Once again Yamacon marks the end of the 2023 convention year for me and as always I plan to rank the conventions I attended throughout the year. Now where the reviews explained how well I thought the conventions were handled and how much I enjoyed them this list is entirely based on just how much fun I had. So an event that might be objectively better might place lower because another event just had a better fun factor for me for various reasons. This year the list is a little different. I skipped Matsuricon for the first time since I started attending and wound up going to my favorite convention Anime Impulse twice. Plus Otakon makes it’s first appearance. Lots to talk about for sure.
14. Fanboy Expo
So once again Fanboy Expo had someone I needed for a collection so I decided to attend, but also once again it winds up low on my list. I would say this was the only event on this entire list that I honestly just didn’t like and I hate to say that because I want to like it more. It holds a special place to me being the first convention I attended but I always had a problem with it since then. This year the lines were a mess, the venue was hot and by the time I got the autograph I wanted I just didn’t want to stay so I left and that was it.
13. Video Game Tattoo Con
Ironically this convention is in the same venue as Fanboy but does rank higher. I had fun at this event but where I planned to go at the last minute I basically went to try something new, meet a few voice actors and go home. It did make me curious about getting a tattoo which does say something and probably if I did get one this would rank a lot higher but I just ended up not doing much and that was more on me.
12. Kami Con
This convention marked the 100th autograph on my Fire Emblem poster so it was kind of a big deal. I really had a lot of fun at this event I just also didn’t find anything particularly special about my experience here. It was fun without a doubt but nothing about it made me want to go back beyond if they have guests I want and it’s too far for me to make a casual trip to this event.
11. Yama con
So this is probably the lowest Yama Con has appeared here and likely the only time it will appear this low. I had a great time here but where I was exhausted from my cruise that I was literally on my way back from at the time I just didn’t have the time or energy to do as much of this convention as I like. If it wasn’t for the fact that it had an actor I love talking to and is attended by several dear friends I likely would have skipped it entirely in favor of resting. As for the cruise I do not recommend especially at the cost of a couple of days at Yama Con.
10. Huntsville Comic and Pop Culture Expo
So another year at Huntsville but this one is a bit of a mixed bag for me. It had by far my favorite guest list and I was able to get Tara Platt’s autograph completing my set of Fire Emblem: Three Houses lords. However, the event was insanely crowded. In previous years my wife and I got one VIP pass and felt like we barely used it but this year it felt almost required to get in and out of the lines in a timely matter and even then foot traffic really hindered our movements. It’s great to see the convention grow as I do enjoy it but now it’s outgrown it’s current size and I’m interested to see how it handles that.
9. Smoky Mountain Fan Fest
This was actually one of two events I skipped Matsuricon for and I did enjoy my time here. The change in venue was nice and it was great to see the convention grow. The only thing was it’s now at a point where it needs more to do and while fun last years was way better since it had more unique activities to do during the day where as this year it didn’t have nearly as many. It’s a fun event but it has to reclaim some of the charm it lost since 2022.
8. Louisville Popcon
Louisville has had mixed luck with conventions. The first one was bad and honestly would have been one of the worst reviews I ever made if I was doing those at the time. The second was amazing but didn’t stick around now lets see if this one does. It was a lot of fun without a doubt but like Kami con it didn’t do anything to really set itself apart from other conventions. It’s just a fun really well done event but it does place higher because it’s close enough to home that I can easily make a day trip out of which was what I did this year. That of course makes a big difference to me.
7. Farelycon
Farleycon was the other event I went to instead of Matsuricon and honestly to me was the part of the trip that made it well worth it. Matsuricon is one of my favorite events but Farelycon is closer to home and also had someone I needed for my collection which was what motivated me to go. It’s a nice small event to go to and my wife managed to find a vendor to request a custom item from. Plus I loved how we got a lot of time to talk to the guests so overall it was a fun experience and it’s also just close enough to hope to make a day trip out of which makes it easier to consider for future years.
6. Lexington Toy and Comic Con
The ole reliable of my conventions and is by far the one I’ve attended the most. It’s just as close to home as Fanboy Expo but it’s very well organized and has guests that I personally like better. I mean this year they had the voice of Marth from Fire Emblem and Deku from My Hero Academia as well as Light from Death Note. Plus this was a nice blast from the past with all three of the people who played the host of Blue’s Clues. There’s a reason I go to it every year and it continues to reaffirm why I like it so much.
5. C2E2
Heading into the top five we start with C2E2 an event that I don’t attend often because it’s far away and very expensive. This year my wife really wanted to go to meet the voice of Aang from Avatar the Last Airbender and more. People that honestly I have been trying to find for her for awhile. Seeing how happy this event made her is honestly what makes this event place so high on my list. I also got to meet some people I’ve hope to see for awhile like Ryan Colt Leavy so overall it was a lot of fun. It just suffers from a crowd problem that really limits what you can do in a day and since a day was all we had that limitation made itself known.
4. Chattanooga Comic Con
When it comes to conventions I’ll be the first to admit I’m often entertained why else would I go to so many, but I am rarely impressed. That’s not to say that it’s a big deal to impress me it’s just most conventions are like Kami Con or Louisville Popcon, really great and well executed events but needs more to really make them stand out. What made me impressed about this one is not only did it stand out it had one of the most unique experiences of the now 80 events that I’ve gone to. Having a Trollypub run with Ming from Comicbookmen was a story that I will never forget. Plus everything else about this convention was very well done that it propelled itself to one of my favorite events and this is only the second year.
3. Otakon
This is a convention that’s been on my radar for awhile but honestly Anime Expo was usually the reason I didn’t go. It’s hard to budget for both of them for me but this time I skipped Anime Expo entirely. I was surprised that a convention of this size was so easy to get around even more than that it had a lot to offer, but what really made this one place so high was Yaiba. Yaiba is the band behind a lot of anime music from Naruto, Fairytail and more and I listened to their music often. So seeing them perform live was an experience of a lifetime for me and gave me literal chills in the process. If I had this much fun now I am very interested to see what they have next year for the 30th anniversary.
2. Anime Impulse LA
To the surprise of nobody Anime Impulse ranks very high on this list. Since I went to two different Anime Impulse events one was bound to not take the top spot and it was this one. While I had a fun time at this event it was severely hindered by the rain. Anime Impulse LA is an event that is part of the Asian American Expo and collectively it’s all dependent on outdoor space for the food vendors and getting from building to building. Where everything was flooded this made it difficult and that was the factor that set it self apart from the other Anime Impulse.
- Anime Impulse OC
So the winner is once again an Anime Impulse but it’s my favorite convention it’s harder for it not to win in a list where I rank the ones I like the most. The guests were fun to meet, the vendors were amazing and I love this venue more than the one in LA. It does suffer from less food options and I wish I knew about the food trucks sooner than I did but it wasn’t a huge loss when it has people I need for my autograph collection that I can’t find anywhere else and the venue makes it far easier to do all of that in comparison to the one in LA.
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