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So I'd never really been into the idea of going to comic cons or anything but now that my partner is selling stuff at them I'm keen to go with her and do all that con-life stuff. From behind a table I guess because I won't get huge amounts of time to experience it all but hey I'll nip out at times I'm sure.
So, anyone who has been to cons and whatever... how did you like them? Anything you particularly like or dislike about them? Any special memories? Met some famous people? Do tell!
I dunno I get bored kinda quick? I don't know if that's because the ones in the Glasgow area aren't... fantastic, and the things they put on aren't great either, or whether I'm just not into it as much as some people are. But, it's fun for a while, but once I'm done enjoying myself, I gotta get outta there.
She's smurfing amazing, I'll have you know, and I'm goddam proud of her. If you want to know how much she makes me happy I can PM you Jinx. But what about cons?
I haven't been to one but there's a pretty large one that happens in dallas i've debated on. I want to go to the panels with all the actors and creators!
They're okay. Jinx's nerdy flea market description is apt, though add in a few random celebs (the bigger the con, the bigger the celeb. I went to London Comic Con and saw Daniel Radcliffe for example) and a few new game demo areas. Add in some cosplayers and expensive food and you're about there. It's an experience worth having for sure, but not something I'd make a habit of going to. I'd definitely only go to the bigger cons.
Wait, I've been to blizzcon xD I forget that it's a con just not in the same sense as other cons.
Blizzcon is smurfing awesome. But probably better than just your more local con because all the vendors and stuff is vetted through blizzard and everything is very specific in theme. PLus they have championships and stuff going on. It's a lot of fun.
They had ten GoT actors at a recent London con. The brand of con dictates way more than the size in my experience. That same con had Benedict, Mads, and a bunch of others I can't recall off the top of my head. The same brand got Gimli amongst others to appear at the upcoming Bournemouth con. smurfing Bournemouth. But they're all on weekends we're busy. The cons we're selling at will have a few power rangers and some 60s actors like the dude who played Flash, and the voice actor for Ash. I think that's it so far for MCM Scotland xD But at least that makes it easier to stick to selling without distractions.
Hyper Japan seems a bit more interesting than the MCM stuff because they have a massive theme going on but it'll be in the docks in London for three days. Other traders have advised to bring very, very warm clothing and thermos... Eek. xD
They know more than I do but that wasn't my experience - I assume you're doing the October one and that's the one I did. The queue outside took forever to get in and that was obviously cold, although I would guess traders don't have to get involved in that, but once inside it was absolutely sweltering. And sweaty. The ExCel Centre is one of London's main exhibition centres so the facilities are definitely up to scratch, just be careful of the food because they really smurfing bleed you dry for it. I can't remember exactly how much it is, as I didn't eat there when I went to Comic Con. I had been to the venue before for a work conference and so just claimed expenses on it, but I feel like it was something like £12 for a generic burger and fries.Quote:
Originally Posted by Loony BoB
It is indeed winter, Jinx. It's really hit and miss.
Showmasters London final guest list: http://www.londonfilmandcomiccon.com....php/allguests - 95,000 footfall
Showmasters Birmingham final guest list: http://www.filmandcomicconbirmingham...collectormania
Showmasters Bournemouth guest list so far (it's in late August): http://www.showmastersevents.com/bournemouth/
MCM Manchester final guest list: http://www.mcmcomiccon.com/mancheste...pecial-guests/ - 40,000 footfall
MCM London guest list so far (it's in October): http://www.mcmcomiccon.com/london/at...pecial-guests/ - 133,000 footfall
MCM Scotland guest list so far (it's in September): http://www.mcmcomiccon.com/scotland/...pecial-guests/ - 30,000 footfall
I can't wait to do a Showmasters con >_> They may be smaller in footfall so not as good for selling... but man those guest lists. D:
Equally I'm really keen to at least visit some of the gaming-focused cons. You can literally hire in-the-venue tent-space with a BYOC LAN party thing going on at Insomnia. Neat.
Sounds like the summer one to be honest. The last two years of Hyper Japan at Christmas have been at the Tobacco Docks and they are predominantly outside, and I'm told inside is "warmer, but still wear warm clothing". I think they said they use Olympia or Excel for the summer events?Quote:
Originally Posted by PsychoticThey know more than I do but that wasn't my experience - I assume you're doing the October one and that's the one I did. The queue outside took forever to get in and that was obviously cold, although I would guess traders don't have to get involved in that, but once inside it was absolutely sweltering. And sweaty. The ExCel Centre is one of London's main exhibition centres so the facilities are definitely up to scratch, just be careful of the food because they really smurfing bleed you dry for it. I can't remember exactly how much it is, as I didn't eat there when I went to Comic Con. I had been to the venue before for a work conference and so just claimed expenses on it, but I feel like it was something like £12 for a generic burger and fries.Quote:
Originally Posted by Loony BoB
And yeah I've been told to bring my own food to Hyper Japan. More so because of the 30 minute queues... xD
Oh, I was talking MCM not Hyper Japan. My bad.
Ah, right! Should be... interesting. :shifty:
They started doing a con in Cardiff about four years ago, they put one on every 6 months. I went to the first couple because they had excellent guests - Lance Henriksen, Robert Englund, Christopher Judge, Brian Blessed, John Rhys-Davies, The Hoff, among others.
Now I don't know if the guests made like, no money or something but since those first two the guests have been awful. A few extras and extremely minor characters from GoT and Harry Potter mostly. I think even if there were some decent actors I'm over paying 20-40 quid to queue for an hour just to get an autograph, I was just dazzled by meeting famous people the first time round.
As for the stands and stuff, I think Jinx said it best in that it's just looking at lots of cool stuff you can't afford, and even then it gets dull after about 20 minutes. Guess it's just not my thing.
As you know, I used to work for NZ's major con, probably for about six years? I'd gone a couple of times prior to that and I always thought they were fun - running around hyped up on sugar, scamming free stuff, gawking at cosplayers, trading stories with the celebs I'd been paired up with that day (Ernie Hudson, Billy West, Summer Glau, John Rhys Davies, Dean Haglund, Clare Kramer, etc. etc.).
Spuuky and I have only been to one con in the states, and it was a small zombie themed one, and we pretty much just went because I wanted to see Bruce Campbell. I still regret that we (much like every other attendant at the con) walked past a couple of guys at a booth by themselves...that months later we would know as Glenn and Daryl xDDD
Cons are great for people watching, there's always a competition or a gaming demo or something else going on. However, having almost only attended as a staff member, I'm sure I'd be uppity about having to queue for things and pay for things as a common person, now. I've been thinking a bit recently about trying to go to some kind of con for my workplace, or trying to create a small one for my workplace. If you get too bored you could always claim half of your partner's booth as an EoFF table, I guess?
I'd like to attend one sometime, but I have nobody to come along and it wouldn't be any fun alone. Old Power Rangers are in town pretty often (Adam, Zack, and Tommy seem to be regulars) and it would be kind of cool to meet one of them. Lou Ferrigno was here not long ago as well.
I went to MCM in London about 10 years ago, possibly more. It was pretty much just a nerdy flea market as Jinx described. Although they seem to have upped their game in recent years and tend to have things like discussion panels, cosplay contest etc so it's more in-line with some of the bigger US cons now.
Smaller cons are just pretty much nerdy flea markets. Bigger cons are an insane crush of people. Then there's something like gamescom in Cologne which is just insane levels of magnitude of people.
I actually help run the local con here, a modest 5000 or so usually attends. It's a lot of fun if you're into a lot of the more social events but unless you're a huge extrovert, deeply into the subject matter, a cosplayer, or wanna buy stuff it might not be for everyone.
I attended a FanExpo and pretty much went everywhere David Hayter went, including having him sign an old-school Foxhound t-shirt and watching a live reading of the original Ghostbusters. It was a panel of people (forget their names, but the guys who play Pinky/Brain/Goofy/Daffy/One-Piece main dude), and they'd switch voices every scene. It was smurfing awesome.
I forget his name, but the guy that voices Pinky is the same who does Yakko Warner and to this day he can apparently recite "The Nations of the World" by memory. There are videos of him doing it on the fly when asked during Q&As and it's awesome.Quote:
Originally Posted by Doomie
I love conventions. Been to almost any type you can image, from SDCC, all the way down to local ones. Was at Otakon last weekend. Meeting new people with similar hobbies is always fun, especially if you can find a group to join that's cosplaying the same way. Sometimes, the panels are even decent, but mostly, it's just about hanging out and peoplewatching.