Get Him to the Geek: Comic Con 2010

logan fowler gives us a nerd’s eye view of new york comic con 2010

It used to be that reading a comic book or playing a video game was seen as a hobby that only kids had. But walk into the Jacob Javits Convention Center around the time of New York City Comic Con, and you’d see that that statement is incorrect.

More and more people are being engulfed by the power of the comic book convention. It may be because comics are not the only feature of these events-everything from Star Wars, Nintendo, Trekkies, fan film makers, sword developers, wrestling, to Muppets were a part of this year’s Comic Con. Also, the show introduced an Anime part for the first time at the convention, so it had those fans too. But for me, it was quite an experience.

(On an aside, it was my first time dressing up for Comic Con, and I stuck to simple-Scott Pilgrim was my get up for the Saturday of Comic Con. But I’ll get to that later).

It was my fourth year in attendance, and it had a lot to live up to. But with that said, Comic Con 2010 is going to be the one to beat. Besides my costume getting some geek attention, I met heroes, got great merchandise, and walked away with a goofy smile on my face as Sex Bob-Omb blasted on my Ipod-it was my most favorite Comic Con yet.

As I wandered into the center on Friday, October 8th, dressed in my Flash t-shirt, my eyes could not believe what they were seeing. Comic Con had taken on a size increase; normally the event reserved only one massive room, but here there were two. One was devoted primarily to artists’ alley where as in previous years that was up on a higher level squeezed in a small room. The other room was devoted to merch, with t-shirt tables, comic book/graphic novel shelves, and dvd booths, amongst other things.

The downfall of Comic Con-and this is not a strike against the set up or the event itself-is the financial drawback. I went into this thing, trying to spend as little money as possible, but you find things you never see before, and for that matter, you don’t know if you’ll ever see again.

My purchases included some normal items (comic books), not so normal (a Luigi hat), and some items that made my inner child leap for joy.

Flashing forward a couple of days, on Sunday, October 10th, I met Carroll Spinney, the former puppeteer/voice actor for Oscar the Grouch and Big Bird, Sesame Street characters and educational icons for kids (myself included) around the world. I snapped a photo with the man, and you could see it on my face-I was meeting a guy who I grew up with indirectly, who helped form my love of puppetry. Besides the photo, I have a signed photo of him with the two puppets mentioned above framed already.

This year, I also delved into cosplay, which happened on Saturday, October 9th. For those who are unaware, cosplay is when you dress up as a superhero, cartoon character, comic book character, etc. While I simply added sweatbands to my simple wardrobe attire for Mr. Pilgrim, my friend Harry rocked a homemade Iron Man costume, and the poor guy couldn’t even walk in without being asked for a photo. His costume really had people in awe, as it can prove a store bought costume may look good, but one you made means you put your heart into it. In any case, I give my friend a lot of credit, as wearing shoulder pads around for a full day must kill you. Still, he soaked it up-Comic Con was his time to show off his hard work.

Meanwhile, my Scott Pilgrim costume garnered attention, as I posed with various Scotts, evil exes, and Ramonas’. My personal fave was getting a photo with Midtown Comics TV Girl and Booth Beauty Zoë A. Gulliksen, who brought Ramona to cosplaying life, mimicking the look of the video game edition of Ms. Flowers like a pro. In any case, that was a moment that made my whole day. I mean, look at look the on my face: that’s a geeky -dream-realized-grin if you ever saw one.

Oh, and the panels, at least the few that I saw, were epic (no pun intended). Epic Mickey looks amazing, and Robot Chicken is looking better than ever. I also sat in on the Marvel panel, which has some interesting projects in the works.

Back to Sunday, my friends Harry and Brittany cosplayed as Luigi and Mario (respectively). They were very cute together. Anyway, I wanted to spend as much time on the floor as possible my day was cut short due to travel times. However, besides meeting Spinney, Sunday had some other moments that stick out too, regardless of me being there a short time. For one, trying out Marvel vs. Capcom 3 was totally worth the wait-the game is fast, furious, and fun. I ended up winning the battle thanks to Deadpool. I’ll pick this game up day one (release is Spring 2011).

Also, my friend Matt was cool enough to pick up a Fantastic Four Omnibus for me, and it’s incredible. On this day I also got a Scott Pilgrim Full Colour Odds and Ends booklet, which, while not big on content, is a must have for a fan.

While I was sad to see Comic Con end, some memories I won’t miss. First off, the Anime part of the con was overwhelming, and while I respect anime and its fan base (I’m not really into it), I honestly think they should keep the two conventions (comic and anime) separate to allow the fans to enjoy it without the madness of combining both.

Also, Saturday was super crowded, so when I stopped for a pic, my friend Matt (being super nice) always picked my bag up for fear that it would instantly get swooped up in the throngs of the massive crowd. Can’t say I don’t blame him. Also, if you were there and I hit you with my cosplaying guitar, I am sorry.

Finally, one more thing-where the hell was the swag (stuff we all get)? Comic Con specializes in free stuff, and except for a few buttons and a Spidey poster my friend Brittany nabbed for me, I came home empty handed. If you put aside a day just for swag (Friday was ours), you gotta deliver!

Gripes aside, Comic Con 2010 is my favorite of the ones I’ve been at. Sure, they’ve all been memorable, but when you can say you met a hero of yours, got good items at cheap prices (and in some cases for free), played awesome video games, met gorgeous ladies and had your photo snapped with them, saw your friend’s costume make him famous to a certain degree, and just enjoyed some quality buddy time…

You just experienced an epic of epic epicness.