Between the staff working over here at the @rcade we’ve attended more conventions than we have birthday partys (so either we go to a lot of conventions or we don’t have many friends…) and when we heard that a new Anime and Manga convention was coming to Ireland we prepped ourselves for another weekend of madness.
For anyone out there who has never had the opportunity or experience of attending a convention, imagine yourself stuck in a centre with a couple of hundred other folk who are just as obsessed with gaming, geekery and anime as you! Yeah it’s a place where folk of our kind can come together for three days and just relax, be ourselves, enjoy gaming in the company of like minded individuals.
Arriving at Nom Con, we were stuck in a taxi with a man who we awkwardly tried to explain what it is we were attending – a weekend jam packed full of anime, manga and people dressing up as their favourite characters, he didn’t seem to realise how big this community of gamers and geeks that we have created for ourselves. Pulling up outside the hotel his jaw dropped as he stared in awe at the crowd, several hundred in number, many dressed in lavish outfits, all waiting anxiously to get inside so that they could begin their weekend.
Friday saw us registering and grabbing our press passes and checking in, after that we ventured throughout the convention centre and immediately found ourselves at a loss as to which event we attend. An entire room was devoted to anime screening, upstairs from that another room was chock full of consoles and gaming hardware and next to that there was a room for card games. In the evening we settled in with a moderately priced pint (reasonable for Dublin city rates) and we gathered a group of con-goers to form a rag tag team for the table quiz. Now we pride ourselves on having a pretty decent knowledge of Anime and Manga but even our mighty @rcade brain was at a loss to some of the questions…note to selves…study for next year.
Bright eyed and decked out in our brand new cosplay gear, we awoke Saturday morning bursting with enthusiasm and energy – the first port of call was the Traders room. A large section of the convention centre was split off and used only for the traders and their gear. From opening hours at 10am to closing at 6pm, the merchants and their staff were kept busy with attendees eager to spend their money on anime merchandise marked at unbelievably low prices. As usual we couldn’t help ourselves and finally dragged ourselves out of the traders hall into the communal area, with about 4 shopping bags crammed full of DVDs, figurines, clothing and artwork! Taking our seats in the hall we were treated to Nom Con’s Next Top Cosplay, a fashion show for all those who wanted to show off their amazing outfits and a chance for the judges to pick the best of the best.
Saturday there was a torrent of events taking place, from a crash course in Japanese culture and language, a Pokémon tournament, a Murder Mystery event, a panel with special guest John Swayse (voice actor extraordinaire) and a special midnight ADULT screening and discussion forum on all things hentai!
Saturday night rounded off with a cosplay disco that carried on well into the late hours of Sunday morning – you haven’t lived until you’ve seen Lightning from FFXIII dancing to the Time Warp!
Sunday morning, despite a severe headache which had nothing to do with the buckets of alcohol we responsibly consumed, we were up and ready for another day and unfortunately the final day of the convention. Both days a Maid Café was run by the staff of the convention, volunteers decked out in gorgeous French maid uniforms ready to take your order and serve you a wide variety of inexpensive and delicious goodies.
The games room and anime room still managed to draw a huge crowd on the final day with people flocking to both rooms and queuing for their turn on Rock Band or waiting to attempt a battle with the top players in Super Street Fighter IV.
A special panel was run by Team Giblets, a cosplay and skit performance group for those who wanted to learn more about performing skits and to help those who were about to take part in the special variety later on.
Sunday’s highlight came in the form of Uncle Nom’s Variety Hour, hosted by Elizabeth Lane and featured performances from various attendees all doing their best to entertain the crowd. After the skits a special charity auction was held which managed to raised over €1700, all in aid of Brainwave Ireland, the Irish Epilepsy Association.
For a convention, running in its first year, credit must be given to Nate Smithson and Lorraine Scanlon, the co-directors of Nom Con. The entire weekend was a resounding success due in part to their work and the work of all the committee and staff working tirelessly over the weekend. To anyone attending the convention it felt as if this crowd had been running it for years, operating as a efficient team, ensuring every single individual who set foot inside the door left having had a weekend that they would never forget.
Leaving the hotel, we were a little bit sad that the whole thing was over but took solace in the fact that Nom Con would be back in 2011, bigger and better!
If you missed Nom Con, you can check out our special @rcade show dedicated to the entire weekend right here.
