I can’t believe a whole year had passed since I’ve been to Steel City Con! While it’d be kind of hard to outdo the events of last December’s con, this year was still pretty eventful!
Getting to venue not too long after the convention’s panels officially kicked off, I didn’t find that I was being crushed by the crowd. Word on the street was that they capped the attendance this year. I think that was a good move considering the fire departments been called in the last several times. That smaller crowd also made looking through all of the vendor booths a lot less painful. It means I was also able to spot a Hannibal Funko Pop! Those suckers have not been in production for quite some time, and even though it was a good chunk of change, it was a fair deal. And I just know I turned beet red with excitement when I found it. Kudos to the guy for holding it for me all day, too!
This time around, while there was plenty of merch like action figures, Legos, Funko Pops, and other various memorabilia, I thought there was a much larger artists representation this time around. Some truly incredible stuff is out there. Every time I see these people I get the urge to apply for a booth at a future con, but then I think about how I’m committed to sitting there for a whole weekend. I think I’d be hard-pressed to find friends or family members willing to spend their days with me there. Oh, well, maybe some day! Now, just because the main convention center wasn’t too congested doesn’t mean the hotel across the street wasn’t. I had no real reason to go over there, so I have no clue if it was as chaotic as last December. Sounds like it might have been, but that’s bound to happen when you’ve got the casts of Scream and A Christmas Story over there with the likes of Kiefer Sutherland and others.
I was able to catch panels from Kurt Angle, Ming-Na Wen, and cast members from Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul before I got stuck in lines for most of the afternoon and evening. I was bummed to have missed the Scream panel and Jamie Campbell Bower’s, but sometimes sacrifices have to be made. In fact, Bower was the reason I missed both of those panels! It didn’t help at all that his photo ops and panel were placed at some wonky times. That just prolonged the waiting, but once I did get the chance to have him sign my drawing he was super duper nice. And handsome. Did I mention that? Gotta love a handsome Brit. Anyway, after that I stole a quick photo of Alec Baldwin before going to meet John Carroll Lynch. He’s a terrific character actor and couldn’t have been any nicer. He seemed pleasantly surprised that I had a copy of American Horror Story: Hotel to be signed, and I complemented him on his Zodiac shirt and his work on The Invitation. A great interaction.
Overall, it was a great day at the con and I can’t wait to go back! Slated for April is Juliette Lewis and Hayden Panetierre, so you know I’ll be there! Be on the lookout!