My first reaction to this years RI Comic Con was that the lines were long to buy a ticket.  But then I remembered a few things.  First, that the lines were longer and more disorganized last year.  Second, that at NY CC the tickets were sold out in advance and you could not buy a ticket at the door.  Kind of nice that you could actually choose at the last minute to go and attend.

RICC 2013 Entrance

This was RI’s 2nd convention in recent years, last year being the first.  It is nowhere near the scale of NYCC, feeling more like a show than a convention.  But it did have the convention stuff.  Photo Ops.  Big name guests with panels.  Cosplay contest.  Showings of independent films.  Giant props from movies and TV to take your picture with (I think they actually excel in this area).  Artist signings.  Artists willing to draw stuff for you on demand.  And of course the dealer room packed with people willing to sell you comics, toys, t-shirts, games and anything else related to your favorite show.  And there was a separate area just for kids which included some Quiddich lessons.  The only real disappointment was the gaming.  Last year they were in an area bigger than needed.  This year there was so little space and so few tables allocated that some games were cancelled outright.

RICC 2013 General Lee Prop

RICC 2013 Ghostbusters Vehicle Prop

RICC 2013 Back to the Future Vehicle Prop

RICC 2013 Giant Rancor Monster Prop

So what did I do?  Checked out the whole scene first.  Then headed for the dealer section.  Ran into a bunch of friends, some recent like my buddy John who I met about 2 years ago and play HeroClix with every week and some old like Dave who I worked with at Hasbro in the mid 90′s.  After a complete sweep of the dealer area, I headed out to check the panels.

10 mintes later I was watching and listening to Adam West and Burt Ward.  That’s right, I got to see Batman and Robin.  And unlike New York, I did not have to wait in a line for an hour or more only to not get in.  Guests filled all the seats and there were some people standing, but I got the feeling that everyone who wanted to attend the panel got to.

Back to the dealer room.  This time looking for deals.  Found a number of dealers selling HeroClix single figures, action figures, comics and other items of interest.  Made a few purchases.

Then back to the panels for the Costume Contest.  Last year I saw these two guys whose costumes impressed me, dressed as Booster Gold and Batpool (yes, Batman merged with Deadpool).  They were the MCs for the contest and did a great job of making it fun and keeping it moving with 50+ contestants.

RICC 2013 Cosplay Belle

RICC 2013 Cosplay – Catwoman and Batman

RICC 2013 Cosplay – Regular Show

RICC 2013 Cosplay – Green Arrow, Blue Beetle, Shazam, Booster Gold

RICC 2013 Cosplay – Batpool

Thinking about leaving at this point, but something made me hit the dealer room one more time.  I picked up a few more things before I headed home.  Sunday (today) is day 2, but I think I got enough out of one day.  And I got to see Adam West and Burt Ward.  Did I mention that already?  I did?  Oh yeah, one final note.  The picture of me you see in my bio is from last year’s RI Comic Con.

RICC 2013 My Loot

DC Direct Jade figure (5$).  Wildcats and Youngblood trade paperbacks (3$ each).  Heroclix (1 booster and 5 single figs 15$).  Justice League pencil case and pins(1$ each).