Look, I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with home and garden shows, but it’s about damn time the Washington Convention Center played host to a convention that prominently features the Ecto-1 from Ghostbusters II rather than beds of rare pansies.
So I’m thankful that Awesome Con—a comic book and pop culture convention—entered into the picture last year, bringing a welcomed opportunity for people near and far to flock to the Convention Center each spring and let their geek flag fly high. If the inaugural Awesome Con was an experiment—a test to see if the nerds and geeks in a traditionally uptight town would come out of the woodwork—then this year’s Con proved that there’s a permanent place in This Town for a weekend of nerdy debauchery.
At about 1 p.m. on Saturday, the line to get into the Convention Center wrapped around the block to L Street. Expanded from two days to three this year, there’s no questioning that Awesome Con was far bigger than anyone anticipated. “I can’t believe how many people are here,” a man dutifully dressed as Batman said waiting in a massive line to be judged for Saturday’s costume contest. Indeed, throughout most of the day Saturday, the dominate theme seemed to be lines, lines, lines. No matter what panel, Q&A, or event you were trying to get into, there was most certainly a long line (I, myself was shut out of an Elizabethan live-read of Star Wars due to capacity).
Luckily, that didn’t suck all the fun out of the Con. In the massive exhibition room, hundreds of vendors were set up, peddling everything from vintage comics to original art, collectible figurines, hand-crafted swords, and everything in between. It was a scene that could keep anyone occupied and entertained for hours upon end. (Also, a surefire way to quickly clear out your bank account).
Among the many booths, there was quite a strong showing of local representation. Both D.C. United and the D.C. Public Library had info booths and stuff to give away. The Museum of Science Fiction, which is hoping to open a preview museum in town sometime late this year or early next year, had some neat artifacts on display. But perhaps the most interesting local group to have a booth was R2DC, a group of R2D2 builders in the D.C. area.
The R2DC builders are a local congregation of tech-savvy Star Wars enthusiasts who get together several times a year to build life-sizes, fully functional R2D2 models, along with other props and droids from the galaxy far, far away. Member Patrick Coajou says R2DC is just the local chapter of a larger network of Star Wars droid-building enthusiasts. Their members, which include people from Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, and even Pennsylvania, have several summits a year in which they use the parts they’ve bought individually to complete their latest projects. “Conventions like [Awesome Con],” Coajou says, “are a great opportunity to showcase our work and connect with our community.”
And Awesome Con is certainly a community event. Whether you’re a first-time cosplayer or sporting full body makeup for your umpteenth time dressed as X-Men’s Nightcrawler, there was an undeniable “in this together” vibe. “Events like this—conventions—are a chance to get together and cheer each other on,” professional partier Andrew W.K. said to a crowd during a panel on Sunday. “For me, this weekend is keeping me going.” And that seemed to be the case for the many cult celebrities in attendance this weekend to sign autographs, snap photos, and meet fans (even if some of them were charging close to $50 for a photo).
Beloved actors like Ghostbuster’s Ernie Hudson, The Princess Bride’s Cary Elwes, The Lord of the Ring’s Sean Astin, The Walking Dead’s Danai Gurira and Melissa McBride, and many others were cheerful and enthusiastic to chat with fans all weekend, even if the signing booth setups made it seem like they were on display at some sort of celebrity zoo.
No matter what your nerdy poison was, their seemed to be something for everyone represented at Awesome Con this year—from anime to Alien, and most everything in between. But if there was a nerdy obsession not represented—fear not, next year’s Con is scheduled for May 29-31.
