Anime Conventions – Saint Louis Area 2006

Anime conventions always seemed like things that happened to other people. I’d open a Newtype and gaze longingly at the pictures of fans lined up to get in to cons and preview manga and anime and enjoy the company of other fans. Living in Southern Illinois for 10 years makes you think you never will get to any decent con without a lotta traveling/cash. Now that I’ve moved to da Big City I figured that St. Louis would have a con or two…I guessed wrong.

There was an anime con that was fairly decent that just got laid to rest last year. It went by the name of Kunicon and after three decent runs, the promoters pulled up the stakes took the money and ran. There’s another con in the area by the name of Archon and is a 100% local con unlike Kunicon which was run out of different cities and states. It’s also not 100% anime, but a mix of fantasy and sci-fi. Archon is held in October across the river in Collinsville, Illinois.

A more recent edition is the ShowMe Con being held this April at the Airport Hilton in St. Louis. It’s a lotta sci-fi action with a smidge of anime.

Since I don’t feel like waiting 8 months to go to my first anime con, I’m probably going to go up north to Chicago for Anime Central being held May 5-7, 2006 at the Hyatt Regency O’Hare & the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center. I’ve got friends and fam that live ridiculously close to the Rosemont Horizon (now being called Hyatt Regency yada yada) and Chicago is really only 4 hours away.

I’m going to research Anime Central, but I’m guessing it’s a better bet than Archon and is in fact the largest anime con in the Midwest.