Fan Expo was this weekend. For those who don’t know, Fan Expo is the largest “Nerd” event in Canada covering everything from Sci-Fi, to comics, to anime, to gaming and horror. It draws tens of thousands to meet their favourite actors (this year included William Shatner, Adam West, Ernest Borgnine, Burt Ward, Julie Newmar, Summer Glau, Felicia Day and more), favourite comic book artists (including Stan Lee and Gary Frank) and get a more personal look at some of the things coming down the pipes (Tron: Legacy, Halo: Reach).
It’s also a huge event to buy any kind of fan items you could ever want! From comic books and action figures, to original art, costumes, games, photos, and more! Really it is pretty amazing everything it brings together.
One of the unusual and unique things about this kind of event is the crowd, which in itself becomes an attraction. I saw Star Trek officers, Sailor Moon, Pikachu, Sonic the Hedgehog, Storm Troopers, Wookies, Iron Man, Superman, Spiderman, someone called Deadpool, Wolverine, Cloud, Cobra Commander, Titus, Rikku and tons of other characters from popular (and no so popular) games, movies, comics and TV shows! It was wild.
My time at Fan Expo was great. However, the event didn’t go off without any issues. Saturday especially was chaotic. The event organizers oversold the event and the Fire Marshall shut the doors to any new people (including those who’d purchased in advance, and those who went out for a smoke break or to get food.)
Escalators had to be policed because of the sheer number of people who were on each floor. Outside, those in line (in the heavy humidity and heat) chanted ‘Refund! Refund!’ There was even a rumour I overheard that riot police were being called in, though I wasn’t able to confirm that rumour.
Overall, I think there’s a lot of things the organizers did well, and a lot they need to improve on. But fortunately for them, the next FanExpo isn’t for another year. So they’ll have lots of time to fix the errors.
(If they don’t… well, in that case, it’s time for someone else to take over as the biggest “Nerd” event in Canada!)
