TL;DR version: Gheezus effin’ cripes there are too many cons, and not enough of them are original enough to be memorable.

Up until five years ago cons were held at about once every quarter; however the 2008-2009 con season was completely ridiculous — there were big cons held once a month and a number of smaller events held in between.

As a result of this over-profusion of events, the delicate economics of putting up a con have been thrown out of whack. Attendees have to pay for tickets at many of these events, and with so many of these cons held so close together, con-goers are obliged to cut down on merchandise spending just to afford admission.

This in turn has negatively affected the bottom lines of the sponsors, exhibitors and retailers renting spaces at cons to sell their wares. To cut their losses, many of these sponsors have had to limit their con-related participation, or even decline outright — which in turn affected the finances of the organizing body. Without financial backing, cons — good or bad, are forced to shut down. In the end, everybody loses.

Personally, I’d be totally okay with the overcrowding provided that a majority of these events were quality productions. Unfortunately, so many of them are badly cobbled-together rehashes of the previous five cons before them. The con as an institution has lost its draw — I personally no longer feel bad for missing a con, knowing it’s exactly like that other one I attended previously.

Con organizers — whether they are events firms, marketing arms of local companies, or school orgs, should honestly think twice or thrice before pushing through with another anime-related event. And if they do decide to hold one, they should at least exert the effort of making it original and unmissable. Half-assed cons are unforgivable, especially if I just forked my hard earned money so they can play pretend at being anime event organizers.