A new episode of Pixel x Pixel is here, and not a minute too soon! We recorded before the excitement of TGS kicked off and during the unfortunate heat dome that had Marcus and other Californians watching their electricity use, but that doesn’t mean we didn’t bring our usual cheer! Marcus talks about his new Checking the Score article on the Cult of the Lamb soundtrack, and Anne talks about the nitty gritty of freelance localization. Then, it’s time for not one, but two new movies, and some exciting otome game and shojo manga-related announcements!
Please note that this episode was recorded over a week before it was posted, so some of our discussions may be a little out of date.
15:00 – Media Minutes: Bodies, Bodies, Bodies, Silent Hill 2 Enhanced Edition, Cloverfield, DragonBall Super: Super Hero 36:00 – Notable News: Rose of Versailles movie announced, Otomate Parade 2022 announcements, GrimGrimoire OnceMore English version coming 2023, Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak PSA
♫ “Willie Lomans,” “5 minutes pleasure,” and “6 pence and moon” from Alphabet Planet by Hiroki Kikuta
After two years of cancellations due to COVID-19, SMASH! Sydney Manga and Anime Show was finally held once again this past July – just in time for its 15th anniversary!
SMASH! is a non-profit, volunteer-run endeavor, and after my first time attending in 2019 after moving to Sydney, I am continually impressed by the quality of the con.
This year, despite not having government-mandated capacity restrictions, the SMASH! team opted to cap attendee numbers in order to avoid overcrowding, which resulted in the whole weekend being sold out. While unfortunate for those who wanted to attend but weren’t able, Saturday at the con was crowded enough to make me feel that they made the right call to reduce attendee numbers.
Having reverted to nearly full hermit over the past two years, I figured I would only have enough energy to attend one day of the con, so I opted to go on Saturday. SMASH! 2022 took place at ICC Sydney, a convention center located in Darling Harbour, a vibrant, albeit slightly touristy area of Sydney.
To pick up my media badge, I arrived well before the convention opened at 10am, though my media pass allowed me to enter the convention early. After grabbing a coffee at a nearby Japanese-style coffee shop, I made my way in about 15 minutes before opening to join the other members of the media and staff to see the first fans entering the con at 10am. You could feel the energy and excitement in the air, and it was really lovely to have the opportunity to view the start of the con from the other side of the doors!
For me, a big highlight of any convention is seeing all of the fans in cosplay and getting inspired in the artist alley. Of course, a major draw for many are the guests, and I would’ve loved to see some Japanese talent at SMASH! 2022, particularly voice actors. Unfortunately, there weren’t any this year (I imagine likely due to COVID-19), and the guest list skewed heavily to VTubers and YouTube personalities. The most exciting guest on the lineup for me was Kevin Penkin, a Melbourne-based composer who has contributed to anime and games such as Made in Abyss and Florence!
Aside from guests, there were plenty of events to keep fans busy throughout the weekend, including the World Cosplay Summit Preliminaries and an exclusive screening of Fruits Basket -Prelude-.
Honestly, I kept myself plenty busy without attending any of the special events! I made my way through the main convention hall from the start of the con at 10am until about 4pm when I finally had to call it a day (with a break for lunch, of course). Aside from stores selling everything from imported merchandise to cosplay accessories, there was also a large Bandai booth where attendees could go to gunpla workshops, and even a gaming area with a wide array of games – including my personal favorite, Pop’n Music! I was also pleasantly surprised to stumble into a humble Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers 2 booth where they were giving out free pins to promote the upcoming game.
SPY X FAMILY was all the rage at the con, and Crunchyroll came prepared with a booth modeled after the Forger’s home for attendees to take photos in (see my silly attempt to join the family above).
Speaking of cosplay, the amazing duo pictured above were the Best in Show winners at the Cosplay Masquerade on Saturday! Cinohrui (left) is dressed in a fan witch Sailor Mercury design, and Cryptidcorvo (right) is a fan witch Sailor Neptune design, both by Kutty Sark. I’ve been watching Cinohrui’s cosplay come to life over the past few weeks on Instagram, and it was even more amazing to see in person!
As a huge Monster Hunter fan, I was very excited to see these two cosplayers! The cosplayer on the left sported a hilarious costume from Monster Hunter Rise, but unfortunately I didn’t get their name. On the right is Chris Tucker, aka roxas_wind_cosplay, dressed in a handmade (and glowing!) Zinogre armor set. Only after asking for a photo did I realize that I interrupted him on his way to the Cosplay Masquerade… Sorry, Chris!
I also wanted to highlight the cosplayer artvinsky (left), who not only sported an awesome punk Zagreus (Hades) cosplay they designed, but when I asked if I could take a photo, they offered me a free woodblock print inspired by the game! It was such a sweet gesture and one of my best memories of the day…
…Followed closely by the Nagito (Danganronpa2) cosplayer on the right, aka cactuskhee, an artist who was doing a Nagito keychain gacha that had you pulling a keychain out of Nagito’s noggin. It was hilarious and extra-exciting for me as a huge Nagito fan!
Of course, it wouldn’t be a con recap without a haul! As expected, I did most of my shopping in the artist alley, and I picked up a whole pile of business cards for artists I want to purchase from in the future. From top left to right going clockwise, the item details are as follows:
After not having been to such a large public event in so long, I was apprehensive of how SMASH! 2022 would go. Not only that, but COVID-19 is still very much a presence in our lives. While I was hopeful that the convention would be run in a safe manner, I was still concerned about COVID precautions and how courteous attendees would be of others.
Though there was not a mask requirement for attendees (which is currently standard procedure in Australia), I would say at least half of the people I saw were wearing masks, and those that weren’t were still respectful of social distancing and others’ choice to wear a mask.
Aside from not having any guests I was particularly excited to see, I was very happy with the SMASH! 2022 experience overall. It’s hard to come back after COVID-19 setbacks, and I’m sure even more so for a non-profit fan-run event, but the team should be proud of what they accomplished for this year’s convention. I will definitely be looking forward to SMASH! 2023!
Episode 90 of Pixel x Pixel presents the grand return of Marcus’ and Anne’s writing careers! Marcus went to a super-cool horror convention and wrote a brand-new Checking the Score article on Jumping Flash!, and Anne attended a Princess Tutu anniversary event digitally and writes a full recap. Then, a very important game was finally completed, and a current hot movie was watched. Finally, this episode’s Notable News is another spicy one, with a discussion of the visual novel term “all ages” and the proceedings around the new Seven Seas Union. Plus, lots of game announcements!
20:00 – Media Minutes: House in Fata Morgana, Touken Ranbu Warriors, Detective Conan: The Bride of Halloween, Crimes of the Future 47:00 – Notable News: JAST BLUE dogpiled for use of “all ages,” United Workers of Seven Seas, Sony State of Play, Our Flag Means Death season 2 confirmed, Yomawari: Lost in the Dark English release announced, Haunted Obakestra upcoming localization Kickstarter
♫ “Willie Lomans,” “5 minutes pleasure,” and “6 pence and moon” from Alphabet Planet by Hiroki Kikuta
The Princess Tutu anime recently celebrated its 20th anniversary and held a fan event called the spring festival, aka Frühlingsfest! I believe this was the first Princess Tutu event available to be streamed overseas, so I excitedly jumped on the opportunity to watch the recording via Mahocast. Though the landing page had the event description in multiple languages, since the actual stream didn’t have English subtitles, I thought someone might be interested in hearing about what happened in the event. If that’s you, read on for a full recap of all the proceedings!
Better late than never – a new episode of Pixel x Pixel is here! Both Marcus and Anne have exciting, podcast-relevant things to discuss in the intro, namely: Marcus is finally getting his hands on the Steam Deck, and Anne had the opportunity to interview the writer of the new UNICO manga currently on Kickstarter. Plus, since Marcus forgot to talk about Passions last episode, we’ve got a double dose of the Passions Preamble, and he also saw The Northman so the pair can discuss it in (no spoiler) detail!
16:14 – Media Minutes: Passions Preamble, The Northman, Fuga: Melodies of Steel 37:40 – Notable News: Console mod Wiki, handheld Mister prototype, Build a Bear Grookey
♫ “Willie Lomans,” “5 minutes pleasure,” and “6 pence and moon” from Alphabet Planet by Hiroki Kikuta
Awooga! Pixel x Pixel is back for another bi-weekly dose of geek media goodness! In this episode, Marcus and Anne realize they already saw the infamous Euphoria penis episode (much to their chagrin), Marcus digs into the new BL visual novel Tokyo Onmyoji and tests out a new Razer keyboard, and Anne is knee-deep in more work she can’t talk about publically (yet!). Plus, Passions Preamble and Marcus Gets Steamed return, and even Anne gets steamed about some news of her own!
8:00 – Media Minutes:Elden Ring, Euphoria update, Turning Red, PassionsPreamble 37:00 – Notable News: Funimation and Wakanim moving to Crunchyroll, Seventh Lair and Doukyuusei: Bangin’ Summer Steam issues, GSC/Koei Tecmo and more companies condemn Russia and support Ukraine, Itch.io bundle for Ukraine
♫ “Willie Lomans,” “5 minutes pleasure,” and “6 pence and moon” from Alphabet Planet by Hiroki Kikuta
It’s yet another fine episode of Pixel x Pixel! We’re a little late this week, but that doesn’t mean we don’t have lots of good things to talk about! Anne was busy with super-secret freelance work, while Marcus didn’t review anything new (surprisingly!), he did buy lots of new things in the latest Vinegar Syndrome sale. Plus, Anne’s watching not one, but two current anime, and Marcus rocked on by playing something with “rock” in the title and watching something with the Rock in it!
9:00 – Media Minutes: Ranking of Kings, Attack on Titan final season, San Andreas, Deep Rock Galactic, Passions Preamble (Sheridan alive?!) 31:00 – Notable News: Nintendo Direct, video game hacking group sentenced to 40 months, Wii U and 3DS eShop closing in March 2023, JFF Plus on now
♫ “Willie Lomans,” “5 minutes pleasure,” and “6 pence and moon” from Alphabet Planet by Hiroki Kikuta