#WizardWorld Austin ComicCon 2013

If you don’t know, Wizard World puts on a ComicCon in multiple locations throughout the country. They now land in 16 different cities a year. They probably have one near you and you can check them out yourself.

I drove down the morning of the show.  The worst part of the 3 hour drive to Austin is the last 2 miles.  I need to learn to take a better exit.  Those last 2 miles were 20 minutes.  Austin is ALWAYS like that.

The parking lot I normally use was full.  I spent another 15 minutes finding another lot.  The impromptu lot was the same price and maybe even closer.  I spent another hour in line getting my wristband and my prepaid autograph ticket.

When I entered the expo floor, I was disappointed. The first few aisles were clogged with people.  There was no room to get people through the congestion and disperse.  Between the gawkers and the clueless and the booths, it was 5 minutes before I could breathe and walk freely.

This show seemed very crowded but a lot of people seemed to be in the panels and the vendor area instead of the autograph lines. Certainly the Walking Dead cast and the Wrestlers had the biggest crowds but I didn’t need to wait long for the people I needed.

I’m sure the larger crowd was based partially on the SyFy channel’s Heroes Of Cosplay show that spotlighted Wizard World. While it seems all conventions have grown in size the last few years, this show seems to have made a large jump from last year’s attendance.

The show offers nice selection of celebs and artists. People seem happy with their ViP tickets and company that does the photo ops.  A lot of fan groups turn out for these shows. The show hosts a good selection of venders, so you can find what you want/need.

Of course the best part for me was meeting my friends, Dee and Dee.  They helped me get some autographs and we had a nice long lunch together.  That’s something we don’t do enough.  After that, I ended up having desert with other friends, Bee and her daughter Arr.

AH