It’s almost a week since WonderCon 2011 ended, and I’m still recuperating from a weekend of running around taking photos of cosplayers and going to panels. It was a blast!
The show keeps getting bigger and better, and is starting to get a rep for being a more intimate version of the San Diego Comic-Con that is more accessible, and less congested.
On the photo side, I came away with a load of great shots, and a few videos. It will probably be weeks before I “develop” them all in Lightroom and get them posted, but my WonderCon 2011 Gallery on Flickr is growing daily.
Some of the cosplay costumes were absolutely amazing … Including some from some professional designers, and some that look as though they should be professional designers.
One of my favorites is this Harley Quinn costume from Hannah Lees of Los Angeles:
Also, Opal Moon Designs Designer, Kerry Kordowski, was showing off some of her fantasy cosplay gear at the show. The work is highly detailed and beautiful:
And this Sally Jupiter/Silk Spectre costume (and I’m sorry I didn’t get the lady’s name) is brilliantly executed. This is a tough one to pull off, and I think she did it with both style and class:
The Dr. Who panel was a highlight of the weekend, with writer Neil Gaiman joining actors Mark Sheppard, Director Toby Haynes, and moderator Chris Hardwick for a preview of the new series, which starts on April 23rd on BBC America. While Neil, stole the show, Mark Sheppard (who seems to have a part on just about every SciFi show in production these days), had lots of stories to tell about everything from the new Who to Supernatural.
There was also a “V” panel on Sunday with Mark Singer, Elizabeth Mitchell, and showrunner Scott Rosenbaum. I have to admit I mostly went to geek out over the incredibly charming, and just a wee bit nerdy, Elizabeth, but Mark Singer definitely has his place in SciFi history, and hearing his perspective on “V”, old and new, was worth the trip in.
The cast and crew is hoping for another season, but seem to be banking on their DVR numbers. We’ll have to see. While I’m a huge fan of the original series, Rosenbaum would have some serious work to do to bring this show back to a point, in both story and viewership, where it could be sustainable for another season.
There was a “Cowboys and Aliens” panel with Jon Favreau which I missed due to post work-week recovery and getting out of the house late. Attendance was huge, and everyone is looking forward to the film’s premiere this summer. Just seeing Harrison Ford slinging a gun will be worth the price of admission.
The hardest part of any WonderCon is not giving in to the Forces of Darkness (the vendors), and spending the life savings on the variety of cool and geeky stuff on sale. There seemed to be a lot of tables selling Steampunk-ware this year, and that was a major temptation for me … Some ocular implants would aid my work tremendously at this stage of the game.
The gallery of stars from the past in the autograph section was also bigger this year, with a variety of fan-favorite actors from old shows such as Jon Provost (“Timmy” from “Lassie”, Barbara Luna (who seemed to be on just about every SciFi series from Original “Trek” to “Buck Rogers” in the ’60s and ’70s) to Lou Ferrigno.
In short, it was a great weekend. I’m already looking forward to next year’s show, as well as thinking about a trip to San Diego in the near future.