The Conspiracy Theory Girl at the Neon Lotus Panel

OMG, I gotta tell you about the absolute trainwreck I experienced at this one fandom convention last year. Honestly, it’s *so* ridiculous but also hilarious in retrospect. Buckle up because this is one of those stories that’s almost too awkward to believe actually happened.

So I’ve been into this *really* niche anime for a couple of years now—let’s call it “Neon Lotus,” and yeah, I know, *cringe* name. Anyway, I finally decided to go to a con dedicated mostly to that fandom. I’d never been to a big con before, just small local stuff, so I was pretty excited but also kinda nervous. I mean, I’ve got the typical cosplay—wig, cheap costume from Amazon, the whole deal. I even got to that point where I convinced myself I look kinda legit? So I get there early, trying to blend in but most people are already in full cosplay mode, and I just feel like I’m pretending to be a professional cosplayer, lol.

Anyway, I head over to the dealer’s hall, where I see all these exclusive merch and rare art prints—total nerd paradise. While I’m browsing, I overhear a guy behind me talking about how he scored some super rare “Neon Lotus” figures. I turn around and strike up a convo, and he’s *super* into the same fandom. We start chatting about our favorite characters, share some meme vids, and I’m feeling pretty chill.

Then he’s like, “Hey, there’s this panel on the history of the fandom tonight. Want to come with?” And I’m like, “Yeah, totally!” Because, you know, I wanted to get the full experience. We chat more, exchange socials, I think I’ve made a new con buddy. But things get weird real quick.

Fast forward to the panel, and it’s packed. Like, everyone is a serious fan. The presenter starts talking about some obscure lore or whatever, when suddenly this girl behind us—wearing a six-foot-tall giant headpiece of one of the main characters—leans over and says loudly, “Hey, is anyone here for the *secret* lore panel after this?” Everyone gets quiet, and I think, “Wow, she’s really into it.”

Then she turns to me and the guy I was talking to and just *blurts out*, “Oh, by the way, the *real* story behind Neon Lotus? It’s a conspiracy, you know. All the characters are just metaphors for real-world stuff, and the creator—who’s actually part of this underground society—put in clues about it in the backstory.” I just stare, because… uh, what?! I mean, I just thought it was a fun anime, not some esoteric conspiracy or whatever.

But then she starts getting really intense, and someone else chimes in, showing us a weird hand-drawn diagram on their phone that supposedly connects all the dots. The *weirdest* part? She’s clearly serious. Like, she believes it all. I tried to subtly back away, but she kept going on about secret symbols and how there’s a hidden society influencing the fandom.

Meanwhile, the guy I was with looks kind of uncomfortable but is also trying not to laugh. I just nod and smile like I’m in some twisted cult meeting. At one point, she gets so engrossed that she nearly flips her giant character headpiece, which almost smacks a random kid sitting in front. Classic.

The panel wraps up, and everyone starts dispersing, but I’m left standing there thinking — did I just stumble onto some *crazy* conspiracy theory stuff? Or was she just messing around? Honestly, I’d buy she genuinely believes it because she seemed so convinced. Meanwhile, I’m just trying not to catch the eye of other fans who might think I’m part of her weird secret society now.

Oh, and just to cap it all off, I saw the guy I was chatting with later, and he told me that his friend once cosplayed as a “mysterious secret villain” that wasn’t actually in the show but was just a fan theory. The fandom’s kinda wild like that—full of passionate, sometimes totally batsh*t people who will go all in on some weird lore or conspiracy stuff.

Now I’ve got the weirdest stories forever, like how one girl actually *insisted* she’d been chosen by the fandom to receive secret messages from the creator — like, actual messages in the fan art or hidden in the backgrounds of the official images. I’m not trying to judging, but man, fandoms can be a 🧠 mess.

Anyway, TL;DR: Went to a con, met a stranger who convinced me she was part of a secret society, she unloaded bizarre conspiracy theories about a fun anime, and I tried to play it cool while internally questioning my life choices. 10/10 would do again because nothing beats these kinda awkward, hilarious encounters.

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