Comic Convention – Woot! Woot! – Sunday, 13 January, 2019
Woohoo! What a ride this week has been! I continued classes with my freshmen and juniors. I started a new class with sophomores. I attended women’s basketball and boys’ soccer matches. I won tickets to Ace Universe Phoenix 2019.
During Friday afternoon’s fifth hour frosh English class I received a call from the principal; I won two tickets to the weekend gathering of comic nerd-dom and all things pop culture. I revel in my geekiness and any opportunity to gather with brother and sister geeks is time well spent.
Darling Son joined me Friday night for a presentation by John Eaves, prop artist extraordinaire. We were almost ready to head home when we discovered a world of more geeky wonders awaited us on the top level. I struck up a conversation with one of the vendors on the main concourse. As Darling Son explored the purchase possibilities of their display I commented on what a nice location he had secured for the convention. He shared there were vendors on the top level who were not getting much foot traffic because many convention patrons did not realize there were exhibitor displays beyond the ground level. Evidently, those vendors made their voices known because I began to notice announcements admonishing conventioneers to visit the exhibits on the upper level. We did. I’m glad we did. That is where I found my copy of an 11”x17” replica of the movie poster for the upcoming Captain Marvel film. Darling Son found a couple of Funko Pops to add to his burgeoning collection, and he also discovered a wonderful print of Captain Rex helmets by Rob Taylor and his Herofied Art.
Another first: Darling Son decided to begin collecting patches for a jacket. I told him that I already had a patch jacket; since I was wearing it at the time, it was quite evident. He didn’t even look up from his search for the perfect three patches to commence his collection. He just said, “That’s a travel jacket, Mom. You need a geek jacket.” I concurred. With special convention pricing of three patches for twenty dollars, the three fandoms he selected to honor are Star Wars, a mash-up of Jurassic Park/World & Aliens, and Big Bang Theory. I joined hime by starting my collection with a Ravenclaw crest from Harry Potter, an anti-demon possession glyph from Supernatural, and a stylized Black Widow symbol from Marvel. Hence, we did our due diligence of supporting exhibitors with our small purchases at art, toy, and miscellaneous booths.
Yesterday was a solo con day for me as Darling Son had other plans. Before we went our separate ways for our scheduled day, we went shoe shopping. Now I totally understand what my Darling Mom meant when she said, “You’re growing like a weed!” Growing kids means purchasing new shoes and clothes. Aarrgghh! I don’t know how she did it with three kids; I have a heck of a time doing it for one kid. $$$$$$$
As we entered our first shoe shopping stop the clerk commented on my t-shirt. He courteously greeted us and then joked that he took exception to my shirt: “That’s not R2-D2!” I was wearing one of my all time favorite geek tees: a depiction of a Dalek with the inscription, “OMG! R2-D2! I loved him in Star Trek!” One would have to be a fan, or at least knowledgeable of, three fandoms to understand the shirt: Star Trek, Star Wars, and Dr. Who. I had worn it in honor of seeing David Tennant as one of the honored guests of Saturday’s Ace Universe comic convention. Upon reflection, I wonder if I am a geek snob. I don’t think so. I’m always willing to talk about or answer questions about my fandoms. That must be the teacher in me as well as the geek in me. Goodness knows, there are far too many fandoms to keep up with all the hot and happening goings on in popular culture. I often ask Darling Son for fandom references. My little know-it-all does not know it all as he frequently admonishes me that no one can know everything about all the options in pop culture. I get that. Yet, I also recognize that fans with different interests will have knowledge I don’t have. I ask questions because I truly want to know. My curiosity may spawn a new personal interest; it may simply engender a simple, “Oh, that’s cool.” Whatever the reaction, it is awesome to share ideas with other fans.
Today I get to geek out with other fans of Tom Hiddleston and his representation of Loki in the wonderful world of Marvel’s Cinematic Universe. Today I also get to haul student essays to the convention. Darling Son will join me so I will be able to bring a bag of grading with me. Thus far this weekend, I’ve managed to ignore the work I need to do. I refuse to miss Tom Hiddleston, so my solution is to bring the work with me. When I have to get up and move and stretch, I am able to leave stuff with him to secure our seats. One of the things I miss at this convention is that there is no space for sitting and working/eating/veging that is not in arena style seating. There are no tables. There are a very few spaces for standing and eating or perusing materials.
So, with all this great stuff at Ace Universe, how is it different from the early summer Phoenix Fan Fusion (formerly known as Phoenix Comicon and Phoenix Fan Fest)? One of the big differences is price. Two adults can attend Phoenix Fan Fusion for the price of one general admission to Ace’s convention. Phoenix Fan Fusion is longer: Ace Universe is one evening and two weekend days. Phoenix Fan Fusion is four days and three nights of events. Ace Universe provides space for exhibitors. Phoenix Fan Fusion provides two exhibit halls (one is titled “Hall of Heroes”). Ace Universe spotlights a single headliner or group of headliners for a large number of people in a large space. Phoenix Fan Fusion provides a large headliner hall and multiple special interest presentations in convention style scheduling. So, what is the take away here? If you have plentiful disposable income, by all means, attend Ace Universe. It is a fun time filled with great headliners and motivating music. If your entertainment budget dollars need to stretch, wait for Memorial Day and Phoenix Fan Fusion. Regardless, you will have a good time if you geek out over pop culture and you are surrounded by fellow fans.