Reflections from the event that was...Comic Con Chicago 2010
Why Comic Con? Well, if you like gadgets, then I'd say there's a 27.3% chance that you'll like comics, so you may find this interesting. The post may or may not belong in Chanatown, but since I've spent several hours of a Saturday in attendance, I thought it might be best to post a few interesting observations. So, now is the time to leave if you don't want to hear more about the 9 B's of Comic Con Chicago.1) Bloody Nutcracker
OK, I wasn't quite sure what to wear to a comic convention. I wasn't going to dress up in costume (more on that to come), but I didn't want to just wear any old polo or button down. So, I dug out an old swag tee from the House Theatre. It's got a nutcracker with blood dripping from its sword, and if there's any place I could get away with wearing this in public, I figured it would be at Comic Con. Turns out I was right.
2) Biehn and Hamilton
Any fears I had of being out of touch with everything at the convention quickly dissipated as we sat in on the final minutes of a panel discussion with Michael Biehn and Linda Hamilton. Good ol' Corporal Hicks and Sarah Connor humored the crowd with stories of James Cameron and their time together on the Terminator set. They even addressed the taping of the love scene in Terminator that surely would have made Ripley extremely jealous. After the panel dismissed, we made our way to the exhibition hall just in time for...
3) Blago! Blago!! Blago!!!Yep, fresh off his one conviction "victory", our former governor was in typical form as he was accompanied by an entourage and he no doubt enjoyed the constant attention given to him. We bumped into him both at the beginning of his signing (only $50 for an auto or a meager $80 for a photo!) and at the end when he happened to be heading out the entrance (you mean, I'm going to run into more traffic and pose for pictures?) Oh, Blago...you would have been the star of the show had it not been for the...
4) Babes and Big DudesI don't know what comics the likes of Patricia Kara (Suitcase #9), Amber Smith, "Raven", or "Virgil" appear in, but they and their acting or wrestling peers were all over the exhibition floor. Props to Adrianne Curry (America's Next Top Model #1) for dressing up as the ever popular Jabba the Hut prisoner Princess Leia. Despite rubbing elbows with these new celebrities, I've still got a crush on comic book babes Scarlett (redhead!) and Lady Jaye (raspy voice!!) from the G.I.Joe days, and Hacksaw Jim Duggan was cool. I mean, he had a 2x4 for goodness sake. Speaking of props, there were plenty to go around as Comic Con was filled with...
5) Big Costumes
Call it Halloween in August or Disneyland Indoors, there were enough strolling characters to fill a parade. Star Wars, Star Trek, and super heroes were in full attendance, and photo ops were bountiful.
6) Batman scorecard
Speaking of photo ops, you had plenty to choose from for Batmans. My unofficial count included 7 Adam Wests, 3 Dark Knights, and 0 Michael Keatons (sorry, Mr. Mom.) There were also quite a few Cat Womans (4 by this author's count), and I was impressed with the overall diversity of the convention in terms of age, race, and gender.
7) Batman and Robin reunited
Adam West and Burt Ward provided a few interesting stories of the duo's BAVROOM'ing good times. A common theme begins to emerge amongst the panelists, as jokes are made about doing these conventions for the money. You know, those types of jokes that are really true statements pretending to be disguised as jokes. Other tidbits included a reference to Adam West's "Naked" DVD (yeah, it's real), an awkward moment when asked who had a fling with Cat Woman, and a response when asked about "The Dark Knight" of "I am the Bright Knight" by West.
8) Brent Spiner - coming to a Zanie's near you...
What was almost an opportunity to visit the bathroom before the main event (Shatner) turned out to be the highlight of the panelists (more on why Shatner wasn't below). Data was in full form for the forty minute set, as he busted out a decent Patrick Stewart impression, interacted with audience members (apparently, the local enchiladas leave something to be desired), and pondered whether "it was better to be Brent or Brad Pitt."
9) Beam me up Captain Kirk!
Well, the room was packed at the sides, and after a rousing Star Trek video montage, Shatner managed to focus on nearly everything but the series that made him famous. For the first twenty-five minutes, he plugged several of his cable shows (he can pay me to plug them here), and then came back to a show debuting this fall (google it if you want). I did like a few of the anecdotes that he shared, including a bit about the Winter Olympics in Vancouver and hard times as a stock investor for Priceline.com.
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