A FoCo view of pop culture: 2022 Fort Collins Comic Con

It was time to expand my horizons and see what happened. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. This was going to be my second ever convention. It would be a tale of two very different days, but both with their beneficial qualities.

I had a little bit less enthusiasm for FC3 then I had for Cheyenne Gaming Convention. Possibly because of my concern of traveling out of state for the first time in a couple of years. Most likely because of the cost I would incur while on this weekend excursion. If I remember the numbers correctly, my 3-night hotel stay cost between $300-450 which was about double what I spent on merchandise.

I puttered out of hometown Wheatland early Friday afternoon, picking up lunch in Cheyenne, then rolling on to Fort Collins and making to the hotel before 4:00 p.m. After checking in and getting situated, my first chore was to go pick up my convention badge from a local game store. Unfortunately, they told they stopped handing them out a day or two before and that I would have to pick it up at the con itself. A minor set back, nothing insurmountable.

Day 1

The convention was held at the Northside Aztlan Community Center during the August 27 and 28 weekend with the doors opening at 9:00 a.m. I was able to collect my badge for the convention before opening hour at a tent set up outside the community center. I was actually there an hour early since I didn’t know when the center opened. While waiting, I made small talk with other attendees who had the same idea.

I would describe my activity during the first day as more of an attendee versus a reporter/journalist. I attended a total of seven panels on Saturday. I had four essentially back to back from 9:15 a.m. to 12:30 in the afternoon. The other three were scattered throughout the afternoon.

I entered the vendor hall created in the gymnasium part of the center during my first hour interlude from the panels. There must have been a hundred vendors set up inside with a good amount focused on comics, books, and art. To my happy pleasure, there were a couple of familiar companies in attendance at FC3. The first recognizable face was Our Own Game Company, from whom I bought an A’Kyria game book back at the Cheyenne Gaming Convention. The first was Ms. Trish of Fandom Theory Embroidery who I also met back at CGC. Here in Fort Collins through, she was graceful enough to grant me a quick interview.

After a walkabout through the vendors, I picked up some pizza from a booth near the back corner of the hall. I proceeded outside using another door in the gym, hungrily scarfing down my slices. What awaited me outside was a food court and a small car collection, a specific section of which caught my attention very fast: Itasha.

Sadly, the interest had to be quickly extinguished since I had two more panels to watch, the first one started at 1:25 p.m. A pair of 50-minute long panels completed and it was back to the vendor hall around 3:00 p.m. During my second excursion within the vendor hall, I stumbled upon the booth of an intriguing gentleman named Mr. Terry Mark and his interesting book series called the Vim Hood Chronicles. The series’ premise fascinated me, so I picked up a copy of “Kill the Night,” the first book in the trilogy. Mr. Mark permitted me an interview and an autograph.

One more panel and I was done with the convention for the day. I collected my things and shuttled myself back to the hotel. Reviewing the brochure I was given earlier in the day, I planned out my activities for Sunday. Not as many panels interested me for that day, so I would have more free time to browse how I wanted to. I also had not spent very much on Saturday, so there was more saved for the second day of the con. And my reconnaissance during the first day provided me some interesting items for possible purchase.

Day 2

My first desired panel start at 10:00 a.m., which granted me another hour to browse around. I took more pictures of more Itasha cars since they had brought it some different vehicles then the day before. Some more picture taking followed that morning, and later in the afternoon was the interview with Steven, the leader of Colorado Itasha Alliance.

The gaps in between panels was spent browsing through the vendor hall again. It was about 90% the same as it was the day before. I did notice a few new folks who were set up, but it was mostly the same. One of the stand-out vendors to me was a pair of gentlemen promoting a card game. Their names were Jerrod and Alex and the game was called Earth Tau. Alex made the game’s pitch to me and during the rest of the day, I played five games.

I discovered more shopping opportunities as I browsed through the vendor hall. One business was ELC Custom Creations, from whom I purchased a dice tower which I cannot wait to start using. Another vendor which caught my eye was the Thrifty Gryphon. The Gryphon was selling a steampunk themed box which had a larger storage area in the bottom and trays up top for smaller storage or to roll dice. After some thought, I bought the box and was permitted an interview with the owner.

Closing

I have been to two conventions so far and I would like to visit a third before the calendar year is done. Four would be excellent, but that may be too big of a stretch. From a personal or introspective view, I quite like going to conventions. After all, what generally the purpose of a convention? To meet with people who share similar hobbies and interests as you and exchange information and material. If nothing else, it is exposure for yourself and your profession and a chance to network.

On the other hand though, there a business side to consider. While it is fun, going to conventions is costly. Hotel fees, spending budgets, and do not mention gasoline prices. Unfortunately, while covering conventions may be fun, it is not making me a profit. Maybe visiting conventions as a self-supporting journalist is too much of a pipe dream.

The convention scene immediately around Wyoming is mostly done. There will be a couple more around Denver later in the autumn. A closer approaching con is SiouxperCon, which is happening on the crossover weekend between September and October. Unfortunately, Sioux Falls South Dakota is about 9-10 hour drive. What to do about that? We will have to see.