This Weekend: FanimeCon 2008 in San Jose

FanimeCon 2008 kicks off the summer anime / comic convention season this weekend in San Jose, California. From Friday, May 23 through Monday, May 26, anime, manga, video game and Asian pop culture fans will converge on the San Jose McEnery Convention Center to indulge in the fun. While pre-registration is over, you can still buy tickets at the door for this 4-day event. So what's in store?

• Special guest appearances by manga artist Maika Netsu, the creator of My Dearest Devil Princess from Broccoli Books
• Japanese anime seiyu (voice actor) Hidenobu Kiuchi will be in attendance, answering questions about his numerous notable roles, including Ren in Nana, Nero in One Piece and Dr. Tenma in Naoki Urasawa's Monster.
• Dark Horse Manga Editor Carl Horn will be on hand to share the latest releases including their latest hot property, Gantz
• J-Rock concerts featuring Panda Cubed
• Fanmaid Cafe, with costumed maids serving up light snacks
• Lots and lots of anime and Asian cult cinema including Rosario + Vampire, Zombie Loan and Code Geass
• Intriguing panels with titles like "Let There Be Pocky," "Why Girls Love Sentai" and "All Mangaka Are Perverts"
• Karaoke contests
• Swap Meet
• Black and White Formal Ball
• Masquerade and Cosplay Contest
• UPDATE: Aimee Major Steinberger, author of Japan Ai will be on hand to share her tales of adventure in Japan
• UPDATE 2: Giles Poitras, author of The Anime Companion and The Anime Companion 2 will share his take on manga and anime
• UPDATE 3: Unnamed guests from mega-anime studio GAINAX will be hosting two appearances at the nearby Fairmont Hotel. See Gia's report for more on that.

And lots, lots more. Download the full schedule of events, and if you're going, peruse the driving and parking directions. Can't make it to San Jose this time? Stay tuned for more fun this weekend, as I'll be prowling the halls, taking photos and probably staving off the inevitable low-blood sugar moment with too much Pocky.