Another Anime Expo has come and gone. Although the majority of the Akadot staff was hard at work behind a booth in the exhibitor hall a majority of the time, the cosplay at Anime Expo never ceases to amaze us. About every month before Anime Expo begins, the staff at Akadot tries to predict which anime character will be the trend for this year. Last year, our vote went to Chi from Chobits, but this year our guess was pretty much up in the air. Personally, we thought some of the newer releases from this year would get the most attention such as Hellsing, Noir, or Hack. However we were all a bit surprised with the results.

While working in the exhibition hall, many guys walking around wearing metal headbands. Unsure of where that costume came from, we were finally enlightened by a fan and discovered it was from the manga series entitled Naruto. We would have never predicted that would have been so popular this year. There was no shortages of Inu Yasha cosplay. And again, Chi from Chobits was quite popular again. Akadot saw a lot of Wolfwood cosplayers from Trigun (how can you miss those characters carrying around a huge cross?). For those who really want to impress Akadot next year, it would be cool to see someone cosplay not only as Wolfwood, but cosplay as the cross too! (Hint, hint for next year's costume!)

The classic titles like Sailor Moon were still apparent throughout the convention as well. The dancing Macross cosplayers in the Masqurade were entertaining as they performed to the song In the Navy by the village people. There was also an abundance of gaming cosplay throughout the convention including characters from Genso Suikoden, Final Fantasy, and Soul Calibur (which gets Akadot's vote for the best masquerade skit Ethose Matrix moves were cool). Isaac gives his official seal of approval to the person who cosplayed as Gundam with lights and hardware included.

Some of the most extravagant costumes were not anime related at all. There were many J-rock and gothic lolita costumes worn throughout the convention. I think J-rock is definitely a growing trend among anime cosplay. The costumes and make-up are very extreme, but seem to have a greatest impact on fans.

And of course... we cannot forget Mr. Faye Valentine (a.k.a. Man Faye) who literally came back bigger (...and hairier) than last year (we have the prints to prove it too).