"When was the last time you were in Pakistan?"
You know you are not in Kansas (or Toronto) anymore when you see a parrot riding on a Great Dane.
Annnnnd with that question posed to me at the US border, I knew this trip to Charlotte, North Carolina for Heroes Con would not go smoothly. Flight issues led to staying the night in Buffalo and two poor choices:
McDonalds for dinner and Seneca Nations Casino-
ing to combat boredom. Very early Friday morning we were on our way to Charlotte via Atlanta.
What? No Fried Twinkies or Snickers?
Arrived around 2 p.m. and found the show floor lacking any energy, any buzz. Maybe my expectations were too high due to all those glowing con reports from the previous 3 years. Maybe the effects of economy was finally hitting the con circuit. Whatever it was, people who had been to previous Heroes Con shows were also commenting on how lackluster Friday seemed. I saw a number of artists pack up around 4 p.m. and leave even though the doors would remain open for another 3 hours. I left the show around 4:30 p.m. and walked around a very beautiful city for almost 2 hours. Charlotte, the city of waterfalls and a frustrating amount of one way streets.
Random crowd shot from Saturday afternoon
Saturday came and as I entered the main floor I could almost feel the energy and excitement. This was the Heroes Con that I had expected to experience. The place was packed but not uncomfortably so. The
continuous bass thumping coming from the Dub show next door was slightly unsettling and some what amusing. Sunday felt more like Friday until about 1 p.m. and then crowds picked up noticeably. If I had to guess it was probably because Father's Day brunch was over. By 3:30 p.m. though the crowds and some guests started moving out and I followed not long after.
I loved this Rene Montoya/The Question costume
As Heroes Con is an artist-centric show I was able to talk with a number of artists I have never met before. I was also able to look at artwork from a wide range of cartoonists. Meeting
Roger Langridge was one my personal highlights. The stage set up for artists to draw/paint pieces for the charity auction was unique and if you were lucky enough you were able to watch artists at work. I was extremely fortunate to spend a fair bit of time over the 3 days watching
Steve Epting draw for his fans. People seem to like the way he draws some guy named Steve Rogers.
Steve Epting and Isiah Bradley
And there were comic books. Lord were there comic books. Something for every one's tastes and budgets. Boom! and DC Comics had a presence at the show. Surprisingly Marvel did not even though they had a lot of their A-list talent on the guest list.
The DC Comics set-up
Overall, I really enjoyed this show. It did not meet my original high expectations but Saturday itself was just great enough to offset Friday and Sunday. I'm already planning my trip for next year. Kudos to Shelton
Drum, Dustin Harbin and everyone else associated with the con for running a good show.
The courtyard outside the Omni Hotel had a little farmer's market.
Another random crowd shot from Saturday.
I think Dean Trippe may have a Batman & Robin problem :-)
Roger Langridge
A Heroes Con tradition. 2 fans get sketches and signatures on boxes. Emma Frost by Ray Dillon and Renae DeLiz
Some cool Death stuff
Sign of the times: Creators charging for signatures? Seems just like sports stars in the late 80's
George Perez spent a lot of time at the HERO Initiative booth.
Gearing up for Blackest Night
Cool cosplaying couple
Cap looking cool but Iron Man might be overheating
Superman and Lex Luthor enjoying a nice Saturday by going to a con
The (Power Puff) Gang's all here
Ross Richie and the BOOM! booth
Steve Hamaker had to resort to a post-it note letting people know he WASN'T Jeff Smith.
Extra points for the awesome Scott Pilgrim Toronto shirt!
Scott Adsit from 30 ROCK was at the show all weekend 
Two pieces for the art auction 
Final touches before the art auction
Original artwork from South America
Cutting back on security in these tough economic times.
Batwoman seems to have lost the Batmobile.
One aspect of the San Diego Comic Con that I found somewhat surprising was the amount of non-convention center advertising that could be found in and around the Gaslamp District.
My Scare Tactics burger was 1lb of beef and impossible to finish
