Anime North Protoman and Megaman. Saria and Sheik from Zelda Ocarina of Time. Tim Hortons Man. Well, it is canada, after all. Nayru from Zelda Oracle of Ages. Usurper King Zant from Toph from Avatar The Yuna and Auron from Zelda Twilight Princess. Piranha Plant on drums... Last Airbender. Final Fantasy X (but Yuna’s X-2 costume). ANIMENORTH Despite being one of the largest anime conventions in Canada, much of Toronto’s Anime North takes place outside the halls, adding to the event’s chilled-out vibe ...until the evening’s parties kick in, at least. Our man in the Great White North, Kyle Charizanis, went along to report for MyM. very summer in Toronto, Canada, a mass of strangely costumed young people flocks to a particular area just outside of the city’s main airport. E Five hotels and one Toronto Congress Centre will become unusable by the general public between Friday, 24 May and Sunday, 26 May. All social rules regarding acceptable attire will collapse and repetitive dance music will echo dance hand-in-hand while Kamina tries to hit on Haruhi. A guy in the bathroom ceaselessly into the night. We call it: Anime North. of a Harvey’s restaurant is seen mixing rum into his plastic drink cup. It’s a bit Anime North began humbly in 1997 with 800 attendees and has since grown surprising that he even bothered to do so in secret. Social convention pretty into one of the largest annual conventions in North America, despite being held much goes out the window when a bunch of young people wear elaborate on the outskirts of a Canadian city. This year’s event drew a grand total of 23,700 costumes at a giant urban sleepover. people, and probably would have gotten even bigger had it not been for the Still, not everything about Anime North is unorthodox: the Dealer’s Room con’s attendance cap (first instituted in 2012 when the number of interested fans is essentially a microcosm of a regular anime con. It’s divided into the artists’ began to exceed the available space). section and the merchandise section, both of which are constantly packed with One of the biggest differences between Anime North and other cons is that much people. The crowd almost seems sentient as it carves a path through the many of Anime North happens outside. The three buildings hosting most of the con’s displays of clothing, posters and manga. Finding the area’s only washroom for indoor events are about a five minute walk from each other, and directly between the first time can be an ordeal. them are several fast food joints and a large grass field. The convenient sustenance One of the artists, Andrea, told us what it was like to run an artist booth. It and warm summer sun make many people comfortable to just hang around outside. was difficult to find time for an interview between all the commissions she had This year there was even a live band playing familiar anime and video game tunes; to fulfill for excited con-goers. Still, she lamented being tethered to that spot Piranha Plant was on drums. Some people go so far as to show up without buying a for the entire con: “Four years into this convention and I’ve never been to the 22 ticket, preferring to watch a large sector of Toronto transform into a place where not masquerade!” Like many who apply for these booths, Andrea isn’t a professional wearing a costume attracts awkward stares. It’s one thing to dress up and hang out artist, so Anime North is her only real outlet for sharing her artistic talents. And, with like-minded people in an enclosed room, but quite another to do so in broad in this case, for drawing shirtless male characters embracing each other lovingly. daylight. Anime North is really more of a festival than a convention. There were a lot of those. Her overall favourite anime? “Too many...but I’m Once the sun goes down, though, it turns into an anime-themed hotel party. currently obsessed with Attack on Titan.” At the far end of the parking lot, two giant speakers constantly blast anime- The con’s second most important hotel had several large rooms dedicated themed electronic music of questionable quality. Pikachu and Solid Snake to video and board gaming throughout the weekend. As usual, there was also a Anime North Midna from Zelda The Protagonist Twilight Princess. Zero Suit Samus. from Journey. Kamina from Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann. Omnimon from Digimon. Photographs by Kirsty Turnbull full schedule of gaming tournaments, with older games represented alongside Vegeta in the original Japanese dub of Dragon Ball Z and Captain Falcon in the newer titles. The traditional Super Smash Bros. Melee tournament shared a time Super Smash Bros. franchise. Eriko Nakamura flew in all the way from Japan; she slot with Halo 4 and was immediately followed by Starcraft 2. Toronto’s anime voices Amami Haruka and Hamuzou in The Idolm@ster as well as Belgium in and gaming communities tend to overlap, so it’s not surprising that so much Hetalia. Also in attendance was Chii Sakurabii, a J-Pop singer from Tokyo. It must time and energy were dedicated to both geeky hobbies. be truly gratifying to travel halfway around the world and still be greeted by a Speaking of geeky hobbies, the Saturday Masquerade is always a focal point legion of loyal fans. of the convention. It’s essentially a cosplay contest, with separate divisions for And of course, no anime convention would be complete without discussion amateur designers, seasoned pros and little kids dressed up as Moogles and such panels. The indie game developers’ panel drew an exceptionally long line this by their parents. Each contestant has the opportunity to perform a short skit and year. Toronto has a thriving indie game scene, with notable releases including generally model their fancy clothes for the audience while an appropriate audio Sound Shapes, They Bleed Pixels and Guacamelee, so it wasn’t surprising to see clip plays in the background. that room filled to capacity. Others covered cosplay, fan art, or specific game and Sometimes the creativity of these performances outshines the costumes anime series. There were even 18+ discussion rooms for yuri, yaoi, fetishism and themselves: one Fire Emblem skit had two lovers fighting off Nintendo other equally titillating topics. The sheer quantity of panels at Anime North can employees who wouldn’t allow them to be together, and last year a dashing be a bit overwhelming. Tuxedo Mask actually proposed to his girlfriend, Sailor Moon. She accepted, of The same is true of the convention as a whole: it would be a Herculean course, to thunderous applause from the crowd. task to get through Anime North without missing something major. On top 2013’s Best in Show was awarded to Usurper King Zant from The Legend of everything mentioned so far, there was a maid café, several dances and of Zelda: Twilight Princess, with honourable mentions given to Rokusho from raves, dozens of anime screenings, doll Medabots and the Earl of Millennium from D.Gray-man. The Masquerade workshops and something called ‘The Celty from Durarara!! could have easily become a sterile competition over the years, but instead it’s Sensitive Pornograph’ which will remain remained a lively and festive event. shrouded in mystery. Toronto has no Anime North has never been known for its star guests, but it still gets a few shortage of nerdy social events, but Anime big names every year. 2013’s guests included Chris Cason, a prolific English voice North is the one celebratory union of all of actor best known as the voice of Mr. Popo and Tien in the FUNimation dub of the city’s subcultures.. Dragon Ball Z, as well as Holy Roman Empire in Hetalia and Gluttony in Fullmetal Alchemist. Ryo Horikawa is responsible for both Cosplay Cafe Hostesses - Dressed as AKB48 Idols. Heroines from Puella Magi Madoka Magica. 23.