Day one for the 2013 Toronto ComiCon is all wrapped and we are gearing up for Day 2.
The ComiCon is being held in the South Building at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre.
If you are expecting this Con to be a big show like Fan Expo, don’t get your hopes up. This is a smaller show, and it is only using a portion of the South Building.
Just because it is a smaller show, doesn’t necessarily mean it is a poor show, it is just different than what people expect from Fan Expo as an organization.
My first reaction to ComiCon this year was for being a comic book convention, there was more science fiction fare at the show, than comics. It is understandable. The cast from Star Trek Next Generation are there and it is a big deal. But I would have liked to have seen more guests and celebrities from the world of comics.
The other issue I have with this years Toronto ComiCon is the lack of comic book panels. Fan Expo in August is filled with lots of great panels where we can hear about the production of comics, or new stories coming out, from the creators themselves. After looking at the schedule, I didn’t see a single panel that interested me. But there isn’t the same number of creators at this show either.
At times it was very crowded on Saturday at ComiCon. And I had heard that tickets were no longer available either. This is a shame. Only part of the South Building was used. I hate to see people turned away, when the venue is capable of handling a larger crowd.
I don’t want to dwell on the negatives. But those were my first reactions to the show.
There were many good things I saw on the Saturday as well.
As you know, I am a big toy collector. I am not to keen on digging through dusty old long boxes to find a comic back issue treasure. But I’ll rummage through a toy bin to find an action figure I never knew existed. There were a lot of great toys at the ComiCon. One of the items on my list was the lastest wave of Marvel Legends. I found at least 3 retailers who had the wave available. The price varied from vendor to vendor. The 3 figures I was looking for in particular come with the “build a figure” pieces to build Hit-Monkey. WHO DOESN”T WANT A HIT-MONKEY?!? I know I do. You can never go wrong with a monkey with guns.
I am trying my age-old tactic of waiting until the end of the Con, offering a ridiculously low price, to pick it up before the vendor has to pack it up for the trip home. Sometimes it works. Sometimes it doesn’t. Tune in later to see if I succeeded.
There were some deals on comics. One vendor was selling his trades (hardcover and paperback) for 40% off cover price. Other retailers offered US cover price and no tax. But most vendors are willing to work with you to come up with a price that works for both parties. I picked up the first 3 trade paperbacks for American Vampire. I may have found them cheaper if I checked every bin. But the vendor offered me a price I was comfortable with, and I picked up 3 books that I would have normally passed on at the retail price.
Toronto ComiCon is still on one more day (Sunday). It is always nice to be at a convention surrounded by all things “geeky and nerdy”. I enjoy conventions. I like talking to people and finding out what people collect. If you made it to the Saturday show, did you enjoy it? Make a comment below.
I was able to make it on Saturday but couldn’t make it Sunday. Although I had a great time, i was somewhat disappointed overall. I went with a list of comics and figures i wanted and I was surprised by what I couldn’t find.
I scoured comic bins. I was surprised by the amount of bargin bins there, but with that said, i couldn’t find a complete set of Amalgam/Marvel vs DC comics from the ’90’s. Strange. Also, I was on the hunt for a Booster Gold figure from the DC Universe line. No one had it. What I found strange was how much wasn’t there. There were quite a few retailers selling Marvel Universe figures, but NO ONE had the few figures I was looking for (Electro, Mary Jane, and Luke Cage) and same with the DC Universe figures. There were a lot but there were tins that weren’t there.
Artist Alley was good as always. I bought myself a few indy comics and got to know a few of the artists. Nice people, I wish them all the best.
Size wise, I prefer the smaller sized convention to the the bigger sized Fan Expo, but that’s just me.
The crowd was great, fantastic costumes. Some good deals. I didn’t find prices to be as absurd as I have in the past but hey, it is what it is. I am noticing a trend, and maybe it’s just me, but I have noticed a slow decline in the amount of comic retailers over the past few shows, and yet, this summer’s Fan Expo is supposed to be the biggest ever, taking over the North and South building. Comic shows have become more ‘pop’ culture shows than anything else.
On a related topic, has anyone noticed that there’s no Wizard World Toronto scheduled anymore? It wasn’t that long ago that the Wizard website was selling tickets to an April event. Has this been cancelled? Moved?