This year, I had the pleasure of going to Anime Magic as press!

After finding out Thames Malrose would be a guest, I immediately applied, and despite this being a newer con from 2019 in the Chicago area, the turnaround time was very fast!

Our resident Chicagoan, Amina, informed me that all the cons take place in Rosemont. A convenient location near plenty of hotels, including the conference hall connected to the Hyatt.

We arrived early enough to get Amina’s general badge, with no line, then made our way to the Press Room to get my badge. The room was the hub for all the interviews throughout the week, and the team made everything very seamless and were very helpful with scheduling. We even got to sit in on Thames’ interview, and he graciously allowed us a few photos. We also got the chance to me 1verse (pronounced: universe) and participate in a group interview with them!

The Hyatt was the hub with all the action. The stages, performances, panels, cosplay medic, tabletop games, and arcade were housed there. While the confernce center was home to vendors and artist alley. It was nice that you could commute through the tunnel between the center and the Hyatt or walk around which was the same amount of time.

Since the convention started in 2019, it does still have the budding excitement that cons and the anime community of old felt like. Cosplayers and performers of all levels are able to share the stage. You still have the appeal that bigger cons provice, but more home grown and tangible. I had the pleasure of walking by the sake tasting area, a tattoo alley and sister con, Anime Magic! INK’d where patrons could get tattoos!

What shocked me the most was seeing a reptile vendor who let you hold snakes, tarantulas, and hissing cockroaches (I declined the latter). They also had various lizards and other reptile friends in their cages for safe viewing only. We appreciate them for that!

There were grievances shared for artist alley, food service, and other locations that were addressed, but can only be handled by reports. The use of AI is rampant and is easily snuck in these spaces. While Anime Magic! did express that they did not allow ot rolerate the use of AII being used, patrons quickly called out the vendors/sellers that had them. Hopefully Magic & other cons hold these vendors accountable, and good for the patrons who call them out.

A brief walk through of artist alley is always a palate cleanser. Magic! had quite an array of artists that I hope to purchase from in the future. It was especially fun to hunt for banners. This was my first year doing so, but I did it on a Sunday. So, while I was clueless, I learned from my experience and now know how to hunt.

This was an amazing first experience at a Midwest con. The vibes did feel like how I had heard cons used to feel, and I hope with their success, they keep that the same.

Thank you again, Anime Magic! for the opportunity!