Coming back for its fifth year, Anime NYC is a huge celebration of otaku culture right in the heart of the Big Apple! We visited this New England convention over the weekend, and it was just as jam-packed with excitement as we hoped it would be. Here’s our post-show report of Anime NYC 2022!
Basic Info
| Website | https://animenyc.com/ |
|---|---|
| When it Established | November 2017 |
| Length of Event | November 18 - 20; three days |
| Location | Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York, New York |
| Cost | Three-day passes are $95, while single day passes go for $65. There are some extra fees for mailing and processing as well, since all badges are mailed ahead of time. Make sure to get your tickets early to secure your spot! |
| Hotels | New York City has many hotels to choose from. The closest (but most expensive) is the Equinox Hotel about ¼ mile away, while other cheaper options like Pod Times Square are still nearby. However, since NYC has such a robust public transit system, you can pretty much choose any hotel and use the bus or subway to get yourself to the Javits Center. |
| Event Message for Attendees | “A showcase of the best of Japanese pop culture in the biggest city in America, Anime NYC brings anime fans and publishers together for three days of unique exhibits, exclusive screenings, extensive panels, and appearances by some of the biggest creators in Japan. Join us for a celebration of Japanese animation, manga, and cosplay in the heart of NYC!” |
What to Expect
Covid Policy – First of all, let’s talk about the convention’s Covid policy. All attendees must present proof of vaccination and wear a mask in any indoor space. You can of course take it off to eat or for photos, but it’s a good idea to mask up when you can.
Big Crowds – If you’re used to conventions with around 5000 to 20,000 people, Anime NYC may be surprisingly crowded for you with its over 55,000 attendees. The busiest parts are the Exhibitor’s Hall and the central lobby area/food court, so if you need to take a break, head to the outskirts of the Javits Center where there isn’t any programming going on. You’ll also need to make reservations ahead of time for popular panels/screenings and wait in lines for some industry booths. It can take a bit of adjustment, but there’s so much cool stuff to do that it’s worth it.
What to Bring
ID, Vaccination Card, and Masks – As mentioned before, make sure to have your vaccination card and some masks ready to go (theming your mask to your cosplay has also become a fun trend lately). And if you intend on buying 18+ material, you’ll want your ID as well.
Winter Clothes – NYC gets very cold in the winter, and you’ll likely be walking outside a lot to get to and from your hotel. Parts of the check-in process also take place outside. Make sure to bundle up with appropriate clothes and comfy walking shoes; the con itself has handy coat and bag checks for anything you don’t want to carry around with you the whole day.
What to Do
Industry Booths – This convention isn’t just any fan gathering; along with voice actors and independent dealers, big companies like Toei and Kodansha set up booths in the Exhibition Hall with the latest and greatest merch they have to offer. You’ll see huge Luffy statues, beautifully lit display cases of brand-new figurines, backdrops for Instagram photos, and so much more! You even get free swag like pins and paper hats just for visiting. The Hololive booth had a special live meeting with Kiara and Fauna, Genshin Impact had its own mini temple set-up, MixBox was constantly pumping out sick tunes, and the Bandai booth broke a world record for model kit assembly with its Gundam building extravaganza (which even included Adam Savage!). You certainly can’t beat the industry booths when it comes to spectacle.
Artist’s Alley – If fanart is more your style, you should also check out the Artist’s Alley on the other end of the Exhibition Hall. Here, the best of the best fanartists showcase their work with prints that you’d find nowhere else. Neon signs, ukiyo-e and sumi-e style renditions of famous anime scenes, lenticular 3D images that shift as you move around them... if you’re looking to redecorate your walls, you’ll be spoiled for choice here! And once you’re done, check out the many Japanese food options right nearby. They had okonomiyaki, bento, ramen, Hello Kitty shaped cotton candy, and just about anything else an otaku could dream of.
Panels, Screenings, and Concerts – Anime NYC had no shortage of guests this year, from voice actors to industry professionals to musicians and even Attack on Titan mangaka Hajime Isayama. They also had a live DrawFee show, the world premiere of the new Kaguya-sama: Love is War movie, concerts by MindaRyn and Alexandros, and so much else that we’d never have time to list it all. You’re bound to find something that’s up your alley, so peruse the guest list and event announcements as soon as they come up and get your reservations in for any particularly big gatherings.
Cosplay
We’ll do a separate article all about cosplay very soon, but for now, here are a few of our favorites that we saw while at Anime NYC 2022. Bash.cos tore up the floor with their bloody Chainsaw Man look, Cachecats elevated their Rika cosplay with a custom puppet of her monster form from Jujutsu Kaisen 0, and Drharleyquinzel and Easyasjdd were super sweet as Desumi and Fudou from Love After World Domination.
Overall, popular choices for cosplay were My Hero Academia, Demon Slayer, Genshin Impact, and Chainsaw Man, but we also saw plenty of Attack on Titan outfits to celebrate Isayama’s appearance and characters from recent anime like Uta from One Piece Film Red and Eiko from Ya Boy Kongming. There were so many creative cosplays that we could hardly take pictures fast enough!
Final Thoughts
Anime NYC is a big con with big events and sights to match. It may not be a good fit for those who have trouble with crowds or New England winters, but we think that it’s well worth the effort to experience all that this otaku showcase has to offer.
What did you think of our overview? Did you attend Anime NYC 2022? What did you think of it? Let us know in the comments, and thanks so much for reading!
Author: Mary Lee Sauder
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