Photo Credit: Matthew Getic
It’s hard to believe that five years ago Comikaze was this idea a few siblings had and it came to life in what could be considered the basement of the Los Angeles Convention Center. Expecting a few hundred people that first year, they exceeded that when some 35,000 attendees came through the doors, and they only continued to grow. Unlike some other cons, this one is affordable and seems less Hollywood and more about the fans — for the most part. We’ll get to the autograph fiasco in a minute. All in all, Stan Lee’s Comikaze in 2015 had a lot of hits, but it did have some misses that should be taken into consideration.
Usually in one location of the Convention Center, this year it was in the West and South wings. This would’ve been okay if it didn’t take a minute to get from one place to the other. This is especially true on the opening day. Many didn’t realize the setup had changed and were left lost, confused, and wandering around. On top of that, the opening day seemed a bit frazzled, at least among the staff heading the autograph section. Many were upset that when they purchased their tickets ahead of time they thought they’d be getting a free Stan Lee signature. Instead only 10 of those were available and that left a lot of people upset. Other than the long lines for that and the confusion of where things were, we’ll get to why Comikaze continues to be the Halloween tradition.
Photo Credit: Matthew Getic
Yes, a con that happens on Halloween — that means there are way more people dressed up and of course I enjoyed seeing the cosplayers and everyone else decked out. With a new Star Wars and Suicide Squad on the horizon, there weren’t a lack of characters from those films. We tried to count all the Harley Quinns. There will never be enough time in the world to do that. So instead we checked out all the other characters including Street Fighters (one great one done by professional cosplayer Vert Vixen), Deadpools and, of course, Walter Whites. It’s always amazing to see what people come up with. There was a heavy dose of Disney this year too. That may have had something to do with Disneybound blogger Leslie Kay being in the building.
That brings us to the panels. Disney is what, a century old now? Well, the fandom was out and proud at the panel that celebrated Mickey, Minnie, and all the rest of the gang. It was good to know that other people my age love to indulge in a good Disney marathon from time to time, each noting their favorite movie. Shout out to the girl on the panel who mentioned The Emperor’s New Groove. That movie doesn’t get as much love as it should.
Photo Credit: Matthew Getic
Which leads us to freelancers — one of the most disregarded jobs, ever. There was a panel titled, “How to Write For the Internet for Money,” and it was amazing. I get that people love seeing their favorite celebrities at these events, but I wanted more panels like this. Which there were; I just didn’t get to all of them. This one, though, was fantastic. With writers from Cracked, Playboy, and beyond, each of them gave great insight into writing for a living and as someone who does this (and makes enough to live but not lavishly), I admit that I teared up and wanted nothing more but to stand up and scream, “Thank you!” but I’m a blogger and socially inept at speaking in public. I’d rather give them props behind my computer screen; that’s more comfortable.
After the cosplaying and the panels, what’s left? The exhibitors. After the guys from Cracked making me feel like I’m on some sort of right track, I enjoyed looking at all the artists and creative types with their arts and crafts. Some to check out: Art By Tobias, JoJo’s So Creative, Trinket Slot, My Lucky Dragon, Lace & Lore and the cutest of the day — Disablies. Oh, speaking of cute, Gudetama was there. For those who don’t follow Sanrio (me), he’s the newest character and he’s a lazy egg. Yes, you read that right, a lazy egg. As one of the sponsors, that little guy was everywhere and I’m not complaining. I walked away with one too many free buttons and tissue packets featuring that guy.
Photo Credit: Matthew Getic
When all was said and done, it was awesome to see a gigantic All That reunion, and it was great for Star Wars fans willing to wait hours to meet Carrie Fisher, but I really hope that next year it is a bit more organized and back to the original site at the Convention Center because I’m a creature of habit and it threw not only me, but a lot of people off.
