Phoenix Comicon 2013

What a great year for Phoenix Comicon! There were tons of guests that interested me.  The cast of Babylon 5 was there for their 20th anniversary. John Barrowman, of Doctor Who, Torchwood, and Arrow fame was present. The cast of a new web series- Star Trek Continues came. (Grant Imahara of Mythbusters plays Sulu) There were Walking Dead panels, Farscape panels, Jewel Staite of Firefly, Nichelle Nichols and Walter Koenig of the original Star Trek, Amanda Tapping from Stargate SG-1, Stargate Atlantis, and Sanctuary, Dean Cain from Lois and Clark, and what comicon would be complete without Wil Wheaton of Star Trek Next Generation, Stand By Me, Big Bang Theory, and Eureka. And that's JUST the TV/movie personalities.

 Nichelle Nichols, "Uhura"-  Star Trek

       Wil Wheaton

  Babylon 5, 20th anniversary panel

I went to Awesome Hour with Wil Wheaton, and he had my sides splitting. The show was basically his stand-up, followed by a Q&A session. It was supposed to be a PG-13 show, but it might have leaned a little on the R side. That's ok by me, though. My 13 year old blushed a few times, but the "spicy dick milk" story had us all laughing so hard, we may have ruptured organs.

The Babylon 5 panel was just fantastic. It was soooo nice to see the group back together. The tributes and shared memories of the cast members who have passed on was very touching. J Michael Straczynski told a great story about creating a fake storyline for G'Kar, wherein he undergoes a spontaneous sex change and ends up in bed with Lando. He remained committed to the prank up to and including having Andreas Katsulas fitted for prosthetic "narn boobs." I wish they had actually filmed some scenes. What a riot! Mira Furlan gave a moving speech about how the show was a blessing for her after she fled Yugoslavia. When she felt she had lost her home, the cast of Babylon 5 made her feel welcome. She talked about how the fans themselves really made her feel that America was now "home."

   Mira Furlan, "Delenn" talks about what B5 meant to her.

And then there was John Barrowman. That man is a bundle of energy. Hilarious, sexy energy. He got a phone number from a Marine, discussed his possible stripper names, and had the BEST photo ops.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/phxcc_actor_photos/sets/72157633668318208/page2/
Check them out. I don't know how someone stays that chipper after hugging hundreds of strangers. (and being picked up by them, butt squeezed by them, etc.) He's definitely a good sport about it.

   John Barrowman gets the crowd excited for photo ops.

There were great cosplayers- everything from Star Wars to Steampunk.

And a few surprises. :)

The only downside was the size of the crowd this year- bigger than ever. Holy insanity, Batman!
I haven't seen official numbers yet, but my friends and I were guessing it might have hit 60,000. (Edit- the numbers are out now, and it was 55, 331, so I wasn't too far off.)
This was the first time that there were lines to get into lines. But things went pretty smoothly, despite the crowd. Even a fire alarm on Sunday didn't cause nearly as much havoc as it could have. So kudos to the staff and volunteers. They had a huge mess to deal with and they managed it beautifully.

I had a great time, as always. Heck, I got to meet and talk with a personal "hero" of mine- Ed Edmunds from Making Monsters. If you haven't seen this show on Travel Channel, check it out. It's a great look into prop-making and haunted houses. (I love Halloween, so this is right up my alley)

  me with Marsha and Ed Edmunds, of Distortions Unlimited, and Making Monsters

I can't wait to see what Phoenix Comicon has up its sleeve for next year. This con just keeps getting better and better!


Check out my pics on Flickr!  http://www.flickr.com/photos/angniks/sets/72157633729844900/