Comic-Conned

Thomas and I took a little road trip to New Orleans this past weekend. A friend of mine mentioned on Facebook that she was thinking of taking her little girl to New Orleans Comic-Con to see the Batmobile, which led to this:

Me: Hey, did you know New Orleans had a Comic-Con?

Thomas: WHAT?! WHEN?!

Me: This weekend, it looks like. Apparently they're getting the Batmobile, and Adam West will be there. Oh! I think they're getting Billy Dee...

Thomas: WE'RE GOING!!!!!!!!!

A few minutes later, we had online tickets in hand, and a schedule of Saturday's events. We thought we'd leave around 9am, get there around 11, grab a quick lunch, and get in line for James Marster's noon panel. Immediately following was Billy Dee Williams, then Nicholas Brendan (the Con was Buffy-centric this year). After the panels, we'd check out the exhibitor's floor, try to snag some Supernatural or Doctor Who t-shirts, ogle the Batmobile and DeLorian, then head back for Adam West and Burt Ward's Batman panel. We'd finish up around 5pm, grab some beignets at Cafe du Monde, and get home at a reasonable hour.

It was a good plan.

You know what they say about plans...

Here are some things I learned during NOLA Comic-Con:

1) Closing two out of three lanes of interstate during peak tourist season (Mardi Gras, football) should be a punishable offense.

2) Never believe the price on the parking lot sign. That's just the fee for turning into the driveway. The real price will be much, much higher.

3) Buying your ticket online doesn't just ensure admission, it also ensures a much longer wait for wristbands than just walking in and buying a ticket. Those people just waltzed up to the front, then breezed off with a band. I got to wait so long that I started a game of "count the cosplayers".

4) James Marsters is awesome (okay, already knew that). Also, in a pinch, he makes a great chauffeur*.

5) Billy Dee Williams is getting up there. His moderator answered a lot of the audience's questions. That said, he's still worlds cooler than I could ever hope to be.

6) Bring snacks. Also, Lysol.

7) Advertisers lie. There was no Batmobile. There was no Ecto-1. There was a DeLorian, but it cost $20 to take a picture of it with your own camera. In fact, there was pretty much a charge to take pictures of anything. I can understand that with the celebs, but displays? Really?

8) Ernie Hudson still looks fabulous in a Ghostbusters uniform, and Chekov is the most adorable little guy, ever.

9) The middle of a crowded exhibition hall is no place for an impromptu Mardi Gras parade, complete with floats. It's a wonder the fire department didn't step in on that one.
10) Batman and Robin are still the dynamic duo, even after forty years. Of course, you'll have to trust me on that, as I was not allowed to photograph any of the panel. Blast!

Now, I really wish I could leave this list at ten, but after I got home, I learned another important lesson: Sometimes, people steal.

No, nothing of mine was taken. Truth is, I almost bought some hot property from a vendor. There was a really cool print for sale in one of the booths--a Doctor Who caricature collage, with all eleven Doctors. It was only $20, but at the time, I couldn't think of a place to hang it in my apartment. It wasn't until Sunday night that I really started to regret my decision, and started an online hunt for a copy.

As it turns out, that's exactly what it was: a copy.

Photo Credit: Jon Pinto

The artist is Jon Pinto, an illustrator from Clermont, FL, and he is not happy about people selling his work. See, up until a few months ago, folks could download and print copies of his paintings free of charge. Unfortunately, instead of hanging on walls for personal use, copies were showing up for sale at cons--and Pinto, himself, caught one of the thieves. From then on, a watermark has gone on every image, and the downloads have been stopped. I'm so glad I didn't (unintentionally) contribute to intellectual piracy, but I'm also saddened that I can't buy a copy of my own. For now, I'll just keep checking his blog and deviantART site, in hopes of one day seeing a "buy now" button pop up.

So, it wasn't the best con ever. At least I was able to grab some beignets for the ride home.

*So, there was a fun story at the Billy Dee Williams panel (told, of course, by the moderator). Seems that the driver sent to pick Mr. Williams and Mr. Marsters up from the airport was...um...incapacitated. Story is, he was okay enough to ask everyone for autographs, but then started driving erratically. Amid the screaming of "I'sh omkay! I can drivesh! I promish I'mmmokay!" the two gentlemen (plus another passenger I can't recall) finally persuaded him to pull over to the side of the road, where Mr. Marsters took it upon himself to play designated driver for the remainder of the trip to the hotel. The End.