Salt City Comic Con Recap
Last weekend, I took my daughter to Salt City Comic Con in Syracuse, NY. I had never been to a comic con before, and while this wasn't one of the "big ones," it was definitely a fun and interesting experience. The best part is that I got the tickets for free from my sister-in-law, who in turn received them from a client.
Not really knowing what to expect, we went right at the start of the day on Saturday. The con was held at the Syracuse War Memorial (also known as the OnCenter), which typically hosts minor league hockey and indoor soccer games, as well as concerts, ice skating shows, etc. For the convention, the main rink/floor area was dominated by vendor booths, with some events going on near the stage end, such as trivia contests, a live band, and things like that.
A view of the vendor floor – note the two dinosaurs passing through…
The thing that impressed me most was how much local talent was on display at the con. I didn't necessarily expect that a fairly small convention in Upstate NY would draw a huge amount of national artists, vendors, etc., but I was surprised at how many of the people in the booths were from right in Syracuse or within an hour or so drive. It was nice getting a chance to chat with a number of artists, crafters, and other creators whom I never would have met otherwise.
That said, the event was not completely devoid of a few bigger names. Perhaps the most notable person there was Neal Adams, who has drawn for Superman, Batman, and Green Arrow comics, among others. Although I'm not huge into DC Comics, it was clear that a lot of other people knew who Neal was and appreciated his being at the convention. As an added twist, Syracuse Mayor Stephanie Miner declared the Saturday of the convention to be "Neal Adams Day" in Syracuse, and they held a little presentation ceremony for that declaration right before one of the panels I attended.
Speaking of panels, I was a little disappointed by the offerings. My daughter and I went to one panel on the rise of fangirls and the importance of diversity in comic books, TV/movies, and other media. While the guests who were there – Connie from Black Girl Nerds and Sally from Fan Girl Shirts – did a great job, with only two people the table seemed a little empty, like perhaps they couldn't get anyone else to join the panel.
The two other panels I went to were both related to Star Wars. One was a talk from the Falco Clan of the Mandalorian Mercs, a cosplay group focused on dressing in Mandalorian armor. (I got a short video of them walking in parade through the hall of the War Memorial – see it here.) The second one was a lightsaber demonstration put on by a local martial arts group that offers classes in lightsaber dueling. The demonstration was definitely the more exciting of the two, and I will admit that I even signed up for a free class... I will be a Jedi yet!
Lightsaber dueling demonstration
All in all it was a rather fun time. I didn't dress up, but I did wear my Jayne Cobb "Blue Sun" t-shirt (I have a cunning hat, but couldn't find it). I did however see a lot of cosplay, ranging from the casual to the intricate. There were about 80 Harley Quinns, and there were a bunch of anime characters that I didn't know, but my daughter got really excited about. I'll end the post with some of the more interesting ones that I saw.
Green Arrow
My daughter with Rey
My daughter with some anime cosplayers (sorry, don't know who…)
Silent Bob
Neegan about to bash my face in
Generic Wizard #5 (I thought he was Radagast, but he said no…)
Gender-swapped Harley Quinn and Joker
A pair of Jawas
Mega Man
Cosplayers fromt he 501st Legion
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I've been in San Diego where Comicon is a major annual event. The California crowd is way more naked than you are showing here. I think they have a NSFW section that is more extreme.
My son hates me (Reason 47) for never letting him go as a kid and teen. Now at 25, he can't afford it but goes outside the convention center and has fun with that I think. I went one year and it was a huge carnival out there.
Your daughter looks fantastic. Love the hair and she looks so cute in those glasses.
Thanks for the reply!
So, yes, there were definitely some costumes that showed more skin than the ones I shared here. As I mentioned in the post, there were a TON of Harley Quinn cosplayers, and as you might imagine some of those were a bit more risqué than others. There were others that showed ample cleavage, a butt cheek or two, plenty of midriffs, etc. The two main reasons why I don't have pics of those costumes are:
I was with my 12-year-old daughter, and honestly it just felt weird to me even thinking about asking to take pictures of scantily clad women (most of whom appeared to be closer to her age than mine...). Perhaps that's due to my relatively conservative upbringing and my own hangups as a middle-aged divorced man, but hey, so it goes.
Most of the more revealing costumes were displayed on the first day of the con. As it was my first time there, I was more focused on just taking in the whole experience, and I actually got very few pictures overall from that day. Also, I took fewer pictures on the first day because my phone battery was low (I had forgotten to charge it up before leaving home), and since I was with my daughter, I wanted to make sure it had enough juice in case we got separated.
Anyway, I do hope to make it out to SDCC sometime. I have a friend who works at the Mysterious Galaxy bookstore in San Diego, and she runs the bookstore booth at the Comic Con there every year. Perhaps I can earn enough Steem to go one of these years!
Definitely make it a goal and talk to your friend about details so you know what you need to do. You have to make plans way far in advance - flights, hotels etc - much less the tickets. This has been for years now as it is extremely well attended. I ride the trolley in SD and it will be filled with Comicon-ians for the whole time. It's fun just to people watch from about anywhere in town. Your daughter is lucky to have you :)
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