Sakura Con Coverage - Day 3

The Dark Horse Industry Panel was also on Sunday, but here are more events from the final day of the convention.

Women in Anime Panel with Ellyn Stern
Panel description: Ellyn Stern talks about the evolution of women in anime and how this perspective differs from the East to the West; she also explores the different roles that women play in anime.

This panel was really more like an analysis of female characters in media in general, as a lot of what Ellyn Stern said applies to more than anime. Sailor Moon did come up in the conversation, mostly in the sense of "why does a strong woman need to wear a short skirt?" There was also some talk about Ranma 1/2, yet nobody mentioned that Ranma hated being cursed to turn into a girl mostly because he saw it as losing his manhood.

Mrs. Stern seemed to think that one of the reasons the sailor senshi wear short skirts is because it appeals to men, and Takeuchi's editors were men. I've got to say though, their battle costumes were never revealing and were always practical considering the types of gymnastic moves they do at times. But I can understand disliking the fact that the senshi essentially become naked as they transform; though I've always considered that to be more symbolic than literal. Like they're shedding a disguise to reveal their true selves.

Cosplay Chess Unscripted:
The game started with an announcer wishing the teams to play fair and for players to "die dramatically." The battles between chess pieces were often hilarious, especially when a Honey-chan cosplayer (from Ouran High School Host Club) went berserk and "killed" another player.

In the end, the team led by a Jesus cosplayer won, which was only fitting for Easter Sunday.

Showings: Ouran High School Host Club, Romeo x Juliet
These were aired in the theatre room dedicated to Funimation titles and both were shown in dubbed format. Having seen all of Ouran in subtitled format, I can honestly say the dub is just as hilariously enjoyable. For those unfamiliar with the series, it is a very comedic commentary on fangirls, differences in social status, and the assumptions people make about others based on physical appearance. Preview episodes online on the Funimation website.

Romeo x Juliet is a new spin on William Shakespeare's classic play. In the anime series, the Capulets are almost all murdered in the beginning, and Juliet narrowly escapes into hiding as a small child. Years later, she publicly masquerades as a boy who likes to help those in need (especially young women). She only sporadically goes out in public as a girl, and randomly runs into Romeo a few times in the first episode. Funimation has episodes of this series available online for previewing here.


That's all for our Sakura Con 2010 convention coverage. We hope you enjoyed it! And we hope any fans who attended had a great time too!