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Friday was the first full day of Wizard World Chicago Comic Con, held at the Donald J. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, IL, just outside Chicago, and there were plenty of onsite activities to keep busy.
Instead of last year’s two-level set-up, the right and left halves of the main floor had the retailing area, with upstairs and downstairs ballrooms being the site for Panels, Screenings, and Q+A sessions, as previous. Given that amount of space, it seemed like the largest overall Wizard World convention at the venue, to date.
Comic book-related vendors mostly were placed on one side of the exhibit space, while other pop culture vendors (swords, cosplay accessories, autographs, licensed goods, etc) were on the other side.
Panels of the day included:
The Marsters panel included many on-the-set stories from the shows he’s been a part of, as well as anecdotes and answering the fans’ need-to-know questions.
Richards’ panel was full of energy and insightful as well. He entered the stage holding a pitcher of ice water, teasing the crowd that he would do the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge in front of them, but then deferred. Richards answered fan and moderator questions, including his love of comics growing up, excitement at playing the Deathlok character on TV, and being out of work as an actor for 18 months, until that role came along.
Several in the audience remembered his role on Angel as vampire hunter Charles Gunn, and convinced Richards to tweet Wizard to request an unscheduled Angel panel, to include the other cast members that were also at Wizard World Chicago.
Additionally on the show floor, speed dating sessions, a short film festival, and horror film festival curated by Bruce Campbell (Evil Dead, Army of Darkness, who is on hand as well) were ongoing.
Comic book creators in attendance included Marvel’s Stan Lee, Neal Adams (“Batman,” “Green Lantern”), Leinil Yu (“Hulk,” “Wolverine”), Salvador Larroca (“Avengers vs. X-Men,” “Captain America”), , Mike Zeck (“Spider-Man,” “Punisher”), Marv Wolfman (“DCU Online,” “Crisis on Infinite Earths”) and others, including a handful of up-and-coming Spanish-based artists, flown in to attend for the weekend.
Drummer Peter Criss from Kiss was on hand to sign autographs and meet the fans (though all the presale tickets to do so, were sold out), but unfortunately, his panel/Q+A was cancelled, as was one with Star Trek’s Jonathan Frakes, though other ST:TNG panels did take place.
Longest signing line in the Media Area that we witnessed on Friday, was for Kevin Conroy, the voice of Batman in the animated series, for the last 23 years.
Stay tuned for Saturday coverage and show re-cap!
Instead of last year’s two-level set-up, the right and left halves of the main floor had the retailing area, with upstairs and downstairs ballrooms being the site for Panels, Screenings, and Q+A sessions, as previous. Given that amount of space, it seemed like the largest overall Wizard World convention at the venue, to date.
Comic book-related vendors mostly were placed on one side of the exhibit space, while other pop culture vendors (swords, cosplay accessories, autographs, licensed goods, etc) were on the other side.
Panels of the day included:
- Jason David Frank meet and greet (the original Green/White Power Ranger)
- 1939: Batman’s Beginnings
- Women in Geek Culture
- One-on-One with James Marsters (Spike from Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel)
- One-on-one with J. August Riichards (Deathlok in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D TV series)
The Marsters panel included many on-the-set stories from the shows he’s been a part of, as well as anecdotes and answering the fans’ need-to-know questions.
Richards’ panel was full of energy and insightful as well. He entered the stage holding a pitcher of ice water, teasing the crowd that he would do the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge in front of them, but then deferred. Richards answered fan and moderator questions, including his love of comics growing up, excitement at playing the Deathlok character on TV, and being out of work as an actor for 18 months, until that role came along.
Several in the audience remembered his role on Angel as vampire hunter Charles Gunn, and convinced Richards to tweet Wizard to request an unscheduled Angel panel, to include the other cast members that were also at Wizard World Chicago.
Additionally on the show floor, speed dating sessions, a short film festival, and horror film festival curated by Bruce Campbell (Evil Dead, Army of Darkness, who is on hand as well) were ongoing.
Comic book creators in attendance included Marvel’s Stan Lee, Neal Adams (“Batman,” “Green Lantern”), Leinil Yu (“Hulk,” “Wolverine”), Salvador Larroca (“Avengers vs. X-Men,” “Captain America”), , Mike Zeck (“Spider-Man,” “Punisher”), Marv Wolfman (“DCU Online,” “Crisis on Infinite Earths”) and others, including a handful of up-and-coming Spanish-based artists, flown in to attend for the weekend.
Drummer Peter Criss from Kiss was on hand to sign autographs and meet the fans (though all the presale tickets to do so, were sold out), but unfortunately, his panel/Q+A was cancelled, as was one with Star Trek’s Jonathan Frakes, though other ST:TNG panels did take place.
Longest signing line in the Media Area that we witnessed on Friday, was for Kevin Conroy, the voice of Batman in the animated series, for the last 23 years.
Stay tuned for Saturday coverage and show re-cap!
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James Marsters at Wizard World Chicago Comic Con (22 Aug 2014) |
