I really don’t get the people from Anime Expo sometimes. They do so many things right to make sure fans in attendance have fun - but when they do something wrong, it turns out to be something major that almost outweighs all the good. Take this little bit of information into account: you would expect that the people at AX would want as much media coverage of the event as possible. So why would they restrain press photographers from taking pictures of their dance events?

Let me go back to AX Day 1. At the end of the day, they did a strong job of promoting their All Ages Dance featuring an Alice in Wonderland theme and the later 18 and over only dance that followed. And heading to the JW Marriott’s Gold Ballroom, we saw some incredible Wonderland themed costumes, as well as costumes from a myriad of anime, manga, and comic book franchises. And it was cool that when we got there we were presented with the chance of getting in early so we could see the set up and all the attendees enter the dance. And we were able to snap a number of shots of all the dancers and wallflowers in full costume and having fun and just mingling about throughout both dances. We had no trouble at the Marriott with regards to press coverage.

On Anime Expo Day 2, when the venue of the dance was changed to Club Nokia at L.A. Live instead of being back at the Marriott, all press photographers (and all attendees for that matter) were told that under no circumstances would there be any allowance of photographs to be taken at the event. Excuse me? The press was being told that no pictures could be taken. Then how are we to get the word out on how the event unfolded. Especially when the theme of the dance was Heroes and Villains! Sure, I could sit here and write about how everyone inside had a good time despite many dancers complaining about how they couldn’t take pictures. But expos, cons, and shows are a very visually appealing matter. For us not to be allowed to take any pictures of the event just robs so much away from the overall story. I am sure many of you who would read a review on the event would like to have some pictures of the dance to enjoy as you browse over the article.

Why then were we limited in our coverage of the event? I would really like to know the answer to that question. And before you say it, no, I do not believe it was because of the people from Club Nokia saying no to press taking pictures. Just the day before at Club Nokia when they held Club 2 the MAX there, the press and everyone in attendance were allowed to snap as many pictures of the events as they wanted. I don’t see how from one day to the next that policy changed. So it had to come from the people running AX to make that decision. And I really would like to know why. This is the first time that I had ever encountered the notion that no pictures could be taken of an AX event.

So tonight is AX Day 3 and the theme for tonight’s dance is Harajuku Nights. It would be a shame if we encountered the same situation as the night before with regards to photographing the event. It was a shame to miss taking pictures of all the hero and villain costumes at the dance the previous night; but if are not given a chance to take pictures of the Harajuku themed costumes that will be on display tonight, well then that is just a damn shame; and really because I don’t understand the reasoning behind it. Okay, if they had told us on Day 2 that they didn’t want pictures taken of the event when it was all ages, I could understand that. Maybe they were thinking of protecting the under 18 crowd from being exploited around the net. I know, a bit of a stretch but I am theorizing here. But even if that were the case, why were we still forbidden from photographing the event when it went to 18 and over only?

Or am I the only one who feels appalled by this? Let me know, and I will concede that I am wrong if the majority of you out there feel that I am just blowing the situation out of proportion. I really don’t think that I am because in the ten plus years that I have been an Anime Expo attendee or press representative, I have never encountered this problem. Why the policy change now, I have no idea. But it certainly feels like something that should be changed, in my humble opinion. Still, please enjoy the slideshow from the first night's dance.