Convention Coverage

Anime Boston 2011: East to West: The Superheroes of Japan & America


At this year’s event, I had the privelege of hosting a panel with two fantastic people. A Life In Panels‘s Sam Kusek, Sequential Ink‘s Ken Haley, and I joined together to deliver “East to West: The Superheroes of Japan & America.” The panel was a broad look at the growth of the superhero, from American pulp rags and Japanese street plays, to modern comics and super sentai programs with a bit of bad humor thrown in for good measure.

Much to my shock, we had a packed house, with few open seats in the 100-person capacity auditoriaum. I didn’t expect such a turn-out for Sunday at noon, when people are normally preparing to go home. However, I do thank everybody that attended, and hope that they enjoyed the show. For those that missed it, the panel is presented in its entirety below.

[yframe url=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=larMCDUU8Lc’]

Before I go on, I’d like to establish the following:
  1. We’re aware that Sentai means “team”
  2. The Toei/Marvel relationship was terminated after Battle Fever J, in the mid-to-late 1980s.
These were primarily verbal slips, due to fatigue from a busy convention. I personally apologize for them.

Anyway, I would like to thank Sam and Ken for collaborating on this panel. I had a ton of fun, and would absolutely love to do it again next year. If it does continue, I hope to see you, dear reader, next year in the audience!
About the author

Samantha Ferreira

Samantha Ferreira is Anime Herald’s founder and editor-in-chief. A Rhode Island native, Samantha has been an anime fan since 1992, and an active member of the anime press since 2002, when she began working as a reviewer for Anime Dream. She launched Anime Herald in 2010, and continues to oversee its operations to this day. Outside of journalism, Samantha actively studies the history of the North American anime fandom and industry, with a particular focus on the 2000s anime boom and bust. She’s a huge fan of all things Sakura Wars, and maintains series fansite Combat Revue Review when she has free time available. When not in the Anime Herald Discord, Samantha can typically be found on Bluesky.

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