Of course I blinked. Me and my bud just approached him after the last musical performance, told him we loved his music and that we both thought SWA had a fantastic OST. He signed my copy of Planetary Pieces, and my friend's copy of Unleashed. Ohtani is a pretty chill dude and to meet him is one of the reasons I wanted to go to this so I'm pretty jazzed about that. I'm still trying to collect my thoughts on the event/day itself. Later on I'll talk about things in depth. I'll just keep it short; Mike is fantastic and I almost wish he was the host (nothing against Frost, I'll elaborate in a later post), Jun / Tomoya as the "house band" is a great idea. Sprinkling music throughout the night helped keep things pumped up and made some of the lines more bearable. The live cast reading was a lot of fun. I'm probably forgetting some other things. As for the lines though...mismanaged. There was some rope set up for autographs. The line stretched around the back of the signing area and then wrapped around to the beginning at points, I think. However, hardly any of that was actually roped off. People were openly cutting into line near the start since no one was watching for it. There wasn't an item limit in place initially for signings and most people just had one of the free posters signed by the cast members, or a copy of Colors / Generations. Eventually one was put into place but people were still slipping by by putting multiple game inserts together and making it look like one. Kinda crafty. Sometimes the line was just so long that you could risk completely missing the signature you was hoping to get. I'm not sure Tony Harnell even showed up for his signing, but Ted Poley was there. We won't talk about Tony just yet, but Ted was an absolute champ and full of spirit. Oh also one last thing HOLY SHIT TRACY YARDLEY'S LINE. Literally stretched across the borders of the room everything took place in, halfway around the room. I was expecting him to get a big draw but if you didn't get there within say the first hour or two you weren't gonna get to see him. I was one of the first in line, realized there was no ATM in the main room, went down seven flights of stairs, went back up those 7 flights of stairs, and by then I figured it wouldn't be too hard to buy some stuff off him later in the night. I was wrong, oh so wrong. Reports of 4 hour waits (at a 5 hour event!!!) are not exaggerated. Would have liked to catch up with him after the stream from earlier in the year, but it is what it is.
One thing SoS learned very quickly was to put an item number limit in place for the signings, it's insane that it wasn't there from the start for Boom - had the organisers not looked at past events or something? Sounds like outside of that it was fun though
Yep, got in at 5:30 and line cutters ensured that I had essentially wasted my time standing in Tracy's line. Probably should have tried the autograph line since it sounds like I may have had success there. The time Iizuka was on stage was cool-- he seems like a nice guy who was getting a kick out of the costumes. Mike Pollock is awesome-- he seems to relish the love the fanbase has for him, and is appreciative. So, it was cool to see those dudes were cool. The Sonic Boom interviews may or may not have been awesome. I couldn't tell because there was too much chatter drowning out the interview, at least from my vantage point. Not a bad event, but I'm not sure I'd go to another. Not that I'm being salty or anything-- I tried chatting it up with some people in line. Half were shy or socially awkward, but one guy was cool. He actually stayed his spot in line behind me-- shocker there's decent people-- and got screwed along with me. Cool dude though.
Had such an awesome time meeting so many people that have had a positive impact on my life. Iizuka, Jun, and Mike were just a fluke that I got to get autographs from. I got on the line as soon as I entered when Iizuka was doing autographs. By the time I got to the front though, Roger and Tails+Knux's VA's were up at the table. Got the trio to sign the free Boom poster and Roger to tag Generations. I figured this would happen again so I got back on line soon after presuming they'll rotate again. By the time I got to the front of the line they rotated into Ted Poley. Amy, Sticks, and Mike Pollock rotated in before I got to the front, so I missed them too. Jun's name card was placed on the table when Ted was there too. Ted was very nice and having a good time meeting the fans, taking pictures, etc. He loved the liner notes for Generations and had never seen it before. I flipped through it and he was amazed everything was in there, including his credits. During the Boom live read I noticed Iizuka joined the Wii U/3DS game execs that were currently at the autograph table, and no one noticed to form a line. I hopped on and amazingly they finally set a cutoff for the end of the line (and at this point strictly enforced the 1 item rule). Iizuka seemed pleased to see S&K and let me have a photo with him. I later noticed a "schedule" for the autograph table, tucked away behind the table itself. Would've been helpful if it was posted more prominently or online ahead of time. I'm glad Iizuka showed up for a second (unscheduled) autograph sessions, since he was only set for 20-30 mins when the show first started (meaning plenty of people missed cause they were still being let into the venue). After the final concert, some fans meeted Mike as he walked off stage, but I was amazed he stuck around for autographs and pictures with the fans. He was very into it and not afraid of being surrounded by so many of us. I thanked him for his years of work and praised his double conversations in Generations. Right after I saw Jun was doing the same thing from stage top. I really appreciated him taking the time to sign as much as he could before he had to go (even if some people were getting greedy handing him multiple cover arts while a whole crowd was waiting too. All in all, I had a great time being with fans, seeing the costume contest (some Youtuber "dressed" as a 20-something Chris Thornfyke). An impressive Mecha Sonic won over some other great outfits including Reala, Werehog, and even Fang/Nack. If they do this in NYC again, they just need to work on the line management for autographs and the merch table (which was inaccessible because of Tracy's own line setup there. Also, a few Genesis game stations would've been cool. I know the event was advertising Boom, but being able to play some classics would've been nice too.
So general consensus I'm getting is Boom this year wasn't anywhere near as cringe worthy as last year. Good to hear.
Only cringe worthy thing I contended with was an "enthusiastic" Amy cosplayer that ran up to tell me they're making a Sly Cooper movie. I forced a smile and said "Awesome!" as she ran off. Nice girl, but definately not all there.
Johnny Gioeli wasn't there, so Ted Poley and Tony Harnell were there to sing instead and they killed it! Tony forgot some lyrics to It Doesn't Matter (they did both versions) but made up for it with high-pitch 80's metal screams and he absolutely killed it. Tony is a very gifted singer to be able to do that for 30+ years without losing any vocal range. Ted Poley even sang the Crush 40 version of Sonic Boom and did an excellent job! Of course, they did Escape From the City too. First time it was performed live with the original vocalists. I love how Ted Poley had more of a studio setup while Tony had a regular microphone. Let's hope that they have Tony Harnell, Ted Poley AND Johnny Gioeli there next year. I've always wanted to see the 3 of them on stage at the same time.
Well, the awkward fan interactions (be it with personalities or with other fans) can't be helped. Remember a lot of these people tend to be quite a bit socially awkward or are extremely stimulated to be surrounded by other Sonic fans, so it turns into a release of pent up geek energy or, on a more caustic level, a way to show off how big of a Sonic fan you are. That'd be quite the group. Throw in Ohtani too and you basically have a large chunk of Sonic-centric SEGA Sound Studios (and Falk likely passing out from the blood rushing to the lower core of his body. :v: )
The more I hear about last year's Sonic Boom, even a full year later, the more I'm glad I skipped out. :v:
I had a good time at Boom and while this year we had good content throughout the event, I got to say that this year's event doesn't hold a candle to the 2011/2012 Booms. I was lucky enough to be one of the first people to get inside the venue, so I got to see Tracey Yardley and get stuff from him, get autographs from Iizuka etc etc but I already knew that lines were going to be trouble (since the venue staff wasn't doing shit to control the situation since the very beginning outside.) It sucks that they decided to give shirts only to the VIP people since the bag was given at other events and the posters were eh. Another thing that I don't know why they even bothered was to make a program schedule if they weren't even going to follow it. For example, they posted that Jun, Iizuka and Tomoya were going to sign stuff from 5:10 to 5:30....but it was actually from 5:10 to 5:20 and at that point it was just Iizuka (and that's how unpredictable the autograph session went) Now, honestly to me what makes it worth it to go to the event is the merchandise and the music. It was a good idea to have Jun and Tomoya played throughout the night since Sega has already said that they can't have the venues provide Sonic music since they need a cleared set. But once the "concert" actually started...it was kind of disappointing. The thing that ruined it for me was Tony Harnell. He started out cool with interacting with fans and even putting a Sonic hat for a little bit, but then he went all diva on how the microphones and sound system were set up (which they did need to fix but Jun came through the rescue on that). But once he started singing....he was pretty bad. Not being on key, forgetting the lyrics and not really being into what he was doing. It's understandable the guy probably doesn't remember a song he did over a decade ago, but I would think he would be professional enough to at least try. Ted Poley on the other hand was fantastic, and even though he was having difficulties you could at least see he was making an effort. Though, here is my biggest issue. The event had the concert starting at 9:30 and the event finishing at 10. But the concert started around 9:20 and ended around 9:35 p.m.,with the event officially ending at 9:40 p.m. I honestly felt they didn't play enough songs to begin with and then finishing the event 20 minutes early? I honestly felt bad for people that flew in for just the event because it was not honestly worth it. I hope they address some of the issues for next year and that everyone at least had a decent time. P.S. If you're going to go to a public event, please be a bit more social and have some etiquette. Some people were in their late 20s and acted like they were 10 or something. P.P.S. If you're traveling to another city, at least enjoy the sights and visit local places if you're going to grab a bite instead of going to a national chain that you visit back home. And here's some pics:
You may think some of us were being elitist douchenozzles when we said Sonic Boom was full of those people, but it's no joke. It's fine if the little kids are freaking out and enjoying the show. But if you're going to waddle in there, already well into your 20s, and fart around how big a Sonic fan you are or act like you're also 10-12, that's just embarrassing. There's a reason why Retro and Stadium usually bail to go to bars after. Those that can, anyway.
My experiences with the folks in line were pretty positive, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't encounter some oddballs. This red haired guy with a goatee, for example, kept saying he had an exclusive to share with me (just kidding). In the line outside, I met TSS mod Ogilvie who was a nice guy, we chatted for a bit about fan events. Some people in front and behind us were a bit much with their furry costumes and eager to show their sketch book or 3DS to demand a follow or a visit to their Deviantart page. I'm not against fan art at all, but don't be so loud and pushy. Later in the Tracy line there was this dude who laughed like a crazy person when anything happened on stage (even Mike yelling "Sonic!" was the funniest thing he ever heard) and then the guy started doing the peepee dance wanting the line to move faster. He kept saying "Excuse me sir" in an attempt to move ahead in line. Yeah, the line was moving slowly, but we were right next to the stage. Enjoy the show and wait your turn. As mentioned on the front page, several fansite and YouTube people formed a little posse and exchanged business cards, shot the shit, and watched the costume contest. I'd easily say these were my people. Late 20s, early 30s, with a touch of sarcasm and easily approachable and "real". While we played up the "look at some of the wacky people" thing, we all freaked out when Metal appeared in the trailer, proving that we're not THAT different from the weirder attendees. Later I met a guy named James who was a friendly normal guy. We talked SA2, Colors, what we got signed, and fan sites. He said he didn't visit many forums because of how weird people were, but I told him there are forums out there for the more normal fans and I name dropped SEGAbits. :P Of course, the Sonic fandom is not the only fandom with an array of different types. You see this with just about any fandom that has a long history. And like any fandom there are the cool folks, and the wierdos who are happy to socialize with other wierdos, so its all good.
Yeah I know past Sonic Boom had people like that, but somehow I noticed it more in this event than in the ones in 2011/12. Or maybe I'm just getting older and don't have the patience for enthusiastic Sonic fans anymore.
I had a very positive experience. I got in line about an hour before the event, and played 3DS Smash with a few cool guys. I got in only 10-or-so minutes after the initial door-opening. I didn't want to end up spending any more time in lines, so I elected that once I was in the building, I wasn't gonna wait in any line over 5 people long. And that worked out for me for the most part. I got to play all the games as much as I wanted to (they were both sorta "Meh". In no way bad, but in no way exciting or exceptional.), saw all of the events on stage, enjoyed the music, ran into a friend who I didn't know was going, and even got my copy of SA2 signed by Jun as he came off stage. There were some awkward people, but I wasn't "trapped" by any of them, and I sorta let my hair down and was willing to geek out if someone geeked at me. I'd say I met more cool people than weird ones, though. And yeah, Tony messing up was pretty bad (and I'm not sure why he was super cool and open at first... then got all grumpy all of a sudden. Weird.), but Ted Poley was awesome. Maybe he missed a note? I don't know. If he did his energy covered it up to me. So, no real complaints here. But I'm not terribly picky, and I only live an hour away from the city, so the trip wasn't a big deal. I dunno if I'd go to another one... maybe if it was in NYC again and had some new exciting feature or something... But I got my Sonic Convention fix.
Likely a stacking effect of the events/the painful realization that those likely to go to every one of these events are the vocal minority. Also, as others have said, the standard "fandom is diverse, everyone from 10 to 40" factor. But now you all know why I'm usually not found in these things without at least one drink in my hand.
There comes a point in most fans journeys when they reach that period of enlightenment and go, "...damn, calm down, it's not that serious." It also becomes less about the brand and more about the people you meet. The brand is more a vehicle for meeting people and some just get repelled by people who are WAAAAY too into it, especially if you're in your mid-to-late 20s and acting like a 13-year-old devianTard. But I confess I'm also one of those jaded fans that finds over-enthusiasm about a brand that has had very little to be enthusiastic about in the past 15 years to be really annoying.
When David came out to Philly for TooManyGames, we tried to play it cool, but then the Sonic chapter books came out and I started playing the Sonic Underground DVD bonus features...
