There are two sides to look at everything, depending on which side of a particular event you stand on the view changes. As a fan, the concerns at a convention are different than someone who is there on business; is your costume pressed ok? Where's the best place to camp out for Masquerade tickets? What part of the con can you skip off for something else? As press, industry or exhibitor, those concerns change. There is the schedule that every bit of it has to be gone over instead of ignoring stuff you may not want to go to. Watching out for what the competition is doing, and how to compete in a manner that works. Having to carry a spare set of clothes in case your boss call upon you to interview and you've decided to cosplay that day. One deals with wishes, the others with profits. It's the difference between the fan world and the business world, which is also the dilemma AX seems to deal with more and more each year

This year, Anime Expo returned to one of its former longstanding homes the Anaheim Convention center, newly renovated with a larger amount of space than its former incarnation. Combined with the conference areas in the Marriott and Hilton hotel, AX could now hold the tens of thousands of people the convention has grown to from the few thousand it was in its earlier years such as 1996. With the explosive growth of anime over the past three years and the high profile showcasing of such titles as Rurouni Kenshin on Cartoon Network and Silent Mobuis TV on Tech TV, anime has become a lucrative business opportunity. Anime is no longer a small niche market; it is Oscar winning filmmaking, a merchandising tie in dream. It is beginning to gain the respect fans have wished for years, but with some drawbacks that show most prominently at conventions.

The good first: Japanese industry is beginning to pay attention, the gulf between the world of anime in Japan and the world of anime in the US is starting to become nonexistent. In the dealer's room this year were Japanese travel companies offering trips to Comiket and other anime/manga staples in Japan. Anime Expo also had a live concert by artist Yuki Kaijiura, advertising her album Fiction that had songs from Noir and .hack. The album is being released in the US before it ever hits Japanese shelves. There was even a company offering a translation pen pal service, for those who wanted to correspond with anime fans from Japan, regardless of if they could speak English or if the recipient knew Japanese. Japanese companies are jumping on the bandwagon, resulting in quicker content and in some cases cheaper goods. Also, American companies are also being invited in on the fun, such as the sequel to the series The Big O being partly sponsored by Cartoon Network. This was screened at Anime Expo in the video room, along with other releases barely out of circulation in Japan. ADV has now become one of the largest entertainment companies that specialize mostly in anime, being one of the most prominent booths in the dealer's room.

Now the bad: a small number of fans are beginning to grumble as popularity, politics, corporate practices and other parts of business begin to clash with fandom. Older fans wish for "the good 'ol days" when anime did not have such a strong spotlight on it and there seemed to be more freedom. Compared to AX '96 the convention has changed noticeably in its atmosphere. The dealers room, hardly the behemoth it is now, seemed to be more varied in its goods in its earlier years. The vendors then consisted of catering to the underground wishes and word of mouth popularity of items. Now, it seems more professional sellers such as Suncoast make up most of vendor population at AX. Even the smaller outlets are now offering fewer items that are not tied in to current or soon to be US releases. Events such as the Masquerade and Music Videos seemed then to not take themselves so seriously then as they do now. The air of silliness and good time seems to have been bleached out a bit by waiting in line for tickets, and 30 minute-1 hour seating. Events that were once a gathering of fans for discussing both the good and the bad of various aspects of anime are beginning to be outnumbered by mini-press conferences run by translation houses. Some say it seems only the best and brightest aspects get shown, or that some events are now simply publicity stunts. Most business knows they must keep up the illusion of having all of its decisions be for the good of its customers instead of being driven by profit. In some cases, some are saying the convention is starting to show those seams.

With so much good coming from the corporate side of the anime industry, one could chalk up the concerns as being at worst elitist whining, but there does seem to be a change in how the dynamics of anime fandom work. Gone are the days of having a certain title be a "safe bet" as never being picked up commercially, where a following of a series could still be just a few people. The last year has shown many avant-garde and brave releases, leaving fansubbers in some cases high and dry after barely translating a series or waiting on a company to release if rights have been bought. This may seem like a small complaint, but the fansubbing systems was how anime came to be as popular as it is today, with many translation companies originally being fansubbbers themselves. This is just one example of the changes. However, most of these issues could also be just simply the growth of anime itself, going from such a small market to something distributed and translated worldwide. Whatever is the cause, anime is changing. As Anime Expo is one of the biggest anime conventions around, this is where the future of anime fandom in the US will be witnessed.