My Experience at Cleveland Anime Fest

Yesterday, I attended my third out-of-town anime convention in Cleveland, and this was also my first in Ohio and the Midwest in general. My triple-leg campaign is finished, though that doesn’t mean Anime Fest season is over yet, as we still have Erie in six days.

This was my first event in seven months, making it the second longest on record. We departed for Cleveland on a busy Friday afternoon, and was again not late like it was for Niagara Falls back in March. We did take a quick stop at a local Dairy Queen near Geneva, Ohio, after traffic got backed up on Interstate 90 due to a traffic accident. US Route 20 was just kilometers of construction, including one segment that had contraflow traffic.

That’s not just US Route 20 that’s affected; multiple construction projects are taking place on Interstate 90 around the Cleveland area, and completion is not expected until 2028.

That said, my booth had a minimalist setup like it was during my first Erie convention in March 2024. I left my other bag at home by accident, and it contained my extension cable and tablecloth. That said, it didn’t affect the other parts of my booth. At least it’s not the end of the world like it almost became for the Pittsburgh Anime Fest back in February.

Another unaffected thing had to be Touhou Meishuugeki ~ Cursed Sweeper and Bewildering Parallel. It was the star of the show, with its world premiere taking place at the fest. Cleveland is the birthplace of rock and roll, and the game’s soundtrack fit the Anime Fest setting perfectly. It also becomes hard to sleep the night before an Anime Fest because the excitement builds up.

Aside from forgetting the other bag, it also wasn’t safe from another snafu. One of my teammates fell ill in the days leading up to the event. You can read my YKWBS rant about the common cold. Aside from brief scratchiness and feeling chilly, no major problems were encountered at the event. Respiratory illnesses love to ruin big events before and during, always using Google Calendar to find the perfect day to strike.

I still stayed at the hotel where the convention took place. Even if concerns from Google Maps reviews would deter me from staying, I didn’t find it as bad as the other reviews. The beds were fine and no roaches were found. My only complaint, though, is that the bathrooms may smell like insecticide.

With the release of Touhou 6: The Embodiment of Scarlet Devil New Classic, I was hoping to meet my first Touhou cosplayer at such an event. Well, guess what – none were present, though one person who played Cursed Sweeper and Bewildering Parallel asked if I was inspired by Touhou Project to make it before I explained to her that it was a fangame. Heck, she even asked what my first Touhou Project game was, and it was Embodiment of Scarlet Devil!

In terms of franchises shown, The Apothecary Diaries and Though I Am an Inept Villainess are on top of the headlines. Given they are set in Imperial China, I am expecting them to get adapted into Chinese opera at some point in the future.