All I could find is back to 2003.. my 04 badge is gone cause I sold it that year as I walked out last day.. I've already started the 2nd Row..and thats where 09 is.. and 10 will be added on Sunday =P
Every year for the last 14 years I've gone.. back then it was still just as huge of an event, even without the Hollywood influence, theres just more obstacles you have to runaround now LOL
I remember back when tickets were $35 for 4 Days! Back when if you dressed up in Cosplay you'd get a discount on your ticket, back when Con Exclusives were simple and didn't require a raffle a 2 hour wait and a chance to buy it.. I do remember when Anime was the big rage, and the Con evolved to that Japanese culture, when meeting Rumiko Takahashi (Ranma 1/2) was the big buzz on the floor. I remember SDTekken's humble Tekken/Fighter tournament beginnings to what they've grown to now, being able to spend a few hours in the gaming rooms playing Magic, Marvel and Heroclix.. Catching up with old friends/artists/vendors every year.. sigh the good days..
But with the Hollywood grip on the Con, thats ALL everyone really sees.. I guess the sports analogy would be "Bandwagoners". And even though, it makes my schedule for the con a little more constrained, I still find time to do all the things I want to do. and there are some traditions we still have when going to the con.
We only have 1 Rule when buying stuff at the Con.. I ONLY buy something if its an exclusive.. or can only be found at Con.. DVDs I collect Foreign Movies/TV Show (Korean, Japanese, Chinese) So I'm usually a sucker for those DVDs first.. but I haven't been keeping up with the latest movies.. so I rely on Con to show me some new releases. Books and Novels are on the cusp, If I meet the artist and their story is compelling, I usually support and buy.. also I usually buy in Bulk for Volumes since theres a discount that can be made when doing so. Rare items are always weighed to see if its worth dropping the dough.. this year I plan on picking up that DAZ Iron Man Monkey Vinyl, I missed out 2 years ago when it was released.. and last year when the price rose up to 100.. now.. i'm afraid when I find it.. its gonna be some ungodly amount of money..
Tradition 1: Find a Poster for work.
This tradition started about 5 years ago, I try and find a cool movie poster, doesn't matter which movie, but of course it would be something that I like. It started with the 3 Double sided Battle Royale Posters, they used to be posted at work.. but they were a bit violent, which is why I had to start finding new ones to replace them. Next came the Oldboy poster (2 years after the Korean Release) Tartan extreme had a booth promoting and they even had a wig and hammer so you can take your own pic where you can be Oh-dae-su and Mi-do.. awesome. After that came the Ladies of Kill Bill (Thai version) the Original Serenity Poster (Before the blue release) and then Lady Vengence.. I kinda want the Mr Vengence poster just to complete the trilogy. What should I get this year?
(Left to Right: Lady Vengence, Old Boy (US Release), Serenity (Original Release) Ladies of Kill Bill (Thai Release)
Tradition 2: Scavenger Hunt!
This was just a fun thing me and my friends would do. It actually started with Find Waldo, first one who finds him buys Jamba Juice. Cause lets face it.. if you find Waldo in that crowd.. its a pretty cool picture HAHA.. but its kind of evolved to finding pics of people we've seen before.. Elvis Storm Trooper, Duct Tape girl, Buddy Jesus, Pikachu.. try it with your friends.. its hella fun.
I didn't get the cool shot of them in the crowd with this one.. i just cant find my others LOL
Tradition 3: Rei Do Gado
This has been sort of a friend thing for us. My boy Chris celebrates his birthday during Con, and Rei Do Gado's has a pretty cool Comic Con special for attendees. So we usually go on the Friday.
Tradition 4: Visit friends.
I have quite a few people I stop by their booths and show some love, Phour Nyne Studios, Cine-East and Dial R Studios.. also stopping by some old favorites that show every year, Hemp, Necca, TokiDoki, Privateer Press, etc.. Soooo many booths to show love and so little time nowadays.
Erik & Enrique (Phour Nyne Studios)
Chris (Dial R Studios)
Tradition 5: Exclusives to flip.
Back when exclusives were ACTUALLY exclusive (meaning not just with the sticker on it) but when exclusives actually had value to them. These days EVERYTHING is stamped with an exclusive sticker.. so with that many exclusives the value of the real exclusives have been dropped. I remember that exclusives got soooo bad that Ebay actually had a booth at comic con.. they probably failed because they never really showed back up after that year LOL But I remember we could buy a 6" Clone Trooper Bust for $50 and flip it for 300..
Spectre (Heroclix Exclusive 2006) - Sold this for 200 later, after defeating only 2 of the 3 Phases, this dude was tough!
But now, you have to really know which is the rarest of the rare, there's so much research and blog following going on before hand to know what will actually be worth anything post-con. But a few noteable exclusives for those who wants to flip.. Gentle Giant's stuff seems to sell for pretty well, KidRobot is always hot, Hasbro always has the big draw as well as Mattel, they usually have the blind variants, meaning some are worth more than others, like the Batman from a few years ago, they are boxed and you have to open the box to find out which one you got, either the Batman with his mask on.. or the one where he's taking his mask off.. that was the rare-er of the two. I find that there's too much work and time wasted waiting in line to find them, so i've kinda gone away from this tradition.. but this year I am looking for one Vinyl and I am keeping it a secret til after con. You know.. to avoid making a big fuss if there isnt one already LOL
Tradition 6: Find a Graphic.
I still read Graphic Novels, but not superhero or manga.. (although if i can find a good Manga i'll try it) But every year I always try to find a good story to read, ever since I finished Y:The Last Man, I've been looking for either new series or an established series to read. Last year I picked up Local from Oni-Press, the Year before was some Fables (Vertigo) special editions. Its just like finding a book to read, but most times you still get to meet some of the artists and learn how they created the story.. which to me adds to the value of the books I pick up.
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Lovecraft (This was taken when he was indie 2007) Last year I saw him and he is now part of Image Comics! Congrats!
Tradition 7: (Added this year) Find a Board Game.
And i'm not talking about Clue and Life.. pretty much an All in one game, with a bit of RPG and Strategy to it. Could be something new, Could be something classic. I'll find out this year how that will go.
Pirates (3D Tabletop game) The brown ship in the middle was the Con Exclusive
The last few years, I've been going as Press rather than a regular attendee, so now we have an added element of Invite only Media parties.. this year there are a few parties I got invited too, as of now the City of Heroes party at the Hard Rock and the Dexter at the Andaz are the must go to. I would love to attended the G4 party, but I'm sure its pretty exclusive.. but im crossing my fingers.
Mortal Kombat / Midway Media Party at Onyx/Thin 2008
Last year our Con started 2 hours before preview night opened with a Media Demo event at Onyx/Thin for EA.. hosted bar and hordourves and demoing the latest games, that year Brutal Legend and Left 4 Dead 2.. gah! I'm really only doing this blog to just get even more excited for con next week.. as well as let you all know what my Convention is like year after year.. I still go to panels, having to wait for an hour, then sit through the panel or 2 before just to watch the panel you wanted to see could be a waste, but thats how I got to see the preview for Stargate Universe last year.. and now I'm a huge fan of that show and I cant WAIT to see that panel this year, and to see how many fans they have gained since last year.
If you aren't able to attend, you are sure to miss out on a lot.. but I will try my best (and hopefully battery life allows) to post on my tumblr.. djdwin.tumblr.com this will be my live blog version from the floor. I'll also be shooting for my vlog on my youtube channel, but those wont post til after the con, I'll try and upload some videos, but they'll most likely be clips for now.
Hope to see you at con!
