I’m going to vindicate myself right here. Just a few years again, I went to Anime Expo on the Los Angeles Conference Heart, stood exterior in a brutal, shadeless two-hour line that felt like a gentle type of torture, and determined, Yeah, I’m good on this perpetually. It was packed, it was irritating, and for what? To see the identical distributors within the Artist Alley I noticed at three different occasions that very same yr already?
For a very long time, every time I voiced this, individuals checked out me like I used to be a cynical buzzkill who simply hated enjoyable. It appeared prefer it was some accepted factoid that actual nerds ought to be keen to face in a barely transferring, sweaty crowd simply to see the identical sexualized mousepad with breasts that’s been at each different anime occasion the previous few years.
Properly, appears like I used to be onto one thing in spite of everything.
AX 2026 simply wrapped up, and the web is completely melting down as a result of the cracks within the basis have formally became an enormous sinkhole. The conference has develop into an absolute strain cooker, and attendees are lastly admitting out loud what I noticed years in the past: AX is a logistical dumpster hearth.
Right here’s a have a look at among the tweets from the poor anime followers who suffered by Anime Expo 2026.
Absolutely the loss of life of non-public area
If you happen to examine social media proper now, it appears much less like a enjoyable celebration of fan service and predictable plot factors and extra like a dispatch from a catastrophe zone. Individuals are describing the conference flooring as a lawless land with “zero line tradition,” the place crowds simply kind into huge blobs of shoving and pushing.
At a number of factors over the weekend, the hearth division introduced that no extra individuals might enter the conference middle (even with tickets) as a result of the occasion was at capability. Sure, it was actually a fireplace hazard. You’d assume they’d simply, I don’t know, promote fewer tickets after this continued to occur the previous couple of years.
“AX was enjoyable and all, nevertheless it was insufferable to remain within the conference middle for greater than an hour, and it was simply so disgustingly scorching in and outdoors, and it kinda stunk, they usually needed to evacuate the ground I used to be on. like if there’s some virus right here w all bought it,” said one attendee.
Some attendees stood up for the Anime Expo, saying that the occasion was not at capability, and the Hearth Marshall was there on account of a bottleneck on the entrance. Others identified, nonetheless, that the crowds didn’t appear to know “ stroll,” making areas really feel crowded and chaotic. Is that even higher?
On Thursday evening, there’s alleged to be an occasion referred to as Midnight Mahjong, an after-party of kinds with mahjong. However this was additionally, in fact, method too packed to operate correctly. It was so overrun with weebs that some attendees reported that the video games didn’t even begin for an hour or extra.
It bought so dangerous this yr that some attendees reported safety guards and cops rolling into areas with their arms on their batons and tasers simply to handle the sheer quantity of human our bodies. a conference has misplaced its cozy group vibe when the police presence appears like a riot squad response.
One poor cosplayer even reported that their outfit was completely ruined in 5 seconds flat as a result of a dense crowd shoved them into somebody handing out random chilly spaghetti. Sure, chilly spaghetti. That’s the place we’re at.
The tragedy of Artist Alley
For most individuals, Artist Alley is the precise coronary heart and soul of any conference. It’s the place you discover distinctive prints, indie charms, and help actual creators. However this yr, AX administration apparently determined that what individuals actually wished was fewer artists and more corporate bloat.
The conference reportedly lower the variety of artist spots down by an enormous margin, shoving the remaining creators into the very again of the corridor. And what did they put in that prime actual property as an alternative? Pokémon card resellers and Temu outlets. Folks have been actually packed like sardines in standstill site visitors simply making an attempt to achieve the precise artists by a labyrinth of bizarre vendor cubicles.
Your different choice? A free, various artist alley setup close to Little Tokyo that was completely outside, that means you can select between being crushed indoors or slowly roasting below the unforgiving Los Angeles solar. My pal attended the Artist Alley at Little Tokyo and reported again that it was very, very crowded.
However… Appears higher than this:
The “normies” have formally damaged the system
Anime will not be a distinct segment passion anymore. It’s mainstream popular culture, and that shift has introduced in an enormous wave of informal followers. Whereas inclusivity is nice on paper, in apply, it’s inflicting some main friction.
Longtime followers are mourning the times when conventions have been a protected haven for introverted otaku to geek out and make pals. Now, it’d as nicely be an indoor Coachella. What’s the phrase individuals on TikTok use lately? Larping?
It jogs my memory of my issue with Pokémon’s regional tournaments. What used to really feel like a secret membership for aggressive card sport nerds has became a scalping and household fest. That may possibly be high-quality, however The Pokémon Firm clearly can’t deal with the inflow of recent attendees. That’s the identical problem with Anime Expo: it appears the organizers haven’t actually accomplished something to help the expansion of the anime fandom, leaving it feeling depressing. It’s not really the “normies’” fault: it’s the administration.
This inflow of individuals has utterly wrecked the panel expertise. This yr, hardcore followers who confirmed up two hours early for extremely anticipated screenings, like Kagurabachi, have been turned away by the a whole lot as a result of the venue blocked off the escalators.
To make issues worse, individuals have been tenting out in panel rooms for hours simply to avoid wasting seats for later occasions, utterly ignoring the present presenters. Think about being a creator on a panel and looking at a crowd of people that don’t care about your work, solely to look at them actually throw away your free promotional gadgets as a result of they’re simply ready for the subsequent large hype practice.
It’s disrespectful and a direct results of over-capacity ticket gross sales.
A $115 Uber trip and $12 onigiri
Even should you someway managed to outlive the conference flooring with out getting lined in thriller pasta, simply attending to and from the venue was an costly nightmare. The Metro trains have been so packed that a whole lot of individuals have been left stranded on platforms as utterly full trains simply sailed previous them. If you happen to gave up and tried to name an Uber, you have been taking a look at surge pricing of over $100 simply to journey a number of miles.
And don’t even get me began on the meals. When individuals are complaining about paying $12 for a single onigiri with a $1.25 greenback upcharge for chili powder, and that merchandise nonetheless sells out, the ecosystem is damaged.
In fact, Los Angeles is pricey. However not that costly. I can often get a Lyft from DTLA to LAX for $30-$50. And a well-known place in Little Tokyo, Rice & Nori, has onigiri for $2.50 to $5.50. I’ve eaten there loads of instances and it’s fairly yummy. These are clearly inflated costs to benefit from attendees that don’t wish to depart the conference space.
At this level, preserving ticket gross sales open when the bodily conference area can’t safely or comfortably accommodate that many individuals is simply grasping. Individuals are formally asserting their “AX retirement” after practically a decade of attending, realizing they’ve outgrown the distress.
Said ClaireMax, a preferred cosplayer: “When individuals ask me if I’m going to Anime Expo, my reply is at all times no except I’m working or in any other case getting paid to be there. It’s a nightmare con. They don’t cap ticket gross sales, you’ll spend hours standing in line, exterior, in Los Angeles, in July. When you do get in, you’re packed in like a sweaty sardine – however that’s should you even make it inside as a result of each single yr the hearth division finally ends up shutting issues down as a result of it will get too dangerously overcrowded, that means individuals who paid for tickets can’t get inside. This yr that occurred at 2:30 pm on Friday.
“This might simply be fastened by placing a cap on ticket gross sales or transferring to a bigger venue, however they’re too money-hungry to cap gross sales, and there actually isn’t a bigger venue accessible in LA.”
I hate to say I instructed you so, however the writing has been on the wall for years. Hopefully, administration lastly listens earlier than AX 2027 turns into an precise hazard.
