The Raleigh Toy & Collectible Show is a must-visit destination for toy enthusiasts of all ages! Explore aisles filled with vintage toys, action figures, comic books, and collectibles from your favorite franchises. Meet fellow collectors, buy, sell, and trade items, and discover treasures from your childhood and beyond. Don't miss out on this exciting event!
Jul 22 – Jul 26, 2026
San Diego Convention Center, 111 W…
San Diego Convention Center, 111 W Harbor Dr. July 23-27, 2026. San Diego Comic-Con is the event that built the template — four days in the building at the edge of San Diego Bay where pop culture, publishing, film, television, gaming, and comics coexist in a form that no other event on earth replicates.
The scale is real and it is worth planning around. Hall H holds 6,500 people; the panels that run there are the announcements that break the internet before the room has stopped reacting. The exhibit hall requires strategy — there are 130,000 attendees and the floor rewards people who know what they're looking for. The artist alley, which is the convention's heart, carries original work from creators whose names you know from titles you've read for years.
SDCC badges are lottery-accessed at comic-con.org — registration typically opens in the fall for the following year's event. Hotel blocks follow the same process. If you have a badge, the convention rewards every hour you invest in it. If you're local without one, the Gaslamp Quarter during SDCC is its own event — the screenings, activations, and public programming outside the convention center are free and substantial. Comic-Con week in San Diego is the week the city belongs to everyone.
Jul 2 – Jul 12, 2026
Little Tokyo, Los Angeles, CA 90012
The manga lives in a building in Little Tokyo for eleven days this summer. The creators are inside.
Inside Kodansha House you will find a manga gallery, cafe, reading lounge, and library dedicated to Kodansha's most beloved titles. The confirmed guest lineup alone makes this a must-attend moment for manga fans: Blue Lock creators Muneyuki Kaneshiro and Yusuke Nomura are appearing, as well as Witch Hat Atelier (Tongari Boushi no Atelier) mangaka Kamome Shirahama. These are the artists behind two of the most-followed manga series currently airing in anime — Blue Lock Season 2 and Witch Hat Atelier are both Spring 2026 hits.
This year Kodansha House is also hosting the finals of the Blue Lock × Concacaf: Diamonds in the Rough competition — a creative collaboration that launched during the World Cup. The competition bridges Blue Lock's anime fanbase with the actual tournament happening across the US this summer. Winners are announced here at Kodansha House, with additional events at Anime Expo (July 2-5) and the final SDCC announcement at Comic-Con San Diego (July 24-27). If you are making the circuit — AX in LA, then SDCC — Kodansha House is the physical anchor between them.
The Kodansha House model debuted in New York City in 2024 and generated significant fan community response — not as a typical convention booth, but as a relaxed space where you can read, sit with the art, and occasionally find yourself in the same room as the people who made it. It is a different register from the convention floor energy at AX. The Little Tokyo location is intentional — the neighborhood already functions as a cultural anchor for the LA anime and manga community.
Free public entry. No tickets required — follow Kodansha USA (@kodanshausa) for the confirmed address and any reservation announcements. AX badge holders should check the official Kodansha House page for premium access details. Hours: approximately 11am-6pm daily, July 2-12.
In 11 days· Jun 25 – Jun 27
Anaheim Convention Center, 800 W K…
Millions of subscribers, thousands of fans, several days in Anaheim — the moment the people on the other side of the screen become real. VidCon is where the parasocial relationship finds its physical address.
What it feels like to be there: VidCon operates on a different logic than most entertainment conventions. The celebrities here are creators who built their audience one subscriber at a time — the recognition runs both ways in a way it rarely does at traditional fan events. A creator who makes videos for 2 million subscribers genuinely knows the specific language and inside jokes of their audience, and the interactions in hallways and signing lines reflect that. The energy is different from comic conventions: less cosplay, more collaboration and mutual recognition between people who have been watching each other's content for years.
Is it worth it? VidCon is for people who consume content online and want to experience its creators in person, or for people building a creator career who want access to industry conversations that do not exist elsewhere. Community Track provides the fan-meeting experience. Creator Track has panels and workshops taught by people who figured out what you are still trying to figure out. Featured Creator panels are the highest-demand events and require early arrival.
What to know before you go: The Anaheim Convention Center is large, and VidCon fills all of it — reviewing the schedule the night before and planning your route through the building is essential, not optional. Lines form early for Featured Creator events; arrive 30-60 minutes ahead for the creators you most want to see. The Anaheim Resort Transit or a nearby hotel within walking distance are practical alternatives to convention center parking. Programming emphasis shifts between days, with Creator and Industry days having different energy from Community days.
VidCon sits on Falkor's Nation's Best list because it documents a cultural shift that happened faster than most institutions could track. The most-watched content on Earth in 2026 was made by individuals in their homes, not studios — and VidCon is where the people who made that happen gather to meet the communities that chose them. That is a historically unusual thing, and watching it in person is worth understanding even if you never attend.
2026 specifics: This is VidCon Anaheim 15th anniversary edition. The biggest new addition is a dedicated AI and Innovation Track -- the first VidCon to formally address AI tools as a creator discipline. For anyone building a content business in 2026, this track will be the most talked-about room at the convention. Honest split: Creator Pass holders consistently rate VidCon as worth it for education and networking. Community track holders are increasingly mixed -- the fan experience peaked around 2018-2019 as brand activations thinned. The value depends entirely on which track you buy. 55,000 attendees expected.
In 13 days· Jun 27
Barbara Morrison Performing Arts C…
SOUL COMIX CON is a comics festival dedicated to celebrating Black creators, Black characters, and Black storytelling across the comics medium. Organized by DP COMIX and held at the Barbara Morrison Performing Arts Center in Leimert Park, one of Los Angeles's most important African American cultural neighborhoods, SOUL COMIX CON brings together indie comics, superhero comics, and graphic novels by Black artists and writers.
Attendees can meet Black comic book creators in person, purchase original artwork and limited-edition prints directly from the artists who made them, and discover independent comics that are not available at any chain retailer. A cosplay party is included in the programming, with a focus on characters from Black-created and Black-led comics properties.
Family-friendly and all ages. Saturday June 27, 11am to 5pm. Free or low-cost admission. Leimert Park is accessible by Metro and is one of the city's premier destinations for Black art, culture, and community. SOUL COMIX CON represents the kind of niche community gathering that is the reason Falkor exists — a room full of people who care deeply about the same thing, assembled for one afternoon.
Every July 4th weekend, the Los Angeles Convention Center stops being a convention center and becomes the largest gathering of anime fans in North America. The four-day span draws 100,000 attendees and turns downtown LA into the axis of the anime world for the summer.
The scale hits you immediately. The Exhibit Hall spans over 340,000 square feet of merchandise, artist booths, publisher displays, and licensed collectibles. Artist Alley is a separate destination — hundreds of independent creators selling original art, prints, and handmade goods, the kind of work you will not find on any streaming platform or official retail channel. The Industry Panels are where announcements happen: English dub cast reveals, new season confirmations, licensing news that fans will screenshot and share for weeks. Voice actor autograph sessions routinely have lines forming before sunrise.
Is Anime Expo worth it? If you are even moderately embedded in anime culture — yes, emphatically. The density of what you can see and do in four days at the LACC is unmatched. There is no equivalent event in North America for scope, for industry access, for the sheer number of people who look exactly as excited about the same things you are. The cosplay alone — tens of thousands of costumes across every franchise — is worth the badge price for someone who has never seen it at this scale.
Before you go: buy your badge early; prices increase and popular event tickets (Masquerade, concerts) require separate purchase and sell out fast. The convention floor opens at 9am but autograph lottery lines form before 7. Wear comfortable shoes — you will walk six miles without trying. The 4th of July weekend means Downtown LA is also hosting holiday events; plan transit accordingly. Metro is faster than driving. Bring cash for Artist Alley.
Anime Expo earns its Nation's Best position because it is the single largest public expression of a cultural moment that has been building for thirty years and shows no sign of slowing. The mainstream discovered anime. AX is where the culture that built it celebrates on its own terms. Los Angeles Convention Center. July 2–5, 2026.
The concert programming — separate ticketed events within AX — brings J-pop and ani-song artists to Los Angeles who rarely perform in North America outside of this weekend. If you follow any Japanese artist, check the concert schedule before finalizing your badge type. These shows sell out independently of the main badge and often represent the single best live music opportunity of any anime fan's year.
Jul 2 – Jul 5, 2026
Los Angeles Convention Center, 120…
Anime Expo runs July 2nd through 5th at the Los Angeles Convention Center — badges at AXS — and the West Hall, South Hall, Petree, and Concourse are all cleared for four days and given over to the largest anime convention in North America. A hundred thousand people. Some in costumes that took six months to build. All in the same building at the same time.
The AX floor rewards knowing what you're looking for and punishes aimlessness — the Exhibit Hall has premiere merchandise, Japanese publishers, indie creators, and industry names in a space that takes three hours to cover once at a casual pace. The panels fill the big rooms with standing ovations for announcements that hit the internet seconds later. The Artist Alley is where the convention finds its actual soul: original work, fan work, artists who drove thirteen hours and set up at 6 AM because this is the room where their work finds its people. Outside the hall, the cosplay density on Day 2 turns the Convention Center plaza into its own event. Four days is not enough time. Pick your anchors — panels, signings, morning Exhibit Hall, night events — and let the rest happen around them. Badges sell out. Lock yours in.
Jul 2, 2026
From $65
Los Angeles Convention Center, 120…
Anime Expo 2026 — Day 1 opens Thursday, July 2 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. Anime Expo is the largest anime convention in North America, drawing over 100,000 fans to the Los Angeles Convention Center each summer. The 2026 edition runs July 2-5 across all four days, with a massive 340,000-square-foot Exhibit Hall, Artist Alley, J-Pop and ani-song concerts, industry panels, anime premieres, cosplay competitions, autograph sessions, and gaming areas.
The convention is organized by the Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation and runs continuously across all four days. Each day brings different programming, exclusive announcements, and guests from across the anime, manga, and J-Pop industries. Saturday and Sunday draw the largest crowds; Thursday and Friday move at a more manageable pace for exhibit hall access.
The Los Angeles Convention Center is located at 1201 S Figueroa St, Los Angeles, CA 90015, steps from the EXPO/Convention Center Metro station. Badge pickup opens before the convention; pick yours up early to avoid lines. Tickets are available at anime-expo.org. Single-day and four-day badges are offered, with four-day badges providing the best value for full-weekend attendees.
Jul 3, 2026
From $65
Los Angeles Convention Center, 120…
Anime Expo 2026 — Day 2 continues Friday, July 3 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. Anime Expo is the largest anime convention in North America, drawing over 100,000 fans to the Los Angeles Convention Center each summer. The 2026 edition runs July 2-5 across all four days, with a massive 340,000-square-foot Exhibit Hall, Artist Alley, J-Pop and ani-song concerts, industry panels, anime premieres, cosplay competitions, autograph sessions, and gaming areas.
The convention is organized by the Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation and runs continuously across all four days. Each day brings different programming, exclusive announcements, and guests from across the anime, manga, and J-Pop industries. Saturday and Sunday draw the largest crowds; Thursday and Friday move at a more manageable pace for exhibit hall access.
The Los Angeles Convention Center is located at 1201 S Figueroa St, Los Angeles, CA 90015, steps from the EXPO/Convention Center Metro station. Badge pickup opens before the convention; pick yours up early to avoid lines. Tickets are available at anime-expo.org. Single-day and four-day badges are offered, with four-day badges providing the best value for full-weekend attendees.