The 16th annual Otakon, an anime and manga convention, was heldJuly 17-19 at the Baltimore Convention Centerthis past weekend. The unofficial registration figure was 26, 350, according to convention organizers, up slightly from last yearsattendance of 26, 262. Athough fans showed up in force (and in costume) and vendors generally seemed pleased with sales, there were complaints about the organization of Artists Alley and the programming—including one anime panel that was abruptly halted for inappropriate content.

Although few publishers attend Otakon, Yaoi Press and Media Blasters were on hand. Yamila Abraham of Yaoi Press told PWCW they were also representing DMP, which also publishesextensively in the yaoi genre, with handout samples and they were also selling some books for Aurora Publishing, claiming it was important for smaller publishers focused on the same categories to help each other out. “Otakon is always amazing,” Abraham said, “its one of our best shows.” She mentioned they had almost sold out of their newest book Happy Yaoi Yum Yum, their yaoi coloring book, and a yoai poker deck. Yaoi Press was in a smaller booth this year, but Abraham said they were “doing as well as with two tables.”

Shingo Nozaki, a manager atwell-known Japanese bookstore chain,Kinokuniya, said art books are their best sellers at conventions.This year the Soul Eater, Kuroshitsuji (Black Butler), Shugo Chara and Final Fantasy art books sold well at the Kinokuniya booth. These titles' popularity was also reflected in an increased number of cosplayers for each property. Although the Kinokuniya retail stores in the U.S. sell English-translated manga, only Japanese-language manga was available at their booth at the convention. The adorable cat manga, Chi's Sweet Home, and the perennial favorite, Sailor Moon (now out-of-print in English), as well as Hetalia: Axis Powers were popular titles this year in Japanese-only editions. Two crates of the Hetaliamanga, originally a web comic and now a manga and anime about World War II era countries portrayed as cute boys, were prominently displayed. Also selling well in the retail store, Nozumi said that Hetalia sold around 100 copieseach at the such conventions asAnime Expo, Anime Central and Anime Next, "I guess everyone likes that title,” she said. Hetalia has not been officially licensed in English yet in any capacity. In addition to Japanese-language manga, art books, and CDs, Kinokuniya was selling Gothic Lolita items and cosplay costumes. The addition of specialty clothing to the booth is a first, Nozaki said.

Gerald Hogan of Trilogy Shop, who sells comics, cards, and games at two retail stores in Virginia and has been a vendor at Otakon for 9 years, said “It’s a little slower than last year, but up from previous years.” He noted that fewer and fewer publishers attend the convention in recent years. Death Notehas been Hogan's top selling manga for the past three years, with Berserk right behind it. According to Hogan, his high-end items, such as statues, sell better at conventions than in his retail stores.

In Artists Alley, despite directorial and organizational changes, exhibitors saidboth original and fan art sold fairly well. Gina Biggs, creator of the original English-language manga series, Red String, said she “sold more books this year.” The first three volumes of Red String were published by Dark Horse, but Biggs has self-published the fourth volume. “I’m making more money on my own than with Dark Horse,” Biggs said, “but they helped get my name out.” Hans Tseng, the creator of the webcomic, Direction of Destiny, said he was feeling pressure from the presence of other artists.“There’s so many good artists this year, so there’s more competition,” He said.Tseng added that his comics were “doing really well,” yet continued that, “last year was better.”

Alternately, some who were happy with the sales they were making were unhappy with the seating and table arrangementsin Artists Alley.Del Borodin who was selling original manga, said despite this year being "the best year ever," their seating requests were totally ignored. "We tried to take suggestions into account,” said Otakon exhibitions sections chief Lee Fenner, “We can't make everyone happy, but we try."

Gina Briggs Shows off Red String

Attendees were also displeased with the lack of professionalismaround the organization ofthe panels.Matt Hawkins, a blogger about video games, said many of the panels he attended this year seemed unorganized and lacking in research. This year over 130 panels took place during Otakon; many organized by guests, industry, and fans. To accomodate the programming, convention organizers added new panel rooms in Baltimore's new Hilton Hotel, which is attached to the convention center by a skywalk. Some attendees had trouble finding the new rooms, and the staff fielded many questions about it. "We're trying to provide more live programming," programming section chief Omar Jenkins said, referring to the panels and concerts. "That's something attendees can't get at home and it keeps them coming to cons."

In addition, despite the vetting and planning, (all panels go through an intense vetting process) not every panel goes according to plan. Twitter was abuzz during the convention with reports that Daryl Surat's Anime's Craziest Deaths panel was cancelled after only 10 minutes because of sexual content. Surat, a writer for Otaku USA magazine and Anime Insider, claimed he was clear about the panel's age rating on his application.

As far as next year, everyone PWCW spoke with in Artists Alley said they would exhibit again. Fenner said of plans for next years show, they “hope to make changes, but that depends on attendance and numbers,” claiming they would make decisions after reviewing this years convention.

[Photos by Erin Finnegan and Ada Price]