The fan community has been plunged into a state of outrage following the recent events of the HATSUNE MIKU EXPO 2024 in North America, where the iconic virtual diva, “Hatsune Miku“, was presented in a way that left much to be desired. Instead of enjoying the full concert experience, attendees were met with a series of disappointments ranging from a lack of merchandise at the stands to excessively high ticket prices. But most disappointing of all was the use of a flat screen instead of the holographic projection that had characterized previous events.
The stage, instead of being the epicenter of an immersive experience, became little more than a stand for a television that, compared to the magnitude of the event, seemed tiny and inadequate. The live band, which should have been the musical soul of the concert, was relegated to a corner, literally locked in a cage, while Hatsune Miku, instead of appearing as a three-dimensional hologram, was reduced to the limitations of a screen. two-dimensional.
Ticket prices, ranging from $55 to $215 for the upcoming concerts in Phoenix, Arizona, could have been justified if the full experience fans were expecting had been offered. However, upon discovering that holographic technology would not be used, many felt cheated and disappointed, wondering if Crunchyroll, the event’s sponsor, felt that Hatsune Miku fans did not deserve a high-quality experience.
The situation worsens when considering that attendees were discouraged from reselling their tickets on platforms such as Ticketmaster, and they were urged to acquire event-specific glow sticks, claiming that they would affect the holographic projection, when in reality this did not even exist.. This lack of transparency and apparent disinterest on the part of organizers has led some supporters to explore legal options, while others have started a petition on Change.org to express their frustrations and gather evidence of what happened. In short, what should have been a celebration of Hatsune Miku’s culture and music has become a source of discontent and mistrust among fans.
And if you have any doubt what fans were expecting, watch the following video from the 2018 presentation in Los Angeles:
And of course, there was no shortage of comments:
- «Gorillaz used holograms in the early 2000s. Why are we going backwards in technology?».
- «That’s what they deserve for supporting a shitty company like Crunchyroll».
- «It was never really a hologram in the first place, but rather a projection on a transparent screen. This makes the switch to a television even more strange and unfortunate, because a projector and a screen are much cheaper than a giant television».
- «Oh my god, he looks like shit. Cheap and soulless. It’s just an LCD screen, whether it’s giant or not, it’s still LCD. What made Hatsune Miku concerts special was the projection technology that looked like magic».
- «I bet Crunchyroll thought a hologram would allow you to see up her skirt, so they used 2D to avoid that».
- «I can’t believe Hatsune Miku couldn’t show up to the event and they just showed a video of her, what a disappointment».
- «“Sponsored by Crunchyroll”, that explains everything».
- «Aren’t holograms the point of attending this event?».
- «The worst part is that they didn’t let you bring glow sticks because “they would affect the hologram.”».
- «Hatsune Miku deserved better than this».
- «Gosh, that really looks cheap and bad.».
- «It is evolving, but backwards».
- «I almost bought tickets to go to the MIKU EXPO, since I was quite interested. I’m so glad I didn’t end up doing it, especially now that I find out about this shit.».
- «I’d be pretty upset if I’d paid a lot of money to see the Hatsune Miku hologram and found myself staring at a TV.».
- «I hope they realize that their mistake upset the fans and that they resolve their mistake.».
- «Holograms have always been part of the magic and have been around forever… the illusion of her and the others being on stage is part of the experience! They didn’t even bother to blur the television to preserve the illusion. The lights just highlight the television».
- «I’m so sorry to the fans who were looking forward to the hologram. People spend money and travel to attend these events… and then they are hurt. Those responsible should be ashamed.».
- «When people think of a MIKU concert, the first thing anyone who knows the character thinks of is the 3D stuff. Not an LCD screen. And the organizers knew that and kept that fact in the Down Low that it was not 3d for the reason. Yeah this was scum».
Fountain: Twitter
