Saturday played out very differently from Friday. I could only go to a few panels, mainly because they were in the same room.
But I was determined to make some videos! I had a tripod, a decent seat so I could see the panelists and most of the room if I needed to turn around, and I brought my charger!
I also carried a notebook with a brand-new pen to take notes. Everything should have been fine.
And it was until Punchtime with Brick (Marcus M. Mauldin’s) panel started!
Voice Acting 101 with Cassandra Lee Morris
In grade school, I was told I had a flair for drama and should stick with the theater club. I didn’t follow that advice because I wanted to read more books at school.
But I never forgot that advice, and I have done a couple of auditions for some YouTube fan projects. I’m proud to say that I wound up with a part I wanted and a role I didn’t try out for.
Do I consider myself to be a professional voice actor? No. But that didn’t stop me from attending Cassandra’s voice-acting panel.
She set up a list of video game yells and encouraged people to come up and give reading them a shot. I didn’t try it because I didn’t have anyone to watch my phone while it was recording, but it was a fantastic experience.
Cassandra gave immediate and clear feedback and answered as many questions as possible.
Script Adaptation with Dallas Reid, Jarrod Greene, and Tyler Walker
Have you ever wondered why your favorite anime’s dialogue differs from the manga? Well, these three giants of Funimation are here to answer some of your questions.
Sometimes the problem lies with language. For example, Japanese doesn’t have set words for Miss, Mr, or Mrs.
They use honorifics, like san, and sometimes phrasing in one language doesn’t work in another. But, of course, if you love watching anime in Japanese and dub, you’ll already know what I mean.
And I love that they chose Spy x Family episode 16, the part where Yor is trying to learn how to cook, as their example. So I won’t spoil the episode but listen to Yuri’s dialogue.
In Japanese, he always calls Yor sister. In English, they had to change it to Sis or Big Sis. Of course, it means the same thing, but this slight difference is the best example.
This is where my phone decided to run out of storage.
Punchtime with Brick (Marcus M. Mauldin)
I put my phone away and began to take notes! Or, I tried to. I got two lines worth, and my 3-Day-old, Jujutsu Kaisen floating pen, decided to break!
Fortunately, I have a decent memory. Marcus engaged the audience even before the panel started, and he talked about how he got the role of Brick of Borderlands.
Did you know that Brick wasn’t in the original game concept? Marcus was initially cast as Mordecai!
But the best and most terrifying part of the panel came when Marcus asked random audience members who they wished they could voice and then had them say a line.
And wouldn’t you know it, he chose me! My inner fan girl kicked in, and I found myself leaning back and almost off my seat as he stood above me.
Thankfully, he took this stride and joked into the microphone for the rest of the audience, saying, don’t run, don’t run now! How are you?
I told him I was fine and asked how he was doing, to which he replied he was doing great and then asked me what character I would like to voice. I was the second person to say Claptrap, and I couldn’t choose a line because there were too many good ones.
He helped me out by asking me to repeat, “Hello Travelers,” and the end of the panel came. But not before asking us if we knew who John Swasey was!
Tales from the Con-side with John Swasey
If you love watching English dubs, odds are you’ve heard this man’s voice. My favorite is his role as Lord Death in Soul Eater!
Now, this panel differs from the others in a couple of ways. First, although it wasn’t marked as an 18+ in the guidebook, John clarified that it would be.
Not because of anything graphic but because he was going to swear, and some of his stories involved adult humor. There are a lot of people who like to poop on escalators and in hotel landings.
I didn’t encounter any of this during my stay at the Kalahari, for which I’m very grateful. If someone asks to use your shower and claims they can’t find their key.
Tell them no. Be polite because there’s a chance they’re telling the truth. But don’t take the risk that a stranger might try something once they’re in your room!
Saturday Night
I have a habit of getting lost at conventions. And ColossalCon North was no different. And I made sure to take the map with me everywhere!
So my best friend likes to check on me through messenger. I planned to see one more panel and then charge my phone, which was at 2% then.
She strongly suggested that I return to the room before my phone died. I followed her advice and ate some food while my phone charged.
The next thing I know, we’re playing Cards Against Humanity, Uno, and then we hit a couple more 18+ panels! I didn’t fall asleep until around 4 in the morning.