I wanted to make a quick post about Anthro Northwest, and my experience there. As of this post, there is a lot of speculation in regards to what happened at the event, and whether or not it was worth attending, or if its worth attending in the future. I hope I can shed some light, and give an honest review.

I normally do not make review posts related to conventions, however I feel there is enough interest in my opinion to save myself the trouble of typing it out over and over again, and share like this.

Im going to start with the bad, because that is what people want to hear about, however its not all bad. I actually very much enjoyed myself this entire event, and pending a few positive changes, I will most likely attend again.

First, lets talk about the media. I have been down this road before in the past. Those that know me, know that when Furlandia 2013 was launched, I invited MTV: True Life to film the setup and planning of the event. I was fortunate to come out of that experience on top, however its not a stretch to say that not everyone can handle the media the way I did. The event knew about CNN being there since October 20th, and per my sources, the people who did know about it encouraged the administration to go public, however did not. I think it is general consensus that this was a bad move, and I feel a public apology from the administration is warranted. Not everyone in this fandom is going to be comfortable with the presence of media, regardless of its intention, especially if its announced as people arrive to the event.

Lets talk about the administration for a moment, as I feel that is also important. The core group of people in charge arent entirely strangers, however the ring leader is not only new to the community, has a very strange, albeit benign outlook on how the furry fandom exists. They say the road to hell is paved with good intentions, and certain aspects of this convention definately reflect that. Bad choices in con planning does not make a bad person, however there was plenty of opprotunity to reach out for advice from those who have been down this road before.
Now its time for some real complaints, and I feel this is one of the more important bullet points, as we all know this fandom exists primarily over the internet. Through the offical communication channels for the event several prominent members of the community were censored when their concerns were voiced, along with several other bystanders who had legitimate concerns to things at the convention. This is not okay, and never works out for anyone in the long run. Trust me. I know. Deleting comments, and trying to sweep things under the rug does not work. First impressions like this never fade, and as someone who has been in the fandom for nearly two decades, I can tell you, furries hold a grudge. There are people still mad at me for stuff I said 15 years ago, and I can tell you now, it was a lot less cumbersome than this situation.

The use of Flare as "hired help" is also incredibly questionable, as these are non-licensed individuals with chips on their shoulder. I was harrassed several times over comments that were posted online in several non-related chats, and threatened with ejection several times over rumors and hearsay. For example, the joke was made that someone had pissed in the ball pit (yes, there was a ball pit) and it was hinted at that I had done it. Lets be real here people, jokes aside, Im 32 years old, Im not going to piss in public, let alone in a ball pit. Grow up. Macho attitudes of authorty do nothing but cause trouble. Im sure that some of you watching remember an event called "Rainfurrest", which despite several rumors, some of which I am mentioned in, was one of the larger contributors to its demise.

The communication between the event adminstration and those attending could have been much better, as mentioned before with censorship. It was hard for people who were not at the event to get any information, as the only point of contact was the man running the convention, who failed to delegate simple tasks like social media outreach to a volunteer.

As far as the venue goes, it was rather nice. I dont think it is suited for an event where there are several dozen large costumes running around, as there were more escalators than there were open spaces. I also feel that the location was a mixed blessing, as it was located directly downtown seattle, and parking on friday was upwards of 40$ a day. I personally paid 26$ and parked a few blocks away. I mean, do I really need to mention that most furries are broke?

A lot of time and money went into this event, without a good return on investment. That may not seem like a big deal to someone who is just attending, but no one wants to get involved with an event that cannot sustain itself, even if the person running it has deep personal pockets.

Some of the topics that are being brought up across the internet I dont have strong opinions on, but I feel I should touch on them anyway, and one of the biggest one is the lack of adult content. Who cares? You all have tumblr if you want to see things of that nature, and there are tons of other events that cater to that crowd. As a social person, it does seem to hinder that "party atmosphere, but I found it was super easy to overcome without much effort.

There are also complaints about there being a lot of kids around. However, I mean, we were all young once, and who is going to go to these events once we grow out of them. Furry has become main stream in the past few years, and if there is a market for it, it will happen, with "It" being an event like this. The same goes for programming. A lack of adult programing did not take away from this convention at all, then again, I rarely attend panels as it is.

This is the most important part of the review, is that people had fun! Many of the people who came out to the event, even those with doubts, didnt seem to have a hard time having a good time. On Saturday night, we got a room, and hosted a rather loud party until midnight with few complaints. Other than Flare and their strange hardon for me, there was little to no obstructions to night time fun.

Parking on Saturday and Sunday was also very affordable, at 6$ a day in the garage next door. That may seem like a lot, however people forget that Rainfurrest had expensive parking if you werent staying at the hotel.

This event has the potential to be viable, and self sustaining. With a few tweaks, the right advice, and a little direction I feel that this convention could exist and prosper for years to come. I feel that this would be a fantastic companion event to something a little more traditional down the line as well.
Would I go back to Anthro Northwest next year? Absolutely. I want to see positive change, but the people in charge are not bad people, they are not stupid people, and I feel like after this weekend they know what they need to do to gain the support and trust of those in the community. Would I recommend this to others? Probably not everyone, however for what it is? Absolutely. Its a great excuse to see your friends, attend programming, and watch theater events such as the dance competition and various performances throughout the weekend, while still being able to relax, and maybe attend a room party.

My advice for those who run the event? Open your administration. Too many cooks in the kitchen can be bad, but one person cannot make a christmas dinner for 800 people. I would also consider not using Flare again. I cannot stress this enough, that those with chips on their shoulders will do nothing but bring a headache to your event, especially as it grows. However most importantly, communication. The powers that be need to make it easier to communicate with their attendees and those who are watching from the outskirts. In this fandom, opinion seems to be everything, and I dont see that changing anytime soon.