Friday, July 16, 2010

AX 2010 Con report

At work with clearly nothing better to do! LOLZ

delayed (once again coz I'm awesome at writing super delayed stuff. I think I disregarded the NY trip too) AX con report! More like, just a blog for me to write since there really wasnt much to report about /:

I feel like I'm going to be missing alot of details here xD haha. Well, thats what the 'edi't button is for later? HAHA!

Day 1:

I dont think I took that many pictures - of myself, personally. So I might have to start stealing photos from everyone else :D coz I fail like that!

5am - rolled out of bed to get ready xD and catch a train from Solana Beach to LAX Union Station.

That in upon itself was quite an adventure :D

It wouldnt have been so bad but I was lugging my huge suitcase, my backpack and 2 swords wraped in fabric and clearly protruding out of my suitcase. I wraped the swords up to avoid suspicion xD from security at the tran stations LOL!

I arrived at LAX around 8:50 and had to trut my stuff down to the metro to get a metropass and proceed to try and use the metrolink system with luggage in tow! I was so nervous I'd get confused or lost! Or that the trains would be packed TAT

thankfully it wasnt haha! but when I finally to my last stop at LACC. I got stopped my security! OMFG i was so nervous that they'd ask me to unwrap the swords xD but thankfully the lady just pulled me aside to inform me that I should watch out for my stuff. I guess I had bumped into her in my rush to get to the con HAHA!

Got to the con around 9-10ish? I think it was mostly 10ish. Went to check in with Mei in her hotel at the JW Marriot to check inwith her first and drop off her Hakuouki costume that I sewed. Left my swords with her and her group. Went to line up for the shuttle (and lied through my teeth about not getting my pass / badge yetxD!) and went to check into our hotel at the Westin.

Changed into Hakuouki - Heisuke. And went back to JW Marriot to help Mei and Nick get ready for their Hakuouki cos. I did Nick's Saito Wig and helped Mei out with her hair piece for Chizuru.I was quite nervous the costume wouldnt fit her! XD but she turned out to be the cutest Chizuru there *in my personal humble opinion :DDDD*

As if you havent grown tired of seeing these photos everywhere~ I shall spam them here too! XDD

We were running a bit late, so I think they ended up skippng the May'n pannel. I couldnt have gone either way coz I didnt have a badge ;P

sadly enough halfway through the day, Katie, Toshi's cousin lost her camera D: they had to go and retrace their steps over andover, to not avail it wasnt found.

I dont think I stayed in Heisuke long. It was too hot D: wig and all~ and the swords were quite a hassle. We were suppose to have a photoshoot with a photographer at 8pm. But I wanted to get out of costume already and get ready for the X Concert around 6. Went and did their photoshoot instead (Mei and Nick, since I think the photographer never showed up) and we went back and di Toshi's photoshoot too :3 and went and got changed fort he X Concert.

Clearly we were alittle late LOL coz we ended up being waaayyy back in the line! awesomesauce hu?!

OH! I also met Mei's awesome buddies from Canada :D kekekeke.

anyways, yeah got ready for X Japan concert. (OMFG I should have packed better shit =3=)

Toshi looked hot as always xD I on the other hand...yeah lets not go there.

but wowers. Nokia Club was bitchyyy...

metal detectors, no water bottles and dayum. One of the securitys almost wanted to have me and toshi take off ALL the metal stuff we had on. Ummmmyeah good luck with that buddeh D': but they ran that little thingie instead to check where else I had metal. ThANKFULLY they didnt see the knife I had with me =3=;;; (it was in my backpack. I forgot to take it out) And we had to chug our water bottles out =3=ll

X - JAPAN WAS FUCKING EPIC!!!!

Cure I believe also hosted a Visual Kei contest. The fuckign shit about it was that YOshiki was being a lazy fag and just picked the first few people who got in line (aka peopel cosplaying as JROCKERS. Hizaki, Kyo and etc) no fense to them, they did amazing work on theri costumes but there were far more deserving people out there. W/e. It was okies.

They started the show off with this funny MC Lady xD who talked way too much and clearly had no idea wtf was going on. lulz.

They did the honorary 'what is Yoshiki Foundation' it was quite touching :D (I wont go into detail about it in this blog. Will probably do an entry about it and a more detailed entry regarding the concerts / shows at black-heaven.net's blog section)

anyways~

They also proceeded with the H.Naoto fashion show, part of the collection was a collaboration between H.Naoto and X's Yoshiki.

I took photos of it but had to delete them to make room on my camera, I was shooting RAW most of the time. But Toshi has vids from her cam. Will steal from her later :D

The designs were alright, very haute-couture :D and the yoshiki collabs were, well, clearly reminiscent of X's old styles. Lots of Trench Coats and pants and gaudy metallics~

inbetween down times, the DJ was blasting techno to new wave music to try and keep the crowd entertained. I was pretty much feeling impatient and drained since the show technically didnt start will 10 D: but they started letting people in at 8. I was jsut too tired from walking all day and not having much sleep the night before XD!

I didnt get as good shots of the Fashion Show since the bouncer guy kept us behind the mosh pit! D: ugh lame!! but thankfully enough after everything was done, and they proceeded with setting the stage up for X Japan's show / PV shooting, the bouncer let me through and I quickly pushed my way through the front of the stage :D and chaos ensued from there!!!

at the end of the weekend I had this:

-insert photo of fucked up hand-

and yes ladies and gentlemen, that IS the same arm I fucked up in last years accident.

I also came out bruised LOL but I didnt notice the bruises or swollen arm till 2 days AFTER AX! XD or wait....the monday night that I came back did I notice. I was probably running in adrenalien the entire time LOL which I clearly was! xDDDD

but yes, I kept pushing my way through the front!! they kept replaying the song listing over and over, which this was technically IS for a video shooting. There was fire works, and cage dancers! and epicness!!!! and omfg. I was up close and got some godly shot of hte band :D mostly of Sugizo. Heath and Pata was on the other side TAT

but I gotta give them props tho! I like their music now more than I did before LOL (yesh, bash me you X fans, bash me!! because personally, I liked luna sea more before XD and from X I only really liked more of their ballad songs and a few select songs LOL yesh. fail me. fail.) and props to them more to still be able to perform at top level after how many years?! All in all, it was a good way to open up the convention :D

After the concert, we were all about ready to pass out haha. None of us got any sleep the night before! Toshi and her cousins had at midnight that night to arrive at the con at 5 or 6 am. I shortly followed by train. xD

Got ready for the next day and whatnot~

DAY 2!!!

Day 2 was Vocaloid day~

Had to get up early to go get ready and this was the day my siblings would drive up. And also was May'ns CONCERT :DDD YESSSSH!!!!

-insert cellphone photos-

After getting ready. Walked 3 blocks down to the Wilshire (my hotel last year) to help my brother get ready for his Dudley costume. Apparently he was a huge hit with everyone beingthe only dudley there. aka, I like to call him Mr. Diddles. The costume came out well, I just personally hate the pants D: WILL REMAKE!!!

I didnt get to hang with them at all! haha. busy running around playing cameko

xD

MAY'N & MEGUMI NAKAJIMA CONCERT!

YESH! I didnt buy my ticket but got inline for tickets! :DDD

THE CONCERT WAS FCKING AMAZING!!! our row kinda sucked coz we didnt have any glow sticks but that didnt stop me from fist pumping like crazy xD!!!!

yesh, my uber otaku moment :D

but she did put on an amazing show! May'ns english was suprisingly very well and though she didnt have an elaborate stage set up the performance was still super amazing and you cannot believe how many times I'd spazz whenever she transitioned from one Macross song to another xD I just went crazy when they announced MEGUMI NAKAJIMA and they did their duets!!!! :DDDD

Megumi was also very cute and bubly!! good songs, good performances!!! :DDD

and Megumi announced a SPECIAL GUEST! DUNDUDUN!!!

the entire time I was on the edge of my seat thinking it might be Ozma (since he was already at AX but meeh that wouldnt be too much of a suprise) I kinda had my money on Lin Min Mei's old voice actress xD! LOL old school macross ftw! but to our suprise, they announced....

YOKO KANO!!!!!! She played backup piano for the girls :D I even went crazier LOL

gawd I jsut totally let loose the entire weekend, I'm suprised I havent lost my voice during the X concert and still had enough in me to go insane during the Macross Concert XD!

ALL IN ALL, IT WAS AN AMAZING CONCERT!! 8DDDDD WAAAAAAH

I kinda wish I had been more prepared TAT (really wanted to cosplay as KlanKlan. but maybe next year?!)

Mei's group did an amazing job with their Macross Frontier costumes :3

*shamelessly plugs in photos she took*

8D yesh, you all will be sick and tired of this soon enough. But trust me buddy! I got more xD!

but um yeah! We did Voacloid this day, ti was suppper hooot TAT and omfg. The headphones toshi made were pretty epic. Too bad we didnt get to do a night shot, it was too hot we had to change out ASAP. The headphones light up! :D

we were missing quite afew details on the costumes. -3-ll was running out of time LOL. Ah. sad.

bad photos are bad o-oll omfg I need to refit that shirt XD!

man for some reason day2 seems more or less like a blur to me xD haha! wow am I that lame that I dont remember much on day 2?! o___Oll

I know we changed out ASAP coz the wigs were HOOOOT D: and had planned on attending the MELL concert but that didnt quite happen xD! we were too tired. but we ended up chilling at Mei's hotel lobby the JW Marriot, since it was super swanky and snazzy :D

we did an impromptus 'host style photoshoot' which pretty much gave birth to the idea of BLACK HEAVEN :D kekekeke. business business endevour~

I really loved the lobby of JW Marriot, I really wanna book that hotel next year :D *save save!!!*

We just hanged around after dark, photoshoot after photoshoot~ (since I didnt finish magnet miku, coz Mei didnt finish her magnet luka either LOL)

we went to NERD COURTING. Funny pannel was funny. But we were msotly in the quest to find a hot chick to take the host style photos with D:

we walked up and down the hotel / convention and even went into the dance! (ok, sorry, I was not impressed by the DJs xD) we just stood there and looked cool haha / took more pics xD

and went back, and walked around some more then went back to the hotel to pass out~

it wasnt as eventful at night as I wanted. But it was ok~ we had fun :D

DAY 3

Now this is when we hit the 'fun button' up a notch a bit more! :D

(I had several photoshoots scheduled from day 1 and 2 that kept getting pushed back /: so fail~)

got up early this day to get ready and do a SUPER QUICK Lamento photoshoot with Toshi at the park by our hotel. I wish we had more time to shoot. but the security was beginning to give us weird looks TAT!

-INSERT LAMENTO PHOTOS-

Then I had to walk down to the Sheraton to help Ruka Starr with her Falcoon Jam. I didnt bring Falcoon bridget since I insist on fixing it up (fully remaking) but had to run as soon as toshi texted me the Sophia concert was going to start xD!

but dammmnn it took the shuttle almost 30 mins! to get to us! IM LIKE WOAHH WTHH?!

the Sophia concert was.....................colorful to say the least o_O

I had to leave early coz people were blowing up my phone (my photoshoots that kept getting pushed back due to peoople not beign ready or me being dragged elsewhere)

After knocking out some of the photos:

-insert photos here-

I walked around the convention taking photos of cosplayers while I waited for Toshi to get out of the SOPHIA concert. The convention, like every photographer has complained about - was quite limited in its settings. Alot of Toshi's photos we had to take somewhere else.

rararawrr more photossss and theres plenty more to edit and upload O_Oll

I'm supposedly working on getting a stupid gallery thingie up but its bullshit coz dreamhost keeps being a bitch about it :D so I'll eventually have that up. For now, I'll be posting them on

tumblr | Deviantart | flickr

went back to hotel to change~ (I wasntin cosplay) but I just dropped $120 on an Alonquins jaket that I was eyeing the entire weekend xD and bought a wacom tablet and agundam model for my little brother. Dropped off the goods and changed outfits for night~

Went to Little Tokyo to meet up with Megan in her yuuko kimono that I made (she painted it) and dinner~

I sadly skipped out on Mei's dinner party at CPK. But I bought her a cake xD! coz I felt so bad not going haha! Dropped by to give her, her cake Went back to the con to take more 'host style' photos and killed time while waiting for Mei to finish her party to do the Macross Date photos

-insert photos-

meanwhile, me and Toshi killed time at the Marriot again at the lounge with more HOST PHOOTOS!

I actually ORDERD a drink from the bar just for the sake of the photoshoot xD! greygoose vodka + strawberry + a splash of orange juice. I hate drinking. It makes me warm xD

around 11ish, Toshi went off to the GACKT Screening while I chilled some more for Mei to finish freshening up and on with the photoshoot we went!~

I also met Mei's friend, Shou who was also the 2nd photographer for the night :3

after shooting, we headed back to their hotel to chill and take rediculous photos of the ravenous Miju who devoured left overs from dinner xD and tried on Mei's wig for lolz~

chilled abit in their room waiting for something to happen *-*

went up the hotel with Mei to fetch her friend I think from a party????? the guy that opened the door insisted we all took shots but I was like oh hell no xD and bolted my ass out of there LOL

And just chilled the rest of the night /: walking around~ I ended up heading back to the hotel at 1 or 2 coz my roomates were all getting ready to sleep except Toshi, and I hate coming back to a room where everyones asleep already xD i hate being sneaky sneaky lolz!

Day 4

OMFG Last and final day TAT sad me is sad!!!!!

Did a quick photoshoot for Toshi in her Diedritch costume, it was hot :D and we chilled MORE at the lounge of the JW marriot and took MORE photos HAHAHA that was my fav. spot the entire weekend! xD talked some more about our ridiculous business endevour :D

met up with Mei's group to say good byes TAT and Toshi walked me back to the Hotel to grab my shit and off I go back to OC / SD D':

We ended up stopping by OC at my aunts fro the 4th of July, everyone went to see the fire works but I had to cram in my HW and exams LOL!

BUT DAMMIT MY BROTHER WAS STUPID. He told me I could have stayed ANOTHER day (coz Toshi wouldnt have left till Monday and I had Monday off) but he told me TOOLATE! UGH XD w/e

I spent all of monday anyway wanking with the tablet~

dundundunnnn concludes my AX weekend~