By 
Twenty-five years of fandom feels like entirely too long. That’s more than half my life. Yet, a quarter century later, MAHQ hits an anniversary that few nerd-ass websites reach. Whether devoured by outside entities, collapsed from internal strife, or shuttered from external interest, it feels like there are few companies or sites that survive this long in our little corner of the internet. And the institutions that are still around rarely maintain their original relevance. Hell, how many anime companies from ten years ago are still around, much less 25 years? ADV is long dead. Bandai Entertainment exploded spectacularly, and even venerable Funimation was gobbled up by current monolith Sony.
Fandom feels like such a different thing in 2025. Any scarcity is artificial with ready access to just about anything ever made, though certain ancient methods may be necessary to find more esoteric shows. Without going too deep into old-man wankery, I never imagined how easy it would eventually be when I was scouring Limewire and torrent sites for both newer shows and the properties that were foundational to the medium. It made me appreciate what I watched more, despite its inherent quality. It’s easy to see how newer fans might turn their nose up at shows that may have some weak elements, especially when you can just pull up classics or the new hotness in any of the half-dozen streaming apps that anybody may currently have.
Social aspects have changed many times in these 25 years. The first con I attended, hosted by the college anime club I’d eventually join, was a couple hundred people at its largest. It felt new, exciting, and so amazing to run into so many people that shared my love of anime and games, especially in a city like Miami where there weren’t a lot of events like it. By the time I moved away from Miami, there were multiple cons a year that attracted thousands of people across ages, generations, and fandoms. Packed like sardine cans in way too small a space, the last one I attended felt like a graduation from where I had started. It was too big for me to find anybody new, fun, or interesting. All the fandoms mashed together, especially with how little consideration was made for the individual fan experience, kind of leeched the enjoyment out of me. Leave it to capitalistic cheapskates to find a way to sap the fun out of something as big as a con.
But it’s not all bad. Despite the ways that connection has been poisoned online, despite the toxiticy of fandom in general, despite the multitude of hate campaigns puppeted by sacks of shit, I love how people have been able to come together. Being able to interface with like-minded people has been the thing that literally saved my life. That anime club I joined became the backbone of my social and love life for nearly a decade and the friendships I made there largely still exist in significant ways. People I met on social media are still in my friends lists after moving away from the platforms I original met them. I am a more complete and happy person for my fandoms and passions.
Twenty-five years ago I couldn’t imagine where I’d go, and a lot of it is because of sites like MAHQ. Communities like Mecha Talk. Fandoms like Gundam, Macross, Gurren-Lagann, and so many others. I appreciate the fact that MAHQ is still around, and I hope that anybody that has been visiting for a long time can see the same thing. This is a special site and no amount of other Wikis or Fandom pages can replicate the love and passion that has gone into making MAHQ last this long. Big thank you to Chris and Dale for keeping this party going for as long as it has. There’s no such thing as forever, but I hope it sticks around as long as possible.
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