Can you feel it? There’s an electricity in the air as if thousands of like-minded nerds of all fandoms will be gathering all into one location. Over the course of the 3 days, Comic-Con will be invading Ottawa once again!
Thousands upon thousands of people will be in attendance to get the slightest glimpse of their childhood hero’s, those who have influenced who they are today or grab the last Master Sword for sale in the vendor area! It may be crowded, and you may want to give up… but we have created a guide to help you thrive and survive during Comiccon!
GRAB YOUR GEAR
Before you even hit the convention floor you need to make sure you have all the necessary odds and ends to survive! Each year I find myself adding upon my list of necessities to bring. I can now say with pin point accuracy that the following are the necessary things you will need:
Footwear – You will be walking. A lot. Out of curiosity I wore my Fitbit during last year’s Comic-Con to see exactly how many steps I took each day… I averaged around 20,000 steps! To put that in a distance perspective that’s approximately 15km! Walking this distance can only be imaginable with comfortable shoes, so be prepared and don’t forget to limber up! Be sure to always have a backup plan, carry band aids or mole skin tape in case of blister emergencies. This goes double for cosplayers! Those boots are made for walking, and that’s just what they’ll do!
HAND SANITISER
While walking around the convention you will be making a lot of close contact – sometimes even too close with the thousands of people all around you. If this were an RPG, it would be like getting poisoned and taking damage over time until you take an antidote. Why wouldn’t you take an antidote? Be sure to have a few spare bottles, you will be sure to have your fair share of moist clammy handshakes.
GET TO THE CHARGER
We can all accept the fact that everywhere you look there will be at least one person in sight will a cell phone in their hand. Add in your latest tweet, update your Instagram, SELFIE! Your battery can only take so much! All dogs may go to heaven but where do dead batteries go? Let us pray we never find out. Don’t fret, there are ways to combat against the battery blues. There are a few mobile chargers small enough to fit in your pocket that will act as a second battery to your device. Small, reasonably cheap and super effective!
GRAB YOUR DUFFLE IN A HUSSLE
Between the copious amounts of hand sanitizer, backup plans and snacks you will be lugging around, you will be venturing forth into the holy grounds of nerdy nick nacks! Your little T-rex arms can only hold so much! You will need a bag that is up to the task of carrying any and all trinkets you desire. Some things that you should put in this bag include a sharpie, who knows who you may run into and when. Speaking of potential autographs, be sure to pack a note pad, that way you can also use it to jot down cool things you see, doodle in the margins, and even have commission your favorite artist to draw a sketch in it. Stay hydrated, bring a LEAK PROOF water bottle – let me repeat… LEAK PROOF! I learned the hard way when my water bottle leaked throughout my bag, not only destroying my snacks by my autographed commission sketch.
PLAN YOUR DAY
Within this gigantic space of convention goodies, vendors and artists there are small rooms dedicated to smaller panels as well as dedicated spaces for certain events. You can bet your comic collection that you are not the only one that will be waiting patiently to see this panel, when you thought you saw a lot of people, just around the corner there’s a good chance there is even more and the likeliness that they will be in your way are through the roof! This is where your time playing games such as Batman and Assassins Creed will come in handy, turn on your detective sense and find the path of least resistance… Don’t get stuck behind slow paced Susan!
THE WAITING GAME
You have now made it through the crowd of hundreds of people only to find yourself… waiting in line behind hundreds of people. Don’t you worry your little nerdy self, those rooms hold hundreds of people so take a seat and prepare to relax for quite a while. Depending on the event at hand you may want to make sure that you are super early, not just regular early but HOURS in advance. While waiting be sure to take our advice as time seems to go a lot slower when you are unprepared. Stock up your phone or iPod with your favorite audiobooks or podcasts, there may be Wi-Fi but do not count on it as hundreds, maybe thousands are uploading their latest nerdy selfies to their Instagram and your phone can’t get signal. That bag you prepared, there was plenty of room to store a novel or some comic books, or who knows maybe you can even converse with your fellow human waiting alongside with you. The wonderful thing about Comiccon is that thousands of likeminded people are in the same place for the same reason as you, it shouldn’t be a problem to get a conversation rolling and make some new allies!
FOOD
Face it, your snacks will eventually run out. As sad as this reality may sound, you need to be prepared for it. Instead of indulging on the classic overpriced rotisserie hotdog, be sure to wander the labyrinth halls check out some of the local vendors. The food may not be the best but enjoying something with names such as the Marvel-ous burger or the DC-licous milkshakes almost makes it worth it in the end!
This will lead you to the end of the night… you did it! You have officially survived day one of Comiccon! You feel like you’ve ran a marathon, your wallet is empty and your bag is full of more nerdy trinkets than you could have ever imagined! But this was only step one, there are 3 days of Comiccon and you are just getting started! Repeat the above process and I assure you, you will get the best out of any large convention – Good luck fellow nerds, may the odds be ever in your favour!
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