The Hynes Convention Center, Boston, MA
Anime Boston is a large, yet friendly, anime convention held annually in Boston, Massachusetts. It has grown signifigantly since its debut in 2003, and for 2006 offered a wide range of activities from panels, contests, dances, and of course, cosplay oppertunities. This year, popular acts such as Kaiju Big Battel, cosplay band Bad Luck, and voice actor Vic Mignogna (Ed Elric) of Full Metal Alchamist topped the list of guests. Anime Boston 2006 also continued to reflect the rising popularity of the genre, as attendence soared 9,000 guests. However, the spacious Hynes Convention Center never felt crowded, and the outgoing and friendly natures of both the con staff and attendees help it retain the feel of a smaller convention. In addition, improved organization, including better signage and well-trained volunteers made the convention much simpler to navigate, and despite the addition of several thousand people, the events ran smoothly. The most enjoyable aspect was the encouragement which Anime Boston provided its cosplayers; this year, costume competitions included both a Masquarade and Formal Hall Costume Contest, as well as a less formal Staff Vote Award contest. Other, non-competitive cosplay events featured the ever-popular Cosplay Human Chess, two sessions of the Anime Dating Game (one hetero, one yaoi/yuri), and the Naurto-based hall game, Catch The Barrel. If that weren't enough to make a cosplayer drool, the convience of being able to stay at the Sheraton Hotel, connected directly to the Hynes Convention Center, the Prudencial Center mall/food court, and the Prudencial Center courtyard (photoshoot central!), made traveling in large and cumbersome costumes easy and enjoyable. Add to that the Hynes' location in Boston's Back Bay, one of the safest and prettiest parts of the city, and Anime Boston becomes the cosplayer's dream come true. The only drawback of the con was that I didn’t get a chance to track down my roommates to say goodbye before heading out, but I enjoyed my weekend with them nonetheless, and managed to find them online later. I definitely recommend Anime Boston to veteran and newbie con goers alike - I certainly hope to be back in 2007! :)
