Dallas Comic Con 2013: Day 3

Ah yes, the FINAL day of con. Packing the room. Triple checking to make sure we haven't left anything behind. And then checking again. Packing the car with almost twice as much stuff as we arrived with. Side note: the new Prius is pretty damn spacious in the rear (GET YOUR MIND OUT OF THE GUTTER...wait...that was mine. Sorry. Carry on.) and held everything with only a little rearranging. Car Tetris FTW!  Anyway, we get to the Expo Center and are really surprised to see where they have the VIP's lining up. There's this mass of people corralled off where we normally line up. Who are they? They are the Sunday Only passes and three day General Admission.  After a very short time, THEY WERE ALL THEY UP THE PARKING STRUCTURE RAMP. Remember I said our little convention had grown a lot? Yeah...a LOT. It was pretty thrilling to see.  The picture doesn't do it justice. But WOW.

We spent the majority of day three wrapping up last minute shopping and signatures real quick before the big crowd made its way inside. Then we settled into the panel room to listen to The Next Generation Q&A followed by Adam Baldwin. Both of these panels were a blast. 

It is clear that Brent Spiner and Lavar Burton have a great working relationship. In something as simple as a convention Q&A, they played off each other and joked and just gave a great show in general. The first thing the crowd had to do was torture Lavar Burton with the Reading Rainbow theme song. Off key, loud and boisterous....it was magical. Really. It was. At one point someone asked Lavar a question and, after his response, an audience member said, "But you don't have to take my word for it." If you didn't watch Reading Rainbow, that was his tagline and how he closed out the show. He uses the acronym BYDHTTMWFI on his Twitter feed frequently. In response, Lavar leaned back, crossed his arms, and said "Well played, sir. Well played." Gates McFadden told some really great stories about working with Marina Sirtas and the rest of The Next Generation cast. Again, it's always entertaining to sit in on these panels and hear from people we have admired from our living rooms and theater seats. In those moments, they become real people to us. More than their characters and, thereby, more beloved to the fans. 

Our final event for the con was the Adam Baldwin Q&A. Now, we have seen Adam at various events and it never gets old. I may have mentioned this, but for the last few events in Dallas with any member of the Firefly cast, we have developed a habit/tradition of calling and leaving a raucous, loud and all around Texas sized voice mail on Nathan Fillion's phone. As you may also know, Nathan was supposed to attend this year's Dallas Comic Con and was unable to due to illness (eye infection). Adam was nice enough to call but Nathan didn't answer. So, Adam texted him. It was a few minutes, but, low and behold, Nathan CALLED BACK. We got to hear from the man himself about how nasty his eye infection is. And I know that Minion got the majority of the conversation on video. I will have to make sure uploads it to her YouTube Channel and I will let you all know when it is up. Its absolutely worth the trip on over to YouTube because there is no way I can do it justice here.  

And that sums up our trip to Dallas Comic Con 2013. It was, as always, a blast. And we will be heading back to Dallas in October for Fan Days. If you want to attend a convention but want to start kind of small, the Dallas conventions are the way to go. Obviously that last statement was biased toward Southerners but what are ya gonna do? We will also be attending Dragon*Con in August and are working on making it out to San Diego as soon as humanly possible. With any luck (and a lot of hard work) and the support of the community, I hope to eventually be a guest at one of these conventions myself. Having Minion around has certainly been a help keeping me on track. Now I have someone to answer to if I don't do my work. Speaking of...hope you enjoy the new cartoon!  It's a multi part run and based on Minion's life. 

-Nerdy Goth

Dallas Comic Con 2013: DAY 2

Now, you have to understand that the first day of pretty much any 3-4 day convention is the calm day. The second day is the day that all the locals come out. This is especially true if the convention opens on Friday when people (who aren't as dedicated or insane as some of us) have to work. Saturday. THAT'S the big day!  This was just as true for our darling Dallas Comic Con as it is for the big brother con, Dragon*Con in Atlanta.

We woke up early knowing that there was a special deal going on with John Romita Jr and limited edition Kick Ass 2 posters all signed and shit.  FH was taken to the Expo center to wait in line while the rest of us got geared up. His costume (Captain Hammer) was the least complicated to put on thus his relegation to place holder. Note: when holding a spot in line for your group, don't ask if it is okay for them to hop in once they get there. Better to ask forgiveness than permission, kids. Well, FH didn't know this and ASKED. Guess who had to stand all by himself? yep.

Anyway, we were informed of this quandary and had to make the snap decision to flee the hotel half prepared and get a decent place in line. Why? It was Saturday. Even the VIP line was going to fill up very quickly and we knew this from last year. So, with most of our costumes on and ready to go, we loaded up in the Prius and headed to the Expo center. Unlike Day 1, we didn't have the windows down blaring Dr. Horrible's Sing-A-Long Blog and singing along (although that went over VERY well the first day). Of course, we realized we had forgotten things back at the hotel. Consequently, we girls were dropped off street side and Jerry sped back to retrieve their binder.

Once we were in line, I had to attempt Minion's makeup. Meggie served as a table/makeup stand and I went to work in a moderately lit parking structure on a pretty impressive R2Tutu makeup. Extensive eye shadow, jewels, and false glittery eyelashes are not the most mobile friendly task, by the way.All in all, she turned out MAGNIFICENT!!  I felt pretty damn good about it over the course of the day, too.  Lots of people commented on it.  I was prouder of Minion's face than I was of my children that day!!  What?! Don't judge me!

Anyway, we waited in line for about two and a half hours. Watched some YouTube videos.  Took pictures of the incoming General Admission. It was about an hour before the doors opened that we realized that the one day attendees had started to wrap around and UP the parking structure. I couldn't get a picture to adequately show this off, but I did get one coming down the escalator inside the Expo Center later that morning. That is almost wall to wall human bodies down there and there were FOUR FLOORS just like that one.




The value of the VIP passes was earned on the first day and redoubled on Saturday. The VIP passes meant we were going to be allowed into the con an hour before the remaining mass of humanity. It also meant that we didn't have to wait in line for most of the celebrities that we wanted signatures from. Although, having gotten there on Friday, we were pretty well taken care of on that score by Saturday. VIP passes to Dallas Comic Con also allow priority seating in the panel rooms. Second row seating all day! We saw the amazingly talented John Romita Jr and the incomparable William Shatner as well as the Green Ranger and the Pink Ranger.  

 Regardless of the venue or event, the anecdotes that panelists share with us are always something that I, personally, treasure. How often do you get to sit in front of William Shatner as he shares stories about working on the original Star Trek? Or regales you with the adventures of owning his FOUR dogs?!  John Romita Jr talked about how, as a kid, his father would take him to Spiderman's neighborhood and talk about the character to him as though he were real. It was like sitting around the living room as they shared their lives with us. It was a singular experience that I am eternally glad I was a part of. 

Before we made it to the panels, we decided we would like to see what the freebie room offered. Of course, we had to get in line for it and that was okay. We had made sure to bring entertainment!  We are big fans of the game Cards Against Humanity and we have the expansion packs as well as the original deck. So what did we do? Settled in near the front of the line and started a game!  We picked up a new friend while we were at it. Ricardo Alvarez joined our little gathering and fit right in. He actually came in second place.

 It made the waiting time FLY! And, if you have never played CAH (and if you are secretly a horrible horrible person), go on Amazon and order it! It's great for parties.

Anyway, the rest of the day was a whirlwind of getting signatures and shopping and panels and crowds crowds crowds. But these are the things you come to con for.  If you wanted quiet and personal space, you would have stayed home. By the end of the day, we were all pleasantly worn the fuck out.  We didn't realize until we were almost to the car that we had neglected to get a group picture. What do you do?! I flagged down a car that was trying to leave and begged for perfect strangers to take a picture. Who says impulse control is a bad thing? It worked, didn't it? After dinner and drinks (lots of drinks) at Humperdink's, we did the only thing a family of nerds can do while attending con. We went to the new Star Trek movie!! That's a whole different blog post and if you WANT a review, leave comments below to let me know and I will get right on that. Remember that videos can be found at Minion's YouTube Channel and all the pics are available at the NGSW Facebook page. For now, I'm off to finish up the third panel of the new strip and maybe get going on the digital half of the process.

-Nerdy Goth

Dallas Comic Con 2013: day 1

Where to start?! I mean, I just spent three days in Dallas, TX, with four of my best peeps at one helluva convention! Dallas Comic Con has just grown exponentially over the last few years and gotten better with every step.

Okay okay okay before I get ahead of myself, take some time to go check out Our 411 Page and meet my new minion, April!!  Yes, that's right. I finally have a minion! She had this great idea to make a cute little R2D2 costume and let me do her makeup for the convention on Saturday. I think the plentiful accolades are proof I did pretty well considering it was done while waiting in line. But I get ahead of myself AGAIN. lol

Okay, Friday was a really calm day and it was easy to move around the Expo Center. The majority of the people we had planned on seeing and getting autographs from were on site and those went really smoothly. Minion wore an awesome WOOT shirt about Reading Rainbow and had Lavar Burton sign it for her. (I will get a pic of it from Minion later) As we were getting ready to leave, she asked for a favor and Lavar said "What?! NO! Get the hell out of my rainbow!!" We stood there for a good two second before we realized he was kidding. It was hilarious! 

During the Jason David Frank panel (I attended for the soul purpose of supporting Minion's Mighty Morphin Power Rangers addiction and her crush on JDF), I was pleasantly shocked to realize that JDF is A) fucking HILARIOUS, B) most likely ADHD, and C) the source of a mental kick in the ass to get back to the drawing pad and stop slacking off on the cartoon. He closed his panel by saying "If there is anything in your life that you do that you are passionate about, don't let anyone or anything stop you from doing it." He talked about how hollywood insiders had told him he would never be an actor because he hadn't been born into it and he proved them all wrong. He talked about how after MMPR was done he had to go back into Martial Arts and prove himself there as well. He is a highly trained and talented martial artist and his time on screen had diminished his standing in that community. He has since rectified that misconception.

Our trips to Dallas and all the events held by Official Pics at the Irving Convention Center are always a great time. Sci Fi expo and Fan Days are two smaller but equally amazing events that are sure to only grow with time. Dallas Comic Con has grown to a point where this attendee believes a venue change may have to be a growth step in the not so distant future. The quality of vendors, artist, and actors is such that people cannot stay away and I am among them. Our experience has taught us that VIP badges are essential and well worth the money.  Pictures from the event can be found at our Facebook page. And we have a YouTube channel where I have linked Minion's videos so far. I have to take a break and work on drawing. I will post Day Two wrap up tomorrow. Don't forget to read up on Minion!!

-Nerdy Goth

Taking the Kids to Con

After a promising horror film on Netflix touting a red hooded girl snuggling a shotgun on the cover turned out to be in German (and I can't draw or write while also trying to read subtitles), I switched over to Mad Men.  I've admired the fashions in the ads from afar, it was time to dive in and actually watch the show. Five minutes into the show, I am pretty sure I would have gone to jail or been locked in an insane asylum.

"Try not to be overwhelmed by the technology. It looks complicated but the men who designed it made it simple enough for a woman to use." -Joan

What. The. Hell?

::Deep breath::

I don't live in that era. I don't live in that era. I don't live in that era.

Okay. Yep. Aside from the women's fashions, there is nothing that appeals to me as a woman from that era. Okay, the men's fashions were pretty swanky as well.  But despite the gorgeous styles for women and yummy men in suits, the misogyny would have prompted acts of verbal retaliation and potential physical assault. My determined stance of independence has been evidenced since childhood and continues into my adult years.

Some may call me combative, stubborn, or difficult (which can certainly be true). Others call me creative and funny and completely nerdy (absolutely true). These traits have served me well as a mother.  I don't allow the children to rule our house in the belief that time outs will win the day. However, we aren't total bummers as parents. We have introduced them to the wonders of things like Star Trek, Star Wars, Doctor Who, and a plethora of other things within the nerd and geek culture. We are entering a new age level with our kids and video games have become a fixture for them to play on their own rather than simply watching us play our games. Their aunt and uncle bought them a Sega integrated game system. Simple old school games to get them ready for the more advanced game systems later on down the road. So, for now, they are toiling away at Sonic the Hedgehog. And when they get too far out of line for too long, they lose that privilege.

We are also hitting the age where the kids really want to go to conventions with us. This is a thrilling and anxiety ridden concept. I have seen the parents with a passel of small ones in attendance at conventions and marveled at both their bravery and their fortitude. I, quite plainly, would have lost my mind if I had chosen to drag both kids with me anywhere more complicated than the grocery store in their younger days. Now, they are aware and interested in many of the same things that we (the adults) are. They want to join us at conventions. And we want to take them. We want to put them in costumes and have people think they are fantastic tiny versions of beloved fictional characters. We are strongly leaning toward a tiny Captain Hammer and a tiny Doctor Horrible (they love that movie). Now, we just have to get those costumes together.

We will probably be taking them to Dallas Fan Days or Dallas Comic Con next year. There is also the Sci Fi Expo next February (sorry no link available yet). These are smaller, fantastic cons within driving distance. Eventually, I am sure we will be taking them to Dragon*Con in Atlanta, GA. But for now we want to start in the shallow end of the pool.  

Even the shallow end is scary for the first time. Our first trip was a learning experience for the adults. We learned that snacks are important. Walk talkies are handy when you know your group is going to get split up. Comfortable shoes are absolutely necessary. A good nights sleep doesn't hurt. Now, we have to take all these things that we have learned to survive and put them into effect for smaller, less patient humans...one of whom is autistic and easily distracted. If it weren't too frowned upon, I would seriously consider leashes on the boys. My greatest fear is not a melt down or a tantrum or anything like that. My biggest fear in taking the kids to con is looking around and seeing that they are gone; distracted by some shiny thing and wandered off to see it without saying a word. This is a valid concern if you have ever taken them to a store. "Ooooh Squirrel!" ::sigh:: All the time. So, yeah. I want to take them. I want them to enjoy the same level of oohs and aahs and OMG that's awesomes as we do when we attend. Now, I just have to figure out how to cope with/ manage the anxiety of taking them and keeping an eye on them.

Yes, I know I started this with Netflix disappointment followed by 1960's era man rage, but if you stayed with me to the end maybe you can offer some advice on how to take small humans to con. Or at least how to deal with the anxiety!

-Nerdy Goth