I’ll be going to ECCC on Saturday, and I heard that Felicia’s Day’s gonna be there! Finally! She’ll be the first MST3K cast member I’ll ever meet in person!!!
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And you’re in here asking us what the first thing you say to her should be?
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
It should be something with panache, savoir-faire, and nonchalance. But, how much moxie? How… much… moxie… Guess you’ll have to play it by ear. Just don’t forget to curtsey.
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Just got back. And… as it turns out, maybe ECCC wasn’t worth going. And the fact that meeting Kinga was too expensive, so I’m all out of luck. So… my honest opinion on Emerald City Comic-Con?
From now on, maybe I’ll just stick with Sakura-Con, as it has way more entertaining stuff.
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You can save up all that curtseying practice you did for the next one.
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What do you mean it was too expensive?
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that’s disappointing. i haven’t been to ECCC in years but last i went it had a lot of great panels, artists, and lego displays so i felt like i got my money’s worth. i actually saw a panel with felicia and will wheaton, i remember her being a good interviewer.
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As a former staff member of Sakura-Con, glad to hear some are still excited by it.
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I took my daughter to the Indianapolis Comic-Con and it was her first con. She absolutely loved all the cosplay. They also had a free classic video arcade that she enjoyed.
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We have a similar mega-con nearby (“Comicpalooza”). A lot of people are into the celebrity autographs and photo opportunities (at an extra $60-$150 each). I’m supportively glad they enjoy that, but it’s not really my thing.
In recent years the guests, artists, panels, etcetera haven’t much aligned with my interests (“fandoms”?). The rest seemed like I had seen and done it all before, and friends similarly lost interest. I would likely attend again for an MST3K panel and booth, even if small and/or just Shout Factory staff. Also, people notice the “merch”. Wearing my Live Tour “T” got me some admiring greetings and conversations.
FWIW Some of my favorite webcomic artists attend Emerald City Comic-Con almost every year. Unfortunately it’s such a cross-country excursion that I’ll probably never attend.
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Might be showing my age here, but I grew up attending/working fan-run cons with attendances between 500-5K people at most. I feel like most of the cons today are more akin to trade shows, and you’re paying money to get into the building to spend more money. Or stand in panel/autograph lines for hours. And spend more money.
Don’t get me wrong, these cons have their place and I’ve had some good experiences - I’ve met Matt Smith, Steve Whitmire, and our own Jonah Ray at these cons - but they’re a far cry from what I consider a fun convention.
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The autographs and photo-ops, which I didn’t want to pay for, stopped me from meeting her, so I just gave up. All I wanted to do was say hello to her, and give my 2 fanarts to her as gifts.
I was also gonna meet Cristina Vee (Shantae) and do the exact same thing, but nope. I guess meeting guests at ECCC are too expensive for me.
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Comic Cons are great if you’re looking to see panels or hang around in Artist Alley, but unless you’re going to something small press like FlameCon or SPX or a convention affiliated with a nonprofit like CXC or Toronto Comic Arts Festival, there’s a paywall?
Even without COVID being a thing, I don’t know if I’d go back to NYCC? Too crowded, both vendors & cartoonists have reported getting raw deals, and all the opportunities to interact with celebrities are monetized to what the market will allow, and from the sounds of things beyond that.
I’m sorry this happened! That sucks. Was checking to see if there’s a small press comics con by you, and there is Short Run in November, and they list others in their resources. Might be more fun.
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Wait, you have to pay just to stand in line and say hi? I understand (but disagree with) paying for an autograph, but just to walk up to them and say, “here, I made this for you,” costs money?
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I guess that’s what the staff and my dad told me.
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That’s crazy.
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These fan events now are huge. 10,000-15,000 people at the low end. These are not like the cons I attended back in the early 1990s where there might have been 1000 people total and we filled a couple of big ballrooms in a hotel. The events these days are in convention centers. And they aren’t local anymore with maybe two or three celebrities either.
The conventions are put on by big companies with fifteen or twenty celebrities at one event. I’m not sure how much of the meet and greet or autograph fees the talent actually receives now, but that’s why it’s $50 to get in the door, and then another $50-$75 for a meet and greet ticket, and then another $30-$40 for an autograph ticket.
Organisers saw how successful something like Comic Con in San Diego became in the mid-2000s and the whole flavor of conventions changed. As @LadyStarblade said up thread, they are much more like trade shows these days than events where fans get together and celebrate their favorite show.
There are a few smaller cons still around. Doctor Who has a few, Stargate still has one in Vancouver every year or so, but those single-fandom kinds of events are rare these days.
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I always wanted to go to Moosefest, an event for Northern Exposure fans in Roslyn, WA. I’m guessing it’s a small con.
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I think the story goes that some big scifi convention many years ago started paying celebrities to show up and now they don’t unless they’re getting the chedda.
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I’d never heard of this one. Northern Exposure was a fun show. I really liked it.
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I’m on a break from a rewatch but I’m enjoying it.
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