Daisho Con 2010 (in Gatherings and Con Reports at Trae Dorn [dot] Com / TRHOnline.com)

I've been delaying on this con report for a few weeks, and I'm realizing that I'm not going to have time to get stick figures done for it. It's one of my favorite conventions though, so I couldn't just keep leaving it dormant.

So, as this time around I do have a few photos and videos, I thought I'd share with you my 2010 Daisho Con report in more of a mixed media way. Exciting, I know.

For the uninitiated, Daisho Con is an Anime Convention in Stevens Point, WI. Held every November for the last several years. It's a bit of a trek for us now, but totally worth the drive every time.

Friday

Since Stevens Point is so far from Lafayette, Crysta and I actually left for the con on Thursday night - spending the evening at my parent's house in Milwaukee. On Friday morning, we hit the road though, and headed north.

We arrived early enough in the day and quickly got our badges. After saying hi to some people, we checked in to the Hotel and went and got some lunch.

Most of Friday was spent merely wandering around, saying hello to people we hadn't seen in months. A lot of our friends from Eau Claire were at the con, so it was nice to be able to actually hang out with people for a change. Eventually, we sat down and went to Opening Ceremonies.

Opening Ceremonies at Daisho Con was a bit of a mixed bag. Parts of it were awesome, while others... well... let's just say they try hard. For example, their head of security actually called me out about interrupting events. This is, of course, something in reference to a gag I pulled at last year's Daisho Con (which I got permission for) where I interrupted their cosplay contest intermission. I was going to jokingly go up and stand next to the stage, and then go sit back down. I managed to trip and almost hurt myself.

Needless to say, it was slightly embarrassing.

Daisho Con, like my con No Brand Con, has a storyline involving their mascots. The Daisho Con mascot plot live event was actually quite entertaining, and very funny. Later though they tried to play (what I was told was) an audio drama to give more back story... but from where I was in the room, I couldn't really hear anything. So... yeah. Not the greatest idea.

We wandered around a bit more, and socialized. Eventually we went to "ProfessorPher's" panel "Coming out of the basement." The panel started late though, as the previous event (a concert from Doctor Cancer and the SKAmbies) hadn't finished. Whoever did Daisho Con's schedule apparently hadn't allowed for setup and tear down for the band's performance - which is sad, and I hope a lesson they'll learn for next year. Eventually Pher got to start though.

Pher's panel was actually quite good, and hopefully he'll do it at another con soon. Afterwards, Pher joined Crysta and I for Dinner at the local Perkins.

Yes, I know, exciting. It was all Perkins-y. Pher, in his insanity, attempted to order an item that was not on the menu in any way, shape, or form... but there's not much you can do about that.

Because he's crazy.

Afterwards, we headed back to the hotel. Pher went off to get changed into a costume, and we checked out the No Brand Con room party.

The TV in the foreground was, of course, used for Typing of the Dead. Or something else. I can't remember.

Aaaaand there's Pher in costume with Taye in tow.

Anywho, Crysta and I called it an early night, headed up to our hotel room, and slept the deep sleep of two tired people.

Saturday

We woke up at a reasonable hour on Saturday, and headed down to the convention. When we were walking by one of the panel rooms, we saw Cheesus, Yushi and Pher gathering in a panel room -- announcing they were having an impromptu forum meetup. Pher was standing behind the podium, in the same costume from the night before.

I have a lot of Pher Pictures... huh. What apparently had happened was the panelist who was supposed to run the scheduled beginners DMing panel had to cancel last minute and was unable to attend.

I grabbed the mic and started to goof around in front of the stage, while Pher and Yushi sat behind the table. But because the cancellation was so last minute, people kept showing up for the DMing panel, and the forum meetup was failing...

...so I ran an impromptu panel on DMing. I mean hell, I've authored an RPG system - I know a thing or two about being a Dungeon Master and/or Game Master. And the panel actually went incredibly well.

Crysta and I then probably went and got lunch somewhere, but I can't remember where (this is what happens when you write a con report a couple weeks later).

We ended up going to SeanOrange's Famicom Dojo panel. He'd changed the name of it, so I honestly didn't know it was going to happen until Katie asked us if we were coming. Early on in the panel, I recorded Saturday's The Daily Trae - where I poke current No Brand Con President and Con Director Steve in the head a bunch:

After Sean's panel, we headed back to the No Brand Con Ambassador table, and hung out there for a good long while. Crysta ate some ramen so she wouldn't be hungry later (as we planned on grabbing dinner after Cosplay).

Eventually it came time for the Cosplay contest. We got there early and watched the end of a really great Taiko Drum group's performance. When they were done, Zack (known to the internets as Spittin Wheelie), Daisho Con co-founder and former condirector, called on No Brand Con Staffer (and TRHOnline.com regular) Calvsie on stage... and said that if Calvsie would chug most of a 2 liter of Mountain Dew, they'd give away free t-shirts.

And... well... see for yourself:

Calvsie was victorious.

The Cosplay contest went fine this year with no real hiccups. My only complaint was that it was short -- but that just has to do with how many people entered, and isn't the fault of the people running it in any way. The hosts were really good this year too (as they were last year) so it was an entertaining event.

During the cosplay intermission they had another plot moment. It was pretty entertaining, but sadly it didn't finish the story. They were going to save the ending for closing ceremonies, which is an event Crysta and I were going to have to miss (due to the 7-8 hour drive ahead of us on Sunday). If someone knows how it resolved, feel free to tell me. After the scripted part, Nick Izumi (one of the co-hosts) attempted to fill time while we waited for the judges to make their decisions. One of the DJs for the dance put some music on and Nick began to dance... and eventually some staff, the mascots, and attendees joined in:

The winners of the cosplay contest weren't that surprising. A great Ghost Busters cosplayer won overall. I wish I had a closeup of his highly detailed proton pack, but you'll just have to make due with this far shot:

His pants aren't tucked into his boots, so he must be Peter Venkman.

After the cosplay contest, Crysta and I got food... somewhere. I know I ate something. We ended up hanging out around the con, and went to Yushi and Erika's "Bad Cosplay Panel" that night. It was hilarious as always.

Afterwards we hung out with a bunch of No Brand Con people outside of the room party.

After a few hours, we went up to bed and crashed for the night.

Sunday

Sunday morning was pretty simple for us. Once we got up and packed up our room, I waited in line to check out.

That's right, waited in line to check out.

The line was incredibly long, and there was no instant check out in the hotel rooms. Really, the Ramada in Stevens Point needs to get their stuff together on this one.

After checking out, we headed back into the con and ran into Steve. Thusly Sunday's Daily Trae happened:

We hung out by Cheesus and Macha's table for a while, but eventually we needed food and to drive home... so we went with Kurtz and Steve to Perkins. We ate a lot of Perkins that weekend.

Where Steve proceeded to order something not quite on the menu.

At least he just modified an existing dish instead of Pher's attempt to invent something from whole cloth. After the meal, we dropped Kurtz and Steve off at the hotel, and hit the road.

Daisho Con was a fun experience as always, and remains one of my favorite cons. I plan on coming back next year.