My second year at Long Beach Comic Con was yet another reminder of my love of the sci-fi and comic book convention circuit. Perhaps it is because this is what I grew up with or perhaps it is due to my love of science fiction, but I always seem to fit in best at small events like Long Beach Comic Con. While I may have a bias toward this type of event it is a bias I can defend.

The Long Beach Convention Center has grown into a great location for an event. The hotels are close by, there are plenty of restaurants, and several beautiful photoshoot locations. There could be no better location for a small event. The main flaw of the location is that the panel rooms are so far away from the main convention center building. They are not located in a convenient location, but that did not seem to have any impact on attendance. Still it would be nice to see panel rooms that are easier to get to so that hitting panels does not feel like a chore.

The event line up was really strong this year. It really shows the growth from last year and hopefully this growth curve will continue as this convention moves on to its next year. We had no problems finding seating for the panels and the hallways never felt crowded or difficult to navigate. The return of wrestling and the robust guest list made this year a very busy year for any attendee. The programming was more interesting than many other events I have hit in the past few years.

The dealer hall was just as good as last year featuring many different comic stores, video companies, toy companies, and centrally located guest tables. I really liked the announcer this year, having a friendly voice (and sometimes a celebrity voice) giving you updates adds a nice layer of energy to the showroom floor. The sheer variety of vendors was a nice sight to see. I even enjoyed the odd-ball vendors scattered around the hall. Plus aromatherapy (Black Phoenix Academy Lab) always helps when you are surrounded by comic book geeks.

Overall this convention felt nice and relaxing with fun people, great guests, and some very interesting programming. We would love to thank the staff of Long Beach Comic Con, Matthias, Stan, the 501st, and fellow comic book geeks. We hope to run into all of you again.

If you have any comments or questions feel free not to e-mail me at Jared (at) Scarlet-Rhapsody.com. Until next time give my love to the empire!

The List

1. That new comic book smell!
2. Silver age comics you say?
3. Somehow, I curved my spending
4. Great food = Happy Jared
5. Note to self: get a comic book cosplay
6. Marvel cartoons are looking good!
7. I feel all charged up again
8. A comic convention on Halloween, nice!
9. Cosplay in America? I promoted that!
10. Seriously, $30?!
11. Why top 11 because we end on a prime!

Pictures are copyright by Scarlet Rhapsody . If I took your picture, feel free to use it on your site or cosplay gallery. While you're here, do sign the guestbook. This site was brought to you by the font Timepiece.