Friday May 30, 2025

Spiraken Convention Report: Animazement 2025

Animazement returned to the Raleigh Convention Center from May 23rd–25th, now in its 28th year as a convention that started as a college film festival and grew into something genuinely special. My first visit was 2023—a smaller, cozy affair. This year? I went all in. Three panels, a mountain of hot takes, and zero regrets. Here's the breakdown.

The Guest List: Legends and Surprises

This year's roster was a beautiful mix of old-school heavyweights and modern talent:

Voice Actors: Ryuusei Nakao (Frieza himself!), Hiroaki Hirata (Sanji in One Piece), Chie Koujiro (Gintama's Space Okan), and Chika Sakamoto (Cat's Eye, Sailor Moon Stars) alongside newer stars like Laura Stahl (Promised Neverland) and Sarah Anne Williams (Kill la Kill, Madoka Magica).
Industry Titan: Masao Maruyama—co-founder of MAPPA, producer of Death Note, Hunter x Hunter, Card Captor Sakura, and Yawara! This man is a walking history lesson.
Performers: Aimi (musical contributions to Bleach, Gundam 00, Darker than Black) and The Jacabal's stage combat group brought energy to the main stage.
Returning Favorites: Trish Ledoux and Toshifumi Yoshida (Animerica royalty) plus Hiroshi Nagahama (the Uzumaki artist himself).
Cancellation Note: Taishi Yamabe (taiko drummer) had to bow out—hopefully next year.

My Panels: Three for Three

Friday – "I'm Still Not Old! More Protagonists Over 30" (4:00-5:30pm, Room 306A)
The third iteration of this crowd-favorite drew another packed room of adults hungry for representation. The shift toward more female leads over 30 was hugely appreciated by the audience. Bonus highlight: someone shouted out a certain mad scientist who fights a platypus (Doofenschmertz for the next version? Noted.). Excellent reactions all around. This panel isn't going anywhere.

Saturday – "Horror in Anime & Manga" (10:00-12:00pm, Room 302Ab)
Still a sellout. Still a blast. This year's revelation: Bondrewd (Made in Abyss) has officially surpassed Shou Tucker (Full Metal Alchemist) as fandom's most hated anime parent. That takes effort. Also, how have so many people never seen Wicked City? I love introducing fresh nightmares to fresh victims. Will absolutely present again.

Sunday – "Happily Ever After?! Wedded Bliss in Manga & Anime" (12:30-1:30pm, Room 306A)
A brand new panel exploring marriage from newlyweds to old couples (and even a few divorcees). Decent turnout, solid engagement, but the pacing needs tweaking. Next iteration: more prizes, maybe a "best dressed couple" contest. Consider this a beta test—final version coming soon.

Panels I Attended: Hits, Misses, and Jealousy

Friday

"Original to Adaptation" – A fascinating study of how source material gets stretched, trimmed, or mangled in translation. Hosts had some visible tension, which honestly made it more entertaining.
"10 Anime Movies You May Have Missed" – Third Impact Anime knows their showmanship. Solid niche picks.
"The Rotund Mecha Gentleman" – Someone had the same brilliant idea as me but executed it better. Instead of the Gai Daigoji type, they focused on the Musashis of giant robot anime. I'm jealous. No notes. Just respect.
"Intro to Japanese Bookbinding" – Sounded fascinating. Room was packed. Couldn't get a spot. Maybe next year.
"Traveling Japan Your Way" – Solid advice for neophytes. Common sense for frequent travelers, but a few restaurant recommendations caught my interest.

Saturday

"Aged to Perfection" – A cosplay-centric discussion about aging in fandom. I was the only guy in the room. Surprisingly good to hear fellow "oldtaku" (still hate that term) share experiences.
"Let's Watch Crazy Japanese Commercials" – Exactly what it sounds like. Long Long Man still holds up. Packed room, no notes, pure comfort panel.
"Shojo Manga's Lost Generation" – Great premise about the Year 24 Group and shojo history. Poor execution. Under-researched and overly focused on a few creators. Strange coming from a panelist who's usually top-notch—maybe an off day.
"Showa: The Golden Era of Kaijus" – The Godzilla guys are back. Lots of kaiju, sentai, and unrefined chaos. Sometimes you want a cheap hamburger, and this hit the spot.

Sunday

"The Shockingly True History of Tokyopop" – I love a good Stu Levy/DJ Milky hate session. Covered the good, the bad, and the what were they thinking. Tokyopop is somehow still alive. This panel was well-researched and entertaining—which makes the shojo panel's quality drop even more confusing.

The Dealer's Room & Artist Alley

The dealer's room was organized but quiet for my wallet. Still feeling the absence of CheapManga.com and Sci-Fi Continuum. Discotek was there—I didn't buy anything this year. Instead, I grabbed custom dice for Gretta and one art piece. The shamisen sellers returned, and so did the guy selling $4 dorayaki. Priorities.

Artist Alley was separated from the dealer's room this year—a refreshing change. Lots of talented artists. Also a lot more AI art, which is now officially concerning. Standout: Goblin Growlers (pricey but looked fun).

Video Game Room & Music Stage

Video Game Room – Same setup as last year. Not a huge library, but people were playing. I crushed a rhythm game, got obliterated in the Gundam battle game, and somehow won a top-down space shooter (first time ever—only died about a thousand times).

Music/Concert Stage – Barely populated. Maybe 12 people for one concert. The rave at night was similarly sparse—apparently an offsite meetup pulled the crowd. Lots of drunk weirdos, which is fine. Fun fact: the convention center serves alcohol at night. That's dangerous.

Masquerade & Cosplay

The masquerade was packed with contenders—no overarching theme, just creativity. Cosplay highlights this year included:

Oscar from Rose of Versailles (classy)
A red-jacket Lupin III with a torn top hat (Lupin the First movie version)
Lina Inverse (always a win)
Multiple Maomaos (Apothecary Diaries)
A Ranma-kun and Ranma-chan rocking the new character design hair

Nothing overwhelmingly elaborate at the masquerade—lots of quick, clever designs. More contained than previous years, but still plenty of heart.

Manga Library, Board Games, and Vibes

Manga Library – The local library collaboration continues to impress, with an excellent catalog and the staff running it were lovely.

Board Game Library – Same as last year: great games, no one to play with. I didn't arrange a game again. Maybe next year I'll actually follow through.

Overall Vibe – Homey, accepting, low-stress. The weirdos come out at night, but that's part of the charm. The layout is now second nature, and the crowd felt engaged without being overwhelming. This is officially my favorite convention of the year (admittedly I've only been to one so far, but it wins by default).

Final Thoughts

Animazement 2025 delivered exactly what I wanted: solid panels, legendary guests, and a fan community that actually feels like a community. No corporate bloat. No chaos. Just anime fans being anime fans.

See you next year, AZ.

—Xan (@Spiraken)

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