Article: Joining the club
Joining the club
Like any hobbyist a fan of anime likes to sometimes be in the company of his fellow anime fans. While conventions do scratch this itch so to speak one really wants a club to belong to. Last Sakura con I checked in a club which dissolved before I could join. While I entertained the idea of starting my own club I did nothing about it. When I new club formed in my area (and since I own a car my concept of area is a big bigger than some people's) I jumped at the opportunity.
What this anime club actually turned out to be is a group of six people sitting down and watching anime for seven hours. That suits me just fine as anime is something that you need to experience to understand. This is not to say that you don't learn anything more than you would just by watching anime on your own. In fact some of the most enlightening facts you learn are the ones discussed while someone is loading the next DVD.
There are some important things to remember when watching anime in a group. 1. Snacks are all important. Nothing ingrates you to other people like offering them food. Somewhat exotic food is appreciated as trying something new is cool especially when you don't have to pay for it or clean your plate if you don't like the stuff. 2. When you watch as a group plot holes and general inconsistencies are more easily noted as the other people watching will gladly point them out for you if you fail to notice them. This makes just about anything funnier to watch then when you are alone. 3. When planning a group expect people to be late. The meetings at our club are scheduled to start at 1pm and everyone shows up between 12:45 and 2pm. There are several ways to deal with this problem. The idea that our group uses is to air a show that doesn't depend on memorizing the plot to start off so late comers won't miss anything important and more punctual members aren't waiting with nothing to do while others are still showing up. There are other ways to entertain early comers. For example at one meeting I played my first game of Go. 4. Remember that you are watching with other people so try to take their tastes into consideration. Fortunately they should also take your tastes into consideration. This means no Hentai in many groups and you probably want to limit the shows that depend on fan service. Varying your genres is also a good idea. 5. Also if you have any anime that you think might be worth watching bringing that is also a good idea. You never know when a DVD or other media might become damaged and thus unable to be viewed. So it is always a good idea to have some spares so the anime viewing can continue. Also someone has to bring anime to be watched and it is always good to pitch in whenever you can.