Wondercon 2009, I didn't go to this...

but if I had gone...

It would have been based on the premise of trying new things, and of course establishing the right to place judgment, because "yes I have been there" and "yes I did spend more than 10 minutes there."

I also would have wondered the following:

1. Why don't they have Calvin and Hobbes stuff? That is a legitimate comic and one of my favorites, only second to Rhymes with Orange.

2. Why aren't you allowed to flip through the comic book before purchasing? The plastic sleeve is so restrictive. How are you going to know if you like it, if you can't flip through it?

3. I wonder if that is a boy or girl sitting there? The body says male, but the voice sounds distinctly female.

I would have learned the following things:

1. This is where people go to get sci-fi/superhero costumes. A Jedi Knight costume costs over $200. The silk-lined outfit is around $165 plus $135 for the belt. And yes, they do have it in my size.

2. Random celebrities come to Wondercon. I understand Carrie Fisher and Mark Hamill signing autographs. But the girl who played Peyton on the WB show Savannah? Mitch, the dad from Dawson's Creek? Fine, Mitch played the Flash back in the day, but why would display a huge picture of him with the cast of Dawson's at the booth? Does that crowd really care that he was in some angsty teen drama?

Suprisngly I would NOT find it weird to see people in costumes. To like a character so much that you are compelled to dress like him/her, could be considered crazy. But then I remembered when I was kid I used to dress like Maleficent from Sleeping Beauty. Obviously it wasn't authentic. Basically me with a towel around my neck, a stuffed orange parrot in one hand (to represent her crow) and a glittery baton in the other (to represent her sceptor). Anyways, the costume thing is really just an excuse for nerds to dress slutty. I get that, we all want to wear flammable material at some point in the year, for nerds it's Wondercon.

Also, if I had gone, I would tell no one. I would throw away the "Wondercon 2009" badge they made everyone wear. I would also regret not buying the Spiderman issue with Obama on the cover. But then rationalize that all they had were 2nd or 3rd reprints and variants. Everyone knows 1st print is worth more and better.


*Maleficent, mistress of all evil. You can see her in Sleeping Beauty and Fantasmic! at Disneyland.