25 Aug 2026 - digitalily

This marks the second year of attending Anime Magic, and try though those of us who attended last year might, we weren't able to pull anyone else along this time, firmly cementing us as the Anime Magic squad I guess? Something which I mind a lot less as I had a much nicer time this year compared to last.

There really isn't all that much to say that wasn't said last year overall though. The con is still small, and in some ways it seems like it shrank slightly, though in others it felt like it expanded. Specifically it seemed there were fewer Vendor booths overall, but more Artist Alley booths, which I don't hate. Further, there was a large volume of unprocessed 3D printed fidget toys and very basic pokeball type things last year, which I'm pleased to say did not reappear this year. There were a few booths with such items, but significantly fewer. As a 3D printing enjoyer, I am more than okay with 3D printing in general, but you have the upcharge for a small multicolor trinket that cost pennies to produce, and the items themselves only have any value as something a layperson looks at and goes 'wow that's so cool!' once before it essentially becomes waste. A bit of an exaggeration perhaps, but just not something we need filling space at a convention where creatives gather. I'd have more leniency if people at least designed their own things, but when multiple booths are selling the same thing, and knowing the open nature of 3D printing communities, that happening is doubtful.

And among the booths in Artist Alley, I find quite a bit more that I was interested in compared to last year, spending quite a bit more than I set out to ^^;
But it isn't every day you see that much random high quality Touhou merch for sale. I noted last year that I was surprised to see some featuring a less popular character, but wow did this year blow that out of the water. I even saw some art of one of the characters from the newest game, which is even more surprising as it seems rare when someone beyond the classic Windows era shows up to begin with.
I also ended up deciding this was the year of stickers, as I have a laptop to fill up and a water bottle to finish. While I'm sad that the Better Call Saul sticker set at one booth in particular was sold out (we attended only on the final Sunday), I'll have to make do with some Mike Ehrmantraut instead.

As last year, completing the floor was a firmly one day thing, so an overall good experience for the time. After the floor closed, we made our now annual post-Anime-Magic trip to the nearby Fogo de Chão, which was well worth it after a day of walking the con floor with an empty stomach.

I'm not sure how much of a fixture Anime Magic will be in the future, but it is nice having a relatively low intensity late Summer con to go to if nothing else. I'm certainly pleased by my haul this time around and am keen to see the con grow as time goes on. Here's to next year, and hopefully another anime con before years end!

That's all for now- until next time!

03 Aug 2026 - digitalily

At some point last year, not more than a few weeks prior to Gen Con 2025, a friend posed the question (paraphrasing) 'do we want to try going to Gen Con even though it is imminent?' And we definitely tried, but the exorbitant hotel cost, lack of hotel space nearby in general, and dubious ideas of transportation meant that it wasn't to be, almost certainly for the better. This year however, with others also interested, we chose one day to attend the con, booked an AirBnB a couple months in advance, and after a bit of a whirlwind of a couple days, have successfully completed Gen Con 2026 with an eye for a full Gen Con 2027 weekend.

01 Jul 2026 - digitalily

I originally encountered Higurashi no Naku Koro ni via some late 00's anime recommendation image. I remember being generally aware that this thing existed, and I ultimately went into the 2006 Studio DEEN adaptation not really knowing all that much about it. As someone who is really not a big horror fan (especially back then), little did I know that I would soon be up at 3:30 AM terrified of the view outside my window onto the street because I just watched the end of the Onikakushi arc and was half expecting someone to be standing out there saying "I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry...". Looking back, there's a lot to be desired in the presentation in the DEEN adaptation, but it's hard to say that it didn't succeed in conveying at least some of the VN's stellar atmosphere. I'm not here to discuss that, however. While there are a few things I'd like to write on Higurashi at some point, for now I just wanted to focus on one little part of it that I wasn't quite aware of until having finished the original VNs, something which had been put off for far too long.