Great showing for your first year here Wizard World! It's about time a big con gets to Sin City! And the efforts were highly applauded.
Wizard World Las Vegas had a huge showing of celebrity guests, but their biggest one, the one I was actually going to pay a hefty sum for a signature...Norman Reedus aka 'Daryl' of Walking Dead fame was a cancellation. That was probably one of the biggest draws of the entire con besides maybe the other Walking Dead cast members (Glenn, Merle, The Governor, Father Gabriel, Abraham, and even Beth was in attendance). But even Walking Dead actors Shane and Carl cancelled as well. So unfortunate! I would have almost paid an arm and a leg to get an entire cast photo!
Don't get me wrong there were a ton of great celebrity names in attendance - Roman Reigns of WWE, Kevin Conroy of Batman fame, Robert Englund aka 'Freddy', and the uber popular Jason David Frank aka 'The Green Ranger' of Power Rangers fanfare was there! And just about every celebrity had a nice following at their booths. Wizard World was even funny enough to place Kevin Sorbo, 'Hercules', right next to Lou Ferrigno, 'Hulk'!
And wow, the number of comic book artists at the con was numerous. Many of them Marvel & DC household names, and a lot of up and coming artists as well. Everyone I talked to or asked for a signature was friendly and gracious. Very nice folks! I got a ton of artists signatures as well!
I did splurge the cash for one person's signature, yep, the Green Ranger of course Jason David Frank! Cost me a cool $40! Dang! I was watching the dude on the O.G. Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers when I was still in school! I had to stand in line and give the guy props for taking his career this far. He is the only actor to be in every iteration of the Power Rangers franchise. That's like, EPIC, right?
The LVCC was a HUGE venue for the con, possibly too big, but it was nice because everything was spread out and there was a ton of walking space for everyone. The vendor floor was packed with people peddling their toy and comic wares, and even a few famous rides like the old Batmobile and Delorean from Back to the Future made an appearance! Those damn cars were charging moolah for a picture! Guess they would be considered celebrities too. I really enjoyed myself because a lot of the vendors were selling toys, which is mainly what I collect. I know some folks will probably complain about this because the vendors selling comics and novels were less in number. But what can you do, eh? This year Funko POPs and vinyl toys are all the rage. I'm more of an action figure fan. But if I had the money, I would definitely be into buying some golden or silver age graded comics for investment. Can you imagine, your very own copy of the first appearance of The Avengers? Sweet.
The programming I attended was great as well. Lots of room for seating in nice AC temp rooms. The program I attended with David Morrissey aka 'The Governor' of Walking Dead as the special guest was fantastic! He was very friendly and excited to be with the audience, and was very engaging in his interview. Michael Rooker aka 'Merle' also made a prank appearance in the middle of the interview with a huge ladder to fix a broken light! It was hilarious.
The biggest gripe I think anyone would have about Wizard World was the prices. It is pretty expensive! To get into the con depending on the day cost you $30 and up, for Saturday it was around $45. There were some Living Social deals on the web before the show, but even those were limited to Friday or Sunday. If you waited to buy tickets like I did, if you joined the Wizard World mailing list, they sent out a discount coupon code that gave users 20% off ticket purchases. I got a 3 day pass for around $64 after fees. That made it much friendlier on the wallet. But again prices skyrocket after that because every celebrity charges a premium for a signature or a picture. Getting a cast pic with the Walking Dead actors in attendance would have cost over $200! And that's WITHOUT Norman Reedus in the pic! Of course, that's how Wizard World makes a lot of their money from their 'cons'. LOL, I just noticed how funny that was. But they do attract a lot of marquee names and A-list talent for their shows across the US. As a bonus, every attendee to the con got an exclusive, limited edition 'Walking Dead' #1 reprint with the cover done by artist Gilbert 'Beto' Hernandez. VIPs got a black & white sketch version. I managed to find an extra copy in the trash (yes in the trash!), and got it signed by Beto while at the show, for free!
I'm happy a big con like Wizard World finally came to Vegas to support the local nerdy community here. I overall had a great time at the con, and didn't feel rushed like I would at the super con of all cons, SDCC. I'm glad that Wizard World has already announced they will be back here in 2016! I'll be there. Hopefully Norman Reedus will be too. read more