The Fellowship attended Dallas Comic Con at the Irving
Convention Center this past weekend. Media celebrities included Patrick
Stewart, Adam West, Summer Glau, and Kevin Conroy. Among the comic creators were Stan Lee, Neal
Adams, George Perez, and Norm Breyfogle.
The convention celebrated its 10th anniversary
and I’ve been to most of them. However, this was my first Comic Con as a member
of the media. I have never had a bad experience at these events. Sure, there
are bumps, problems and such, but I have never heard of or been to one that
EVERYTHING went perfect. Frankly, most of the problems at this convention were
because there were SO many people there. I have heard estimates of 20,000
people attended this weekend.
THE PROS
- I was treated nicely from everybody (the exception would be some fellow convention goers and even then it was a small number). The artists and celebrities (and dealers) seemed to be happy and were grateful that fans were there to see them.
- I heard the complaints, but I have never encountered a rude volunteer worker. It could be that I was nice to them first, but that’s just my assumption.
- The Q&A Room was nice and had a lot of room. There were complaints about the room being small, but my Fellowship partner Les said that it was about 2/3 the size of the main room at San Diego Convention Center.
THE CONS
- The only problem I had with the volunteers was not rudeness, but just not knowing. Going up and asking them a question can sometimes be dicey. It can be discouraging to hear one thing from one person and be told something else from another. I know there were problems with the lines. That can be corrected.
- Up until this convention, it wasn’t a problem: concession stands in the dealer’s room. It was hard to see what the dealers had because you are fighting the line of people trying to get something to eat. That is not really Comic-Con’s fault.
- The lighting in the Q&A room was not great. Unless you are a VIP or have a professional camera (no to both for us) it was pointless to take photos because they came out too dark. And for the record, we told them we were media and wanted to take pictures. We were told to sit at the back. (This might also tie into con #1).
- Last May (2011), there was a man going around the dealer room selling water and soda. You may not have seen him, but between his yelling and the sound of the cooler on wheels he was pushing you could hear him. No one was doing that this time. However, with all the convention attendees there, he would have had a rough time running around like that.
 |
| Irving Convention Center Courtesy Dallas Comic Con |
- I am hearing pleas of moving to a new location. This was their fourth show at the new location. They probably can't move right now, so we'll have to work out the kinks here.
- Some people are concerned that the organizers want to make this another San Diego Comic-Con…and that’s a bad thing? I’m seeing people I would never have the opportunity to meet unless I went to either coasts…and they are in MY BACKYARD! The tradeoff with having the star power means more people attend (as this weekend showed).
- Adding a third day to the convention - I had noticed earlier this year that October’s show will be Friday through Sunday. The tentative schedule for the next two years lists three-day shows as well. They were already working on it.
- The issue with VIP Badges - I’ve heard the stories, but don’t really know what was going on there. I had media credentials and was treated like General Admission, which for the most part as not an issue outside of the Q&A (see con #3). Again, it will be addressed.
As I said before, nothing is perfect and as long as humans are involved, there will be problems.
To my fellow convention goers, try to be understanding and reasonable. It is the intention of the convention organizers for everyone to have a good time. They will do everything they can to improve what didn’t work this time and keep what DID work.
The next convention is FAN DAYS, October 19-21. For more information, go to http://www.scifiexpo.com.
To my fellow convention goers, try to be understanding and reasonable. It is the intention of the convention organizers for everyone to have a good time. They will do everything they can to improve what didn’t work this time and keep what DID work.
The next convention is FAN DAYS, October 19-21. For more information, go to http://www.scifiexpo.com.
