20 years ago, I was awakened by the Anime community.
I evolved from just watching my favorite anime shows on TV to attending conventions.
I admit, I was a late bloomer. There were people who have become “names” already when I joined the community that year.
What I mean is, by that time, Alodia Gosiengfiao is already a “household name”, and I was aware of the people running behind “We Are Anime” and “Kyoudo”, while the only forums that I have joined that time were the ABS-CBN forums and, later on, Hero TV forums.
Back then, I was just a nobody back then, just part of the crowd, and beginning my journey as an anime fan.
I really thought that my limited knowledge of anime, because I was first a loyal Kapamilya viewer, and being a member of the ABS-CBN forums, would be a handicap, because I mean these guys were weaned on anime from GMA (that time, their network head was Menardo Jimenez and their COO was Bobby Barreiro, until the duo of Felipe Gozon and Wilma Galvante upended the network’s all anime thrust and moved them to Fantaseryes to better fight with ABS-CBN) or, even better, anime airing from AXN or Cartoon Network.
I thought I won’t be welcomed by the community, but the community welcomed me instead.
I was supposed to be at the first Hero event at the Philippine Trade Training Center (boy, looking at the PTTC during Worldskills last year now really opened my eyes on how the first H3 was held there), and also at the First Ozine event at the Robinsons Galleria Octagon Trade Hall (the venue of some billiard events that time) in 2005, but it would be in 2006 where I translated my anime fandom into attending anime events.
Of course, I would be the first to admit that my anime life was rekindled by the fact that my favorite television network, ABS-CBN, was the one who created my dream anime channel, Hero TV (and yes, the lore of Hero was also one for the record books as well, as it was reported that no less than Eugenio “Gabby” Lopez 3rd was the one who convinced ABS-CBN’s cable group to create an anime channel on SkyCable as there was overwhelming research on the viability of anime on cable, but that is another story) and yes, there was “longing” for me to work at ABS-CBN (that would come much later).
But let’s go back to 2006, shall we?
By 2006, when I attended my first-ever “EB” or Eyeball of the ABS-CBN forums members (January 2006 pa yun, at the SM Megamall nonetheless, tambayan ng mga anime fan lol), it became clear that I would want to attend events to be a part of the community, starting with my first-ever Hero event, the “Summer Splash” held at Splash Island in Laguna (where I first saw the “bus-like” ABS-CBN OB Van unit), and then going into my first-ever Toycon in 2006 (my first of many) when a friend of a friend, who was a tarot-card reader and has a booth there, gave me an “exhibitor” pass lol (my first paid Toycon was in 2007).
And then, dire-diretso na, Ozine Fest NCC 2006 at the Le Pavilion, then other pocket events held in Malls, and then, Hataw Hanep Hero 2006 at the World Trade, the first time I skipped my 7am class on a Saturday because, to hell with it, hahaha.
There was the occasional heartbreak too, the biggest heartbreak was me not attending the Hero TV Enchanting Christmas event at the Enchanted Kingdom in December 2006, a week after my first-ever UP AME event, because I had to attend a Friday 5:30 pm class that night (I tried to chase the last bus at Robinsons’ Galleria but, hindi nakahabol), to my further consternation, that class was cancelled for the day, which made my teenage heart break not only of anger, but of frustration (which, years later would open again when I made the trip to Enchanted Kingdom, but again, I’m digressing).
2006 was also the year I attended further EB’s, one EB was organized by Hero TV, held at their then office at the 10th floor of the ELJ Communications Center (CPI later moved offices to the 8th floor, that was taken over by ABS-CBN Channel 2 Programming when I became a network ‘consultant’) and was joined by the then channel head of Hero TV, Eric Go (whose career started under Balitang K and Erwin Tulfo’s Mission X and was instrumental in putting a Satellite van at Hero’s events) and then later by Direk Danny Mandia and Sir Jeff Utanes (both of them, gone).
The next day, however, we also held another EB, this time, I was the one who organized it, and invited one of my favorite dubbers, Sir Michael Punzalan, who was the director of Gundam SEED and the voice of Kira in the anime. I remember, we waited for him for hours because he had an appointment at the US Embassy that day and he arrived around 7 or 8 pm, when the mall was nearly closing.
But Sir Mike graced us with stories of the dubbing profession despite being at the US Embassy for hours, which even made me become a fan.
Oh, 2006, my first year of being an anime fan, and the beginning of an amazing journey. Can’t imagine its been 20 years, and I’m still here, but not as a college kid trying to fit in, but as a journalist that was shaped by experience and continues to write the first draft of history in the Philippine J-Culture scene.
Yes, I’m not afraid to say, 2006 shaped me to who I am, and the reason why I’m still here.
Happy Anniversary to me.
And that’s the way it is.