The Big Wow is a show that caters to the comic and art enthusiasts as opposed to San Diego Comic Con’s (“SDCC”) mass-media frenzy. I tend to enjoy the smaller shows more than SDCC's of the world because the pace is slower, and you have the chance to interact with people, and hold a pleasant conversation, rather than being herded around like cattle to keep lines moving.
Buying a ticket was easy enough via paypal, so in no time flat, I had my badge and was ready to go.
This show offers a little bit of everything, and if you like art, this is the show for you.
How nobody caught this on day one is beyond me. On day 2, someone caught it and put some post-its over the nips.
These shows feature a good deal of side activities: Archery Practice...
Watching people play Rock Band was great. Even better, most of them were in costume while doing it!
The Halo guys air-guitaring Journey’s “Don’t stop believin’” was hilarious!
There was also some kind of card game going on. This show desperately NEEDS Yugioh!
The Bay Area Ghostbusters were in the house.
Here, I had the pleasure of conversing with Terry Dodson and his wife Rachel.
They were both pleasant and more than accommodating when fans wanted to talk to them about comics. I wasn’t too familiar with Dodson’s work, but even so, he took the time to speak to me, and we had a nice 10-minute conversation about the smaller shows vs. the SDCC’s of the comic world.
This year’s biggest draws were J. Scott Campbell, who seemed friendly this time around (I’ve heard stories)...
Adam Hughes was signing...
Neil Adams was in the house, but his services were a smidge on the pricy side...
Humberto Ramos was in attendance. He was cool, but didn't say much. His handler did all the talking while he did all of the drawing. I tried getting a sketch from him for my blank Superior Spiderman cover, but his list was already full for the day. Ah well... Still got a few books signed, so that was decent.
Sanya Anwar was sketching for someone. She's cute. I would have asked her for a photo, but wasn't familiar with her work.
Stan “the Man” Lee was in attendance as well. I met Stan Lee once at SDCC by chance, and was lucky enough that he signed my print of Stripperella. He seemed really cool, but the price they were charging at a show this small was outrageous and borderline offensive... and from what I heard, Stan sat at a chair and took photos as they ushered people through, so there was very little interaction, if any. I'm wondering if that was really Stan Lee. It might have been a Skrull... or a dead clone propped up like Weekend at Bernies. :D
One of the many positive attributes of attending the smaller shows is being able to find good deals.
At these smaller shows, there’s a higher probability of negotiating with
dealers. At the larger shows, it’s more of a chore to find good deals as
vendors and dealers are in a mad dash to “make table,” meaning to make back the
money they paid for the spot.
The biggest part of this show, and what makes these shows so popular are the cosplayers. I can’t emphasize how much it means to people to be accommodating when people want to speak to you and take photos with you. I wasn’t in costume for this show and got big-timed by a certain busty “pro.” (Not saying any names) That annoys me to no end. All you have to do is smile and be cordial. It’s not like I want to take you out to dinner and back to my hotel room later. It isn’t too much to ask to smile and look at the camera for a few seconds. If it is, you should NOT be in costume. Remember folks: With great cosplay comes an even greater responsibility to not be an a-hole!
Most pros like Valerie Perez are a delight and will pose several
times for you to take pictures. I wonder if she ever gets tired of being told she's beautiful... Probably not.The biggest part of this show, and what makes these shows so popular are the cosplayers. I can’t emphasize how much it means to people to be accommodating when people want to speak to you and take photos with you. I wasn’t in costume for this show and got big-timed by a certain busty “pro.” (Not saying any names) That annoys me to no end. All you have to do is smile and be cordial. It’s not like I want to take you out to dinner and back to my hotel room later. It isn’t too much to ask to smile and look at the camera for a few seconds. If it is, you should NOT be in costume. Remember folks: With great cosplay comes an even greater responsibility to not be an a-hole!
Rosanna Rocha was really nice… and probably cold. ;)
Apparently, artist extrordinaire, E-Bas and Rosanna are good friends, so I got a photo of them together. Can you smell what the E-Bas is cookin'? Gotta love the Rock's eyebrow.
Leanna Vamp was a cool babe and very accommodating when it came to photos.
Vegas PG was really nice.
These gals are pros, but I don't know their names.
This was one of the few shows where families were getting into the cosplay act. It’s good to see parents getting involved with their children's activities. After all, they’re raising the next generation of comic book fans… it also makes for some good photo-ops.
I must know where she got that Godzilla head. I want it!
Here's Static and Cammy getting down on some Marvel Heroes.
I caught up with them both later for a quick pic.
The Star Wars community was well-represented.
While not costumes, I get a big kick out of these backpacks. They make me chuckle.
When I was taking this lovely lady’s photo, another guy came over for photos and asked who her character was. We got to talking and he mentioned that someone else at this show scolded him because he wasn’t familiar with the character they were cosplaying. Unbelievable! This goes back to what I mentioned about being an a-hole. Don't do it!
I asked this lovely lady for a photo and she immediately saw me as Morpheus… and without my outfit or shades on! The first thing out of her mouth was, “OMG! You look like Morpheus from the Matrix! You should totally cosplay as him!” LOL! If you only knew, sweetheart.
Here are some more cosplayers from the show. I think this is Kraven. Not sure about the babe.
Not a costume, but WOW!
Storm was smokin' hot!.. and her Boyfriend was always nearby to give her an occasional peck on the lips to mark his territory. "MINE!!!" He should have cosplayed as Larfleeze.
There were a good deal of Raven characters at the show. I'm not sure what made her suddenly so popular. Perhaps it's an easy costume to pull off.
This monster was cool, but I don't know what show/feature it's from.
I was digging this Kitana. She's hot!
Harley and Deadpool were really popular at this show for obvious reasons.
I like how Superman did the Kingdom Come pose on the top.
This Harley was adorable.
The Steampunk universe was well-represented at this convention. The Gent in the top hat is Tach from the Green Lantern Corps Message Boards. He recognized me from the photos I have all over the web. It's flattering when people recognize you, even more so when you're out of costume.
Same with Steampunk Batgirl.
Even cuter together.
The guy that was with this young lady asked if I knew what character she was. I had no idea, but it looks cool, and cool enough to add to this gallery. If I had to guess, it looks like Cheshire, but without the Lion's mane.
This Deadpool had SEVERAL different costumes and changed every other hour throughout the day. He was also Bishop and Robin.
Alien vs. Bane was pretty cool. Even cooler when Bane was being devoured. Turn away, kids!
Cap here is a mainstay of the local Bay Area shows. We call him "Robin" because that's the character he usually cosplays as.
Solomon Grundy, born on a ______? I asked him this and his response was "1973." LOL! It was funny to be on the other side of this, because when I'm in costume, people are always throwing out Matrix trivia questions and asking me to recite dialogue, hoping to trip me up.
The first time I've seen a Mxy (Mixelplik) cosplayer, so I had to get a shot of him with Superman.
As the show started to wind down, they started doing group shots, which is always cool.
Check out Joker in the above photo. LOL! I didn't notice it until I reviewed the images after the show from home. Turn away, kids!
Harley was off the hook as well. I can only imagine the kind of shots they take from home. I never thought I'd live to see Harley nigh air-fellating Joker in the middle of a DC photoshoot. Just when you think you've seen it all...
Overall, this was a great show. I got some books signed and picked up an Ultraman monster, Red King for a really good price and D12 for $5.
My favorite 3 cosplayers from the event:
Psyloche looked great.
Kitana was gorgeous.
Nightwing was sensational and stole the show.
She was genuinely shocked and humbled that so many people loved her. One guy that does cosplay photography gave her his card. It appeared as if he was going to set up some kind of photoshoot with her. If it's legit, good for her!
The atmosphere at this show was family-friendly, the pace was nice and slow and there were good deals to be had everywhere. There were an insane amount of cosplayers that showed up to entertain, and the guest list was pretty good in the world of comics and art. As this show expands and becomes larger, they could stand to book a few more popular comic book artists and writers, and perhaps have an action figure exclusive which would put it over the top. The rumor mill has it that Jim Lee will be on hand for next year, so that’s a definite step in the right direction for this show. Until next time, folks. EXCELSIOR!
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