Getting Good, Finally, At Comic Con
This article was originally published on Oct. 23, 2014, in Compass, published by The Lakeville Journal Co.
By Darryl Gangloff
Since its debut in 2006, New York Comic Con (NYCC) has become a pop culture behemoth, filling the Jacob K. Javits Center in Manhattan with fans (many dressed in colorful costumes) searching for the latest collectibles and news surrounding their favorite comics, games, movies and television shows.
That inaugural show eight years ago drew around 33,000 people, and attendance has spiked every year. This year’s convention, which was held over four days from Oct. 9 to 12, attracted 151,000 fans — a new record for NYCC.
Kayla, my wife, and I were two of those fans. Due to this sold-out crowd, we made a tough decision as we entered the convention center: we vowed to wait no more than 15 minutes in line for anything. When we attended NYCC last year, we made the mistake of waiting almost three hours to get a signature from a celebrity. So this year, we strictly enforced our “maximal waiting” rule. We missed out on some interesting panels — I would have loved to have been in the audience for “The Walking Dead” panel, which featured cast members of the TV show — but it was worth it to walk around the convention at our leisure, without being glued to the schedule in our thick program.
We were immediately drawn to DC Entertainment’s booth honoring the 75th anniversary of Batman. On display were the costumes worn by various actors in the films. The biggest draw for me, however, was the cape and cowl that Ben Affleck will wear as the Dark Knight in the upcoming film, “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.” We also picked up a book of the new Batman stamps that the U.S. Postal Service released on Oct. 9. I never expected to walk around NYCC carrying a USPS bag.
We then made our way to Artist Alley, where comic book artists had booths set up to sell their work. We had some of our comics signed by Tim Seeley, the writer and co-creator of Image Comics’ “Revival,” and Ant Lucia, who created a series of pinup-inspired covers for DC Comics. And we only waited for about five minutes total to meet them, falling well within our 15-minute rule.
Then it was time to wander the show floor, where vendors were selling everything you could imagine. We attended the event over the course of two days, and it still wasn’t enough time to see it all. We stared longingly at replica movie props and statues from “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy; we bought artwork depicting “Guardians of the Galaxy,” BBC’s “Sherlock” and “The X-Files”; we picked up video game memorabilia for “Bioshock Infinite” and “Animal Crossing”; and, of course, we purchased an NYCC exclusive figurine of Peter Capaldi’s Twelfth Doctor from “Doctor Who.”
Without rushing around to panels, we had the time to flip through seemingly infinite boxes of comics. We were on a mission to find issues of “Little Lotta” from the 1960s and 1970s for Kayla’s mother, but had no luck. Regardless, it was fun to browse through Golden Age comics from the 1930s to the 1950s.
This was my fourth trip to New York Comic Con, and it was the first time I didn’t let a schedule dictate my weekend. It was a refreshing change of pace. NYCC can be a different experience for everyone, whether you’re focused on panels, costumes, anime, sci-fi, fantasy or comics. Whichever fandom you follow, I highly recommend attending the convention. See you next year!
By Darryl Gangloff
Since its debut in 2006, New York Comic Con (NYCC) has become a pop culture behemoth, filling the Jacob K. Javits Center in Manhattan with fans (many dressed in colorful costumes) searching for the latest collectibles and news surrounding their favorite comics, games, movies and television shows.
That inaugural show eight years ago drew around 33,000 people, and attendance has spiked every year. This year’s convention, which was held over four days from Oct. 9 to 12, attracted 151,000 fans — a new record for NYCC.
Kayla, my wife, and I were two of those fans. Due to this sold-out crowd, we made a tough decision as we entered the convention center: we vowed to wait no more than 15 minutes in line for anything. When we attended NYCC last year, we made the mistake of waiting almost three hours to get a signature from a celebrity. So this year, we strictly enforced our “maximal waiting” rule. We missed out on some interesting panels — I would have loved to have been in the audience for “The Walking Dead” panel, which featured cast members of the TV show — but it was worth it to walk around the convention at our leisure, without being glued to the schedule in our thick program.
We were immediately drawn to DC Entertainment’s booth honoring the 75th anniversary of Batman. On display were the costumes worn by various actors in the films. The biggest draw for me, however, was the cape and cowl that Ben Affleck will wear as the Dark Knight in the upcoming film, “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.” We also picked up a book of the new Batman stamps that the U.S. Postal Service released on Oct. 9. I never expected to walk around NYCC carrying a USPS bag.
We then made our way to Artist Alley, where comic book artists had booths set up to sell their work. We had some of our comics signed by Tim Seeley, the writer and co-creator of Image Comics’ “Revival,” and Ant Lucia, who created a series of pinup-inspired covers for DC Comics. And we only waited for about five minutes total to meet them, falling well within our 15-minute rule.
Then it was time to wander the show floor, where vendors were selling everything you could imagine. We attended the event over the course of two days, and it still wasn’t enough time to see it all. We stared longingly at replica movie props and statues from “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy; we bought artwork depicting “Guardians of the Galaxy,” BBC’s “Sherlock” and “The X-Files”; we picked up video game memorabilia for “Bioshock Infinite” and “Animal Crossing”; and, of course, we purchased an NYCC exclusive figurine of Peter Capaldi’s Twelfth Doctor from “Doctor Who.”
Without rushing around to panels, we had the time to flip through seemingly infinite boxes of comics. We were on a mission to find issues of “Little Lotta” from the 1960s and 1970s for Kayla’s mother, but had no luck. Regardless, it was fun to browse through Golden Age comics from the 1930s to the 1950s.
This was my fourth trip to New York Comic Con, and it was the first time I didn’t let a schedule dictate my weekend. It was a refreshing change of pace. NYCC can be a different experience for everyone, whether you’re focused on panels, costumes, anime, sci-fi, fantasy or comics. Whichever fandom you follow, I highly recommend attending the convention. See you next year!