Foreword: This was orignally written for Wirehed Magazine, and never published due to lack of space in the issue at the time (Warp 11 cover, Issue 3) Maybe someday if I'm not too lazy I'll scan some of the pics I took.

Yaoi2002

YaoiCon. These two syllables have been known to strike fear into the hearts of male Otaku everywhere. It's a convention dedicated to male homosexuality in anime and manga. This year, I was fortunate enough to be able to go. And very appropriately, it took place in San Francisco.

The estrogen in that place could have been cut with a chainsaw- what may really be surprising was the number of strait men that were there. They were cosplaying, or had been dragged along by their wives or girlfriends, or were there just to pick up chicks. Anyone want to be groped? Dress up like Duo from Gundam Wing, and the girls will flock your way.

Some of the panels included "Psychology of Violence in Yaoi Fanficition" and "Is it Yaoi or is it Slash?" There were of course, fanfiction panels for Gundam Wing, Saiyuki, and Weiss Kreuz. Sadly, the Rurouni Kenshin panel was canceled. Showing in the 24 hour screening room were such rarities as Legend of the Blue Wolf (AKA Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse) Boku no Sexual Harassment, and Level C, along with the more common Kizuna and ZetsuAi 1989

The dealer room was awash in goodies beyond normal fangirls wildest dreams. Doujinshi from UmbrellaStudios.com, home of the infamous doujinshi-ka Pluto, and Aestheticism.com, where you could acquire volume 2 of Shounen Hump, a 350-page English language doujinshi anthology. Other goodies included J-rock posters, stickers, and CDs along with vast quantities of manga and soundtracks.

The best part? That was the bishounen auction- where the nice young men attending the con volunteered to be auctioned as dates for the night. The proceeds from this will go to YaoiCon 2003 The Con's mascot bishounen, a lovely Asian boy with purple streaked hair by the name of Shiki, sold for over $200. Two different men, both cosplaying as Saitou from Rurouni Kenshin were purchased by the owners of the Con. (One of which I was later able to grope.) There was also a lovely African American boy was dressed as a kitty- I later found him curled up on his mistress's lap in the hotel lobby purring contently. There was also a dance following the auction- the DJ spun great anime themes in with some groovy House beats before the band came on- a J-pop band had been flown in. I didn't see Secret Secret perform- I was at the Evil Genius party drinking champagne.

It's probably illegal to have as much fun as I did- I'd say there's even fun to be had if you're a strait non-yaoi-loving male! I won't miss YaoiCon2003 for anything.