Pop Break Live: Awesome Con 2019 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C.
Words & Photos By: Cynthia Tenicela
You might be thinking, what makes Awesome Con so “awesome?” Well, for starters there is something here for everyone! Awesome Con is a true pop culture event. While many conventions are genre themed, think New York Comic Con or your local anime convention, Awesome Con doesn’t let itself be defined by any one fandom. Instead, they have found a formula to bring all of the various pop culture loving groups together for a jam packed weekend of geekery.
Leftfield Media, which brings you Awesome Con, produces an exciting show for fans of comics, TV shows, movies, superheroes, sci-fi and video gaming as well as content exclusive to their event. There is a children’s pavilion area aptly named “Awesome Con Jr.” which includes a children’s cosplay parade, a chance to get a picture with Detective Pikachu and a an opportunity to meet Piggy, a real life three legged superhero. You can also enjoy “Future Con at Awesome Con” which features science and science fiction presentations including guests from NASA and the CIA.
Another unique feature at Awesome Con is “Pride Alley” which spotlights LBGTQ+ creators and fans. Another special programming tract is the “Awesome Con Short Film Festival” which will screen films by independent producers, 95% of whom are local to the DC area. In addition to all of these noteworthy features and the diversity of offerings at Awesome Con there is definitely no shortage of traditional convention mainstays. From celebrity guests to a game room sponsored by Magfest, to the amazing artists alley and merch room and all of the incredible cosplay, Awesome Con checks off all of the must haves for a successful weekend of fandom.
I attended Awesome Con on Saturday and started off by checking out the autograph and photo-op area. Security was tight and some celebrities were in curtained off booths so you couldn’t even sneak a peek. Lines were long but orderly as fans waited excitedly for their turn to meet their idols and snap a $40 selfie. Some of this year’s guests included: Amy Jo Johnson aka The Pink Ranger, Jason Isaacs and John Barrowman from Star Trek Discovery, Cole Sprouse and KJ Apa from Riverdale, and for old school geeks Anthony Michael Hall, Kelly Lebrock and Ilan Mitchell-Smith from Weird Science.
After geeking out over Ralph Macchio and Milo Ventimiglia from afar I decided to check out the Exhibit Hall. I was seriously impressed not only by the assortment of offerings in the Artists Alley but by the overwhelming creativity and quality at every booth I visited. More than once I had to tell myself “I’m here to cover the event not spend money” but luckily I’m not a very good listener and ended up with some really nice items.
Next I was off to the merchandise side of the hall where again I was not disappointed by the variety and caliber of the items for sale. Throughout the exhibitor space there was so much great stuff to purchase but I somehow managed not to go broke by the time I reached the last aisle of the massive hall. Not only was there a lot of quality merchandise to spend your money on but I left with a pretty good haul of free swag from various booths as well.
The best part of Awesome Con was sharing my love of pop culture with my fellow nerds, geeks, fans and creators. I met some interesting people, had inspiring conversations, and managed to only publicly geek out twice (the Ralph Macchio incident and when I saw some amazing The Umbrella Academy Cosplay). Everywhere I looked people were smiling, showing off their latest acquisitions and sharing stories of how they had just met their heroes. Oh and as a bonus not one End Game spoiler was heard the entire day!
Awesome Con is an annual event held at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. Held April 26th through April 28, 2019 Awesome Con is celebrating 7 years of bringing all of the AWESOME aspects of pop culture fandom to the Washington, DC area. Awesome Con returns May 1-3, 2020 in Washington D.C.
