Comic Con II

There is a special time of the year that I look forward to. It comes every October, when people dress up in crazy weird costumes, go around wearing masks, and walk for miles upon miles without ever really going anywhere... I am talking of course of New York Comic Con.

This was my second year in attendance and it did not fail to disappoint. There were celebrities, panels, music, games, and of course people in costume. The cosplayers (as they are called) really pulled out all the stops this year. I saw costumes ranging from amazing to crazy to awesome to held-together-by-duct-tape. It always amazes me how creative people can be and how impressive a homemade costume can really look. There were a lot of Captain America's (but that's typical;) a lot of Loki's (that's new;) and more men dressed in drag than I ever remember seeing gathered together in one place (that's disturbing.) Also on the rise this year were Anime costumes, which is cool, but most of my anime experience doesn't extend much beyond Cowboy Bebop, Dragonball Z, (and for some reason) Inuyasha. Usually when I watch anime it tends to leave me with a sensation of awe and a disturbance at the pit of my stomach that I can never quite put my finger on. Still, even though I had no idea where a lot of the colorfully-haired and giant-weapon wielding characters had come from, they were impressive.

So far I have not partaken in costuming, but not for lack of interest. My friend and I did throw the idea around this year, but ultimately we could never settle on a satisfactory or doable idea. Yet, we were not without a theme. Last year, I experienced the weekend with my friend Chris, who you may know from another of my previous blogs, but this year our adventuring party grew from two to four, as we were joined by my two friends, Doug and Bobbo (not his real name.) So in honor of the weekend transforming from a two-player to a four-player game, I went with a classic Nintendo theme, Gauntlet II (one of the first four player games available.) Being somewhat of an amateur graphic artist/t-shirt designer I enjoyed making my own brand of t-shirts to show off at the convention for all of us to sport. However, even wearing nothing but a blue shirt that said "wizard" on it (and pants), I got some surprisingly nice compliments, and one inquiry as to where I was selling my shirts. It was not so much the front of the shirts (my three friends had similar shirts, Green Elf, Red Warrior, and Gold Warrior... if we had a lady I would have made one a Valkyrie...) but the custom logo on the back that seemed to impress to draw the majority of the attention.

So dressed in our adventuring gear, my party set off to experience the weekend. It all started on Friday with a quick visit to the Jacob Javits center to reconnoiter the location and get our bearings for the next day. Then it was a trip downtown to grab a quick bite of NY pizza and off to the highlight of the night, Rock Comic Con, the after party rock show for geeks, dweebs, and nerds... my kind of people. I will admit I was hesitant to go this year as I learned my favorite nerd rock band, Kirby Krackle, would not be in attendance, but we forged ahead regardless. However, my trepidation grew when we arrived and were made to waiting in a line outside the club where the event was being held. Last yea,r it was basically held on a stage in the backroom of some dive bar in Midtown, and now I was being forced to wait in in a line, behind a velvet rope. More than once we almost left, but soon enough the rather imposing bouncer allowed us entry into a club that was... basically empty.

I know what the club was trying to do, but they should really get to know their audience for the night. You are hosting a rock concert for nerds. These aren't exactly the most socially forward people and forcing a line at the door could just as easily turn some people off as it could make them wonder "hmm... I wonder what that's line for? It must be awesome, let's wait in it!"

Everyone wants to be Captain America.

The night, however, did not fail to disappoint. We were treated to three amazing bands, The Doublecicks, of whom I will talk about in a future blog, Schaffer the Dark Lord, a hip-hop nerdcore rapper. Of all the bands he was the one I was most surprised by. He was not only talented but clever and lyrical. He also opened up his set by reciting the President's Speech from Independence Day, and let me tell you... if you are ever looking for a way to get a crowd jazzed up into a frenzy that speech really does the trick (when delivered with conviction and over the movie score.) Last to come to the stage was H2Awesome!, the band that generally pulls Rock Comic Con together. There is one thing you can say about the band, they are truly dedicated to their craft. Their tunes are catchy and performed with an energy and showmanship that is usually attributed more to Freddy Mercury than a nerd rock band. Also present were guest artists, drawing pictures for charity auction, a nerd magician, prizes, games, and other sorts of entertainment. Sufficed to say, I got a Superman ice-cube tray... jackpot.

We were up early next morning to arrive back on the show floor in time to check out some panels, including a Nerd Trivia Show, which we did humblingly poor at. Doug broke off to see a panel by Chuck Palahniuk (who wrote Fight Club), while the rest of us wandered see what we could find. Afterwards we met up with some friends Samantha and Adam (who is also one of the main guys over at 215 Ink, check them out,) at our favorite eatery, Burgers and Cupcakes... Unsurprisingly we all had a good dose of burgers, cupcakes, and more fries that we probably should have ordered.

After our late lunch we returned to fight our way back through the crowds of Comic Con. We watched the Cosplay Costume Contest. We went to a panel on a Zombie Survival Course which we agreed defiantly sounded like a worthy activity to check out next Spring. (I won an LED key chain light by asking them a question about socks.) Lastly we ended the night with the panel I was most enthusiastic about seeing, ItsJustSomeRandomGuy, one of my favorite YouTubers. Best known for his Marvel/DC - Apple/PC parodies, he has really come to attention for me with his on-going series that meshes the DC and Marvel universe in small multi-part specials such as "Happy Hour," and "Zero Hour." The latter of which he performed a live seriess finale at the panel. I have always believed that it is always so much cooler and interesting to meet the people who are out there creating unique and special things, rather than just any old Hollywood actor. It is always those little guys that I find so inspiring. They create, and strive, and hope, not because they are being paid millions, but because it is their passion.

In fact, it was meeting these types of people at a conventions and talking with them that first inspired me to really begin putting myself out there with my creative projects and writing. It is no coincidence that the first post of this blog appeared on November 18, 2011, less than a month from my first attendance at New York Comic Con last year.

It's a good thing I am broke, or this picture would be taken
from my shelf and not behind a glass case.

Our final day, Sunday, was filled with a few lazy strolls up and down the show floor, some free giveaway crap, and exhuastion. We stopped to try out some of the new video games, including Resident Evil 6 (which I refused to wait for), and the newest installment of the Hitman series. I tried to see a panel by Josh Gates of SyFy's Destination Truth, but the panel was cancelled after the TV host failed to show up... Really that about sums up all of SyFy's TV programming these days. They get you really excited, but when the time comes they usually fail to show up... They just tend to phone it in, if you're lucky...

We ended the weekend with a table at our favorite sports bar "1, 2, 3, Burgers, Shots, Beers," where we watched the NY Giants crush the San Fransisco 49ers, and basically fought the overwhelming feeling of exhaustion that came over us as we filled our bellies and drank our beers.

My poor writing skills cannot even begin to convey how good this weekend was. There is always that moment of fear when you begin to think that you have built something up too high, or that a great experience could never be duplicated. Sometimes that is the truth, but sometimes (those really great times) you learn that those fears are nothing more than irrational. This weekend proved to be as good as I had remembered it. If only because of the spirit of camaraderie one gets from attending a comic convention. You know that everyone is there for the same reason, and no one is judging you for it. It is a spirit felt even more keenly in new York City, the most diverse city on the planet, with the most diverse nerd population you can find.

"Do not be too proud of this technological terror you've

constructed. The ability to destroy a planet is insignificant

next to the power of Christmas cheer."

Most people think of nerds as lily white kids from suburbia (like me,) but at comic con I saw people of all races, creeds, sexualities, backgrounds, religions. I saw people who were white, black, brown, green, blue, purple, and all the colors of the rainbow. I saw people dressed like thugs and gang members who geeked out out over meeting a guy dressed as Spider-man. I saw families dressed as Ghostbusters, I saw women dressed as Slave Leia's. I saw men dressed as Slave Leia;s. I saw two Jewish men arguing over Kirk or Picard. Everyone is a geek at heart, and at Comic Con you don't have to hide it.

There is a reason why people feel safe to come dressed as the heroes and villains they so love from movies, comics books, TV, and literature, because they find themselves among people who will not only accept them for it, but admire them for it. People with the best costumes aren't just cool, they are practically celebrities. They get asked by people to have their picture taken, the crowds part for them, and everyone is left with an incredible sense of awe and satisfaction. That is what comic con is really all about, being yourself and loving it.