Last summer at Connecticon we premiered our newest panel, SURVIVING A MECHA ATTACK, a parody of public service announcements about how to average citizen can save themselves from the threat of giant robots.

The panel has been run many many times including: Otakon, Mokucon, Genericon, Zenkaikon and partially at the New York Anime Festival. I am happy to announce that this silly panel will be incorporated into my tour.

Here’s a clip of the opening as I performed the panel at AniFusion at
Forbidden City in NYC.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Surviving a Mecha Attack has been scheduled for the following times:

ANIMELAND WASABI: Sunday, March 7th at 11 am.
ANIME MILWAUKEE: Friday, March 12th at 7pm.
KAMIKAZECON: TBA
ANIME BOSTON: Friday, April 2nd at 5pm.
TEKKOSHOCON: TBA

I have been working night and day to get the Power Point presentation up and running, making improvements where needed and hammering out the jokes to make this the best panel it can be. Hope to see you guys at the panel. Most of the images are copyrighted, so I am not able to sell any recording of this panel, but you are more than welcomed to watch whatever videos pop up online.

See you next time, Galactic Cowpokes,

~Yo

Click here to view the embedded video.

In addition to the classic Japanese Tea Ceremony, the live performances from Japanese pop star Ai Kawashima and Samurai Soul Sword (just to name the first hour of showtime) as well as live interviews by Samurai Beat Radio. We ended up having a fun time.

Well, we’re DOING IT AGAIN!

Saturday and Sunday, May 1st and 2nd: save the date.

I will be working/hosting some events at the Sakura Matsuri and we have got plans. Mario Bueno, whom many of us remember from AniFusion and every major cosplay masquerade for the past four years, has some ideas brewing, and we are going to keep our promise by upping the ante this year. Details to come as they develop, but I’m excited to return to such a major event in one of the most scenic locations in Brooklyn.

I’m heading upstate to Troy, NY for GENERICON at RPI campus. For those of you needing a break from the snow, come check out their video game room, nearly 100 hours of programmed anime, table-top RPG and boardgame rooms (yes, multiple) and guests such as EchoStream, Robert Axelrod, OverClocked ReMix,Lawrence Eng, and me.

I’m going up from 3-5pm on Saturday to premiere my new routine, the 2010 Tour of the Cupcake. Hope to see you all there!

Reni Mimura, whom I discuss in my act and may or may not follow with a camera on occasion. She’s a cosplay singer/songwriter who has been living in New York City since 2008, promoting her unique brand of super-cute J-pop with a collection of Japanese dancing maids. Since working with her at the New York Anime Festival, I’ve been very honored to help her at other cons and see her career blossom. She is so good live and gives the same immense performance for five people as she gives for five thousand.

Click here to view the embedded video.

On Saturday, January 16th, Reni will be filmed by the Japanese television studio NHK as part of a documentary. Oh yeah, and she’ll be at DROM, that little place in Manhattan where everybody partied at my live show? Hmm? Remember that? Wasn’t that fun? Sure it was. (And the DVD is here.)

I’ll see you there, guys.

Definite highlights come from the people we had gathered: Emi and Promise were in rare form and sang beautifully amid to frozen and captivated fans. Forbidden Planet ended up handing me a handful of swag, which I ended up keeping rather than giving to the runner ups in the cosplay competition. Carrie looked great as always as Reindeer Mikuru Asahina.

And even though there was a brief cameo by both Santa Claus and Uncle Buen-Yo, I neutralized both threats.

In addition, I found it necessary to gather as many pictures as possible with my new Christmas present to myself from Image Anime: a Shinigami-sama ski mask. All I got to do tonight was my laundry, so I brought out Shinigami-sama for a night on the town. Sadly, no children would approach him, and no Chiquita would befriend him:

Come to me, bloomers

Doom?

So Ronery. So very, very ronery.

theft

Promise

Haruhi Hair?

The man of the hour and his co-host.

Now, thankfully, I can take a little break until the DVD gets released at Genericon in Februrary. I’ll have it available at Katsucon, of course, since they fall on the same weekend. Everybody out there have a very VERY safe and carefree holiday season. Happy New Year, Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Kwanza, click-click-grunt gurgle for the citizens of District 9, and Happy Decadent-Self-Worshiping Day to Mr. T: you’ve earned it.

Enjoy the snow,
~Yo

Casual gatherings like Mokucon of Rutgers University are like private weekends with your area friends. Everyone, from the cosplayers to the dealer’s room feel almost no pressure to succeed or pitch ideas or compete. I’ve got a bunch of highlights that are somewhere in cyberspace I’ve got to post on the photo page.

I have a few highlights:

- The relaxed conference room with the fireplace, fresh snow falling outside the window, a black butler playing the piano, and the other butlers handing out free cake.
- Hei from Darker Than Black shoving me in the trashcan.
- Buying a new tie from the dealer from Resident Evil 5.
- Code Geass photos by the fireplace.
- Image Anime Panel w/ Mario and the cast of Doujinopolis.
- Running a 2 hour comedy panel successfully.
- Hating on Spice and Wolf in the Rage Panel.
- My character sheet for a new Dungeons and Dragons prestige class: Cock-Blocker!
- Mario playing Stone Cold Steve Austin for the Rage Panel.
- Falling asleep on Chris’ couch and waking up surrounded by action figures.
- Dr. Eggman strangling a Sonic the Hedgehog plushie.
- Meeting Rorschach in the men’s room.
- Escaping Rorschach from the men’s room.
- Harassing Hetalia cosplayers.

It’s good to have a community. It’s good to belong. Never forget that. If you’re even on this website, you are a part of that community.

When Mario Beuno first asked me to be a part of his live-action fanfic about the cast of Suzumiya Haruhi living in an anime supply store in NYC, I asked first “who is this?” because I hadn’t yet saved his number in my phone.
I’m super-excited because I’m back in as Koizumi Itsuki. We’ve already got plans for the second half of season one as well as…I think you’ll see.

Episode five took us about 3 hours to shoot, mainly full takes and with a LOT of improving, but with a little patience and a lot of quick thinking on the cast’s part, we worked out a thin-enough plot. Never seen anything this metaphysical at the Upright Citizen’s Brigade.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Also, my interview at Zenkaikon was just released earlier this week. You can see it here. Through the Internet! Don’t be scared.

I hope everyone got to be with loved ones for Thanksgiving, good luck to everybody with finals, mailing out holiday cards AND don’t forget December birthdays – they need love too.

As a quick side note, a few people have been purchasing CD’s without sending me their physical mailing address. Until we get the teleporter online, I’m forced to use the USPS, so be sure to e-mail me your home address, otherwise you’re just throwing things at my Paypal.

I’ll see you guys in a week at Rutgers University on Saturday, Dec. 5th.

Live, laugh & glomp,
~Yo

1) This is the video played at Zenkaikon’s Opening Ceremonies. I helped write the script and with the help of Fighter’s High from Youtube, the staff was able to pull off a miracle of silliness.

Click here to view the embedded video.

2) Cosplay Performers Mario Bueno and MostFlogged are creating a web series based on the epic store Image Anime and the Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi. Episode 3 I got to play their Koizumi Itsuki. Mario’s direction before we improvised the scene: “Can you do openly flaming Mac-nerd?” This was the fruit of our labors. Look for more fun as the season unfolds (wink).

Click here to view the embedded video.

3) Cosplay Masquerade at Zenkaikon. Once again, shared the stage with the talented Reni Mimura But I always feel out of place when I’m on stage with her. I fixed that.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Yes, Uncle Yo has a Sailor Moon cosplay.

Other news, had a great interview at Cos Watch.com. I had a great time working with them, and listen closely for commentary from George Davidson, my fellow “Surviving a Mecha Attack” panelist.

Two private shows this past week that keep me on trains and turn my weekdays into a series of catnaps and free sushi dinners.
Rutgers University is full of people.
In Washingtonville, NY, there is a girl who had no anime club, so she made her own from scratch. Using the backroom of her local library, she hosts nearly 30 area kids a week, creating a solid diet of classic, current, and yaoi-friendly viewings. Her name is Amanda, and, like many fans, her love of Otaku culture has set an example for many to follow. Truly, if you build it, they will come, they will glomp, and they will quote Death Note.

See you guys at Anime USA, then Rutgers University and keep those DVD cover entries coming!

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