Although the first year of any convention is likely to have kinks, C2E2 seems to have been a success. A couple highlights: Lance Briggs had a Q & A with creators from each of the major comic book publishers (except for Marvel Comics, who just sent a marketing guy). A group of Bears’ fans showed up to the panel really early. It was interesting to see what sort of person the combination of loyal sports and comic book fandom produced.

C2E2’s inaugural show was a bit smaller than Wizard World Chicago,‚  yet, none of the attendees I spoke to seemed to mind. I’ve already written about the rivalry between the two, but even loyal attendees of Wizard’s convention were pleasantly surprised with C2E2. This fan put it better than anyone else I spoke to. tia talking about the fans convention I think my favorite moment in the entire convention wasn’t even on the show floor. It was a surreal conversation that I overheard in the press room. Greg Baldino, of Bleeding Cool, and NaShantƒ¡ Nova, of Chicago Now’s Alter Ego Maniac, were discussing how the two “big” comic book news sites, Comic Book Resource and Newsarama, had been conducting coverage of the show. They were criticizing the two news organizations for relying too much on publishers’ press releases about what creators were up to as opposed to running around the show floor and tracking down the actual artists for a statement. It wasn’t so different from countless similar conversations I’ve had while discussing journalistic ethics at school or even here in WBEZ’s city room. For these two and plenty of other journalists, bloggers, and comic critics, this is their beat. This is their city hall and the after party with comic book writers, pencilers, inkers, and colorists is their smoky back room. Tomorrow, we’ll give you a glimpse into the world of what fans call “cosplaying”, the act of dressing up as your favorite characters.