Pages Tagged “Category: Conventions”
Blog Posts
- Tired of Eventbrite Spam
Eventbrite has worked well for buying tickets to events I’ve attended… But over the last few months I keep getting spam for events that are not only not remotely interesting, they aren’t anywhere NEAR me. Sorry, but I’m not hopping on a plane for a pub crawl on the other side of the continent or […]
- Why I’m not ready to go back to cons yet
Of the two Omicron-variant cases found in the US so far, one of them is a breakthrough case in a patient who hadn’t traveled internationally, but had just been to an anime convention in New York. With 53,000 people. That only required attendees to have gotten their first dose of the vaccine. And struggled with […]
- Two Years Without a Con
Surprising no-one, WonderCon will be online-only again this year. Last year’s event was canceled just as we all started to realize that Covid-19 was spreading in California. And while the winter surge in cases is finally slowing down, the coronavirus is still more prevalent out there now than it was last March. They’re still hoping […]
- Too Soon, Comic-Con
Earlier this week we were talking about cosplay ideas for when we can finally go back to comic conventions. Literally the next day, I read that LA Comic-Con is planning an in-person convention in December. OH HELL NO! I don’t care that they’re limiting attendance, requiring masks and distancing, and keeping it at the cavernous […]
- No Wonder
WonderCon has been our main fan convention for the past decade or so. We’ve been every year since it moved to Anaheim in 2012, and several years back when it was in San Francisco. But this year it’s not happening. By February we were already looking at what was going on with the new coronavirus […]
- Cosplaying WonderCon 2019: Paper, Spider, Trelawney
For this year’s WonderCon, Katie refined her Professor Trelawney costume from Long Beach. The biggest change: extending the skirt instead of using actual layers, because it was warm in Anaheim. Just for the weekend – it jumped about 10°F just before and was expected to drop 10°F afterward. She remarked, only half-jokingly, that if she’d […]
- Going Mirrorless: WonderCon 2019 Cosplay Photography
Last fall, I conceded that phones have caught up to casual cameras and I’d have to get a nicer one to get better image quality. Well, I finally bought a mirrorless camera. The kiddo found my old SLR, and we’ve split a few rolls of film (re)discovering how to shoot with it. Then he started […]
- A Gallery of Harry Potter Cosplay at WonderCon
There was a lot of Harry Potter cosplay at WonderCon this past weekend! Here are some of my photos, featuring Bellatrix Lestrange, Hagrid, You-Know-Who, Professor Sybill Trelawney (who should look familiar to regular readers!), Hogwarts Professors Dolores Umbridge, Gilderoy Lockhart and Albus Dumbledore; Arthur Weasley, and Rita Skeeter. There are a lot more that I […]
- 10 Years of Long Beach Comic Con! (2018)
Back in 2009, I attended the first-ever Long Beach Comic-Con, an event that filled the void left when Wizard World cancelled WWLA at the last minute. I had a good time, and it had a lot of support from the industry, but I wondered how long it would last. Ten years on, LBCC is still […]
- Professor Trelawney Cosplay at Long Beach Comic Con
Katie’s been talking about dressing up as Professor Trelawney for a while now. She put together the pieces for a costume over the last couple of weeks, and wore them on Saturday at Long Beach Comic Con. It was a huge success! Lots of people recognized the character and wanted photos. We even ran into […]
- Finally starting to miss SDCC
I’m half-following the build up to San Diego Comic-Con. I haven’t been there since 2014, though I’ve been to WonderCon and Long Beach every year. The first year I couldn’t get tickets I shrugged. It’s exhausting, and there are other cons. I didn’t even try this year or last. But now I find I’ve started […]
- WonderCon 2018
It’s been ten years since we first went to WonderCon, back when it was still in San Francisco. At the time I thought it would be fun to come back, but maybe not every year. As it turns out, we’ve kept going back yearly, only missing one! It’s effectively replaced SDCC for us, between the […]
- Comic-Con Economy: What a Difference a Decade Makes
SDCC Blog reports that Comic-Con International is expected to be the San Diego Convention Center’s top economic generator of 2018, “with 130,000 attendees and an estimated $147.1 million in regional impact.” That’s a far cry from 2008, when the con was derided as “decidedly low-rent” and generated “only” $41.5 million, half the impact of the […]
- Convention Inflation
Next year’s WonderCon tickets are available now, and SDCC goes on sale next week. I noticed something interesting about the WonderCon price, because ten years ago, I compared a lot of convention prices. How do they stack up a decade later? WonderCon 2018 costs the same as Comic-Con 2008 did: $75. (WonderCon in 2008 was […]
- A Short Visit to Long Beach Comic-Con 2017
We finally got the whole family out to this year’s Long Beach Comic Con on Saturday! That was the plan last year, but Katie and J. both got sick. Katie brought her Whitney Frost cosplay and managed to find not only an Agent Carter, but another Whitney Frost! At 6½, J. wanted to spend the […]
- Family Trip to WonderCon 2017
For the first time ever, we attended three days of a comic-con with the whole family. Including cosplay! (Well, one of us did) WonderCon was back in Anaheim this year, and it felt like a homecoming. The Anaheim Convention Center is just a better fit for the con than LA. The fountain area is a […]
- Stumbling Through LA Comic Con 2016
We’re ready to swear off going to cons at the LA Convention Center. We tried to spend Saturday at Stan Lee’s LA Comic Con (formerly Stan Lee’s Comikaze Expo, formerly Comikaze Expo), but…well… (TL;DR: Skip to the photos) Getting There is Half the Fun^H^H^HDay It took us as long to drive the two blocks past […]
- Zooming Through Long Beach Comic Con 2016
One of the weirdest things about this year’s Long Beach Comic Con is how much moving the entrance to the other side of the convention center changed the flavor of the experience. For the last seven years, they’ve used the western entrance off of Pine Ave. with a big, open, glass lobby and an outside […]
- Whitney Frost Cosplay
The “big bad” of Marvel’s Agent Carter Season 2: Whitney Frost, a scientist/actress who becomes imbued with what she calls Zero Matter, a destructive energy force (just visible in the form of the jet-black scar). She’s adapted from the comic book villain Madame Masque. Like the Once Upon a Time Alice, she doesn’t seem to […]
- Wandering WonderCon in 2016
Last year’s WonderCon went well enough that when our five-year-old said he wanted to go both days this year, we figured sure, let’s do it! Famous last words… (TL;DR: full photo album) We had another thing going on Saturday morning, so we got in around noon and went to get lunch as soon as we […]
- Long Beach Comic Con Hits its Stride in 2015
Twice the floor space, twice the programming, and they filled it! The show has turned into one for comics and art, plus the usual cosplay, signings etc.
- Comic-Con with a Stroller: Geek Parents with Kids Under Five
Geek families will inevitably want to bring their kids along to cons. Here’s our experience balancing our own fannish interests with a small child.
- It’s a Wonderful Con – WonderCon 2015
WonderCon is like SDCC 15 years ago, a comic con with broad pop culture appeal & media presence but without the hectic pace or crushing crowds.
- Not Going to Comic-Con This Year (But I Feel Fine)
I tried, but couldn’t get tickets to SDCC for the first time in years. Oddly, I’m only mildly disappointed.
- Back to the Beach: Long Beach Comic Con (2014)
Photos and writeup: Indie comics, bargains, art, cosplay, Young Justice, and a mobile exhibit for the Flash TV show at this year’s Long Beach Comic Con.
- This Fan Used To Post Tons Of Comic-Con Coverage, Then Stopped. Can You Guess Why?
Social media has enabled fans to follow SDCC without setting foot in San Diego, but being part of the conversation has a cost for those at the con.
- Comic-Con 2014 – Now That’s Better! (Writeup, Photos and Cosplay)
We managed to do a lot more of what we planned at SDCC this year, from signings to swag to media events…and even got in on the cosplay scene.
- Cosplay: Alice from Once Upon a Time in Wonderland (SDCC 2014)
Katie’s Thursday costume from our 2014 trip to Comic-Con International in San Diego, inspired by Alice’s adventuring outfit in the Once Upon a Time spinoff.
- Looking Back at WonderCon 2014
This year’s WonderCon was a bit of a mixed bag – I feel like I missed a lot, but it was still quite a bit of fun.
- Five Ways to Use a Smart Watch at Comic-Con
Reading up on wearable computing got me wondering: I probably wouldn’t use a smart watch every day, but would it help at special events like conventions?
- SDCC Lottery: The Least-Bad Option?
SDCC is moving to lottery-based pre-registration for 2014 to even out the crush of everyone hitting the site in the first 10 seconds after launch. Instead of first-come first-serve, you sign in anytime within a window and it randomly assigns your place in line. Looking back, the turning point for crowds and being able to […]
- WonderCon Wants to Go Home
WonderCon still wants to return to San Francisco, but the only convention center big enough is awfully busy…and so is the spring con schedule.
- It Came from the Long Beach Comic & Horror Con 2013
My lack of a plan for this year’s con made the show floor less satisfying, but the panels were great: Marv Wolfman, Scott Lobdell, Mark Waid, Young Justice.
- WonderCon Staying in Anaheim for 2014, Long Beach Comic-Con Next Week
It’s official: WonderCon will be back in Anaheim next year, which means I’m almost certain to go. Coming up sooner, though: Long Beach, next weekend.
- Nighttime HDR Test: Yerba Buena Gardens
While in San Francisco on business, I wandered into the Yerba Buena Gardens and around the Moscone center. My phone took better pictures than I expected.
- How Disneyland is Like Comic-Con
It’s been a few years since I’d been to Disneyland, and with NYCC happening this weekend, I couldn’t help but compare the experience to San Diego Comic-Con.
- Death Star Window
Partway down the central escalator at the San Diego Convention center, you can look down the long cylindrical skylight that makes up the roof of the lobby, rings forming the appearance of concentric circles. Years ago, a friend of mine referred to it as the Death Star Cannon shot, and it’s a popular one to […]
- I Survived Comic-Con 2013!
Intense stress, doing the impossible, meeting artists, keeping a toddler entertained, chaos good and bad, and a genuine medical emergency.
- Going to the ER at Comic-Con: Not the Peanuts I was Expecting
You don’t expect to find peanuts in coffee, but two sips were enough to put me in an ambulance and wipe out an entire afternoon of Comic-Con.
- A Weekend at WonderCon 2013 in Anaheim
Comic books, zombies on trial, iconic characters, Disney mash-ups, Game of Thrones toys, cosplay and more descended on Anaheim, CA for WonderCon 2013.
- Tips: Keeping Connected at Comic-Con
Smartphones, live-blogs and social networking have brought their own challenges to the crowded world of Comic Con. Here are some tips for staying connected.
- Backup Lesson from the Emerald City Comicon Hack
An attacker deleted not just their site, but their backups. Lesson learned: make sure that an attack on your server doesn’t have access to your backups as well.
- Return of Long Beach Comic & Horror Con! (2012)
Lots of comics, lots of Star Wars, Avengers and zombies, a little horror, a little comedy, and a little speed force in this fourth year of Long Beach Comic Con.
- Chicon 7: Something for Everyone at Chicago’s Worldcon
Chicon put on a great scifi/fantasy convention this year, proving that there’s still life in the genre. Plus it was fun to visit Chicago for the first time.
- Celebrating Curiosity at Planetfest 2012
Timed for the Mars Curiosity landing, Planetfest featured mock-ups of capsules and landers, space art, meteorites, robots, speakers and of course a party.
- Comic-Con 2012: Back With a Vengeance
Back to San Diego! Comic-Con 2012 was a lot more fun and a lot less overwhelming than usual this year as we took in three days of the four-day convention.
- WonderCon 2012 in Anaheim – A Great Weekend Comic-Con
Even more fun than in San Francisco, this year’s con had everything I’ve come to expect at a WonderCon, with more space, so the crowds never got unbearable.
- WonderCon as a Test Case for Comic-Con in Anaheim
With all the talk of Comic-Con International moving out of San Diego someday, it was pretty much impossible not to consider this weekend’s WonderCon as a test case.
- Don’t Use Third-Party Links in Email – Object Lesson: Comic-Con Registration
A click tracker that couldn’t hold up to the strain of Comic-Con registration prevented thousands of potential attendees from getting into the system in time.
- Comikaze Expo 2011
The first Comikaze Expo in Los Angeles turned out to be a surprsingly big, well-attended and varied convention. But I’m not sure I’d call it a comic con.
- Long Beach Comic and Horror Con 2011: Still Got It
A day at LBCC: costume-watching, cheesy vintage horror comics performed on stage, meeting writers and artists, discovering webcomics, and–hotel rappelling?
- Just One Day at San Diego Comic-Con 2011
With only a day at Comic-Con, it’s really about the trade-offs. Fewer panels, more floor time: Thundercats, apocalypse, Flash mobs, costumes & collectibles.
- Comic-Con: Down the Barrel
Comic-Con International sold out this weekend. The convention isn’t until July, which makes the January sell-out surprising enough…but tickets didn’t even go on sale until this past Saturday, and were all gone by the end of the day! In past years, tickets haven’t been a problem. This year, they’ve become as hard to get as […]
- Long Beach Comic Con 2010 — Saturday Con Report
LBCC is shaping up to be a very artist- and writer-focused convention, definitely worth a visit from Southern California comic book fans.
- SDCC Ticket Meltdown
Comic-Con 2011 ticket sales crashed under heavy load shortly after going online. I think we’re seeing another shift in the process of getting to Comic-Con. It used to be that, as long as you were aware of the onsale dates and could both plan your trip and pay for your tickets far enough ahead of […]
- Adobe MAX 2010 in Tweets
Running commentary on Adobe’s annual designer and developer conference in Los Angeles. Photoshop reigns supreme, plus Flash fans and a Star Trek surprise.
- Comic-Con 2010 Sunday: Storming the Castle
A final day to explore the exhibit hall, stand in line for events, meet artists and pick up a sketch. Plus a parking snafu.
- Comic-Con 2010: Saturday. Into the Con and Out Again
Saturday was the big day for big presentations: Harry Potter, Green Lantern, Sucker Punch, Leverage, No Ordinary Family. Throngs of people, and islands of stillness.
- Comic-Con Coffee Quest
Lion Coffee near Ralphs really knows how to take advantage of the Comic-Con crowds. Last year they weren’t even open and still managed to sell me coffee!
- Comic-Con 2010: The Main Floor
The exhibit hall is starting to feel like a city, with an illusion of permanence from year to year. You can’t see it all in one visit, but you can try something different each year.
- Comic-Con 2010: The Gaslamp Crush
Comic-Con turns 5th and L into a geeky parody of the Las Vegas Strip, only the cards have pictures of spaceships instead of strippers.
- Comic-Con Tally: Sketches, Signings & Swag (2010)
Stuff we brought home from Comic-Con this year: signed comics and books, sketches, shirts, posters, and even a water bottle.
- Friday at Comic-Con 2010: Art and Downtown San Diego
Comic-Con takes some getting used to, but it does happen. Friday I did a lot of walking at the convention itself and through the spillover into Downtown.
- Comic-Con: Missing Badge Scare
What when through my head when I lost my badge at Comic-Con with two days to go: Would I be able to get back in? And if not, what would I do in San Diego?
- Comic-Con 2010: Thursday – Crowds and Costumes
A busy day of crowds, lines, costumes, DC Comics, Scott Pilgrim, bad science, twisted genres, Naomi Novik, Geoff Johns and more.
- Internet Access at Comic-Con
This year they had two wifi networks in the lobbies & event rooms, one free & crowded, the other paid & nice. Phone reception varied widely.
- Comic-Con Quotes: Twisting Genres
Authors China Mieville, Naomi Novik, Scott Westerfeld, Daryl Gregory and more discuss mixing things up with books that defy classification.
- Comic-Con Quotes: Epic Fantasy
Fun quotes from fantasy authors Brandon Sanderson, Christopher Paolini, Patrick Rothfuss, Megan Whalen Turner, and Brent Weeks.
- Comic-Con Crowd Weaving
Sometimes, weaving through the crowds at Comic-Con is easy. Other times it’s like being herded, or swimming upstream. But maybe a video game metaphor is best.
- Leverage at Comic-Con 2010
Write-up, funny quotes, and photos from the Leverage panel at Comic-Con 2010 in San Diego.
- Four Days at Comic-Con 2010 (Index)
Comic-Con International (San Diego) was fun and exhausting as usual. Here’s an index to all of our panel writeups, quotes, stories and photos.
- A Day at Westercon 63: Confirmation
Smaller than the typical media event that comic cons have become, Westercon provides a more literary approach to sci-fi and fantasy fandom.
- Comic-Con Hotel Deadline & Second Chances
Today’s the last day to cancel a hotel reservation with no penalty, so rooms should free up soon. If you’re waitlisted, you may have a second chance at a hotel.
- Anaheim Comic Con 2010 (Saturday Con Report)
Wizard World returns to LA with a show that’s more about celebrities than comics, but has lots of Star Wars and Batman. Plus: Anaheim as a convention town.
- Central City Comic Con
I stopped for coffee on the way to Anaheim Comic Con. Yes, actually, I am wearing a Flash T-shirt. Why do you ask?
- WonderCon 2010 Experience
Photos and write-up of a day at WonderCon in San Francisco. It’s still fun, but it’s beginning to get more crowded – if nowhere near San Diego Comic-Con levels!
- How to Get a Hotel for Comic-Con
Planning to go to San Diego, but couldn’t get a hotel room through the convention? Here are some things you can try to find a place to stay during the con.
- Comic-Con Hotel Experience: 2010
After 8 hours I finally got my hotel confirmation. It wasn’t one of the 12 I’d requested, but it’s downtown. Here’s what happened, from what I could see.
- Comic-Con Hotels 2010: Reviewing the Reservation Form
Travel Planners finally streamlined the process to minimize the impact of the massive traffic spike that always accompanies Comic-Con reservations.
- Pre-Game Thoughts on the New Comic-Con Hotel Procedure
SDCC used to let you pick your hotel from the rooms still available, then crash. Now you’ll submit a list of choices and wait to hear back from them.
- Comic-Con 2010 Hotel Block Opens March 18
SDCC and Travel Planners are making some interesting changes to the hotel registration system to fix some of last year’s problems. But will they work?
- Comic-Con Sellout
Crazy: 9 months ahead, full-event Comic-Con 2010 tickets are already sold out. 1-day tickets haven’t gone on sale yet.
- Con Report: Long Beach Comic Con 2009
The first-ever LBCC was a fun, comics-focused show where I got to meet artists and writers without standing in crazy long lines, and break some Flash news.
- Wizard World LA & Long Beach: A Tale of Two Convention Centers
Wizard World Los Angeles started in Long Beach, moved to LA, then shut down. Long Beach Comic Con rose to take its place. But what’s going on in LA instead?
- Comic-Con 2009 Complete Index
Here’s a quick index to all of our posts about the July 22-26 Comic-Con International in San Diego: here, at Speed Force, and on Flickr.
- Comic-Con Triathlon: Running Through Downtown San Diego at Night
A story of the night I ran, jogged, and caught a breaking-down pedicab to make it to on time to see the Worst Cartoons Ever.
- “Lost” Panel Made of Win
The final LOST panel at Comic-Con was a real gift to the fans, with surprise guests, comedy, and hints at the upcoming final season.
- Flash Forward Looks Incredible (Comic-Con)
They showed 2 acts of the pilot at Comic-Con, and it looks great. Different from the book, but they’re adapting the concept, not the story.
- The Other 10 Essentials of Comic-Con
You know how to pack for a trip, and to bring your camera, batteries, and a water bottle. Here are 10 things you might not think of that will come in handy.
- Mad Science: The Science Behind Science-Fiction – Fringe, Eureka! and Caprica
Sci-Fi show reps talk about horror, space, killer robots, undead legal testimony, and the implied “don’t try this at home” factor with Walter Bishop.
- Why I Want a Netbook (and why I’m not letting myself get one)
I’ve started seriously thinking about a netbook to get around a few issues with posting by phone, but I know I’d only use it once a year.
- Why Las Vegas is a BAD idea for Comic-Con
People keep saying Comic-Con should leave San Diego for Las Vegas to get more space, but would it really be an improvement? Here are six reasons why not.
- Comic-Con Hotel Booked – Sort Of (2009)
It took 1 1/2 hours, but I managed to reserve a hotel for this year’s Comic-Con by phone. I never did get through online.
- WonderCon 2009: Saturday Con Report
Saturday at WonderCon: crowds, BSG, DCU, Star Trek, 9, cosplayers and more in San Francisco.
- WonderCon 2009: Friday Con Report
Friday at WonderCon: Farscape, David Mack, Indiana Jones, DC, BOOM!, crowds, Wonder Woman, cosplayers and more in San Francisco.
- Comic-Con Hotel Block Opens March 19, 2009
Well, that’s cutting it close with just a few weeks’ warning. It used to be you’d know months ahead. Of course, the con block used to not sell out either.
- Critical Miss
This convention press release tells you all about who’s going to be there and what’s going to happen, but leaves out a critical piece of information.
- Mastercard Chase: SDCC Security Snafu
A very long story about the adventures of a credit card at Comic-Con. May be funny someday.
- Dawn from BTVS: Irrational Character Hate
Some fans hate Dawn even when she does things that they like, or that are necessary to set up elements they like. It’s hate for its own sake.
- Reservations
Possibly jumping the gun, but last night I reserved a backup hotel for next year’s Comic-Con. Although considering that most of the big-name hotels right by the convention center are already booked (though I’m sure they’ve set aside blocks for the convention already) or want incredible amounts of money per night, perhaps it’s not that […]
- Thoughts for Next Year’s Comic-Con
Next time I go to Comc-Con, I want to take an extra day off to recover, or maybe take the whole week and make it a vacation where we actually see San Diego.
- Being a Nexus – Comic-Con Bursting at the Seams
Comic-Con is spilling out into the city of San Diego with a massive media blitz, but what about us is so appealing to the Hollywood marketing crowd?
- Quake and Con
Here’s a scary thought: Imagine Comic Con, with the San Diego Convention Center jammed with people from out of town, jolted by an earthquake.
- Comic-Con 2008 Photos are Up!
Here they are: Comic-Con 2008 Photos. I’ve only got the first page or so labeled for now, but the photos should finish uploading by the time I post this. I’ll fill in the captions and titles over the next few days. More SDCC 2008 posts.
- Back from Comic-Con (2008)
Voice acting, sketches, waffles, a historic museum, creepy-edition Gaslamp, the Buffy musical, DC Nation, a security mishap, and more on the last day of Comic-Con.
- Comic-Con 2008 Autograph/Sketch Tally
This year I collected a lot of sketches and autographs at SDCC, from regulars like Sergio Aragonés and the Foglios to rare guests like Tori Amos.
- Tori Amos Panel and Signing – Saturday at Comic-Con
Tori Amos appeared at SDCC to promote Comic Book Tattoo, a collection of comics based on her songs. I was lucky enough to make it to her signing.
- Saturday Morning in Line at the Con (SDCC 2008)
Crowds, coffee and crazy lines: Waiting for Heroes in Hall H and navigating the floor from Artists Alley on up.
- Friday at Comic-Con
Pancake House, Read or Die cosplay, Sci-fi writers Connie Willis and Robert J Sawyer, Humor in Sci-Fi, the Field, and running into people we know.
- The Paper!
Hall costume for the day: Yomiko Readman, Paper Master — from the anime series Read or Die.
- Thursday Afternoon at Comic-Con
Crowd traffic improvements, Batwoman, Sergio & Mark, Girl Genius, the Flash Companion, and liveblogging DC Nation.
- OMG WTF FWY BBQ!
A truck carrying 60,000 pounds of meat flipped over and burst into flames, shutting down the main highway to San Diego on the first day of Comic-Con.
- Thursday Morning: Twos & Tori (SDCC 2008)
First full day at Comic-Con: breakfast at Cafe 222, tickets for the Tori Amos signing, artist/writer collisions, Dark Night cosplayers.
- Wednesday Night in San Diego
Forget Preview Night – it’s just as crowded and crazy as the rest of the con, complete with lines, swag, and sombrero-wearing donuts walking the streets.
- WiFi for the Con
I experimented a bit with posting from my phone, but it really isn’t sufficient for what I want to do. Fortunately SDCC is offering free Wi-Fi this year.
- Bits and Pieces: Botox Shirt, SDCC Sellout, Spam Karma
Some random observations from today: A sparkly Botox T-Shirt spotted at lunch; Comic-Con has sold out; Spam Karma is being turned over to the community.
- Tori at Comic-Con!
Tori Amos will be signing copies of Comic Book Tattoo at Comic-Con 2008! Good thing I didn’t pre-order it, because I’ll need to buy it onsite to get in.
- Comic Con = Cheapskates?
Why doesn’t San Diego like all the business that Comic-Con brings them? Apparently we don’t spend as much as other conventioneers.
- Comic-Con – Get Your Tickets Now!
7 weeks to go, and Comic-Con is out of 4-day memberships. Single-day tickets are still available, but it looks like it might sell out this year.
- There’s a convention for everything
Here’s a weird one. it turns out that ROFLCon, dedicated to all those Internet fads, was held at MIT this past weekend.
- Conventions and Distance
You can commute to nearby conventions, drive to others, and fly to even more. Once you have to fly anyway, destination matters more than distance.
- Hazards of Q&A Sessions
Time is precious. Don’t waste it with flattery, self-promotion, or claiming to speak for the rest of us. Just ask your question and move on.
- Wizard World LA 2008 – Con Report
Despite missing signs and a bad schedule, I got some comics bargains and met a bunch of artists, writers and actors including John Wesley Shipp, TV’s Flash.
- Comic Book Convention Prices Compared
On a per-day basis, Comic-Con isn’t actually that expensive compared to other big conventions like Gen Con and Dragon*Con.
- Con-Fusion
I knew MegaCon wasn’t in Los Angeles, but when I looked it up and saw Orange County, I was momentarily confused.
- Con Report: WonderCon 2008
My first trip to WonderCon in San Francisco. A lot like SDCC, mostly comics with movies and TV thrown in, but I could walk, and I could get autographs!
- And I Will Drive 500 More
First long trip with the Prius, up US 101 and PCH from OC to San Francisco, including tours of Heart Castle and the Winchester Mystery House in one day.
- Skiffy Links
Comic-Con 2008 hotel post-mortem at The Beat, the Seven Habits of Highly Effective Starship Captains at IO9, and Computer Love Day from Mandriva.
- Getting a Hotel for Comic Con (2008)
Tomorrow morning at 9:00 PST, rooms in the convention block go on sale for this year’s Comic-Con International. I was going to write up a bunch of tips last week, but CCI beat me to it by launching their own blog, Staying In San Diego. Visit it today, because it’ll probably be swamped tomorrow. (Though […]
- Comic-Con: Hotel Anxiety
Spent a good chunk of last night looking at travel websites. Accomplished 2 things: Arranged for a hotel to stay in San Francisco next month. Arranged for a back-up hotel for San Diego Comic Con, just in case we can’t get a room through the convention desk. Hotel rooms during Comic-Con have become a scarce […]
- Strange Sights of San Diego
Our first night in San Diego, we picked up our badges for Comic-Con, then went out to see Avenue Q. We took the trolley back, and as we walked up the hill from the Little Italy trolley stop, we saw a pair of giant cartoon eyes looking out over the city from a balcony near […]
- Strange Sights of Comic-Con
Stormtrooper Elvis meets Sauron, free hugs, the human bulletin board, a crowd of women all wearing the same red dress, and more.
- Found ’em!
Yes, we found both Waldo and Carmen Sandiego – twice! We didn’t even need a GPS! (And who would have guessed that she’d be in San Diego?)
- Comic-Con: Filling in the Gaps
Some random thoughts and anecdotes about Comic-Con that didn’t make it into other posts: It’s amazing that out of (reportedly) 140,000 people, you’re virtually guaranteed to run into people you know. For instance, I knew in person 8 people besides the two of us who were definitely going to the convention. Without planning, I ran […]
- Artist Encounters
Wednesday morning before we left for San Diego, I made a last-minute addition to my small stack of stuff to get signed: Sergio Aragonés’ issue of Solo. During my first half-hour at Comic-Con on Thursday, I found myself at the Groo booth, face to face with the artist. When I asked him to sign it, […]
- Comic-Con Photos are up for 2007!
After a post-Comic-Con evening of sorting and labeling, here they are: 293 pictures of costumes, convention sights, San Diego and more!
- Pirates vs. Sylar
I’m still attending Comic-Con in civvies, but Katie wore two costumes this year: another update of her pirate outfit on Friday, and a Sylar victim with a telekinetic slice across her forehead. Saturday, of course, for the big Heroes panel. She did the makeup from scratch, using latex and fake blood, and got a lot […]
- Flash Sightings at Comic-Con
I saw quite a few Flash T-shirts in San Diego this year, but only two people dressed as the Flash. Interestingly, both were women.
- Comic Cons Should Be Good
My daily San Diego Comic-Con 2007 reports are up at Comics Should Be Good, and photos are up here on Hyperborea.
- Wednesday in San Diego
We made it to San Diego after a longer than expected midday drive. (Traffic between Carlsbad and the San Diego city limits was a nightmare.) After checking into the hotel, we stopped for a snack and then headed out to the convention center to pick up our badges for Comic-Con. It went a lot more […]
- Con Report: Wizard World LA 2007
With most of the panels done, Sunday was a nice, low-key chance to hunt for comics and fill in my collection. Getting to the con was a bit of a challenge.
- Comic-Con Hotel Booked! (2007)
Jammed phone lines, a busy fax, and an overloaded website turned a 5-minute booking process into an agonizing hour of waiting, timeouts, errors and restarts
- Minicon: LA Sci-Fi, Flash and Teen Titans: Trouble in Tokyo
My second trip to the LA Comic-Con at the Shrine proved far more interesting than my first, with a Teen Titans screening, signings, and some cool discoveries
- Worldcon Los Angeles / LACon IV: Through an Orange Haze
Despite a summer cold, I was determined to spend a day at Worldcon in Anaheim. Robots, space troubleshooting, future historians, chaos, Pluto and more.
- Pluto Needs Rocks
A bit of astronomy humor from WorldCon: Help donate rocks to Pluto so it can increase its mass, clear its orbit, and once again qualify as a planet!
- Comic-Con Photos are Up! (2006)
I’ve just posted our photos from Comic-Con. Cosplayers, San Diego sightseeing, comic creators, random convention stuff, etc. Check out all our Comic-Con 2006 posts!
- Only in San Diego? Volume 3, Part 2
Friday afternoon I was walking down Fifth with a couple of Subway sandwiches in my backpack. This section of the Gaslamp Quarter is almost entirely restaurants, and most of them have dining areas out on the street, with the host or hostess’ podium right there on the sidewalk. I had spotted something odd ahead of […]
- Only in San Diego? Volume 3, Part 1
Here’s the latest round of strange sights from San Diego. We stayed at the Radisson Harbor View. The end of the hallway had a view of the harbor, but our room had a view of the construction across the street. When we first stepped onto the balcony, we saw a crane lifting an outhouse up […]
- Tall Ships of San Diego
I mentioned that on Saturday, we left Comic-Con for a few hours to check out the ships at the Maritime Museum of San Diego. We saw five: The Star of India, billed as “the world’s oldest active ship” The HMS Surprise, a replica of an 18th century British ship. The Berkeley, an 1898 steam ferry […]
- Post-Con Zombie
Comic-Con was fun, but exhausting. Add that to staying up too late last night and not being used to the heat when we got back…
- Comic-Con Costume Coverage
Have you noticed that media acts like EVERYONE at Comic-Con is in costume? TV shows actually recruit extra cosplayers to stand in the background.
- Con Sundae
Sunday at SDCC was, oddly, more crowded than Saturday. Maybe it was the desperation of the last day combined with the fact that it was still on the weekend. We got in later, closer to 11:30, since we spent the morning packing. I did a final round of back-issue hunting, and ended up not buying […]
- Saturday at Comic Con
Neither of us spent more than an hour or so on the floor on Saturday, in part out of self-defense. Comic-Con is usually the most crowded on Saturdays, though we didn’t see much difference from Friday this year. After the Flash panel, I went back to my back issue hunt. Found quite a few in […]
- 50 Years of the Flash at Comic-Con 2006
Carmine Infantino, Mark Waid, Geoff Johns, Danny Bilson, Paul DeMeo & Brian Bolland talk about their parts in the history of Barry Allen, Fastest Man Alive.
- Fry Day at Comic-Con
I spent more time walking around outside today, so I did get to fry a bit. (Not too much, fortunately.) Oddly enough, one of the first hall costumes I saw on Friday was Thor. Caught the Stardust preview. It looks very promising. Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess were there, of course, plus screenwriter Jane Goldman […]
- A brief conversation with Sergio Aragonés
In which I apologized that I couldn’t make it to the Sergio and Mark panel this year, and the artist made the perfect response.
- Thor’s Day
Not that I saw anyone dressed as Thor, but it seemed an appropriate description for a Thursday at Comic-Con. No earth-shattering news so far, but then it was only a Thursday. Katie went to the voice acting panel and the Animaniacs panel (mostly in connection with next week’s DVD release. I went to the Carmine […]
- Badges? You don’t get no stinking badges!
There was no line by the time we reached Comic Con, but we had to bounce around to multiple tables before we could pick up our badges and get inside.
- A Few Reservations (Comic-Con 2006)
Comic-Con hotel rooms sold out within hours this year. The crunch is so bad the agency has sent out a plea for people to cancel extra rooms they don’t need.
- Comic-Con Quotes are Up (2005)
I have just posted quotes collected from Comic-Con.
- On Comic Con and Baseball
San Diego’s public transportation system couldn’t handle the combined pressure of Comic-Con and a weekend of baseball games. Talk about packed.
- June Gloom! Extended Tour!
Yes, coastal Southern California normally has morning cloud cover into early summer. We had morning fog in San Diego and gloomy skies north of La Jolla.
- V for Visceral
Rob Zombie on movie ratings, toning villains down too far, and the difference between showing violence toward unknown actors or celebrities.
- Missed Haunting
It turns out the Whaley House near our Comic-Con hotel in Old Town San Diego claims to be the most haunted house in America.
- Only in San Diego? Volume 2 Part 2
Amusing sights from Comic-Con and around town: faith insurance, Xena’s coffee, the Pikachu bug, and more, including…the pastrami love burger?
- Cosplay Photos are up (SDCC 2005)
I’ve posted our photos of hall costumes that we saw at this year’s Comic Con, including Katie’s own pirate costume.
- Autograph/Sketch Total
1 rough sketch of Aahz and Skeeve by Phil Foglio. 1 finished sketch of the Flash by Scott Kolins. Mick Gray signatures on Chase #1 and Promethea Vol. 1. Wendy and Richard Pini signatures on Elfquest Archives Vol. 1. Phil Foglio signatures on Girl Genius Vols. 1 and 2. Pre-signed Powers print by Michael Avon […]
- Only in San Diego? Volume 2 Part 1
The Vegetable Garage, cactus feet, Sam Adams smoothies, Haunted Hotel, a cubic Stonehenge, and other strange sights found around San Diego.
- News from Comic Con 2005
Jedi costumes, Fellowship! The Musical, Jim Henson 50th Anniversary, Groo vs. Conan and a ton of movie previews: Serenity, Mirrormask, HP4, Fountain & more.
- Suggestions for Comic Con
Update July 2009: I’ve got a newer, longer list of Comic-Con Tips over at Speed Force. Based on experience from the last few San Diego Comic-Cons, here are a few recommendations: Pre-register, as early as possible! Not only will it save you money, but the line to pick up badges is always much shorter than […]
- Mythed Opportunity
I’ve been searching eBay for the old Myth Adventures comics and somehow completely forgot about it when I got to Comic-Con. D’oh!
- Comic-Con Photos (2004)
Photos from San Diego and Comic-Con are up! Sightseeing, panels, and exhibits Hall Costumes / Cosplayers
- Only In San Diego? Part 2
More strange sights at Comic-Con: Indigo Grills, a Martini Ranch, the Death Star cannon hidden in the convention center, and Salvador Dali’s hotel soap.
- (Firefly) Serenity Preview
It started out with Joss Whedon showing a video clip from the movie. Then the ENTIRE cast came out for discussion, though fans’ Q&A was focused on Joss.
- Farscape: The Peacekeeper Wars Preview (SDCC 2004)
The Farscape cast and producers showed off an incredible trailer and held a fun Q&A session for the miniseries that follows the show’s cliffhanger.
- MirrorMask Preview (SDCC 2004)
Neil Gaiman and Dave McKean talked about MirrorMask and showed a clip from the fantasy film in the vein of Labyrinth and The Dark Crystal.
- Comic-Con Report: Days 1-2 (2004)
First weekday trip to SDCC, including webcomics, MirrorMask, extended Return of the King, writing fantasy/sci-fi combat, and trying to eat in the Gaslamp..
- Con-ercise
Make the most of large conventions as a form of exercise: hike across the convention center, climb stairs, and compare yourself to others as motivation.
- Pillow Progression
Sometimes hotel cleaning staff pays attention to the way you’re using the room, and adapts.
- Only in San Diego?
Illegal pizza warnings, odd movie combinations, and other strange//interesting things we found in San Diego during our stay for Comic-Con.
- To The Con: Getting into SDCC 2004 at the last minute
Back in the day when you COULD get Comic-Con tickets and hotel reservations a week or two before the event. It still wasn’t easy, but it was possible.
- Comic Con! (2003)
Photos and comments from our day at Comic Con International in San Diego