Friday, October 28, 2016

This is why I shouldn't try to have fun


Cap Wolf

Today did not work out at all.

Several months ago, when I assumed UT Football would be great and I'd want to be home on a Saturday to watch the game, and back then when I assumed the Cubs would not be in the World Series, I purchased a ticket to the Alamo City Comic Con.  Just for one day - today.  So, I took the day off and drove to San Antonio for comics shenanigans.

Straight up, I don't know why I do these things.  Mostly, I find them depressing, but I show up every three years to a Comic-Con as some sort of mildly expensive reminder that this thing is not my bag.

I had to make it a short day of it if I wanted to go to SA and back AND watch the World Series, but I've yet to be at a Con in Texas where 3 hours wasn't way more than enough (what people do with a 3-day pass, I will never know.  Stand around looking a little peaked in your Ranma 1/2 cosplay by day 3, I'd guess).

What got me off my butt and to The Alamo City in the first place was the fact that Margot Kidder was scheduled as a guest, to appear all three days and, really, she's one of the very few people I'd be pretty excited to meet at this point in my life.

So, you will notice there are no pictures of Margot Kidder in this post, and that's because she never showed up while I was there and before I realized I didn't want to spend any more money, and so I gave up - the entire enterprise leaving me, once again, wondering what it is, exactly, I am doing with my life.

Other thoughts:

  • I was reminded of the not-so-cheap price of admission for just walking in the door.  I mean, it's a bit like paying to walk into a mall.  
  • There's no parking anywhere near the convention center that isn't $15 or more.  
  • Going to the comics booths themselves is an exercise in wading into someone's awkward upselling techniques where you go from "yeah, I'm looking for older Superman comics" to handling a $1700 copy of Superman #9 and wondering if this person thought you just smelled like gold or diamonds or something
  • I went by myself, which is kind of... well, I recommend you attend these things with someone you know, or there's a lot of standing around kind of staring into space.
  • I have no idea what about 50% of the kids are dressed as.  
  • It's a family affair, which is nice.  Lots of group family costumes or parents toting dressed up kids.  

On the plus side, I briefly shook hands with Marv Wolfman and he signed a print.  So, I got that going for me.  I was also just told I am moving to an office with more wallspace, so I'm not sure if that's going to work with me or finding wallspace in the Fortress of Nerditude.

So, here's some pictures of (a) people who I knew what they were supposed to be, (b) the Cosplayer was holding still or not indisposed and (c) I found entertaining.


Agent Carter

Avengers and... I dunno.  Is it a YuGiOh or something?

Casey Jones represent

Elektra!

Jokers!

Luke Cage!

Jesse Custer

Super-Pups!  This guy was non-plussed by my interest in his dogs.

Supergirl!

Wednesday Addams

This filled me with delight

1 comment:

Stuart said...

Yeah, the couple of times I've tried to attend a fan event alone have not been great. But as long as Don Rosa keeps coming to Kansas City every year, I can't very well NOT go and get another personalized sketch.

I have no idea who an increasing number of people are supposed to be either.