As most of you know, Due to technical problems we were unable to announce the winners of the Picture This! contest at METROCON this year. Then due to further computer problems we were delayed it getting the list up on the web site.

So without further ado, here are your Picture This! 2010 winners! Congratulations to all of you who won and thank you to everyone who entered. We had an even bigger showing than last year and we are always impressed by the talent and skill of the METROCON attendees.

Best in Show: "The Woman in the Yellow Dress" by Nicolai Andrews

Best Composition: "Snake on a Mission" by Nicolai Andrews

Most Expressive: "Cardcaptors in Wonderland" by Felicia Flores

Best Convention Photo: "The Board" by Katie Atkisson

Best Still Life: Entry1 by Daniel Mercedes

Most Humorous: "Sasuke's 'Happy' Birthday" by Kelsey Goley

Honorable Mention: Screw the Rules I Have Money: "Go Blue Eyes" by Stuart Ford

Honorable Mention: Best Scene Recreation: "One Sky, One Destiny" by Jer Lenk

Honorable Mention: "Broken Doll" by Brittany Jung

Honorable Mention: "Water Time" by Karlene Ramirez

Judges Award: "Red, Red, Red" by Trescha Nagy

Judges Award: "Don't Forget" by Brittany Jung

Judges Award: "Princess of the Sea" by Karen Lyon

Judges Award: "Goldmine" by Rynn Z.

The gallery can be viewed here

METROCON would like to thank everyone who came out this year and enjoyed the convention. With a final attendance number of 6,665 (not including staff, cast and vendors, another 500+ people!), this was absolutely the biggest year ever, and we hope to break far through those numbers next year!

We do have our dates to announce for 2011! METROCON 2011 will take place June 17-19, 2011 at the Tampa Convention Center!

Thanks again to everyone who came out, and one more thing to think about during the year - METROCON's theme for 2011 will be:

MONSTERS vs HUNTERS!

Have a great year, and check back soon for more updates on the website!

The third movie for the 2010 Anime Human Chess Match is online now! Check it out and get ready for all the action this year!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zmqgihqtEgM;

METROCON is pleased to announce the 10 finalists who have moved forward in Anime Idol and will be performing at the convention:

Faith Culhane
Jennifer Geiger
Shelby Kuhn
Barbara Mendoza
Iris Moon
Ashley Pabilonia
Alissa Roca
Sheena Sang
Teppong Teppawan
Rynn Z.

Thanks to all of you who entered! The judging this year was unbelievably difficult, and we enjoyed every submission! For those of you who didn't make it to the final round, best of luck to you next year!

Congratulations again to our 10 finalists! Be sure to check them out at METROCON on Friday at 3:00 PM in the Main Events Room.

As usual, we have run into a very "good news, bad news"situation, but have no fear, we've done everything we can to fix this problem.

So first, the not so good news - after some rather extensive research and studying, and an exceptional number of sleepless nights and interpretation, we at METROCON think we might finally have a grasp on Florida Sales and Use Tax Laws. What we have discovered, though, is that we must charge sales tax for our ticket sales! This is important for people buying their tickets at the door. The prices will breakdown as follows.

Ticket Price + Sales Tax = Total Cost.

WEEKEND PASS
$55 + $3.85 = $58.85

FRIDAY or SUNDAY DAY PASS
$25 + $1.75 = $26.75

SATURDAY DAY PASS
$30 + $2.10 = $32.10

MASQUERADE TICKET
$10 + $0.70 = $10.70

So there you have it! It's unfortunate, but it is the law, so we'll happily abide. We just wanted to give you as much notice as possible that the At-the-Door price would be plus-tax, so that you don't show up to the convention $3 shy of a weekend pass.

Now, the good news! In lieu of trying to give out change for 5,000+ ticket sales, and to hopefully make YOUR lives a little easier, for the first time METROCON will be accepting credit/debit cards at the door for tickets! We will be able to accept either Visa or MasterCard, debit or credit at the door. This means no more outrageous ATM fees or large wads of cash in your pocket waiting to buy your tickets! Of course we will still also be accepting cash, so if you don't have a credit or debit card to bring with you, no worries, just go ahead and pay for it in cash as usual. Be sure to watch at registration for which line/register to use depending on your method of payment!

I hope everyone is looking forward to the convention, and remember, tomorrow is the last day of the extended preregistration, so if you want to pretend this news article never happened, go pre-register your ticket right NOW!

METROCON is pleased to announce Aaron Pabon, Geek Comedian as our latest guest! There are a lot of angry nerds out there, ranting and raving about their passions and hobbies, but Aaron Pabon takes the cake!

Come check out Aaron at 4:30 PM on Saturday in the Special Events Room (Ballroom A)! METROCON is also pleased to have partnered with Aaron as he records his first album/DVD, "LIVE AT METROCON".

The second movie for the 2010 Anime Human Chess Match is online now! Check it out and get ready for all the action this year!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zmqgihqtEgM;

In addition to adding a pick-up time on Thursday evening for those of you that have pre-registered your tickets for this year's METROCON, we've added one more perk!

With the gaming schedule now available for sign-up, some of you may have noticed that we are offering a special Thursday night tabletop gaming slot in our Tabletop Room, available only to people who have picked up their VIP or Pre-Registered Weekend Pass. The game slot opens at 7 PM, so be sure to come into registration before that on Thursday night to beat the rush and kick-off your METROCON with some good times around the gaming table!

To see the schedule and register for your slot in any of the games, visit METROCON's Warhorn Site and register!

That's right! Our Tabletop Gaming Room schedule is now available online. Thanks to Tampa Area Gamers and Dominick Trascritti for providing our Tabletop experience. There will be Dungeons and Dragons Living events, Pathfinders series events, and plenty more.

Be sure to sign up in advance - walk-ins will be welcome, but that doesn't guarantee the game you may want to play in isn't full. There will also be prizes and giveaways in the Tabletop Gaming Room all throughout the weekend. All of this is available to anyone with a METROCON badge - hurry up and get yours, Pre-Registration ends sooner than you think!

To see the schedule and register for your slot in any of the games, visit METROCON's Warhorn Site and register!

For those of you following the Chess Match storyline over the years, the wait is over! The first movie for the 2010 Anime Human Chess Match is online now! Check it out and get ready for all the action this year!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FiWvun0nKnc

Don't forget, if you have signed up to donate blood on the FBS web site, Do not forget to sign up in our volunteer system on MyConsOnline.com. If you do not sign up in our system as well, you will not be entered in the raffle or get the volunteer hour. There are still plenty of slots open. Sign up now and help save lives!

We at METROCON are pleased to announce the Yaya Han will once again be joining us for the weekend. Make sure you stop by her booth in the dealers' room, where you can purchase custom cat ears, wings, hats, and other accessories-all designed and made by Yaya!

 As the Embassy Suites room block is now full, METROCON has reserved room blocks at a few more area hotels. Westin Harbour Island, Tampa Marriott Waterside Hotel and Marina, Sheraton Tampa Riverwalk, and Howard Johnson Plaza are now set up and ready for reservations.

[CHECK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION]

It's still early because we are still a few months out from METROCON but The Embassy Suites Hotel has just been completely sold out! The hotel let us go WAY over our room block this year and filled up just about everything they had. If you call in, they may have a few rooms left at the Transient rate ( hotels always have a few extra rooms they keep just in case but they're at normal prices ) but you will no longer be able to get the METROCON rate at this point.

I didn't get my room yet. What do I do now?
Don't worry, we will be opening up new blocks in several different area hotels early next week.

I really wanted to be at the Embassy Suites. Is there any way I can still get a room and get the METROCON rate?
The only way to do this is to keep checking back before the convention to see if there are any cancellations.

Is any other hotel going to be giving a METROCON rate?
Yes. We already have deals made with all of the overflow hotels. All of the information will be online soon.

METROCON 2010 Costume and Cosplay Contest information and tryout forms have been posted. The events will be separate this year, with the Cosplay Competition falling on Saturday, and the Costume Contest returning to Sunday's schedule.

If you are entering the Costume Contest, you may register online via email starting June 1, 2010.  No entries will be accepted prior to that date.  No online entries will be accepted for the Cosplay Competition.

Remember, one lucky duo will be chosen from the Costume Contest to compete in the Finals for the Yume Cosplay Prize at New York Anime Festival this fall!

If you have any questions, please email them cosplay@animemetro.com.

[To learn more about the Cosplay Contest, click here.]
[To learn more about the Costume Contest, click here.]
[To learn more about the Yume Cosplay Prize, click here.]

METROCON: Florida's Largest Anime Convention and Team Dynamite Productions, LLC is proud to announce that we have recently formed a partnership with ShadoCon: Florida's Anime, Video Game and Comics Convention.

ShadoCon will be held November 5-7, 2010 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Tampa. The same hotel, where so many years ago, METROCON got it's start.

ShadoCon's innovative direction and METROCON's experience will deliver an unforgettable weekend for each guest, as you are the people that matter the most. Like METROCON, ShadoCon will offer a variety of new and groundbreaking events including: The Shado Tournament, The Breakdance Breakdown and The Final Fantasy Ball.

ShadoCon will also be using MyConsOnline.com for their panels, tickets, volunteers, contests, dealers, and artists. So, you can keep your same username/password and simply sign-up with ShadoCon through this system. |

Pre-registration for ShadoCon is already up and running so sign up and get your tickets now!

[Click here for more information]

New York Anime Festival and New York Comic Con have asked METROCON to return as host to the Yume Cosplay Prize Regional Competition for the second year in a row!

The Yume Cosplay Prize is a competition that judges stage performance and craftsmanship. "Yume" is the Japanese word for "dream," it is surely a dream come true, as the grand prize is an week-long trip to Japan!

This includes: two economy-class tickets to and from Japan, a five-night stay in a double room at a Tokyo hotel, two VIP tickets to Japan's Anime Fair's Public Days, and $1,000 spending money!

A cosplayer's dream come true, indeed!

Only 30 pairs get to go to the finals in New York City, and only one dynamic duo of those 30 will be chosen at METROCON! If you are chosen as METROCON's winner, your airfare and hotel to New York Anime Festival will be provided by METROCON.

It is an honor for METROCON to play host for this Regional Competition, and it is a testament of the caliber of cosplayers that attend METROCON are of the best quality!

[Click here for more information.]

Congratulations to our METROCON 2010 Mascots!

Representing the Ninja Side are Deandra Robinson and Madison Bickel!

Representing the Samurai Side are Mary Dutcher and Tyler Walker!!

METROCON has joined forces with Necronomicon to bring you a weekends worth of Sci-fi and Fantasy panels. Sci-Fi/Fantasy Track Room 21 is now open and online.

There is still some space left for more panels if you have something that fits the genre. Log in and sign up at: www.MyConsOnline.com

METROCON is proud to announce that Richard Ian Cox will be joining us this year!

Known widely for his portrayal of the title roles in both Ranma 1/2 and Inuyasha, Cox's talents range from voice acting to television and film work.  His live action roles include appearances on Stargate:  SG1 and Stargate:  Atlantis, and on the silver screen in Ghost Rider.

Welcome, Richard, to METROCON!

[Click here for more on Richard Ian Cox!]

Presenting an event unlike any other you have seen so far at METROCON, the GGX - Gear Grappling Xtreme! This is a show based on the golden age of professional wresting with an anime and video game twist, where there were no rules and over-the-top characters didn't hesitate to grab the nearest chair or other random object to bring their opponent to their knees!

Even if you are not a fan of wrestling, you are sure to have a blast at this show. Come and cheer for your favorite characters as they compete for the ultimate open-weight title, the GGX Championship Prime!

The GGX team of characters will have a Press Conference on Friday in Room 13-14 at 4:00PM.

Catch the show in Special Events Ballroom A at 3:00PM on both Saturday and Sunday!

The Gear has gone XTREME!

[For more information about GGX, click here!]

METROCON is pleased to welcome UK Cosplayers KellyJane and TealPirate of Parlé Productions to the 2010 Convention!

Their comedy shows based on Kingdom Hearts, Demyx Time and The Sora Show, are a huge success on YouTube, and they are branching out into the realm of Final Fantasy with their new show, The Shinra Files.

This will be the girls' second trip across the pond to METROCON, but their first year as official cosplay guests.

METROCON is working with Florida Blood Services to host a Blood Drive at METROCON 2010!

Florida Blood Services will be at the Tampa Convention Center for the Saturday of METROCON, July 24, 2010, from 12-7PM for the first Anime Human Blood Drive!  When you donate, you will receive a tee-shirt, a snack, a drink, and a raffle ticket to win one of the best prizes of the weekend*!

Donating blood will also earn you 1 (one) METROCON volunteer hour to put towards your volunteer reimbursement for the weekend.  To receive your METROCON volunteer hour, you will first sign-up for your donation on the FBS website, and then on MyConsOnline.com under "Anime Human Blood Drive" in the same hour as your FBS appointment.  When you give your donation at the con, the FBS representative will sign off on your volunteer form for reimbursement.

Due to the limited number of donations that FBS can accept per hour, you MUST register online to donate.  You must be 18 or older to donate.

Remember: if you donate blood, please make sure that you have had an appropriate amount to eat beforehand to prevent you from passing out.  One soda and some Pocky are NOT an appropriate amount of food!

[Learn how to participate in the Anime Human Blood Drive here!]

[Florida Blood Services website]
[MyConsOnline]


*Raffle Prizes TBA

In order to have room for more awesome panels at METROCON, a new panel room has been added!

Panel Room 1-2 is set up in a theater style and seats 160 people. It will have no TV. This panel room is ideal for discussion- and gathering-type panels.

[Submit and schedule your panels here at MyConsOnline.com!]

There are a few updates to the website that METROCON wanted brought to your attention.  The Story Thus Far has been updated to include the 2009 Chess Match and the About Us page has been updated to include the merger with Team Dynamite Productions.

[Full METROCON Story Thus Far]
[Updated About Us Page]

The 2010 Artists' Alley section has been completely filled up, in less than 36 hours!  That is a new record!

For those of you who were not able to reserve your table, don't fret!  There is a time limit for tables to be paid for, and any tables that miss this deadline will be re-released to the public for reservation.   As METROCON draws closer, and the Tampa Convention Center has no scheduling conflicts with other events that may use that space, we may be opening the other half of the Mezzanine area for even more tables!

Keep an eye on MyConsOnline.com to see when tables open up!

Recently, AnimeBelle.com website had a full revamp.  With it's new look, they added a Community Research feature to learn more about the anime community in the area and why they attend the conventions they do.

METROCON has always had a close relationship with the people behind AnimeBelle.com (including the METROCON AMV Contest and Fairytale Theater), and we wish to spread this survey to our fans to help benefit their research.

Let your opinions be heard!  Make an account through the AnimeBelle.com homepage (your AnimeBelle.com forum login will not work for the new site features) and take a moment fill out the survey.

[Click here to take the survey.]

The wait is finally over!

The METROCON 2010 Artists' Alley is now available for reservation through the MyConsOnline reservation system.

Similar to the Vendors System, you are able to look at the layout of Artists' Alley, and choose where you want YOUR table to be. Remember, though, space is limited, and we can't open the second half of the Mezzanine area until much closer to the convention due to the possibility of scheduling conflicts with the Tampa Convention Center.

For those of you that don't get a reservation in this first batch, however, remember that there is a limited amount of time that artists have to pay for their booths before their booths are forfeited and become available again.

The room will become available as of 4:00 PM on Tuesday, January 26 2010, so if you don't see it ready quite yet, synchronize your watches and ready the countdown.

Thanks again for the interest in METROCON, and we look forward to working with all of you!

At the 2009 Closing Ceremonies, METROCON offered you, the fans, a challenge.  Do you think you can do it?

Your Challenge:  Help METROCON reach 10,000 attendees.

Your Reward:  METROCON will gain a fourth day.

Yes, you read that correctly, if METROCON gets 10,000 badges sold, then it will become a four-day convention!

How do you do this?  Talk to your friends.  If everyone who attended METROCON in 2009 brings one new person to an upcoming METROCON, we will reach that goal.  Whether or not we succeed relies on you.  Not guests, not events, but all of YOU.

What happens if you reach this goal and we get a fourth day?  More events.  Existing events get bigger.  Bigger guests.  More panels.  More time.  For years, fans have said they did not want METROCON weekend to end, and this will make it last a bit longer!

So, talk to your friends.  Get your friends to talk to their friends.  Get them all to METROCON.  Then, not only will METROCON be the largest anime convention in Florida, we will be the longest!

Now, get out there and get the word out!

Calling all photographers!

If you are passionate about photography?  Then Picture This! is the contest for you!  Returning for it's second year, this highly successful photography contest covers more than just cosplay.  You can take stills of action figures, ball-joint dolls, cosplayers, and anything that inspires your imagination within Asian culture and entertainment.

Read the rules carefully before entering!  Finalists will be displayed and winners announced at METROCON 2010 in the Main Ballroom.

Entries will be submitted using MyConsOnline.com.

[Click here for rules and how to enter!]

Nowadays, nearly everyone is a part of some sort of social networking website.  METROCON is no exception.  If you want METROCON news fast without having to visit this website several times a day, add these pages for quick updates at your fingertips!  Most of these websites even have mobile cababilities for those of you using a web-enabled phone or other mobile electronic device with internet access.

[Follow @METROCON_news on Twitter!]
[Join the METROCON group on Facebook!]
[Add METROCON on MySpace!]
[Join/Watch _METROCON on LiveJournal!]

METROCON 2010 is happy to announce the 2010 AMV Contest up and ready to go!

The METROCON 2010 AMV Contest is your opportunity for everyone, from amateurs to professionals, to showcase their video editing talent!  Anime Music Videos, or AMVs, are videos composed of anime and videogame footage, then set to music to create a fan-made music video!

Ashley Clark, talented video editor, will be returning to host this event!

[Click here for more information!]

Do you love to sing?  Put your own spin on your favorite Asian Pop/Rock Songs at METROCON's singing competition, Anime Idol!

Anime Idol is a different sort of competition experience.  Instead of judging your costume construction prowess, you will be judged on your musical performance.  Technicality, Musicality, and Overall Presentation will be your needle, thread, and fabric in this event.

So, dust off those pitch pipes and get those musical tracks ready!

This year's show will be hosted by our beautiful (and handsome) 2010 Mascots.

[Click here to learn how to enter!]
[Click here to learn how to become a 2010 Mascot!]

That's right, one of your favorite things at METROCON, our Vendors' Room, is now open, and booths are available for registration!

Remember, our Vendors' Room will be open at 11:00 AM on Friday morning for VIP only, so get your VIP passes while they are still available. They're going faster than ever this year!

If you or someone you know is a Vendor, registration is still as easy as always. Just sign-up with a username and password at the MyConsOnline convention management system, and log-in to choose your booths! You get to see the overview of the room and choose where you want YOUR BOOTH(S)!

If you're not a Vendor, no worries, you can still make a difference in our Vendors' Room. As you start making your way around the convention circuit this season, let your favorite Vendors know that there is still time to register for METROCON, but not for long! Our Vendors Room fills up notoriously fast, and space is of course limited, but if you want to see your favorite merchandise stockpiled throughout the Vendors' Room, the best thing to do is just ask them to come! If you want to see which Vendors have already signed up, just click "Vendor List" on the navigation bar to your left.

For those of you interested in Artists' Alley, rest assured, the Artists' Alley system will be going online very soon, and thank you for your patience, we are responding to emails as fast as we can!

So remember, get your VIP Passes, your Vendors' Booths, and make sure your favorite Vendors' will be at the convention so you can get that one item you've been dying for all year!

METROCON is pleased to welcome Robert Axelrod to his first appearance in Tampa!

Axelrod's well-rounded repertoire has characters everyone will recognize and love.  Most recognized as Lord Zedd in the Power Rangers series, he is a performer to be reckoned with.

Stop by during the convention to meet this incredible actor.  You don't want to miss this opportunity!

[Click here for more information about Robert Axelrod!]

Solid Snake returns once again to METROCON in 2010 to recruit more Cardboard mechs in the war against Metal Gear! Teams will be decided BEFORE the competition starts, so arrive early.

Once again each team will get one "overseer" with a box cutter, a roll of duct tape, and a pile of cardboard to draw from. Teams will have 2 hours to build the mech that will impress Snake and his judges the most for a prize!

FRIDAY - JULY 23, 2010 at 3:00pm in PANEL ROOM: 13-14

This year we have decided to add two new items to the list of perks enjoyed by our VIP and Pre-reg badge holders!

After much demand we will be opening the METROCON Vendors Room to our VIP guests at 11:00am on Friday the 23rd. That's ONE HOUR alone with all of the rare collectibles the METROCON Vendors Room has to offer before it opens to the public! 

METROCON Registration will be open in rooms 5 and 6 (the same rooms as last year) at the Tampa Convention Center from 5:00pm-9:00pm Thursday July 22nd for our VIP and Pre-reg Badge Holders. Here is your chance to beat the line Friday morning and jump right into your METROCON weekend.  Make sure to bring whatever weapons/props you plan to carry for the weekend to have them OK'ed by Weapons Check.  

The room will open exclusively for our VIP Badge Holders at 5:00pm so they can get in early!

At 6:00pm the room will be opened up to all of our Pre-registered patrons and will remain open for their convenience until 9:00pm.   As for people buying tickets at the door, this should drastically cut down on the size of the Registration line Friday morning..........everybody wins!  

Notice: While we will have a register open for merchandise and Fantasy Masquerade ticket sales, we will not be selling weekend passes or day passes. Thursday registration hours are for our VIP and pre-registered patrons ONLY.

Greetings convention fans!

As we all move forward into this new year, METROCON is pleased to announce that it will be under new management and ownership effective immediately. Don't worry though, it has been placed in the hands of two experienced and capable individuals.

Since we are certain everyone is curious, ownership of METROCON has been passed to the production and entertainment company, Team Dynamite Productions, LLC, co-founded and managed by Nick Fazio and Alex Craddock (METROCON's Head of Security and Director of Operations, Respectively).

What does this mean for you? Hopefully not a whole lot! We constantly strive to maintain the level of convention that our fans have come to know and love, and maybe do a little housekeeping in the process. It will still be the same METROCON, with all of your favorite events, but you might notice a new spin on things here and there, as well as a Team Dynamite Productions logo making its way around the website. With METROCON being a common topic of conversation in the anime community, we feel it is our responsibility to keep you, the fans, in the know.

We will continue to always hold the fans in high regard, and we apologize for the construction being done on the website and any slowdowns that this change of hands has or will cause. We are working to get those gears turning smoothly as soon as possible!

Thanks to all of you for the continued support, and we look forward to bringing you the best METROCON ever!