Con-Man: Long Beach Comic Con

After a late Friday night at Disneyland, Saturday morning we headed up to Long Beach for their Con. I've been attending LBCC since 2009 and watched it expand, contract and expand again. They've done Halloween themed shows, one day smaller cons, had lots of guests and panels, not many guests and panels, food trucks and Star Cars outside or nothing at all. This particular show seemed to be shaping up to be their biggest ever with the inclusion of several more celebrity guests available to charge for autographs, beefier programming and a reported 450 vendors. Their last show in March utilized the back side of the Long Beach Convention Center near the aquarium but the September edition would be holding court out front along Pike Street once again. Things seemed amiss near immediately when the two parking structures next door were closed off and drivers didn't know where else to go. Following the signs I realized that Lobster Fest was also going on nearby and they were herding everyone to park on the other side of Shoreline Drive. A huge queue was waiting to get in so they could pay $10 bucks then trek the half mile back to the convention center. That was not a very nice welcome, especially as LBCC has always been one of the easiest shows to attend.

Not accepting the grassy option, I found street parking five minutes away but would have to feed the meter every 2 hours. It's not that big a show so a couple of trips and 4 hours should be plenty, right? Well, the line to get into the convention center took up 3 huge queues and ended up taking 45 minutes! I asked some of the crew what the hold up was and they simply stated that the staff didn't expect such a large turnout. Wait, you're telling me in this day and age you can't tell how many tickets you've sold online to staff accordingly?! There's no excuse for poor crowd control in my opinion. People are paying to attend an event, not wait in line twice before getting to said event. The problem was that inside, there were only 4 booths open to scan tickets and distribute wrist bands. Horrible flashbacks to the shit show of Salt Lake City Con came back to me where they only had 5 people admitting those who actually paid extra to wait less but ended up waiting 2 hours. Like SLCC, it would have been faster to just buy a ticket onsite and go into the show. It seemed pretty crowded in the lobby but the actual show didn't seem any bigger than it's ever been so waiting so long was a doubly insulting.

 
It was great to catch up with William Stout and Mike over at the RAW Studios booth, Stout will be a guest at He-Man night this weekend while Mike is headed to New York. I introduced myself to future guest Alan Oppenheimer and chit chatted with a few vendors we see regularly on the con circuit. There were various new spaces on the floor highlighting NASA, Power Rangers, Cosplay and Star Signings along with your usual Artist Alley and Laser Tag.  There weren't a ton of big names at the show with John Barrowman, some actress from Agents of Shield, some guys from Daredevil and Sam Witwer holding down the paid meet and greet area. It's not the exhibitors fault that the organizers did such a poor job of getting people through the doors and I wanted to spend some dough on the floor but sadly came up short and bought...nothing. No comics caught my attention, the NECA Ripley still carries a stiff price tag and no random item looked like it should be on my shelf. Adam Kubert was making his LBCC debut and we saw awesome artists like Art Adams and Whilce Portacio on the floor. Mark Silvestri popped up at the Top Cow! booth while I never found Bryan Edward Hill to ask him about Dolph's The Russian Specialist. A group of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle cosplayers had a booth complete with an April O'Neil but later I saw them hanging out with their prop helmets off, didn't you see Old School?! Put your head back on! We ran into G.I. Joe expert and Duke historian Diana Davis in line and caught the tail end of the Joe panel where cast members reminisced about their time working for Sunbow and the incredible legacy the cartoons and toys have created like they did back in March.

Outside your usual line up of cinematic and television famous vehicles were waiting to be checked out including the Back to the Future Deloreon, Jurassic Park jeeps, Bumblebee from Transformers, not one but two KITT's from Knight Rider and a new addition, the Firebird James Garner tooled around in for hit show The Rockford Files. Like the awesome discount book store before it, Geeky Mama's (moved to Anaheim) had also closed and we didn't hit the Auld Dubliner for any Dublin Donkeys since we were on the clock. It's interesting looking back on some LBCC posts as it's usually been one of my favorites to attend due to it's easy access, solid exhibitor floor and terrific surrounding area. Not long ago I thought they might be losing ground to Comikaze in terms of size, scope and social awareness but his weekend proved that LBCC's ready to grow. It was also a reminder that bigger isn't always better and quality still trumps quantity. Very disappointing.

Con-Man: Summer Swell

It's been months since I've been to a convention, months! July is going to be a Kaiju near double event with two of the biggest shows around coming in hot and in a row. Anime Expo takes over Downtown, Los Angeles July 4th Weekend while San Diego Comic-Con International starts on Thursday, the 9th. Then a new, smaller show has popped onto my radar, August's Central Coast Comic-Con on the 28th-30th before the last show of the summer, The Long Beach Comic Con September 12th and 13th, phew!

My inbox has been inundated with guest, event and press releases regarding movie premieres, new apps, products, cartoons, toys and interview opportunities for 2015's Anime Expo. It was also announced that organizer SPJA - The Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation, has signed a five year contract to stay in Los Angeles. AX has brought in 100,000 plus attendees and exhibitors for years and 2015's show is projected to bring in 280,000! With nearly 300 exhibitors representing gaming, fashion, toys, music, film, animation and a whole lot more, AX brings in an estimated $55 million bucks into the city during it's 4-day stay. This will be my first year attending in earnest as last year was more of a taster or lookie loo if you will. I only spent a few hours walking around but got a feel for the vibe, attendees and offerings. Basically, a whole lotta cosplay and Japanese culture. Panels run the gamut of how to survive your first con, music, karaoke, new and old anime screenings, fandom, audio mixing, e and board gaming, tips on moving to Japan, voice actor studio and much more. Recognizable brands like Dragon Ball Z, Sailor Moon, Naruto, Ultraman, Robotech and Cowboy Bebop will be well with premieres and screenings. There are multiple separate ticketed events going on like the Maid Cafe, an interactive experience of dances, music performances, photo ops and more or late night Fate/Stay Night Special with screening, Q&A and a concert. Gonna get weird, gonna get crazy, gonna be weirdcrazy!

The following week is the big one, the mecca of all things popular culture, the one, the only, mother fudging San Diego Comic-Con! Comikaze, New York, Salt Lake, any Wizard World show? Children.  Amateurs in comparison. No other show gives you face value like SDCC. Your ticket gets you into the convention, exhibit hall and programming. No Gold or VIP upcharges here. No major plugging to plop down $50 bones for a photo or autograph. Heck, you don't even need a badge as there's plenty of art shows, fan gatherings, movie screenings, parties, Q&A's, concerts and the like going on outside the hall in the streets of downtown San Diego. In a first, late night TV host Conan O'Brien will be hosting four shows from a local theater and moderating a panel. In a probable other first, San Diego Comic Con is banning selfie sticks, GoPro poles, Google Glasses, streaming, e-cigarettes and drones! Good, it's hard enough walking around when a million people stop dead in their tracks in the middle of an aisle or stop to take photos of cosplayers. If anything, SDCC could pioneer small areas between booths for photos so traffic isn't as impacted.

In another step towards weeding out casual fans only looking for famous faces, SDCC has made news over which Hollywood studios would be sitting out this year. Once a part of press junkets, high profile Con flicks turned box office flops like Scott Pilgrim VS the World, Green Lantern, Cowboys and Aliens and Ender's Game have cooled studio presence. This year Marvel, Sony and Paramount are all sitting out as they lack product to promote. Plus, Marvel doesn't need Con anymore, they've got their own events at Disney owned theaters and shows like the El Capitan and D23 Expo. Lionsgate will be back with the final installment of The Hunger Games after bypassing a panel for Mocking Jay Chapter I and The Expendables III. SyFy network has an abundance of screenings and panels lined up with the Thomas Jane starring The Expanse getting an early screening a full 5 months before it's broadcast debut in December. The King of WeirdCool is scheduled to attend. In recent years television has made up for the lack of movies and this year will be no different. Game of Thrones, Agent Carter, The Flash and The Walking Dead are all lined up for panels, some of them in the 6,000 plus capacity of Hall H.

Then of course there's a whole side of the convention center dedicated to comics, artists, toys and swag. Dogs big and small like Marvel, DC, Top Cow, Dark Horse, BOOM!, DelRey, IDW and so many more will be on site. Artists and writers like Stan Lee, Jim Lee, Humberto Ramos, Jeff Smith, Jim Steranko and William Stout are among the dozens of already announced special guests not even including the hundreds filling up Artist Alley. I'll be looking to fill in some gaps in my growing Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commando's collection as I've just about tapped out on Terminator, Big Trouble In Little China, Aliens, Rocketeer and Captain America toys and trinkets. It's gonna be mad. It's gonna be fantastic. Embrace it! See you in San Diego!

(Pre)Con-Man: Emerald City Comicon 2015

Taking off for Seattle tomorrow via Virgin America for the annual Emerald City Comicon! This was one of three out of state shows we attended last year and the only one we're headed back to. Con hotel rates downtown were stupid cheap, costing nearly a third of what I paid during a work trip a few months ago. Not only excited for the show but also for hanging out in Seattle. It's a cool city that I'd totally live in if it weren't for the rain and gloom. Anywho, latest story out of ECCC is the slew of cancellations. Due to shooting commitments and whatnot, the likes of Dante Basco (Rufio!), Karen Allen, Morena Baccarin, LeVar Burton and Brandon Routh have had to drop out. You still have the likes of Curtis Armstrong, Hayley Atwell, Michael Bell, Anthony's Daniels and Mackie, Stan Lee and John Wesley Shipp attending so we're still in great shape. A few people be complaining but hey, cancellations are just part of the game. Then someone tried to say Salt Lake City's show was better than Emerald City. Having gone to both last year and experienced some major bullsh!t at SLC, I'm going back to ECCC this year and not SLC so what does that tell you? Sure it's a little confusing with the show utilizing half a dozen floors and areas in the Washington State Convention Center but that's not the worst problem to have...

Friday looks to be the more interesting day for me panel wise with spotlights on how to make some bucks or a living with fandom and self published comics, pitching and writing, history of Valiant and focuses on Atwell and Shipp along with looks at Udon and a new documentary about daily comics, Stripped. Saturday has some interesting stuff like Fight Club 2, Image Comics, Anthony Daniels, Will Eisner's The Spirit then writing and designing video games. We're taking off Sunday morning and will sadly miss panels on Kevin Eastman, Funko's, Michael Bell and Stan Lee...Outside the show the ECCC Cinema Series welcomed Michael Biehn, Alan Tudyk and Karl Urban for special screenings of The Terminator, Serenity and Dredd. But this year cancellations have struck two of the three shows as Karen Allen was to attend Raiders of the Lost Ark and Brandon Routh for Scott Pilgrim VS the World. Stan Lee is on deck for The Avengers which sold out quick. I wish they'd add another night... There's parties galore featuring video games and cosplay, the guy who plays Hodor DJ'ing and a laser light show set to the soundtrack of Guardians of the Galaxy. Board, card and arcade games will be hosted at the show and I've already searched for a local barcade to add to my list. Last year we checked out sky high dining and drinking joint Rview but sadly it has closed. Did a search for Seattle's best Moscow Mules and have some options to check out. See you in Seattle!

Con-Man: Spring Circuit

While it's cold and snowy across much of the country, Spring Time is nearly here and that means conventions! This weekend is The Long Beach Comic Expo, sister show to The Long Beach Comic Con. They're pulling out all the stops to make this their biggest Expo ever with lots of comic book and media guests as well as some back to back stacked programming.

Long Beach Comic Expo | Saturday & Sunday, February 28 - March 1 | Long Beach, California

Looking forward to the G.I. Joe animation panel as a nice primer to next week's Sunbow Celebration double feature. The Gargoyles panel is a nice touch as is the spotlight on legendary X-Men scribe Chris Claremont. Cool to see Magnet and Magnolia previewing new movies as well as the Eat. Geek. Play. Studio hanging out with Stan Sakai and Gerry Conway among others. Genre movie favorite Lance Henriksen is attending but I'm disappointed a panel wasn't scheduled. Lots of topics covered though with writing, diversity, cosplay, webcomics, marketing and more over the two days.

Emerald City Comicon | Thursday - Sunday, March 27-29 | Seattle, Washington

We're heading back to the great green north to check out Emerald City for a second time. This will be our only out of state show we're attending again as Calgary Expo and Salt Lake City were fun but just not as convenient or special enough to lure us back. Hoping to get out to Arizona or Nevada for a new show in 2015 though. ECCC is shaping up to be another great time with guests across the Artist, Writer, Cosplayer, Novelist and Celebrity spectrum. Comics guys like Kevin Eastman, Tim Sale, Humberto Ramos and Dan Jurgens will be on hand while celebs Hayley Atwell, Michael Bell, Levar Burton and John Wesley Shipp will be sure to provide some great spotlight panels. The Cinema Series is back with Karen Allen, Stan Lee and Brandon Routh attending screenings of Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Avengers and Scott Pilgrim vs. The World. Congratulations to Jennifer Blanc and Michael Biehn as they're expecting a child together meaning we won't be seeing them on the flight up again like last year. Biehn will be participating in an Aliens reunion panel at Monsterpalooza in Los Angeles the same weekend of ECCC.

WonderCon | Friday - Sunday, April 3 - 5 | Anaheim, Calilfornia

Coming back to Anaheim for it's 4th year is San Diego Comic-Con International's less crazy but nearly as awesome sister show WonderCon. First tip for attending, don't stay at the Clarion. Stay at the Hilton since it's connected or if you feel like walking a couple blocks, The Red Lion, cause they have mini-fridges in all their rooms. Anywho, WonderCon is great, it really is like Comic-Con junior. You've got the huge exhibition floor, tons of vendors, lots of guests and programming with literally half the madness. The show is still being put together but the likes of Darwyn Cooke, Jae Lee, Dustin Nguyen and Rick Remender caught my eye on the Special Guests list. Warner Brothers is bringing latest DC animated flick, Batman vs. Robin as it holds it's world premiere during WonderCon. Also announced is special event Superman: The Richard Donner Years Celebrity Super Reunion with producers, actors and writers.

Star Wars Celebration | Thursday - Sunday, April 16 - 19 | Anaheim, California

Two weeks after WonderCon it's back to Anaheim for the show I bought tickets for 20 months ahead of time, Star Wars Celebration! Originally scheduled to coincide with the release of the new films, Star Wars Celebration is now hitting early as the flicks won't be ready until the holidays. No matter, it's still looking like a fantastic show with Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Kathleen Kennedy, J.J. Abrams, Kenny Baker, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew and so many more guests scheduled to attend. On top of that, they're screening all 6 Star Wars movies! There's also an art show, cosplay contest, speed dating, podcasting and much much more lined up.

Con-Man Double Event: CalComicCon w/ Frank & Son

Sunday funday as we ventured east first to Yorba Linda for the California Comic Con before heading up to the City of Industry for weekly staple Frank & Son Collectible Show.  In this day and age of over hyped and over crowded cons with social media presence, CalComicCon is like taking a step back in time or maybe shopping at the farmer's market of comic book conventions.  Unlike say Comikaze, Wizard World or Salt Lake that tout celebrity guests, charge you to wait in line less and then push you to pay your favorite celebs $40 bucks to sign something for you, CCC is all about the comic books.  Is it small?  Yes.  Is it a nice change of pace?  Double yes.  Yorba Linda is a picturesque sprawl of suburbia with strip malls and greenery off the 57 and 91 freeways in Orange County.  The Community Center is just a few minutes off the 57 and is where CCC has called home since at least 2007.  With only comic book centric Marv Wolfman and Thomas Yeates as invited guests, this show isn't for casual fans; it's for comic book readers and collectors.

Walking up, the atmosphere was warm and inviting with a hot dog/taco stand outside, vendors on the patio selling .50 cent issues and a very friendly staff that welcomed us and explained the set up.  Parking was free with a $10 admission.  You got a raffle ticket upon entry and there were drawings every hour.  The show was being held in two separate rooms and on the patio.  While you could walk the space in just a few minutes, every vendor and table was full of books, comics, graphic novels and novels to flip through.  High end ones in the plastic cases and graded to 50% off trades and of course the .50 boxes outside.  I was only too pumped to grab a stack of 1980's Avengers comics along with a handful of Sgt. Fury and His Howling Commandos.  The seller told me I missed out as this was the last of his Sgt. Fury collection, drat!  From another table I picked up movie novelization of James Cameron and Gale Ann Hurd's The Terminator!  Now I get to see how Reese, the T-800 and Sarah Connor play out in print.  Being a small show, we only spent about an hour there but were very satisfied with our haul.  Now it was off to the City of Industry for Frank & Son...

Only 15 minutes up the 57, Frank & Son Collectible Show has it's own warehouse in an industrial complex near Walnut. Parking is free with two lots and street available.  No fee to get in either.  Usually the show only runs on Wednesday and Saturday but extended to Sunday this week as Stan "The Man" Lee was special guest.  I haven't been here in years and was very surprised to see how Con like this show was without the Con.  It was just rows and rows of stalls and vendors hocking toys, video games, cards, knives and trinkets.  All those booths you check out at conventions outside Artist Alley at any other show, that's this place, all the time!  While there were toys, toys and more toys to check out, I was surprised at the lack of comic books for sale.  There were a handful of big spreads selling issues new and old but I just didn't feel like skimming through boxes of unorganized comics hoping to find a gem.  I recognized several vendors from shows around town and everyone was very chill and polite.  A couple were a little overzealous in trying to sell stuff when all I wanted to do was see what they had but ah well.  Then we randomly started chatting with a vendor who ended up being writer and author Pat Jankiewicz.  Nice guy and a fellow #MovieBro, we rapped about flicks, actors and our favorite conventions. 

Seems like the Big Trouble In Little China Funko's haven't shipped yet so I had to be contented with picking up a Rocketeer ReAction figure along with a Funko mini-mystery figure where helmeted Cliff Secord runs 1 out of 72 and was already fetching a $50 price tag.  For $7 bucks, my luck held steady and I pulled out a 1 out of 12 Robocop. There's an exhibition hall in the middle where guests sign.  Frank & Son have a variety of actors and athletes come through for special events, reunions, etc.  Towards the back was a gaming and tournament area as well as a discount household goods store(?!) selling clothes, tools and supplies.  Going strong since 1988, Frank & Son is definitely the place to come to pick up your favorite swag but I think it's more fun to do that at in a convention setting where you can walk the floor, take in a panel, go back, etc.

That's all the Cons I got for January, see you in February for Long Beach!

Con-Man: 2014 Wrap Up

It was a fun year of attending conventions this 2014 as we hit up no less than 9 shows in California, Utah, Washington and Calgary.  It will be pretty quiet around Southern California until February when the Long Beach Comic Expo returns for their one of two annual shows.  Let's take a look back at the year shall we?

March. Emerald City Comicon - This was our first year attending but I enjoy Seattle so it was nice to hit the town, see some friends and check out the show.  It's a big one, encapsulating nearly every floor and cranny of the giant downtown convention center on two sides of the street.  A huge exhibition floor along with a media area for panels and autographs, Lego display, Game of Thrones art gallery and much more kept us busy even if it was a little confusing to get around.  Off site theaters hosted podcasts and special screenings of fan favorites with cast in attendance.  People were very nice and our hotel rate was very swank with a nice con discount too boot.  A little sight seeing at the Pike, some sky high drinks at Rview (since closed) and lots and lots of rain.  We're going back in 2015 so that about sums it up.  Oh yeah, Michael Biehn and his wife Jennifer Blanc were on our flight up so that was cool.

April. Wonder Con - San Diego's sister show in Anaheim is always a blast, tickets are easy to come by and it's a large event stacked with programming.  We opted for a different hotel this year to ensure we had a refrigerator but boy was it not worth it as the place was kind of a dump. Better to stay at the connected Hilton and bring a cooler.  Unlike Emerald City, lots of great panels here about comics, writing, art, movie and television with guests like Bill Paxton and Jim Lee charming and educating the pants off us.  Really looking forward to this one again.

April. Calgary Expo - Another first for us and our inaugural trip outside the country for a convention.  Our plane was filled with guests for the show including Ricco Ross from Aliens.  Calgary was super weird in the sense that I had no idea it was so into oil and cowboy stuff so stetsons and big trucks were everywhere.  A beautiful city filled with polite folks, I was surprised at how bland the food was in Chinatown, at pubs and high end restaurants.  The show was held at a giant rodeo complex and was spread out over several structures of essentially a fairgrounds.  Access was not easy in and out so we stayed the entire day before going to a nighttime panel.  CE corralled cast and crew of The Hobbit films for a night of improv, story telling and demonstrations of fight choreography and make up.  The next night the entire main cast of Aliens was reunited on stage to discuss making a classic and reminding us that Michael Biehn and Bill Paxton should have a sitcom together.  A fun show but we don't have plans to return this year.  If you go, send me some dark chocolate Kit Kats because they are amazing and made from real chocolate.

June. BotCon - Held in gorgeous and idyllic downtown Pasadena, BotCon was one of the most interesting shows we attended this year as it wasn't about the all encompassing Popular/Nerd Culture but simply about The Transformers and their legacy of toys, comics, art and cartoons.  Just crowded enough with lots of exhibitors with all kinds of goodies for sale as well as voice actors from the shows and mother fucking rock and roller Stan Bush.  I actually kind of froze up when I saw him as his music has influenced my life for about 20 years.  Since BotCon changes locations every year, organizers set up tours of Los Angeles attendees could go on culminating in an awards show and concert.  The panel featuring voice actors was hilarious and inspirational.  I'd love to attend again if they come back to Southern California.

July. Anime Expo - Our first introduction to the wild and wooly world of Japanese animation was a doozy as the show packed in over 100,000 attendees in Downtown Los Angeles on a sweltering weekend.  Tickets sold out but there was free admission to the exhibit hall nightly.  It wasn't that different than a comic-con as anime is always a big factor at shows.  It was a nice warm up for San Diego as the place was so packed and B.O. was in the air.  A photographer friend took us around and showed us the cosplay backdrop area where costumed folks could pose in pre-made environments which was a unique touch.  Would definitely like to attend this year.  Better get back to Samurai Champloo and Attack on Titan...

July. San Diego Comic Con - The mother lode.  The mecca.  The place you lose yourself and find yourself, Patrick Swayze style.  From rooftop parties, reconnecting with old colleagues, walking the gigantic floor, hunting down exclusive swag (hello Expendables 3 poster and Batman Animated Series vinyl!), checking out six panels in a row, meeting Ernie Reyes, Jr., eating crappy convention center pizza and hot dogs, walking straight into Hall H and not camping out like a loon, volunteering at 6:00 AM, meeting a future moviebro, sky high dranking, it's just the best way to spend a few days.  Tickets and condo for next year already secured.

September. Salt Lake Comic Con.  Another first for a show and city.  Lines were out the door and just picking up badges was a fucking fiasco.  Really unimpressed with their organization after touting themselves as a challenger to San Diego, etc.  The actual show was fun, not a huge exhibition floor but big and varied enough to make for a nice half day of checking out.  Lots and lots of money gouging I mean autographs and photo opportunities for sale at this one so programming was pretty light.  Arcade set up was a nice touch and we met Danny Glover, who was awesome.  Salt Lake itself was quaint but weird, surprising amount of people living on the streets, built up and fancy one block, falling apart the next, bland food from a couple spots, we checked out a state liquor store and the surrounding area really seemed to be supporting the con which was cool.  They think they're as good a show as San Diego, they're not.  Would maybe come back in a few years once it builds up and gets organized.

September. Long Beach Comic Con -  Always a nice day out in Long Beach with easy access, a decent floor, okay programming and places to hang and check out across the street.  Feels like it used to be bigger with more going on but perhaps has plateaued and maybe on it's way down?  I hope I'm wrong and we'll be there for the next show.

November. Comikaze - Like Salt Lake, flaunts it's celebrity guests and show for fans by fans, grassroots sensibility.  Also like SL, feels the need to compare themselves to San Diego when they're not even in the same league.  Regressed from last year as entry took way longer than it should have considering it wasn't that crowded.  But as usual a nice sized floor, fun guests and light on programming. 

Sadly, we missed out on this year's inaugural Comics Arts Los Angeles show, hopefully it went well and a future event is in the works.  Also sad was He-Man and She-Ra centric attraction Power-Con attempted to move to New York from Torrance in an effort to expand it's audience but failed to sell enough tickets and had to cancel...This year sees Star Wars Celebration hitting Anaheim in April, a first for me and another notch on the ol' convention belt.  See ya at the show!

Gotta Drank (and Eat)! Bourbon House & The Red Door

After a short day at the Con and some lazing in the hotel, it was time to find dinner.  The lady had done some reconnaissance before hand and come up with several options.  Just up from the convention center and near the beautifully designed outdoor mall was the Bourbon House.  As we walked I observed that for such a religious town, there sure are a lot of bars and brew pubs around here...Located beneath a commercial building rests a cozy dive-ish bar with a pretty decent selection of eats.  The place was very empty for the dinner hour and after being totally ignored by the server, I ordered at the bar.  $4 Jameson?  Why, yes, I will imbibe that.  You could get it as a shot with a pickle juice chaser but I opted for slow drinking with some ginger ale.  On the food front they had items like Chad's Balls (Jalapeno poppers), bacon wrapped tator tots and the Juicy Lucy, two patties formed around cheese of your choice.  Everything was pretty tasty and came out quickly so I'd definitely recommend to anyone in town as 4 dranks, an appetizer and 2 entries only set us back $40 some bucks.

I couldn't locate an ice cream shop nearby so we strolled over to The Red Door, a tiny bar across the street advertising a Comic Con menu that was surprisingly well thought out.  Inside it was a bit dark or intimate I suppose complete with a huge mural of Che Guevara on the wall.  Known for their martinis, many of the CC dranks were vodka based but after sticking to whiskey all day I didn't want to change liquors and went with Jameson again.  The server was very kind but like Bourbon House, The Red Door was near empty at this time of evening.  For some reason I figured Salt Lake was going to be a dry or restricted town with near beer and drink maximums but we never ran into any issues besides not being able to find a happy hour...

Con-Man: Salt Lake City Round Up

Saturday was a short day where we hoped to get Danny Glover's photo, see Simon Helberg and maybe Stephen Amell before doing a last walk of the floor for any unseen swag.  We breezed on in the door with our Gold passes and I headed for Photo Ops where a very small line was formed.  I'm not one for paying to interact with celebrities but I hadn't spent much at the show and I had a significant discount so I figured what the hey, it'll make for a funny Christmas card.  Danny Glover has always been an actor I've enjoyed, especially in the Lethal Weapon series and Predator 2 where his clap in Gary Busey's face actually saved a rude asshole and his rude asshole assistant one day at work when I was ready to beat up an old man and his underling. 

After a few minutes on the floor we realized we'd seen everything the day before so we headed to Simon Helberg from The Big Bang Theory's panel.  An announcer/organizer type came out several times to pump up the crowd with bad jokes and asked us to scoot in to make room for people coming in.  Compared to the light hearted fun of Alan Tudyk and emotional frankness of Manu Bennett from Friday, Helberg's panel was a bit awkward and got pretty old.  Sure I've seen the show he's famous for but I'm not exactly it's biggest fan.  More than one question was in regards to guest stars and all I could think about was the BS fact that they're all supposed Flash fans but John Wesley Shipp from CBS' own The Flash television show never guest starred.  Also, there wasn't an introduction per se, whereas Manu Bennett can have a quick sizzle reel of action pieces, Helberg's clip consisted of him telling jokes without audio.  He seemed like a nice guy but the moderator didn't do much to prep the crowd and talk about Helberg's career, beginnings or how he got involved with the show and just handed the mic(s) to the crowd.  Coupons were handed out for Helberg's autograph and photo op so when people asked for photos on stage they were awkwardly denied.  One question asker said San Diego sucked but I'm sure he's never actually been there to see how clown shoes Salt Lake's show is in comparison but we'll get to that later.

The panel got lame kind of quickly with too many kids asking incoherent questions or people making comments instead of asking anything and then the fawning fans asking for up close and personal time.  They just gave you coupons to meet him, if you want a face to face experience, you gotta pay!  That's how this show works!  Helberg did get to talk about his studies at NYU, thinking the show would be canceled due to the writer's strike, being in awe of Stephen Hawking, the loneliness of shooting his astronaut subplot, working with Joss Whedon for Dr. Horrible, how a movie he directed is based on his bumbling, bad luck ridden attempt to win his girlfriend back and that he can't name favorites among the cast since he would alienate others.  Even though we had primo seats for Stephen Amell, having only seen season 1 I figured the panel would be very season 2 and upcoming 3 heavy so we decided to bounce.  It was off to the arcade for another crack at Captain America and The Avengers.  Armed with about $10 bucks in quarters we triumphed over additional villains like Crossbones, Juggernaut, Ultron and then the Red Skull himself, on a space station!  After 5 stages and about 25 minutes of gameplay, we had defeated the game and the universe can sleep safely once again.

Then it was time for our photo op with Danny Glover.  I honestly thought no one would be queued up but I was wrong.  There were dozens of people already waiting.  I had planned to say something to Mr. Glover but once we got in with him, he was just so kind and happy to be there that all I could do was shake his hand, ask how he was doing and smile like a goof.  A truly enjoyable experience and the photo is now hanging in the den.

Parting thoughts on Salt Lake Comic Con?  It's a fun show but still has to work out a lot of their logistical issues.  Thursday's wait time and disorganization was pretty unacceptable to me although Friday went smoothly.  Saturday got real crowded and it's estimated that 120,000 peeps rolled through in total.  But if their staff can't handle that capacity, maybe they should consider capping ticket sales.  Oh wait, they're for profit so no, that won't happen.  Their info book didn't include an actual schedule of events and there could have been a lot more signage around the floor for special events, panel rooms, etc.  The exhibition floor was decent with lots of variety but we got through it pretty quickly.  Panel wise beyond actor spotlights were mostly fan run and listening to super fans talk about a subject really isn't that interesting or educational compared to someone involved professionally in a comic, movie or book discussing their experience.  How does it compare to San Diego Comic Con?  It doesn't.  At all.  I hope attendees will stop comparing themselves to the show because they're not on the same level.  At all.  They might have crammed nearly as many people into the show but they also gouged them to buy upgraded ticket packages that didn't even get you much.  The entire show is based around selling autographs and photos whereas SDCC is about celebrating the arts with over 1,000 panels to choose from. Nothing was going on outside the show unlike San Diego where half a dozen venues offsite offer more activities, many for free while SLCC had special events with Kevin Sorbo and Hulk Hogan available for a separate ticket price.  So for their own sake, I hope fans and organizers of SLCC work on making their show better, not trying to compete with San Diego because they're not in the same league and mouthing off about something you've never even experienced is just sad.

With Salt Lake City being such a religious town, the show did not occur on Sunday so our flight back to Los Angeles included no less than Bruce Campbell, Jon Heder, Cary Elwes and Lou Ferrigno.  Lou is still a pretty big boy and Bruce has that great, distinctive voice that could read you your rights and be entertaining.  I'd probably come back to Salt Lake Comic Con but only for Thursday or Friday, there's just not enough going on to keep you there for 3 days.  I hear there's a huge outdoor store outside SLC complete with an indoor shooting range and full sized Ferris wheel so that would be cool to check out.  Until then, America needs your help!

Con-Man: Salt Lake Comic Con Friday

After yesterday's infuriating experience in Salt Lake City for the con, I can happily report that Friday was much, much better.  Sure, our early entry was about 20 minutes late but honestly the floor wasn't that big and never got uncomfortably crowded.  Their exhibition floor reminded me of Long Beach Comic Con's, only bigger.  The Artist Alley was rocking with lots of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle, movie/TV and Groot art while exhibitors sold everything from toys to comics to Star Trek molded chocolate.  Strangely, there were a lot of weapons dealers on the floor.  You know, selling samurai swords, knives, throwing stars and the like?  I wanted to buy a pair of brass knuckles but not sure if I'd have enough time to mail them to myself since the TSA probably wouldn't appreciate them on the plane.  There was a spot for the chitlin's dubbed KidCon plus a surprising abundance of food vendors offering pizza, burgers, Cambodian food, sammiches and the like.  A ring showcased local wrestling as well as LARP'ing, Live Action Role Playing.  On the cosplay front, we noticed tons of women dressed as Loki but honestly not many men.  Also popular was women dressed as Mario and I saw more than a few Ash's from Army of Darkness as well as the most random cosplay fad of the last few years, Jack Frost from Dreamworks' Rise of the Guardians.  Swag wise it was a button, sticker and magnet filled day with Stallone, Dolph Lundgren, Michael Biehn, Race Bannon, The Rocketeer, Nick Fury and the Ninja Turtles items all joining my household.

I had to refrain from digging through comic boxes and half off graphic novels as we're hopping back on a plane but I am on the hunt for Captain America # 14 from the latest series when he returns from Dimension Z.  One of the first purchases of the day came from Cape and Cowl, a store located in my backyard in Orange County yet the one thing I bought from Seattle's Emerald City Comicon?  A Dutch action figure from Predator from these guys.  They always have a great selection and good prices so I'm happy to hand them some bucks.  The Celebrity signing area was hopping with the likes of James Hong, Ron Perlman, Hulk Hogan and Danny Glover courting fans.  With our $20 off a Photo Op burning a hole in my pocket, I decided we should get a serious family portrait with Lethal Weapon and Predator 2's Mr. Glover.  Unfortunately the Photo Op line was moving at a snail's pace, maybe tomorrow.  Upstairs with a great view of the exhibition floor was a transported arcade complete with Battle Toads, Spy Hunter and the holy grail of multi-player button smashing side scrollers, Captain America and The Avengers!  Like Final Fight, this simple punch'em up was one of my favorites as a kid and we quickly dumped several bucks into the machine.  I forgot how comic related the game was as you can choose between Cap, Iron Man, Hawkeye and The Vision while The Red Skull, The Grim Reaper, Whirlwind, The Mandarin, a Sentinel...I mean Giant Robot are among your adversaries.  Avengers regulars like The Wasp, Wonder Man and Namor the Submariner show up to help you out. I'm tempted to go at it again tomorrow with an Alexander Hamilton or Andrew Jackson and see who else turns up.

Panel wise the floor was kind of confusing and we spent a good 10 minutes wandering around looking for the ball room after Security just shrugged when we asked.  We only hit up two, both spotlights on actors, Alan Tudyk and Manu Bennett.  Even though we arrived nearly 30 minutes early, there was already a decent line and SLCC sells VIP tix, giving badge holders first entry and their line seemed plenty long as well.  Fortunately we got some decent seats and there were two large screens in the room for enhanced viewing.  Tudyk is a con regular and employed a panel style I've never seen, he brought question askers up to the stage to sit with him and then the two would each ask the other one question culminating with Tudyk handing them "some shit" from his bag of goodies.  It was mostly random stuff and swag like tee shirts, a harmonica from the lead singer of Blues Traveler, a CD, a pair of Prada sunglasses he never wore after Bridget Moynahan told him they didn't fit his face, etc.  It was a refreshing change of pace and Tudyk was quite the sport and showman, reciting lines from his work in Frozen, Firefly, Transformers 3 and regaling us with the story of how The Cosby Show and Thundercats' Earle Hyman told him to give up acting and go work for his father.  When Tudyk refused, Hyman then become a mentor to help prepare the then 19 year old. 

The room cleared out and we snagged some solid near front seats for Manu Bennett of Spartacus, The Hobbit and Arrow.  Bennett started things off on a surprisingly educational and cultural note by bringing out members of the Ute tribe, Salt Lake City's original settlers.  Bennett too is a regular on the con routine but came off very sincere and appreciative to be on stage.  Audience members lined up on both sides of the stage and Bennett took their questions, addressing and speaking directly to them which was a nice touch.  However, like Kevin Smith, Bennett is prone to answering a question with a story that prefaces another story so not many queries receive reply.  One just wanted a hug which Bennett graciously granted while discussing how he got involved with The Hobbit: another actor spent a year and a half in the role of Azog but Peter Jackson thought the prosthetic make up wasn't up to snuff and with 3 months before the premiere, made the decision to replace the role with a Motion Capture performance a la Andy Serkis' Gollum and Bennett, who had auditioned earlier, got the call.  Many questions were about Arrow and Bennett's portrayal of Slade Wilson aka Deathstroke and the darkness of the role.  Here, Bennett opened up to the crowd and shared that his mother and brother both died in car accidents at a young age and that his little brother literally died in his arms.  No fluffy, softball stuff for this guy, which is why I like him.  When a young woman shared that her mom died when she was 8, Bennett jumped down off the stage and gave her a big hug, telling her she's on her way as she showed her strength and honest heart by opening up in front of a crowd.  Now off the stage, Bennett took a seat in the front row to answer the next question.  Oh yeah, he's super yoked too and was wearing a skin tight shirt to show it. 

Having been at the show for nearly 9 hours, we decided to scram and find some dinner.  Luckily Squatters Craft Beers down the street was the total opposite of yesterday's disappointing cookie cutter Red Rock Brewery.  With a character rich décor and an excellent turkey burger on the menu, we took off in search of a Chase ATM but the app lied to me and we ended up strolling around a beautiful outdoor mall with several fountains.  Across the street was the Mormon Temple which has some gorgeous, castle looking structures in the middle of downtown.  Again, the centuries old architecture blends seamlessly with the modern design and along with the more noticeable foot traffic, Salt Lake City felt a bit more bustling today.

Con-Man: Salt Lake and the City of Lines

It's going to be an interesting month for me as trips to Seattle, Salt Lake City, Des Moines and Columbus for work and play have me hopping out of state 4 out of 5 weekends.  Today, we were off to Salt Lake City, Utah to attend a new show and see the city.  Unfortunately, today was a bit of a shit show.  Arriving in Salt Lake, the area seems big, open and well kept as the downtown is a harmonious mix of old brick buildings, houses and new age hotels and sky scrapers.  Beneath that up and coming veneer is a surprisingly quiet city with little foot traffic, homeless on every corner and some of the poorest organization skills I've ever seen.  We can start with the cabbie who didn't know where our hotel was and had to look at my phone instead of having his own GPS.  Then there was the generic Red Rock Brewery and restaurant that looked clean and modern enough but their rotisserie chicken was drier than one from Costco and the fries definitely not fresh from the fryer.  On the way in, there was a line outside the convention center and some fellow attendees at our hotel tiredly told us of having to wait in line for over an hour to get their tickets then another hour to get into the exhibition hall.  I'm well aware that SLCC had a huge first year attendance showing complete with fire marshal intervention but their FanX convention a few months later seemed to streamline their efforts for a smoother running show.

That was not the case today.  You see, SLCC is the best and worst of new age conventions.  Having more conventions is great.  But the rise of the dozens of Wizard Worlds and shows like Salt Lake raises major concerns for this con-goer as these shows are not about quality control, they're about bringing in crowds.  Then gouging them with different levels of pricing and paying for the opportunity to interact with their favorite actors and pop culture personalities.  There was a line for General Admission then a separate, shorter line for those who coughed up extra cash for Gold and VIP packages.  After an hour in line, the Gold/VIP crowd stopped dead in it's tracks.  Volunteers and Security had no idea what was happening and were getting increasingly defensive and sensitive.  It's not their fault, they're not in charge, so me being the Doer I am, set off to find some answers.  A Security guard had nothing for me, she suggested I look for a Team Lead, said leader couldn't quell my concerns so she went to find her manager.  Of course, being an asshole won't get you any further up the line so I simply said I knew he was busy but asked what was going on with the line because we weren't going to get into the exhibition floor with how many people were in front of us and I also didn't want the last 90 minutes to go to waste if they closed down the registration lines.  Said Manager was in the process of opening up 2 more lanes as there were only 4-5 people taking care of the Gold/VIP lines.

I don't know how SLCC didn't anticipate the crowd.  The inaugural show drew in 72,000 goers which was a record for a first year show and put them on the map.  A cease and desist letter from San Diego Comic Con only increased their awareness.  Their FanX show brought in over 100,000 attendees so I figured they would be prepared for this year but they totally weren't.  This is where SDCC shines, yes, there's long lines, but once they get moving, they fucking move.  I've never waited this long to get into the exhibition hall or to pick up tickets in San Diego.  There's dozens of employees to check you in compared to the 5 SLCC had on deck.  So if you're gonna talk shit against the big show and compare yourselves to them, try doing as they do to not piss off your core audience.  A guy behind us went into the General Admission line that wrapped around the building twice and ended up getting his tickets before we did in the shorter line that we paid extra to be in.  Their Twitter feed was full of complaints and while they apologized and are looking to make amends, I still can't understand how they didn't expect crowds and lines on the first day.  Whereas SDCC is a non-profit that caps attendance to give X amount of attendees the best show possible, SLCC is a for-profit company that wants as many people in the door as possible yet doesn't staff up to meet demand.  In the end it took over 2 hours to pick up our badges and we didn't even get into the show.  On the plus side, we met some cool people in line, two of whom were huge Optimus Prime fans but total opposites in regards to football to which I made the observation that sports drives people apart while popular culture brings them together.  So once again, F-you, sports!  Plus, the Gold ticket included a plethora of items like Bruce Campbell branded Con Cash, a discount on a photo op which I otherwise wouldn't even contemplate, a T-shirt, etc.

Afterwards, we walked to Wendy's where it was more lines as there must be something in the air here that no one is prepared as there was one cashier frantically and frustratingly trying to take then send orders off.  At one point she exclaimed she was still waiting for 8 sandwiches.  Are there no managers in the great Salt Lake?  Does no one want their day to run smoother?  I understand things run a little slower here than in Los Angeles but I doubt the locals like waiting in line at Wendy's either.  Although my Double, fries, Frosty and chicken nuggets came out in excellent time and of course, were delicious.

Let's hope Friday and early entry pans out or there's going to be fucking madness.

Con-Man: San Diego VS Salt Lake!

Always looking to add another Con to my badge collection, this September marks my first trip to Salt Lake Comic Con in Salt Lake City, Utah.  It's one of those new age shows where celebrities past and present are advertised to bring in autograph seekers willing to shell out big bucks for a signed glossy or photo with the actor/celeb and usually provide a decent exhibition floor and Artist Alley.  This past San Diego Comic-Con, I noticed advertising for SLCC around town in the form of wrapped cars and billboard trucks.  I thought that was kinda weird but also kinda smart as there's 100's of thousands of people in town for the show and Salt Lake is only a quick flight away.  SDCC didn't think it was so cool though as they slapped SLCC with a Cease and Desist order from using the name, Comic Con.  SLCC played victim and couldn't understand why a big show like San Diego was coming after them when so many other shows are called Comic Con from Long Beach to New York.  SDCC claims that the similar names and the fact that Salt Lake advertised in San Diego, during San Diego Comic Con is confusing goers who assume the two conventions are run by the same organizations.  SLCC continued to play victim and soaked up the extra awareness but their show didn't really need it as it already welcomed 70,000 attendees in it's first year.  Sister show FanXperience netted 100,000 attendees.

Comic-Con International is a Non-Profit organization dedicated to the creative arts and puts on San Diego Comic Con, Wonder Con and APE (Alternative Press Expo).  They work year round with a staff of full time employees and volunteers to put on the best shows possible.  San Diego has been going strong since 1970 when 100 fans gathered for a one day event and has now blossomed into a near week long extravaganza of comics, literature, art, movies, television and so much more with over 1,000 panels, concerts, exhibits, premieres and the like.  In 2007, tickets for Saturday sold out for the first time and since then it's been a mad dash to get in.  The convention center already at max capacity, CCI opted not to move out of San Diego for bigger digs but instead capped attendance at 130,000 and took over local hotels and locations.  So they could have made the cash grab and just sold as many tickets as possible, but they didn't.

Meanwhile, Salt Lake has only been going on for a couple of years and like fellow new age shows Comikaze in Los Angeles and New York Comic Con, has experienced tremendous growth.  SLCC is put on by Dan Farr Productions, a For-Profit organization and if attending Seattle's Emerald City Comicon taught me anything, a show that grows too fast doesn't necessary equal a better time.  Being spread across multiple floors of the center with a staff of untrained employees and volunteers made it one of the most frustrating shows I've ever attended.  Some might say San Diego feels threatened by Salt Lake's quick growth and while SDCC can't be too precious of it's name, it certainly can be of it's achievements.  SDCC has been in the trenches for 40 some years and learned what makes a good show.  They were doing it when comics weren't mainstream, conventions were equated to socially awkward men with no lady friends and all of that other bullshit that comes with being a comics and pop culture fan.  Instead of playing victim maybe Salt Lake should just say thank you to San Diego for showing them how it's done and go on about putting on their version.

SDCC is huge.  As in, takes over most of the surrounding area huge.  Hotels, downtown, even the frigging baseball stadium.  Movie stars fly in just for the night huge.  It's crazy, it's crowded but it's Con.  It's awesome.  SLCC might pack in an extra 10,000 attendees this year but I doubt it's going to spill out much past the convention center.  Will studios rent out space to hock their latest at free offsite events?  Doubtful.  Was there ever any discussion to capping attendance to ensure a great, smooth running show in Salt Lake?  Probably not.  And for anyone who thinks attendance equates quality, you're sorely mistaken.  Remember when I said SDCC has over 1,000 panels?  SLCC is probably going to top out at 300.  Remember how I said Salt Lake is one of those shows built on celebrities signing for $30-50 bucks?  Those same stars go to San Diego and sign for free.  I personally think San Diego has nothing to worry about and more shows is always better than less so I'm glad they can co-exist.  But there's only one show that goes by Comic Con and it ain't in Utah.

(Pre)Con-Man: Salt Lake Comic Con

Clicking around the ol' interwebs I came across the first guest announcement for Salt Lake Comic Con 2014 in Salt Lake City, Utah.  Back to the Future's Christopher Lloyd, Ghostbusters' Ernie Hudson and Brisco County, Jr. himself Bruce Campbell will anchor the show which debuted last year.  Apparently it was a big frigging deal too as it became the most attended first year convention in history with some 72,000 attendees showing up causing the Fire Marshall to only allow one entrant per one departure.  Their next show, the Salt Lake Comic Con FanX event drew 100,000 goers and received some heavy support via Governor Gary Herbert declaring a holiday in honor of the convention.  Their Facebook page has 95,000+ Likes making it the most popular Utah based page on the social network.

Salt Lake Comic Con seems to be a perfect example of the new breed of conventions, shows based around celebrity talent and selling autographs.  From there you can plan spotlights and reunion panels for said celebs along with any well known artists and writers in addition to the exhibition floor hocking comics, art and swag as well as Artist Alley where you can pick up sketches, buttons and all that good stuff.  Tickets are pretty reasonable with $60 bucks scoring you all 3 days of the show plus early entry to the floor and panels AND a free t-shirt!  2013's guest list included the likes of Adrian Paul, Burt Ward, Dean Cain, Henry Winkler?!, Manu Bennett, Scott Campbell and Stan Lee.  Last year's programming was a nice offering with panels on Anime, Fantasy Films, Cosplay, Copyright Law, JRR Tolkien, Harry Potter, Sci-Fi Dating, writing, directing and much more.  After 2013's stellar success, I can only imagine even bigger names showing up this year.  But surging attendance comes with massive growing pains as we witnessed at Seattle's Emerald City Comicon where the show took over the segmented convention center with some areas not easily accessible and a staff of unprepared volunteers who didn't know where to direct traffic.

But shows like Salt Lake are great because they're big enough with plenty of attractions to keep you busy but nothing unmissable so you can come and go as you please then go see the city a bit.  I've only spent enough time in Salt Lake to land, rent a car and drive to Park City so I'll be ready to take in some history and culture like the Olympic Park and Natural History Museum.  Since it's not until September there's still plenty of time to find the best Gotta Eat! and Drank! spots around.

Celebs, cosplay and celebrating: