Wizard World Toronto Comic Con

I cannot fathom a photo making me look nerdier/gayer than this one and I love it.

PEOPLE. OH MY GOODNESS -- I FOUND MY PEOPLE ON SATURDAY. Or, well, one important group of people, I should amend that. I would have loved to find a flock of queer women running around dressed as anime characters, BUT -- finding the Direct Energy Centre filled to the rafters with fellow nerds was an enriching, life-affirming experience.

This weekend was the official launch to a string of spring/summer festivals celebrating all that are comics, manga, sci fi, horror, gaming, and other such desirable pursuits. It was the inaugural Wizard World convention here in Canada and Toronto responded with great enthusiasm and even more cosplay. The Advocate and I were champing at the bit to cross the threshold into that magical Universe and were pleased with the outcome. It was also my first ever comic con and, yes, I have been converted to its wonder.

In typical Moffatt fashion, I must resort to point form notes as I have much ground to cover:

• 11:30 AM: Rendezvous avec The Advocate and The Bruce for a pre-game lunch chez Liberty Village Market and Cafe. I got lost at first, which is to be expected. But, once found, I was in for a delicious lunch. Veggie wrap with an odd drink concoction (aloe and mangosteen...?) The drink was chewy. It had aloe gel in it. Yet, oddly, it was satisfying.
• Note: The Advocate and The Bruce traded in their usual identities for some cosplay characters. The duo went as Rose Tyler from Doctor Who and Arthur Dent from Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, respectively. I travelled with celebrities -- serious, we got stopped for lots of photos once we were on Con grounds. I was the mild-mannered queer in the crowd.
• Where to start? We headed for the indie comics and the artist tables. It was low-key and filled with up and coming talent. Artists sold their work and were commissioned on the spot for new pieces. Definitely a trip to see them all working and getting the chance to hear them talk about their projects.
• Next up: Vendors. There were A LOT. Our trio didn't spend a whole lot of time with the mainstream comics, but you best believe I meandered around the manga. We found cute plushies of Luna from Sailor Moon and I found Nana 2 (the film) on DVD (!!) -- I'm not sure if it had English subs or not, so I steered clear. However, the vendor selling it has a store around my house so I will be stopping in soon.
• Cosplayers: No convention is complete without 'em. There were some impressive costumes there. We found Wolverine, some of the classic characters from X-Men, the cast of Hellboy, numerous Storm Troopers, Jedi knights, Battlestar Galactica soldiers, a few Batmans, a few Jokers, Ghostbusters -- EPIC. Aww, and there was a kid dressed in a Captain America costume who was too adorable.
• Found a raffle for some Steampunk swag and you best bet I entered it. It was a monogoggle attached to a leather flyer's cap. SO COOL. MUST HAVE. Please, send all those good luck vibes my way. Serious, now.
• Autograph tables: Umm.... we were all rather confused with the "celebrities." There was "So-and-So" from America's Next Top Model, "Such-and-Such" from So, You Think You Can Dance, "What's-Their-Faces" from Survivor, and other reality show commoners. And there were random pin-up girls who looked rather... false. In all aspects. And wrestlers, equally false in all their aspects. Weird.
• REAL celebrities: I got a touch star-struck when we passed Doug Jones' booth. I mean, it's Doug Jones of Hellboy and Pan's Labyrinth fame. And it's true, he's exceedingly thin in real life. And Ernie Hudson from the original Ghostbusters! (Hence all the folks running around dressed as Ghostbusters). His booth had a constant swell of fans around it, but it was still cool to see him from afar.
• Jewel Staite from Firefly -- I got to see The Bruce "fan-boy" in person. Ah, it's such an experience to see someone "fan out" in front of their idol. We all look the same when it happens and it still remains refreshing and humbling.
• Discovered The Bruce could cosplay as Ianto Jones from Torchwood with no issues. Serious, the two could be brothers.
• The Advocate stopped for a photo with one other fan who dressed as the Tenth Doctor... and we got sucked into an awkward, fifteen-minute conversation with said gentleman. It was the only awkward moment of the day, though, so not bad.
• I "fan-girled" when we arrived at the sword selection -- um, can we say replica swords from Bleach?! I saw Ichigo's bankai zanpakutō. And I even saw Kenpachi's katana. Mmm hmm. And as odd as that information might sound to most, I know of one reader who will understand everything I just typed.
• Met up with The Advocate's lil' sister and her boyfriend for a spell -- she dressed as Carmen San Diego, he dressed as Clark Kent mid-transformation to Superman. Again, we were stopped for photos every few metres.
• THE NERDIEST PHOTO EVER was taken at this event. Picture it: A Jedi knight took the photo of Arthur Dent and Rose Tyler having a light saber fight as Batman watched on in the background. I KID YOU NOT. This photo exists and I feel life is richer because of it.
• T-shirts: What the heck, t-shirt vendor guy. Girls like to purchase shirts from Doctor Who, Torchwood, and Battlestar Galactica. What's up with the men's medium shirts and larger only policy? It is archaic and does not reflect the current demographic of convention visitors. He tried to tell The Advocate and I that it was the gents who put down the cash, anyway, and that girls were only interested in these shirts because their boyfriends introduced it to them. As The Advocate stated, "Hey, I was the one who forced him [The Bruce] to watch Doctor Who. I was the influence." Not to mention I stumbled into anime on my own accord -- and I'm queer to boot! Whatev, t-shirt guy.
• On the upside, The Bruce found some sweet patches for his jacket -- a Viper decal from Battlestar Galactica and... I am spacing on the last one. I know it refers to another flight-related logo... from another series... ahh, can't recall it...
• The Advocate and I did some some sweet swag from Sick on Sin -- I got a cute rocket t-shirt and The Advocate got a pair of unmentionables with the Devil Cupcake on 'em.
• I somehow convinced The Advocate and The Bruce to watch wrestling. I thought there was going to be a match between Light vs. L (from Death Note) at 5 PM. There was. It just happened on Friday while we were there on the Saturday. Alas. We caught one match and, hmm. Well. It was.... hmm. It would have been far better had the opponents been dressed as anime figures or gaming characters. Ha, though, it was amusing that The Advocate's heckles for the guys to kiss did happen (partially). No make-outs, though. Still, wrestling is quite the homoerotic event.
• Note: I can't remember at what time the fire alarm was pulled, but, geeze -- talk about a buzz kill. Vendors had to jump ship and hope no one would make off with their merchandise. On the upside, we got to see a bunch of cosplayers we hadn't seen in the building as each one was forced to file out.
• Brainstormed what we could do for a group cosplay. Ideas included the casts of: Torchwood, Dead Like Me, Buffy, Battlestar Galactica (though, I think we might have to all cross dress for that one to work).... I think I am missing some. Argh, brain, you are failing me tonight.
• Once we were all overwhelmed with the might of the Comic Con, we shuffled our way to Brazen Head Irish Pub for some delicious pub fare to cap the night. Oh, veggie burger with hummus and a side of fresh cut fries. *Brain melts at the recollection* The companions savoured some classic Irish stew and meat pies. Serious, it was quite upscale establishment in there, despite the door people kept opening that chilled our group to the core. (Serious, it was cold out).
• I missed the 6:48 PM GO Train, so we hung out at The Advocate's office and drew on whiteboards until the next train arrived. I know I can't draw well, but I still love Hemoglobin the Hobgoblin (a character I created back in high school).

WOW. I know I am missing out on small details and other odd occurrences from the Con, but I was so saturated I could barely take it all in. Serious, I am so glad I went. As I said earlier, this is the first of event of numerous ones coming up this year. We've still got Anime North in May and The Toronto Comic Arts Festival and FanExpo in August among other conventions. And that's not including the literary festivals I shall attend in 2010.

I feel tired just reading all that. I need to look into volunteer opportunities for this locations. I mean, to get in there for free and perhaps mingle with the vendors and artists? Not a bad deal, if you ask me.

Thank you for your patience with this post (to those non-nerds out there). And for the nerds, this is just the tip of the iceberg. You best prepare for more updates in the coming months.