MOCHI > The Scrapbook > Convention Memories > Anime Iowa > 2000

The next morning, Toasted Mochi ran off to go be helpful, flit between various panels, and watch more anime. [*grin* *bounce* *bounce* *bounce* - Toasted] The others decided to head down to the dealers' room again. Being easily distracted by the other cosplayers, Daifuku had only made her way through half of the dealers' room before it closed on Friday night.

As they crossed the threshold ....

Daifuku: [stops and stands still] Uh-oh ....
Spiky and Sugar Bomb: [concerned] What?
Daifuku: I ... I .... [eyes glaze over]
Spiky and Sugar Bomb: WHAT?!
Daifuku: I ... I ... I feel ... a shopping urge .... [starts to wander towards the nearest dealer's table]
Spiky and Sugar Bomb Mochi look at each other.
Spiky: How come Toasted Mochi always manages to be somewhere else when this happens?
Sugar Bomb: He's smarter than we are. He doesn't want to carry all that stuff that she keeps buying ....
Daifuku's eyes suddenly unglaze.
Daifuku: [glares at the other two] Are you coming?
Spiky and Sugar Bomb: Hai!

While Anime Iowa has fewer cosplayers than some of the larger conventions, there seems to be a greater variety of costumes. That's not to say that there aren't fan favorites like the girls from RayEarth or Duo from Gundam Wing. [I think I counted three Duos. A trio of Duos? - Spiky] But, over the weekend, we saw cosplayers doing characters from Slam Dunk, Cat's Eye, Mario Brothers, Weiss Kreuz, and Silent Mobeius. It's fun for us to see characters from some of the older, less well-known series.

With the help of Dan (a native cosplayer), we were fielding a mid-sized entry with characters from Master of Mosquiton for the masquerade. Toasted Mochi, who was not in the skit, came down to snap some photos and worked security.

This year's masquerade was quite large: it was easily twice the size of the one in 1999. There were a number of people who were not only first-time cosplayers but first-time con-goers as well! As usual, there were some great costumes to be seen. There was a Final Fantasy group that was familiar (we'd seen them earlier in the year at Anime Central). One of the cosplayers that we had met before, Elizabeth Sloane, put together a fabulous Debonaire (from Magic Knight RayEarth) that towered above everyone.

There was a rather large wedding party going on nearby, which made things somewhat chaotic. Several people associated with the wedding party were surprisingly rude. Thankfully, most of the difficulty was limited to verbal harrassment. (We were a little worried when one, somewhat drunk, party-goer started messing with Daifuku's wig on the way down to the masquerade. We were very glad that the party-goer got off of the elevator a few floors down before things got ugly. [*mutters something about giving drunks ice enemas* - Daifuku])

Afterwards, MOCHI got a bite to eat and vegged out.

For the first time in MOCHI memory, Toasted Mochi went to sleep before everyone else.

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