Over the last weekend of January, Ashland University’s Anime Club ventured down to Columbus to take part in Ohayocon, an annual convention in which fans of all ages flock together to celebrate a common interest: anime.

Nicholas McCrea, who goes by the alias EdNick, has been the president of AU’s Anime Club for three years, but he considers just last semester the first year the group has been considered a legitimate club.

“This was the first year there has been a real group that has contributed and met consistently,” McCrea said.

It was perhaps because of the group’s dedication to the club that they decided to travel down to Columbus together in order to attend the convention.

The Ohayocon draws in staggering amounts of people each year to discuss, revel in and celebrate anime.

According to Angie Reaves, a new member of AU’s Anime Club, there were enough people at the convention to fill up two hotels.

“I would say that over 1,000 people were in attendance,” Reaves said.

The popularity and success of the convention did not surprise Reaves.

“Really, for anime fans it’s not about whether you want to go or not,” she said. “It is the biggest gathering of anime lovers in the state of Ohio. The opportunity to go is such a big thing to us because it is just great to have fun with people who love [anime] as much as you do.”

Given all the activities crammed into one weekend, it would be difficult to not find something to pass the time.

“There was so much to do,” Reaves said. “There were panels you could go to that taught you how to wear kimonos or ones that discussed anime and its effect on politics. Most of all you could go to whatever panel you had an interest for.”

According to Racheal Breeden, a veteran Anime Club member, a panel is an open-ended discussion board in which various talents, such as voice actors or animators, will talk about a certain topic and answer any inquiries the audience may have.

Reaves said some of the panels that took place pertained to subjects such as Hetalia or Pokémon, but she emphasized that there is much more to do at a convention than to sit in on a panel.

“The possibilities for the day are endless because there is so much to explore,” Reaves said.

Breeden agreed, also noting how one could easily get wrapped up in the copious amounts of anime merchandise available to buy.

“I spent a lot of time (and money) in the Dealers Room,” Breeden said.

According to Breeden, the Dealer’s Room is a very large store set up at the convention where vendors will sell a wide range of anime-related items. Paraphernalia, such as mock weapons, costumes and plush toys, are available for purchase from many sellers.

Another common activity one might see at an anime convention is cosplaying. As Breeden explained, cosplaying derives from the words “costume” and “play” and typically involves an individual dressing up as a favorite character as accurately as possible-not unlike finding a getup for Halloween.

However, a facet to cosplaying that may not be seen as commonly elsewhere is the trend of dressing as a character of the opposite gender.

“In the anime world, girls can dress as guys and vice versa, and it isn’t odd to see a guy in a dress and wig or a girl dressed as a guy character,” Breeden said. “I dressed up as a character from the video game Kingdom Hearts. I was the character Axel, who is on the ‘bad team.’ I bought the costume as well as the wig online but made the chakrams (his spinning disks that catch on fire) in my woodshop class last year.”

In the spirit of the convention, Reaves also dressed up as an anime character.

“I did cosplay!” Reaves said. “My cosplay for day one was the summoner Yuna from Final Fantasy X and the second day [I wore] my own steampunk creation.”

According to wordiq.com, “steampunk” is a sub-genre of science fiction that usually takes place in the Victorian era and is rapidly growing in popularity.

In general, Reaves was blown away by the number of people who took the time and effort to cosplay.

“There were so many cool costumes!” Reaves said. “I would have to say that my favorite was just seeing the entire Akasuki clan from Naruto together! How they got everyone to coordinate like that, I will never understand.”

While Reaves was impressed with the large group’s ability to coordinate outfits, McCrea was more drawn to a single person’s ability to stand out through a simple yet unique concept.

“My favorite [cosplay] had to be the guy dressed as a real-working Gameboy with a Tetris game,” McCrea said. “People kept stopping him to play it.”

Upon their return from the convention, the Anime Club eagerly awaits the next time Ohayocon rolls around.

“The convention was a lot of fun, and I look forward to going again,” McCrea said.

“We are already planning our return trip to Ohayocon next year!” Breeden said.

But in the meantime, Breeden plans on attending another anime convention, ColassalCon, in Sandusky this upcoming June with a handful of her Anime Club friends.

As this was her first time attending an anime convention, Reaves reflected on her overall experience.

“It did not meet my expectations…it exceeded them,” Reaves said. “It is just an atmosphere of fun at its highest.”