The History of Anime Punch is a tale with no beginning, and one that we
fight to keep from having an ending.
To go back to our roots, we must look to "Animate!", the OSU anime club. Even we do not know the complete history of this club. What we do know is that it's at least ten years old, that it used to have an active internal fansub group, and that it hosted the prolific server "Soyokaze," an instrumental part of early online fandom (Google "soyokaze.biosci.ohio-state.edu" and feel the history). For all we know, this club has existed since before Starsha of Iscandar offered her support the survivors of Earth. What we do know, is that in 2004 a girl named Susan took charge of the club.
2005
In the club's more-recent history, there was a loose tradition of holding some sort of larger spring event for club members, later named "Bakuhatsu Anime Fest". In 2005, Susan decided to have it take the form of a campus wide cosplay event. Fearing that cosplay alone wouldn't be a big enough draw, she enlisted the help of Michael, who had experience from staffing various Ohio anime conventions, to help make it more interesting. Eventually, the plan settled on throwing a single-day "micro-convention". While coming up with a name, "Anime Punch" was among the first suggestions, but was immediately rejected for being too lame. Unfortunately, nothing else seemed to stick, and "Anime Punch" was a loose translation of "Bakuhatsu Anime Fest", so they gave up and went with it.
AP05: Microcon was a testament to the ability and greatness of the core AP staffers: There was next to no planning put into it, no staff was scheduled, and no obligations were pre-written or planned. It amounted to a rough schedule of events, two video rooms, a main programming room, a panel room, and a game room. It probably should have collapsed- the framework was in place, but there was nothing holding it together. However, by virtue of the devotion, knowhow, and independent expertise of the members of Animate (most of whom became the foundation of AP), more than two dozen showed up to staff, bringing TVs, video games, and the initiative to work hard without any real instruction. Even more amazingly, over three-hundred people showed up for the event! They, who had agreed they would be satisfied with forty people, were amazed to have nearly ten times that many arrive. It was pretty awesome for all involved.
Then it ended, they broke down, cleaned up, and retreated back to their home base in the Baker dorms to play the new Naruto game, drink soda, eat pizza, and watch some anime (an Urusei Yatsura movie, some Magical Project S, and 4play, the clubs favorite hentai). It's almost hard to believe that is how this all started.
2006
After the success of what later came to be known as "AP:0," the staff became ambitious. Though still overwhelmed by Microcon's turnout, Michael took over as head of the convention-related aspects of the anime club and began talking to hotels. Before they knew it, they had found one, negotiated, and drafted a contract. As if mandated by the Fates themselves, those who had gone to the signing of the contract returned at the conclusion of the episode of Genshiken where they decide to go to Comiket as vendors, and in the wake announced that Anime Punch would become a three-day event held in a real hotel!
Of course, this added a lot of liability. The difference between success and failure ballooned from seven-hundred dollars to a much more serious thirty-five thousand dollars. If staffers didn't show up, it could mean pandemonium. If guests flaked, it would be a mess. If the game room didn't materialize, there could be a riot. The stakes raised considerably that night.
It was in the face of these odds that Anime Punch found its place in the world. Trusting in the power and ability of its staffers, AP decided to avoid the traditional departmental structure that most anime conventions employ and everything was decided by the collective. Positions were never assigned, staff schedules were never written and, overall, it was an entire year of "fly-by-the-seats-of-our-pants" convention management. It was often (half-)jokingly stated: "We promote the convention, we don't plan it."
During this period, Anime Punch found its core principles and soul. Disillusioned with the monotony of other conventions and their cookie-cutter feel, the staff of Anime Punch decided to create a revolution against the conventional convention; a revolution against fandom itself. It was unanimously agreed that this event would never pander to the fickle pop interests of fandom at large, and would stay true to what the staff themselves wanted to do; that this convention would never fall into a rut, and would always bring something new to the table year after year; that it would not have the same things that all the other conventions did, and would not fit into their mold; that it would create new events, new panels, and even new ideas; and when they had to do something that everyone else did (like cosplay) that they would do it in a new way. With this spirit in mind, the event was subtitled "The Armageddicon" - A revolution in the way we think about anime conventions.
In an odd twist of fate, the Armageddicon of 2006 saw great benefit from its inexperienced staff. Few had ever worked for other conventions and thus were not already set in their ways of thought. Only Michael (the "Kaiser") had experience at the top levels of organization, and only a handful had any experience at all. Michael at the helm, the energetic Armageddicon forces came up with their own solutions to problems that had been solved a decade prior by everyone else. While much of this was re-inventing the wheel, it drew the core AP staff together and helped them rethink every minute detail of the convention. In that time, at that place, the staff spent nearly an entire year together, day in and day out, working relentlessly to build something great; something that had never been before and might never be again.
Because it was a rejection of the convention conventions, the theme for 2006 was a communist revolution and the theme color was red- a symbol of revolution and homage to its Ohio State roots. AP was declared a convention of the people and invited everyone to contribute ideas and suggestions. "You suggest it and we'll do it!" was the call and "do it" they did: a number of signature events were born of innocently-given suggestions made by complete outsiders.
In keeping with the rejection of others' precedent, an important decision involved finding the focus of the convention. As AP was built from an anime club, and to further distinguish the Armageddicon from the numerous other Ohio conventions, it was decided that it would be "Anime Only," with the focus firmly centered on anime, rather than "anime plus anything remotely Japanese." At the time, the only other anime event in the Columbus area was Ohayocon, which billed itself as a "Japanese Culture" convention. Ohayocon was doing a good job of catering to all the elements of Japanese fandom, so the AP crew felt they could get away with locking on to the one thing all the fans had in common. By limiting the convention to a single topic, it was thought they could better explore it.
AP also decided to have a much stronger academic focus than other anime events. Being a bunch of college students, the staff felt that they had the ability to raise the bar on fandom. At that point the teenagers had started to outnumber the adults in fandom, and many adults stopped going to the conventions as more and more of the programming was oriented to an audience they weren't a part of, and at a level they found insulting. Anime Punch, with its aim to be the con for disillusioned con-goers, declared themselves the "college-aged convention". All panels were to be held at a college level, professors and academic guests were invited to speak, and censorship was considered a taboo. Around this time the staff started hearing rumors that AP was a major party convention. Although it is still unclear how those rumors got started, the staff decided to roll with it, as partying was also a part of the college experience. Prior to that, few AP staffers drank.
The staff also wrote a plot for their event, and set it in the year 2096. The year was chosen because several staffers were fans of the ELO album "Time" and even more so of the animation studio GAINAX. Back before they founded the studio, the staff of GAINAX had hosted several science fiction conventions, and had created opening animations for them. For the 22nd Japan Science Fiction Convention, they produced "Daicon IV," featuring the ELO song "Twilight" (later used in the Densha Otoko opening to parody the original Daicon animation). The following track on that album was titled "Yours Truly, 2095". As the staff wanted to have the convention set sometime in the future, idolized Studio GAINAX, and had started in 2005, they moved the date of the convention 90 years into the future.
Having had a solid year of planning, the convention itself was extremely successful. There was an unprecedented atmosphere of togetherness, and a reckless sense of instability. Dozens of figurative fires sprung up, and the staff was running around in circles putting them all out, but the attendees seemed energized by that atmosphere, rather than upset. The new events and attitudes were very well received by most, and many attendees contributed to the fun by spontaneously starting things on their own. Somewhere in the well-coordinated chaos that was AP06, a certain vibe was found between staff and attendees. It was an unparalleled feeling of unity that hadn't been felt at an anime convention for years, and will likely never be felt again.
2007
The planning for 2007 started amidst a heavy post-convention depression of the staff. Having worked together for so long and so hard, literally eating and sleeping together for months as a pack, the void left after the convention's end was crippling to morale. The anime club was a ghost town that spring, and many of the staffers' GPAs dropped considerably that quarter. Due to a scheduling conflict, they were unable to return to the same hotel for 2007, and were not having a lot of luck finding a new location. Eventually, and against their better judgment, they signed with the Radisson Worthington; a small, awkwardly-laid-out hotel about a block south of their old location. Every trip to this venue brought with it more despair.
But then, the seeds of a new hope were found! As relations with the Radisson became more and more strained, the staff discovered the Columbus Airport Marriott, a hotel with an identical layout to the 2006 location. One meeting with the sales representative was enough to convince the staff that this was where they needed to be. AP and the Radisson mutually agreed to end their contract, and from that point forward, planning flourished again, the Armageddicon forces were reenergized. Lost vigor restored, there were again many late nights filled with laughter, plotting, scheming, ping pong, foosball, foos-pong, and the clackity-clack of Guitar Hero controllers.
Many of the practices established in 2006 carried over into the planning of 2007, including the idea of a backstory. The theme from the previous year endured in modified form: the revolution had been won, and the revolutionaries found themselves the new fascists, unable to reconcile their beliefs with the harsh realities faced by those trying to rebuild a divided and war-torn nation. The disciples of Mao found themselves to be the axe-men of Stalin, and although the propaganda still spoke of the constant state of revolution any dissent was answered by a chorus of patriotic Kalashnikovs.
Although the theme had become jaded and twisted, the staff was largely the same, and their spirit remained uncorrupted. They still aimed to push the envelope, and stayed true to their goal of being a new experience, tempered by good response to the "Anime Only" and "College Aged" goals that the first Armageddicon had established. Just as the plot from the previous year advanced into 2097, in many ways, the planning for the 2007 event was a continuation of the first Armageddicon.
In 2006, the musical guest had been Steve Conte, a well-rounded, extremely respectable musician who had a following in both the anime world (for his work with Yoko Kanno in Cowboy Bebop and Ghost in the Shell) and in the New York music scene (we've even seen him as a guest on the Conan O'Brien show). Although he was solo, he put on a phenomenal show and would be a hard act to follow. He also set the dangerous precedent of AP having extremely noteworthy musical guests, one that the staff has since committed to keep up. The Protomen were the perfect solution to this problem. Their discovery helped the con commit to a glorious music tradition, and also fired up the staff and the attendees alike. Anime Punch may very well have been the first anime convention to have a full fledged mosh-pit.
When the convention hit, it hit hard. Due to a series of glitches with both the staff and the printers, the badges were not ready until noon Friday. As the line grew restless, the staff settled on an open convention for Friday's events. Everyone could go see what they wanted, and could get the badges at their leisure without having to wait in a line all day. While the it was almost certainly a loss financially, it's widely accepted to have been the correct decision, and congruent with Anime Punch's goal to put the people first.
The registration debacle was the first of many glitches in 2007. However, it was similar to 2006 in that most were minor and didn't affect the overall experience. Any real catastrophe was safegaurded against by the hardened Armageddicon staff, though many of the small issues were easily preventable and many notes were taken for future events. The biggest and most famous glitch revolved around the emergency cancellation of the "Hentai Olympics" - but that story shall never be put into writing.
In spite of these issues, the convention was extremely successful: It was very well received, and had a lot less screw-ups than the first Armageddicon. While in 2006 there had been a lot of wild spontaneity just outside the boundaries of control, it was a concern of the staff that the chaos was less "creative and productive" and more "dangerous and threatening," so greater attention was paid to things that might be unwholesome during the weekend. It was still a lot of fun and had a great atmosphere, though, and many of the more disconcerting rumors and accounts were found to be false. The only truly negative feedback to come from 2007 was from the furry community, and that was rooted in an unfortunate misunderstanding. It was regrettable that the convention didn't reach the same chi that it had in 2006, but they figured that's how "once in a lifetime" atmospheres work and looked to the brighter side, appreciating the substantial growth seen that year.
2008
After 2007 there was the usual long, dark teatime of the soul. Some of the people who had been with the convention from the very beginning dropped off the face of the planet, never to be seen again. However, unlike previous years, there was already a lot of momentum being put towards the next event. Once again, a new hotel had to be chosen. Attention was especially placed on space as it had been extremely crowded at the Marriot, and a location with more breathing room was essential. The staff accepted a favorable offer from the Crowne Plaza, a hotel with a drastically different layout than the previous venues. A long look at previous themes and ideals was also taken, to ensure they were in alignment with the cause that the staff believed in. Most of the ideals remained, but a lot of the themes began to change. Never being content with running the same convention year to year, the similarities between 2006 and 2007 were a disappointment, and the 2008 Armageddicon was to be different from the outset. Although the communist/fascist themes were not completely weeded out, the convention started on the path of taking its theme from a specific anime. To those close to the staff, it came as no surprise that the first official theme-show of Anime Punch was made by Studio Gainax and was having a tremendous affect on members new and old: Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann. With its theme of expanding outward, guns forward ballsyness, and the chorus of "Fight the Power!" it was the perfect fit for the Armageddicon. The plot of the Armageddicon advanced another 100 years into the future, bringing it to 2198, away from the bygone revolution and the misery of its outcome.
The planning in 2008 went a lot more streamlined than in previous years. Some new programming was experimented with, but it required little involvement on the part of the core staff. A lot was accomplished in a small amount of time and many hands made for relatively light work. For the big musical guest the convention staff decided to take a gamble on Hsu Nami, a then-unknown experimental Asian-Rock group that was just beginning to get some exposure. To stick to the theme, the band graciously agreed to learn and perform several anime songs recommended by the convention. AP also expanded its cadre of academic guests, while slimming the number of industry guests.
After all the planning and preparation put in, the event itself went extremely smoothly. Registration ran flawlessly, never getting backed up. Video didn't cause any big problems (though it maintained its inability to be completed before the very last moment). Hsu Nami turned out to be an incredible experience, far surpassing the expectations of the con staff and maintaining AP's record of having excellent musical guests. The experimental RFID badge system worked almost perfectly and cosplay even finished early. The fundamentals of the convention itself ran so smoothly that the convention chairman was actually became frustrated with how easily it all went by. Ominously, he vowed to make the next year more interesting one way or another.
Alas, it wasn't completely smooth sailing, and what problems did arise ended up being extremely frustrating. The night manager of the hotel decided to be in bad-cop mode the entire event, and would go out of his way to be to trouble con staff and congoers. Fortunately, he was an isolate; the rest of the hotel staff was stellar the entire weekend. The frequency with which people were actively obnoxious and troublesome was also greater than in years-past. There were three guys in particular who managed to get red paint all over the hotel and the staff had to forgo sleep and partying Saturday night to scrub walls until 6am to undo the damage. Damage to the premises, otherwise, could be described as "minor."
When the dust had settled, 2008's revolution proved an extremely successful event. Most of the attendees claim it to have been the best Punch yet (contrary to the staff opinion), it was financially successful, and it helped to further establish the Armageddicon's history of being awesome. Perhaps the least fortunate aspect was that it marked the last year that Susan would be a part of Anime Punch. The originator of this great scheme, and the powerhouse that kept con-ops running in top form at all hours for three years running, she will be impossible to replace.
2009
With Armageddicon IV, we return to our homeland, the now renamed and remodeled 2006 location. For the theme, we have chosen the combined canon of Leiji Matsumoto, and the official movie for this next gathering of intrepid souls is "Arcadia of My Youth", the Space Pirate Captain Harlock movie. The convention is set a year after the 2008 event, placing it the infamous year 2199, the year that The Yamato left on its dangerous voyage to save Earth in the classic space epic "Space Battlecruiser Yamato".
Plot-wise, we are diverging from our previous experiences significantly this year. In the past, the Armageddicon has always been the rally of survivors. In 2006, we were the survivors of the end, not coming together for shelter or preservation, but to have one last party. In 2007, we found ourselves still alive, and it was a gathering to start a new future! We had proved we could do more than just survive, and it was time to boldly blaze a new path of our own. In 2008, we endured hardship and holocaust. Survivors again, we struck out to take down all those who stood in our way so that we might rebuild in peace. This year is a darker story, more in keeping with the tone of Matsumoto's work. Rather than survivors refusing to let our light be extinguished, we are the soldiers sent out to fight an unknown enemy. We go with the knowledge that, whether we live or die, we will never return to the home we are giving everything up for. Where in the past we sang the songs of freedom, of revolution, and of life; now we chant the solemn hymns of soldiers sailing to an unfamiliar foreign shore.
The plot may be dire, but we are very excited about this year, and have high expectations. We have some new events in the works, and are looking to do a lot of new things with the video rooms. Even better, we welcome the The Protomen to our halls once again! That alone has us psyched enough to that we're even making rudimentary plans for 2010! Could this year combine the fluidity and experience of 2008 with the power and impact of 2006? Either way, it will certainly be one for the books.
Oh yeah, Fieldcon, et al.
Fieldcon started as a joke, kicked around by the staff at meetings for a laugh. For better or worse though, the Armageddistaff has an adage of "Once we say it, we have to do it." This mentality has been responsible for some of the greatest events and attributes, as well as some of the biggest mistakes associated with the convention. Fieldcon, however, is a triumph and success; not just for Anime Punch, but humanity in general. Its original concept involved projecting anime on the backs of polar bears, but it rapidly evolved into a nearly feasible plan to have an anime convention in a world without power.
The first Fieldcon took place a few months after the first Armageddicon, in 2006. It was a small gathering of between 14 and 18 people. The legendary tent of the first Armageddicon was put to use and formed a nearly-functional shelter. There were no events scheduled but several planned, so that people could take part in them if they like, and if not so be it. In the end, most of them involved Frisbees or swords, and a fairly epic game of Capture the Flag also happened.
As with the first Armageddicon, many traditions were forged that year, such as starting and ending the convention with a bonfire (making it a three day event that only lasts 24 hours), and for sealing that bonfire's sanctity with a round of Wild Turkey. The erecting of the tent became the traditional first event of Fieldcon, and has evolved over time as well. Last, and most importantly, a bold history of playing with fire was established.
2007 kicked everything up a notch. The building of the tent became a hazing ritual for first-timers. Playing with fire became flaming sword fighting. Flogging Molly was introduced, as was an epic log run. A hot chick in a bikini chopped wood with a sword. Live action duck-hunt was played with shirtless guys and paintball guns. Very little else can be said about the event that should be put into writing. The stories are out there, and they are almost always true.
2008 upped the ante even farther. "Awesome" became institutionalized. The caretakers of the site left a small mountain of logging refuse to be burned. Ten gallons of stew was produced. New revelries included sword football (it's like football, but everyone has a sword), fireball (it's like soccer meets dodge-ball and everything is on fire), and a brutal game of Battle Royale.
Battle Royale was played as close to the movie as possible, wherein everyone was led deep into the woods (near a cliff), given a weapon selected at random (with a preset list of abilities and limitations), and thirty seconds to get away from everyone else. Everyone had to make it to a preselected area before the time ran out, and only one could be alive at that point. The weapon rules were frustrating for some, vicious to others, heaven-sent to a few, and entertaining to all those watching the game. The rules were cutthroat to all.
Possibly more epic than anything else at this already-remarkable Fieldcon was the "event" of Saturday Night. Late in the evening, a category 3 thunderstorm attacked Morgan County. However, rather than smacking into the flimsy shantytown that was the tents of Fieldcon, the storm literally parted around it, at one point leaving the people with a 360° light show of malicious lightning and earth-shaking thunder. Despite the horrors surrounding it, the convention was left unscathed.
The staff plans to continue running Fieldcon until everyone has lost a limb in the course of running it. There are also tentative plans for "Swimcon" and "Skicon" but those have yet to materialize beyond the occasional joke.
To go back to our roots, we must look to "Animate!", the OSU anime club. Even we do not know the complete history of this club. What we do know is that it's at least ten years old, that it used to have an active internal fansub group, and that it hosted the prolific server "Soyokaze," an instrumental part of early online fandom (Google "soyokaze.biosci.ohio-state.edu" and feel the history). For all we know, this club has existed since before Starsha of Iscandar offered her support the survivors of Earth. What we do know, is that in 2004 a girl named Susan took charge of the club.
2005
In the club's more-recent history, there was a loose tradition of holding some sort of larger spring event for club members, later named "Bakuhatsu Anime Fest". In 2005, Susan decided to have it take the form of a campus wide cosplay event. Fearing that cosplay alone wouldn't be a big enough draw, she enlisted the help of Michael, who had experience from staffing various Ohio anime conventions, to help make it more interesting. Eventually, the plan settled on throwing a single-day "micro-convention". While coming up with a name, "Anime Punch" was among the first suggestions, but was immediately rejected for being too lame. Unfortunately, nothing else seemed to stick, and "Anime Punch" was a loose translation of "Bakuhatsu Anime Fest", so they gave up and went with it.
AP05: Microcon was a testament to the ability and greatness of the core AP staffers: There was next to no planning put into it, no staff was scheduled, and no obligations were pre-written or planned. It amounted to a rough schedule of events, two video rooms, a main programming room, a panel room, and a game room. It probably should have collapsed- the framework was in place, but there was nothing holding it together. However, by virtue of the devotion, knowhow, and independent expertise of the members of Animate (most of whom became the foundation of AP), more than two dozen showed up to staff, bringing TVs, video games, and the initiative to work hard without any real instruction. Even more amazingly, over three-hundred people showed up for the event! They, who had agreed they would be satisfied with forty people, were amazed to have nearly ten times that many arrive. It was pretty awesome for all involved.
Then it ended, they broke down, cleaned up, and retreated back to their home base in the Baker dorms to play the new Naruto game, drink soda, eat pizza, and watch some anime (an Urusei Yatsura movie, some Magical Project S, and 4play, the clubs favorite hentai). It's almost hard to believe that is how this all started.
2006
After the success of what later came to be known as "AP:0," the staff became ambitious. Though still overwhelmed by Microcon's turnout, Michael took over as head of the convention-related aspects of the anime club and began talking to hotels. Before they knew it, they had found one, negotiated, and drafted a contract. As if mandated by the Fates themselves, those who had gone to the signing of the contract returned at the conclusion of the episode of Genshiken where they decide to go to Comiket as vendors, and in the wake announced that Anime Punch would become a three-day event held in a real hotel!
Of course, this added a lot of liability. The difference between success and failure ballooned from seven-hundred dollars to a much more serious thirty-five thousand dollars. If staffers didn't show up, it could mean pandemonium. If guests flaked, it would be a mess. If the game room didn't materialize, there could be a riot. The stakes raised considerably that night.
It was in the face of these odds that Anime Punch found its place in the world. Trusting in the power and ability of its staffers, AP decided to avoid the traditional departmental structure that most anime conventions employ and everything was decided by the collective. Positions were never assigned, staff schedules were never written and, overall, it was an entire year of "fly-by-the-seats-of-our-pants" convention management. It was often (half-)jokingly stated: "We promote the convention, we don't plan it."
During this period, Anime Punch found its core principles and soul. Disillusioned with the monotony of other conventions and their cookie-cutter feel, the staff of Anime Punch decided to create a revolution against the conventional convention; a revolution against fandom itself. It was unanimously agreed that this event would never pander to the fickle pop interests of fandom at large, and would stay true to what the staff themselves wanted to do; that this convention would never fall into a rut, and would always bring something new to the table year after year; that it would not have the same things that all the other conventions did, and would not fit into their mold; that it would create new events, new panels, and even new ideas; and when they had to do something that everyone else did (like cosplay) that they would do it in a new way. With this spirit in mind, the event was subtitled "The Armageddicon" - A revolution in the way we think about anime conventions.
In an odd twist of fate, the Armageddicon of 2006 saw great benefit from its inexperienced staff. Few had ever worked for other conventions and thus were not already set in their ways of thought. Only Michael (the "Kaiser") had experience at the top levels of organization, and only a handful had any experience at all. Michael at the helm, the energetic Armageddicon forces came up with their own solutions to problems that had been solved a decade prior by everyone else. While much of this was re-inventing the wheel, it drew the core AP staff together and helped them rethink every minute detail of the convention. In that time, at that place, the staff spent nearly an entire year together, day in and day out, working relentlessly to build something great; something that had never been before and might never be again.
Because it was a rejection of the convention conventions, the theme for 2006 was a communist revolution and the theme color was red- a symbol of revolution and homage to its Ohio State roots. AP was declared a convention of the people and invited everyone to contribute ideas and suggestions. "You suggest it and we'll do it!" was the call and "do it" they did: a number of signature events were born of innocently-given suggestions made by complete outsiders.
In keeping with the rejection of others' precedent, an important decision involved finding the focus of the convention. As AP was built from an anime club, and to further distinguish the Armageddicon from the numerous other Ohio conventions, it was decided that it would be "Anime Only," with the focus firmly centered on anime, rather than "anime plus anything remotely Japanese." At the time, the only other anime event in the Columbus area was Ohayocon, which billed itself as a "Japanese Culture" convention. Ohayocon was doing a good job of catering to all the elements of Japanese fandom, so the AP crew felt they could get away with locking on to the one thing all the fans had in common. By limiting the convention to a single topic, it was thought they could better explore it.
AP also decided to have a much stronger academic focus than other anime events. Being a bunch of college students, the staff felt that they had the ability to raise the bar on fandom. At that point the teenagers had started to outnumber the adults in fandom, and many adults stopped going to the conventions as more and more of the programming was oriented to an audience they weren't a part of, and at a level they found insulting. Anime Punch, with its aim to be the con for disillusioned con-goers, declared themselves the "college-aged convention". All panels were to be held at a college level, professors and academic guests were invited to speak, and censorship was considered a taboo. Around this time the staff started hearing rumors that AP was a major party convention. Although it is still unclear how those rumors got started, the staff decided to roll with it, as partying was also a part of the college experience. Prior to that, few AP staffers drank.
The staff also wrote a plot for their event, and set it in the year 2096. The year was chosen because several staffers were fans of the ELO album "Time" and even more so of the animation studio GAINAX. Back before they founded the studio, the staff of GAINAX had hosted several science fiction conventions, and had created opening animations for them. For the 22nd Japan Science Fiction Convention, they produced "Daicon IV," featuring the ELO song "Twilight" (later used in the Densha Otoko opening to parody the original Daicon animation). The following track on that album was titled "Yours Truly, 2095". As the staff wanted to have the convention set sometime in the future, idolized Studio GAINAX, and had started in 2005, they moved the date of the convention 90 years into the future.
Having had a solid year of planning, the convention itself was extremely successful. There was an unprecedented atmosphere of togetherness, and a reckless sense of instability. Dozens of figurative fires sprung up, and the staff was running around in circles putting them all out, but the attendees seemed energized by that atmosphere, rather than upset. The new events and attitudes were very well received by most, and many attendees contributed to the fun by spontaneously starting things on their own. Somewhere in the well-coordinated chaos that was AP06, a certain vibe was found between staff and attendees. It was an unparalleled feeling of unity that hadn't been felt at an anime convention for years, and will likely never be felt again.
2007
The planning for 2007 started amidst a heavy post-convention depression of the staff. Having worked together for so long and so hard, literally eating and sleeping together for months as a pack, the void left after the convention's end was crippling to morale. The anime club was a ghost town that spring, and many of the staffers' GPAs dropped considerably that quarter. Due to a scheduling conflict, they were unable to return to the same hotel for 2007, and were not having a lot of luck finding a new location. Eventually, and against their better judgment, they signed with the Radisson Worthington; a small, awkwardly-laid-out hotel about a block south of their old location. Every trip to this venue brought with it more despair.
But then, the seeds of a new hope were found! As relations with the Radisson became more and more strained, the staff discovered the Columbus Airport Marriott, a hotel with an identical layout to the 2006 location. One meeting with the sales representative was enough to convince the staff that this was where they needed to be. AP and the Radisson mutually agreed to end their contract, and from that point forward, planning flourished again, the Armageddicon forces were reenergized. Lost vigor restored, there were again many late nights filled with laughter, plotting, scheming, ping pong, foosball, foos-pong, and the clackity-clack of Guitar Hero controllers.
Many of the practices established in 2006 carried over into the planning of 2007, including the idea of a backstory. The theme from the previous year endured in modified form: the revolution had been won, and the revolutionaries found themselves the new fascists, unable to reconcile their beliefs with the harsh realities faced by those trying to rebuild a divided and war-torn nation. The disciples of Mao found themselves to be the axe-men of Stalin, and although the propaganda still spoke of the constant state of revolution any dissent was answered by a chorus of patriotic Kalashnikovs.
Although the theme had become jaded and twisted, the staff was largely the same, and their spirit remained uncorrupted. They still aimed to push the envelope, and stayed true to their goal of being a new experience, tempered by good response to the "Anime Only" and "College Aged" goals that the first Armageddicon had established. Just as the plot from the previous year advanced into 2097, in many ways, the planning for the 2007 event was a continuation of the first Armageddicon.
In 2006, the musical guest had been Steve Conte, a well-rounded, extremely respectable musician who had a following in both the anime world (for his work with Yoko Kanno in Cowboy Bebop and Ghost in the Shell) and in the New York music scene (we've even seen him as a guest on the Conan O'Brien show). Although he was solo, he put on a phenomenal show and would be a hard act to follow. He also set the dangerous precedent of AP having extremely noteworthy musical guests, one that the staff has since committed to keep up. The Protomen were the perfect solution to this problem. Their discovery helped the con commit to a glorious music tradition, and also fired up the staff and the attendees alike. Anime Punch may very well have been the first anime convention to have a full fledged mosh-pit.
When the convention hit, it hit hard. Due to a series of glitches with both the staff and the printers, the badges were not ready until noon Friday. As the line grew restless, the staff settled on an open convention for Friday's events. Everyone could go see what they wanted, and could get the badges at their leisure without having to wait in a line all day. While the it was almost certainly a loss financially, it's widely accepted to have been the correct decision, and congruent with Anime Punch's goal to put the people first.
The registration debacle was the first of many glitches in 2007. However, it was similar to 2006 in that most were minor and didn't affect the overall experience. Any real catastrophe was safegaurded against by the hardened Armageddicon staff, though many of the small issues were easily preventable and many notes were taken for future events. The biggest and most famous glitch revolved around the emergency cancellation of the "Hentai Olympics" - but that story shall never be put into writing.
In spite of these issues, the convention was extremely successful: It was very well received, and had a lot less screw-ups than the first Armageddicon. While in 2006 there had been a lot of wild spontaneity just outside the boundaries of control, it was a concern of the staff that the chaos was less "creative and productive" and more "dangerous and threatening," so greater attention was paid to things that might be unwholesome during the weekend. It was still a lot of fun and had a great atmosphere, though, and many of the more disconcerting rumors and accounts were found to be false. The only truly negative feedback to come from 2007 was from the furry community, and that was rooted in an unfortunate misunderstanding. It was regrettable that the convention didn't reach the same chi that it had in 2006, but they figured that's how "once in a lifetime" atmospheres work and looked to the brighter side, appreciating the substantial growth seen that year.
2008
After 2007 there was the usual long, dark teatime of the soul. Some of the people who had been with the convention from the very beginning dropped off the face of the planet, never to be seen again. However, unlike previous years, there was already a lot of momentum being put towards the next event. Once again, a new hotel had to be chosen. Attention was especially placed on space as it had been extremely crowded at the Marriot, and a location with more breathing room was essential. The staff accepted a favorable offer from the Crowne Plaza, a hotel with a drastically different layout than the previous venues. A long look at previous themes and ideals was also taken, to ensure they were in alignment with the cause that the staff believed in. Most of the ideals remained, but a lot of the themes began to change. Never being content with running the same convention year to year, the similarities between 2006 and 2007 were a disappointment, and the 2008 Armageddicon was to be different from the outset. Although the communist/fascist themes were not completely weeded out, the convention started on the path of taking its theme from a specific anime. To those close to the staff, it came as no surprise that the first official theme-show of Anime Punch was made by Studio Gainax and was having a tremendous affect on members new and old: Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann. With its theme of expanding outward, guns forward ballsyness, and the chorus of "Fight the Power!" it was the perfect fit for the Armageddicon. The plot of the Armageddicon advanced another 100 years into the future, bringing it to 2198, away from the bygone revolution and the misery of its outcome.
The planning in 2008 went a lot more streamlined than in previous years. Some new programming was experimented with, but it required little involvement on the part of the core staff. A lot was accomplished in a small amount of time and many hands made for relatively light work. For the big musical guest the convention staff decided to take a gamble on Hsu Nami, a then-unknown experimental Asian-Rock group that was just beginning to get some exposure. To stick to the theme, the band graciously agreed to learn and perform several anime songs recommended by the convention. AP also expanded its cadre of academic guests, while slimming the number of industry guests.
After all the planning and preparation put in, the event itself went extremely smoothly. Registration ran flawlessly, never getting backed up. Video didn't cause any big problems (though it maintained its inability to be completed before the very last moment). Hsu Nami turned out to be an incredible experience, far surpassing the expectations of the con staff and maintaining AP's record of having excellent musical guests. The experimental RFID badge system worked almost perfectly and cosplay even finished early. The fundamentals of the convention itself ran so smoothly that the convention chairman was actually became frustrated with how easily it all went by. Ominously, he vowed to make the next year more interesting one way or another.
Alas, it wasn't completely smooth sailing, and what problems did arise ended up being extremely frustrating. The night manager of the hotel decided to be in bad-cop mode the entire event, and would go out of his way to be to trouble con staff and congoers. Fortunately, he was an isolate; the rest of the hotel staff was stellar the entire weekend. The frequency with which people were actively obnoxious and troublesome was also greater than in years-past. There were three guys in particular who managed to get red paint all over the hotel and the staff had to forgo sleep and partying Saturday night to scrub walls until 6am to undo the damage. Damage to the premises, otherwise, could be described as "minor."
When the dust had settled, 2008's revolution proved an extremely successful event. Most of the attendees claim it to have been the best Punch yet (contrary to the staff opinion), it was financially successful, and it helped to further establish the Armageddicon's history of being awesome. Perhaps the least fortunate aspect was that it marked the last year that Susan would be a part of Anime Punch. The originator of this great scheme, and the powerhouse that kept con-ops running in top form at all hours for three years running, she will be impossible to replace.
2009
With Armageddicon IV, we return to our homeland, the now renamed and remodeled 2006 location. For the theme, we have chosen the combined canon of Leiji Matsumoto, and the official movie for this next gathering of intrepid souls is "Arcadia of My Youth", the Space Pirate Captain Harlock movie. The convention is set a year after the 2008 event, placing it the infamous year 2199, the year that The Yamato left on its dangerous voyage to save Earth in the classic space epic "Space Battlecruiser Yamato".
Plot-wise, we are diverging from our previous experiences significantly this year. In the past, the Armageddicon has always been the rally of survivors. In 2006, we were the survivors of the end, not coming together for shelter or preservation, but to have one last party. In 2007, we found ourselves still alive, and it was a gathering to start a new future! We had proved we could do more than just survive, and it was time to boldly blaze a new path of our own. In 2008, we endured hardship and holocaust. Survivors again, we struck out to take down all those who stood in our way so that we might rebuild in peace. This year is a darker story, more in keeping with the tone of Matsumoto's work. Rather than survivors refusing to let our light be extinguished, we are the soldiers sent out to fight an unknown enemy. We go with the knowledge that, whether we live or die, we will never return to the home we are giving everything up for. Where in the past we sang the songs of freedom, of revolution, and of life; now we chant the solemn hymns of soldiers sailing to an unfamiliar foreign shore.
The plot may be dire, but we are very excited about this year, and have high expectations. We have some new events in the works, and are looking to do a lot of new things with the video rooms. Even better, we welcome the The Protomen to our halls once again! That alone has us psyched enough to that we're even making rudimentary plans for 2010! Could this year combine the fluidity and experience of 2008 with the power and impact of 2006? Either way, it will certainly be one for the books.
Oh yeah, Fieldcon, et al.
Fieldcon started as a joke, kicked around by the staff at meetings for a laugh. For better or worse though, the Armageddistaff has an adage of "Once we say it, we have to do it." This mentality has been responsible for some of the greatest events and attributes, as well as some of the biggest mistakes associated with the convention. Fieldcon, however, is a triumph and success; not just for Anime Punch, but humanity in general. Its original concept involved projecting anime on the backs of polar bears, but it rapidly evolved into a nearly feasible plan to have an anime convention in a world without power.
The first Fieldcon took place a few months after the first Armageddicon, in 2006. It was a small gathering of between 14 and 18 people. The legendary tent of the first Armageddicon was put to use and formed a nearly-functional shelter. There were no events scheduled but several planned, so that people could take part in them if they like, and if not so be it. In the end, most of them involved Frisbees or swords, and a fairly epic game of Capture the Flag also happened.
As with the first Armageddicon, many traditions were forged that year, such as starting and ending the convention with a bonfire (making it a three day event that only lasts 24 hours), and for sealing that bonfire's sanctity with a round of Wild Turkey. The erecting of the tent became the traditional first event of Fieldcon, and has evolved over time as well. Last, and most importantly, a bold history of playing with fire was established.
2007 kicked everything up a notch. The building of the tent became a hazing ritual for first-timers. Playing with fire became flaming sword fighting. Flogging Molly was introduced, as was an epic log run. A hot chick in a bikini chopped wood with a sword. Live action duck-hunt was played with shirtless guys and paintball guns. Very little else can be said about the event that should be put into writing. The stories are out there, and they are almost always true.
2008 upped the ante even farther. "Awesome" became institutionalized. The caretakers of the site left a small mountain of logging refuse to be burned. Ten gallons of stew was produced. New revelries included sword football (it's like football, but everyone has a sword), fireball (it's like soccer meets dodge-ball and everything is on fire), and a brutal game of Battle Royale.
Battle Royale was played as close to the movie as possible, wherein everyone was led deep into the woods (near a cliff), given a weapon selected at random (with a preset list of abilities and limitations), and thirty seconds to get away from everyone else. Everyone had to make it to a preselected area before the time ran out, and only one could be alive at that point. The weapon rules were frustrating for some, vicious to others, heaven-sent to a few, and entertaining to all those watching the game. The rules were cutthroat to all.
Possibly more epic than anything else at this already-remarkable Fieldcon was the "event" of Saturday Night. Late in the evening, a category 3 thunderstorm attacked Morgan County. However, rather than smacking into the flimsy shantytown that was the tents of Fieldcon, the storm literally parted around it, at one point leaving the people with a 360° light show of malicious lightning and earth-shaking thunder. Despite the horrors surrounding it, the convention was left unscathed.
The staff plans to continue running Fieldcon until everyone has lost a limb in the course of running it. There are also tentative plans for "Swimcon" and "Skicon" but those have yet to materialize beyond the occasional joke.
