 |
The 1998 Otakon chair was thin and clean-shaven. The 1999 chain is
plump and wears a beard. Otakon has a tradition of changing chairs every
year of so, and the job has gone to John Nazdam. He led the convention
into its major move from East Coast hotels to the Baltimore Convention
Center, one of the first anime cons - if not the first - to hold all
of its events in a convention center. (Anime Expo has used convention centers
for portions of its events.) |
 |
One of the hot anime TV series in Japan has been Cowboy Bebop, the
tale of space-faring adventurers. Shinichirou Watanabe, one of the key
figures in the production of that show, was the first Japanese guest to
be introduced during the opening ceremonies. Watanabe noted it was the
first time he had attended any sort of anime convention, even the manga
conventions held in Japan. he was pleasantly surprised at the number of
people who attended Otakon's opening day. |
 |
At Anime Expo in 1998, Hiroyuki Kitakubo joked that he was planning
to take over the world. At Otakon on Friday night, he said "This is one
more step toward my plan of world domination." Kitakubo, who directed Golden
Boy and Jojo's Bizarre Adventure, was part of the delegation from Production
I.G., the influential company that made the Ghost in the Shell movie. Production
I.G. had a major presence at Otakon, with previews of its Jinroh and Blood
the Last Vampire series shown at the opening ceremonies. |
 |
Co-founder Mitsuhisa Ishikawa of Production I.G. had to cancel his
Otakon appearance at the last minute. In his place was Kazuto Nakazawa,
best known as the character designer for the El-Hazard: the Magnificent
World series. Nakazawa noted that his Otakon trip was his first travel
overseas - and his first time on a jet plane. "I'm so glad you came to
see me," he told the audience. |
 |
Then came the appearance of composer Yoko Kanno, who charmed the audience
with her jazz-styled piano artistry. Another musician, singer and songwriter
Mari Iijima, was scheduled to appear on Friday at Otakon, but she was caught
in the air travel woes that plagued the U.S. on July 2 and did not get
to Baltimore in time. |
