Lessons as a First-Time Comic-Con-Goer
It’s true. I, Calvin Sharpe, a mumble-grumble-mumble year-old man, had never been to a Comic Con until last week. And I’m Comic Con’s target demo! That’s a real lesson in not judging a comic book by its cover.
But I ended up stopping by Emerald City Comic Con while visiting Seattle last week, and now I’m ready to share important lessons passed down to me and earned through experience.
Ready? Here we go.
Wear comfortable shoes You are going to walk MILES inside that building.
Don’t buy anything on the first lap There are tons of cool pieces of art, clothes, mugs, dice, models, and all kinds of other stuff. It’s like you’re passing through magnetic fields specifically designed to attract your money. So, don’t buy anything on the first lap, or you will end up with WAY more than you bargained for.
Take business cards It will be very hard to follow rule number two. So, a great friend taught me a great trick: get a business card from every vendor with stuff you really want to buy. It’ll help you find that one booth with the special dice you really wanted… or whatever else you’re after. It also lets you know that even if you don’t buy something while you’re there, you can still order it on later, once you’ve exited the money field.
Find the quiet places I was starting to experience some serious sensory overload around the end of that first hour, and I went to Comic Con on a THURSDAY MORNING. The weekend has got to be something else. But there are quiet spots like reading rooms and corners of exhibition halls not particularly close to food and/or restrooms. You should find those quiet places early.
Be impressed, not envious Some of the artists and costumers may make you doubt you have a creative bone in your body. And you don’t. That’s not how bones work, silly! But it’s a ton of fun to just see what people can make… Usually. There will be some artists making things that’ll you want to wash your eyes after seeing. Keep moving, and don’t make eye contact.
Prepare for zero cell service Like big concerts and sporting events (I imagine), all those people in one place make it nearly impossible to get a signal inside the building. Plan accordingly.
Prepare to be surprised Some surprises will be pretty big. For example, did you know people line up to get tattooed at Comic Con? I didn’t! But more importantly, I was surprised that it was a pretty relaxed vibe, despite thousands and thousands of people with intense interests sharing space. Overall, it was a great time.
I’m sure there are plenty more lessons out there, but for a first time, these served me pretty well. So, as they say at Comic Con, “Excuse me sir, other people want to take pictures with the Totoro statue.”