In one of the most disappointing and horrific acts by a video company, the best-selling platform brand will make sure that, “you will own nothing and be happy”.
When the PlayStation 5 was released back in the fall of 2020, aka, during the madness of when the COVID-19 pandemic was running rampant and political discourse entered into free fall never seen before in American history, I told myself that I had plans to buy a PS5, and, eventually I believe I would. As the years went by, I kept telling myself the same thing that eventually I’ll buy myself a PS5, but, somehow, as my life went on, I never did. Jump to six years later, the same narrative was applied to me all the time, but I was never able to figure out why I haven’t bought myself a PS5 yet? I know it’s not money issue, because here I am completely okay with spending $300-$400 on cosplay and buying $100 tickets to attend big name anime conventions. Maybe I thought that priority for other stuff from my same passion was more important for me? Maybe it’s because as a working adult, I don’t really have free time to invest on a console that forks a lot of money and keeps getting more expensive each year? Could it be that it’s library of games didn’t convince me to buy a PS5? Maybe it’s because switching to PC Gaming four years ago made my gaming experience just- (CALM DOWN FANBOYS IT’S JUST A JOKE RIGHT?)
… Maybe?
I came up with so many theories on why I haven’t bought myself a PlayStation 5 just yet? However, today, July 1, 2026, I finally realized why I haven’t bought one, and, the move pulled by Sony only enforces it. What am I talking about? Well, here’s what Sony has done that will probably enrage you, but at the end, nothing will be done about it.
Once considered the Vanguard of the anime community, this once stronghold of a practice has become almost non-existent, and completely different.
In September 2011, I remember finishing Angel Beats! The reception was positive, and I was filled with such joy, happiness, and that fuzzy post-anime depression feeling. During my time on MyAnimeList, I added it to my completed list, and when I did, I was met with a very rude awakening by somebody I didn’t even know at all…
He went onto my profile, left a comment, and said these exact words to me:
Seeing your icon and your favorites list while finishing a shit anime reminds me of everything wrong with modern anime and the anime community as a whole. All I have got to say is, go fuck yourself. – Random Anime Elitist in 2011
These words, said in such a hilarious fashion, left me in a confused state. Like, what did I do to deserve to be insulted? I don’t even know the guy at all, and he just insulted me out of nowhere just because I like an anime show and he doesn’t? How immature can he be?
The thing is, my interaction with him wasn’t my first. Later on, I began to encounter more of these toxic fans, and every time I did, there was something I noticed: Their favorites, and their type of anime, are 99% the same. These artistic, underground anime titles that are vastly different from the typical mainstream anime titles that many of us—including myself—watch. I thought, “Who are these people?”
That’s when I discovered the term “anime elitist”… A group of self-proclaimed vanguards whose goal was to gatekeep anime as a whole, and to express some sort of superiority complex against others who liked a different taste in anime, while trying to change the way anime should be watched and viewed—and expressing hostility toward anyone who said otherwise.
Once an instrumental part of the anime community, if you’re someone like me who’s been around the anime community for a while now and has noticed that anime elitists don’t hold the iron grip on the community like they used to in the past—well, you’re not wrong. Anime elitism, as a whole, no longer exists strongly in the anime community. And in this article, I will be talking about the anime elitist and its role—from its dominant rise to its ungraceful fall.
My first local anime con of 2026 was one of the smallest anime conventions and turned out to be the unexpected crowned winner so far!
Missing out on Swampcon, Freecon, and ACEcon day 2 was brutal. After all the much-anticipated hype for those three, I couldn’t attend them, and to make matters worse, April turned out to be a month with no anime conventions or events whatsoever. So, to sum it up, I was unable to duke it out in the otaku interactive fun activities that I’ve been doing since Sarasota Anime-Fest, which started in December 2025. Of course, it didn’t last too long, but nonetheless, boredom was strong, and I could tell that Animangemu’s content was growing a bit stale for my readers.
That’s when Anime Day Official, the group that I’ve been following for over a year, finally announced its scheduled date for Tampa locals, and the timing couldn’t have been better. Right at the start of May, I knew that my drought of attending anime cons was finally about to end.
If you’ve been following me for a while now, I’m sure you’ve read my articles about the anime cons I’ve attended previously, like Brick City Anime Festival and Sarasota Anime-Fest, for example. Similar to my previous anime con experiences, Tampa Anime Day is yet another example of a local anime convention done right. In fact, it’s arguably the best I’ve attended so far.
Located at the Sheraton Tampa Brandon Hotel in Tampa, Tampa Anime Day was my first true local anime convention of the year. I know many of you probably thought it was ACEcon, and while that’s true for the broader Tampa metro area as a whole, ACEcon was held in Palm Harbor. If we’re talking about Tampa itself, then this was the first actual local anime con of the year. It also had the shortest travel distance for me (except for Brick City Anime Festival during my time at my former local base in Ocala). Anime Day Official is known for hosting events in several cities across the country, like Nashville in Tennessee and Huntsville in Alabama. Florida has had three so far: Jacksonville, Orlando, and most recently Tampa. I wanted to attend last year, but was unable to do so.
Now, I was finally able to attend in 2026, and how did my first true local anime con turn out? Well, a tiny bit of spoilers, but it went beyond my positive expectations. In fact, it was so darn good that I can’t wait to tell you about all the awesome stuff that happened for me at Tampa Anime Day. Buckle up and get ready for the show!
New year, new beginnings, and new otaku fun! 2026 is off to a roaring start with a new anime convention. A first-time as well!
2025 was a difficult year for me. I missed out on basically the entire calendar of anime conventions, along with several important social events I really wanted to attend but was unable to. It really sucked… I was devastated and genuinely mourned missing what felt like a huge year for anime conventions. To add insult to injury, it all happened in Florida—the state with one of the greatest landscapes of otaku life and the third-largest number of anime conventions in America. In the end, I only managed to attend a few tiny events, while still missing out on all the big ones.
So, for 2026, I didn’t want the same mistake to be repeated. Toward the end of 2025, as all the great anime cons were wrapping up, I only managed to attend Sarasota Anime Fest in December. With everything ending and the year coming to a close, I dove into some heavy planning for 2026. My first objective was to make sure that, in 2026, I would prioritize cosplay and anime conventions. I decided to put aside my constant focus on merchandise like anime figures, Gunpla, plushies, and J-pop/idol albums. I also toned down my consumerism when it came to anime, manga, and physical video game media, saving up only for cosplay and anime conventions. While the circumstances in 2025 hadn’t favored me at all, I also made some personal mistakes that year that contributed to those blunders. Eventually, Brick City Anime Festival became the first anime con already planned for 2026—and how did it turn out?
I was finally able to experience my first ever multi-day medium-sized anime convention: Brick City Anime Festival 2026, located in Ocala, Florida, and held at the World Equestrian Center. It was first inaugurated in 2022, and this year marked its 5th year—boy, was I glad to have experienced it. The overwhelming amount of fun stuff that happened at Brick City Anime Festival was amazing. It was an anime con full of great things, ranging from incredible cosplay, a welcoming community, idolfests, and so much more. So, how was it for me? How was my first ever anime convention of 2026?
The year 2025 has been a huge roller coaster for me. It was a year of unprecedented revolution, but at the same time, a year when frustration and setbacks ultimately held me back from fulfilling my potential. For the first time in my entire life since I started Animangemu, I went fully social. I showed my face, dramatically changed Animangemu’s course, and transformed it from a simple brand into an interactive one that embraces social media, personality, and the importance of individuality. Meeting new people, finalizing Animangemu’s true identity, and finally awakening my passion for cosplay and events after years of keeping them on the back burner felt incredible. Animangemu also experienced unprecedented levels of growth and recognition. My knowledge expanded, and embracing this new Floridian otaku identity feels amazing—I’m truly glad I made this change for both myself and the brand.
Sadly, this year will also be remembered for the big plans that ultimately failed to materialize. I missed out on many amazing events and found myself more bitterly waiting for change than actually living in the moment—constantly walking up and down, watching others have fun while I did… well, nothing. Not to mention how angry and bitter I feel knowing how many awesome 2025 events I missed. My anime, manga, and video game consumption also hit its lowest point ever. The year suffered from massive droughts of activity, and in the end, the really big moments didn’t arrive until December.
So for 2026, I’m going to dramatically change everything for the better. Still, this year had some truly memorable moments. Here’s a recap of everything that happened for me in 2025.
When I first started 2025, Animangemu remained pretty basic, and most of my interests from 2024 simply carried over into the new year. For a short while, everything stayed the same. But during the winter of that year, something felt off—a glaring issue was beginning to surface. At first, I couldn’t quite pinpoint what was wrong, but by the time March rolled around, it became obvious: things were getting stale. Time was moving forward for me, and what once felt basic and mandatory no longer did. Indeed, things changed later on, and the ride was bumpy. I achieved some major milestones, but I also suffered some serious hits and setbacks. Around the middle of the year, I realized nothing was going to improve as long as I kept relying on the same stale methods as the sole foundation of my platform. So, I dramatically reshaped Animangemu’s brand along the way. By August, it hit me hard: as long as Animangemu stayed the way it was, things would never get better. Cosplay and anime conventions had been my constant desire, but they remained out of reach due to various issues. Eventually, though, it happened. I purchased a lot of awesome merchandise, and I genuinely enjoyed some notable anime, manga, video games, toys & games, and even some Tokusatsu. Finally, cosplay became the absolute highlight of 2025 for me—and so did my event schedule. This forever changed Animangemu and ultimately kicked off a new era of interactivity—not just for my brand, but for my life as a whole. In other words, I began to live life again, fully engaging with others over the cringe otaku stuff that still makes me happy to this day. Of course, none of this would have happened without the revolution of Animangemu’s brand change. Over the months, my brand grew bigger and bigger, and even some big-name figures in the community took notice of my work. Animangemu became a full-time job for me, and I loved publishing hit articles that caught the attention of so many people. Now, in 2026, expect things to go into overdrive. I already have a HUGE amount of big plans ready for next year, and unlike 2025, I won’t be missing out on any of them. I hope you enjoy what I have in store. Here’s a recap of everything that happened for me in 2025.
Animangemu 