Austin ComicCon 2012

If Toys R Us is where a kid can be a kid then ComicCon is where a Geek can be a Geek.  Men, women, boys, girls, nerds, and geeks come out of the proverbial basement and can be themselves. This is where dressing up as an Anime or your favorite Sci-Fi character is not only acceptable but also encouraged.

This was my second year going to the Austin ComicCon and it has grown from the first outing. More costumes, more vendors, more celebrities. We went this year because the entire cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation (minus Denise Crosby) were going to attend.

The Austin ComicCon is held at the Austin Convention Center.  It's a freaking huge building and in the middle of downtown.  That right there is when the Robot starts flailing its arms and bleating "Danger! Will Robinson, Danger!" Unless you get there early, have a compact car, or ride public transportation you can expect a hike.

With the advent of the internet we didn't have to stand in line to purchase tickets. From the website all we had to do was tap  in the digits from a credit card and a little magic with our printer and our 1 day tickets were purchased and printed. With a sheet of paper we walked to the counter, got our wrist bands, and in we go. Then the spectacle began.

I saw Steampunk, Star Trek, and Star Wars costumes immediately. If you are normally shy you can be someone else and no one will know the difference. Some were really well done, some not so much. It doesn’t matter. It’s freaking ComicCon. There were vendors selling comic books, trinkets, action figures, T-shirts, toys, posters, paintings. If it is geeky and you can put a price tag on it then it was probably there.

Camera flashes kept going off as people were taking pictures. I snapped quite a few myself.

I was afraid that we had missed seeing the cast of TNG.  Luckily we just had to wait a little while longer. Levarr Burton was the first we saw. Then booths for the other cast members began to open up, lines began to queue, and slowly the rest of the cast showed up.  We thought about shaking hands with various cast members but being flat broke could not afford the $25 to $120 it would take.  All the cast was full of smiles and genuinely seemed to enjoy the adoration given by the fans. Or maybe they are that good of actors and put their best face forward. Poor Will Wheaton apparently picked up a bug and was late to show up but he looked pleasant and happy. That also might have been whatever meds he had slammed before heading on stage.

There were other celebrities there. Dean Cane of The Adventures of Lois and Superman fame. Eliza Dushku of Buffy infamy. There was even a schmuk from Jersey Shore there.

We got to see the 501^st Legion, a Star Wars group that dress up in movie replica costumes and help with charity.  Walker was able to get some pictures taken with them. They were very friendly and eager to have their pictures taken. I saw Members of SG1, Ghostbusters, and various homemade undead and horror costumes.

While I enjoyed seeing the celebrities the real stars of ComicCon are the fans. Those folks who buy or make their costumes and put it all out there for everyone to see. I saw Storm Shadow and Snake Eyes. I saw Federation officers from several different eras. I saw Inspector Gadget with the helicopter hat. We passed a family of Klingons. I saw girls dressed as scantily clad warrioresses, plenty of steampunk costumes (which I plan steal – I mean borrow – for next time). There were poor children dressed up as their parents favorite things and had no idea what was going on. Rarely did I see a frown and plenty of smiles to go around.

We did not plan this ComicCon very well. Next time we are going to plan out different panels to go to and maybe even try to meet a celebrity or two.  Finding a parking spot was a bitch and a half, so we’ll either take the light rail or get there earlier. Despite these things I had a blast and it was good to see so many people who I grew up watching.

Once I figure out how to post pictures here I will. Enjoy!