in line for autographs, but we were accosted by photographers right after--I was dressed as Hei and she was dressed as Yin, and while I didn't get many photograph requests earlier because I usually didn't have my mask on, with a Yin that was actually as tiny as the one in the show...yeah. It took a long while, and by the time we weren't being bothered, the lineup was huge. So we gave up on that and went to the Zapp Brannigan Loveline panel since the Zapp that does it actually attends my school's anime club. Crashed after that. For some reason, I was more tired by the end of Friday than I was any other day.

Saturday had me grabbing more stuff at the dealer's room, then getting into the Madoka panel Urobuchi and co were having. They talked a lot about the creative process behind it all and some of the changes that the story underwent: for instance, originally, the script Urobuchi wrote had Sayaka's witch form be a tentacle-ish monster obsessed with lashing at Madoka. He then realized only belatedly how much like Urotsukidouji that would be and the designers changed it to the mermaid. He also says that the Faustian references and the like were not intentional, as he had nothing like that in the script: they were aspects Inu Curry and others added into the visual designs that ended up fitting really well. Otherwise, he says "the only major influence I think about consciously is Lovecraft." Goddamn Saya no Uta. Also, when asked if he has anything in for Mami and Sayaka, he says, "I believe a character shines the best when they're about to expire."

Meaning: Gen Urobuchi's favorite F/Z character is Ryuunosuke, quite obviously.

Question from fan: "What can we expect in the post-Madoka world? Anything? Is the movie going to cover this?"
Urobuchi: "That...is a secret that would require a contract to answer..." (pulls back his Homura jacket to reveal he's wearing a Kyubey t-shirt) "I promise the answer is worth your soul..."

Got out of the Madoka panel and got back in line immediately for Fate/Zero. Met back up with xDAx since she was at a cosplay contest with some friends, and then had to go back to her hotel to switch into Saber. We also ended up hanging out with a Gilgamesh, EMIYA, and another Shirou.

Fate/Zero screening. They had "official" cosplayers that went around to all the F/Z and Madoka panels to help out, and the Fate group included a Saber in armor, two Zero Sabers, a Gilgamesh (in armor that he couldn't sit down in without aid), a Diarmuid, a Waver, a Ryuunosuke, and a Gilles. Urobuchi, Ota, and Iwakami attended as well, and both Urobuchi and Ota had changed into the same t-shirt that Iskandar wears. "We are Iskandar Brothers!"

We watched 13 first, and it was the Bluray version with the added sequence of Diarmuid and Sola-Ui talking about Caster's tentacle monster. I think this is confirmation that Sola-Ui is kinky in bed.

I can say, though, that watching it with a crowd is infinitely better than watching it alone at home. You feed off the crowd's energy. There were things even about 13 that I appreciated more with a crowd.