New Name Same Great Con
Fan Expo has absorbed Wizard World New Orleans! So while we no longer have a Wizard World in New Orleans, we now have Fan Expo New Orleans.
Having attended quite a few conventions run by Fan Expo, we are excited to see how they keep the things that made Wizard World great while putting their spin on it. Many of the people behind the scenes worked with Wizard World so they know how to have a successful con in New Orleans. We loved Wizard World, but we have had a blast at every Fan Expo event we attended.
In fact, baby’s first con was MegaCon in Orlando which is a Fan Expo event.
Mask Up and Stay Safe
This will be one of the first Comic Cons in the New Orleans area since Covid. Mechacon occurred this past summer and was very successful. It will be sad not having this anime convention around anymore.
If you are not from this area and wonder about safety, New Orleans takes COVID safety extremely seriously. We just attended the American Geophysical Union conference at the convention center. We had to mask up and show proof of vaccination. You can learn more about the precautions New Orleans and Fan Expo are taking here.
Celebrity Guests
This is excellent news because Fan Expo New Orleans has put together a great list of celebrity guests as of this writing.
Here is a list of actors appearing:
- Anthony Mackie*
- William Shatner*
- Ming-Na Wen*
- Kevin Smith*
- Jason Mewes*
- Stephen Amell*
- Michael Rooker*
- Ron Perlman*
- Theo Rossi*
- Ryan Hurst *
- John Barrowman*
- John De Lancie*
- Javicia Leslie
- Alexander Ludwig
- Christina Ricci
- Catherine Tate*
- Jessie T. Usher
- Jeff Anderson
- Trevor Fehrman
- Brian O’Halloran*
The actors we have met with asterisks we have met previously — quite a few at Fan Expo and Wizard World cons. They are all fantastic guests. Anthony Mackie makes you feel at home cause he is home. Make sure you attend a Shatner panel because he is always entertaining. Catherine Tate gave our daughter a free autograph at Megacon because she is so cute (we agree).
Michael Rooker is everything you think he is in person. Stephen Amell, the SoA guys, and the Clerks crew truly understand that 30-second conversation fans enjoy during the autograph signings. John Barrowman is hilarious.
And Ming-Na Wen looks exactly like she did when she was on As the World Turns (that’s right, I’ve been a fan from the beginning!).
Vending and Artist Area
Of course, there are voice actors, comic creators, and cosplayers at the con, and we will feature them in later posts. I will be fanboying by comic creator Mark Russell. Plus, there, you can participate in the cosplay yourself. Our little one will be cosplaying as well!
Then there is the vendor area and artist area. I always describe this area as a jewelry show for geeks to people that haven’t attended one.
Living in a World of Make Believe
But what we are looking forward to this year is watching our little one at the con. When she sees someone cosplay as Batman, she is still at the age where that person actually is Batman. Even if it is right in front of Kevin Conroy, don’t correct her.
That’s the magic of comic conventions: the fact that people still believe in the power of make-believe. In a cynical and cruel world, we get to enjoy things. We see our con friends because if you have been to as many cons as we have attended, you have friends you see just at cons.
We are so excited to go FanExpo. We are excited to see it from our daughter’s eyes.
We are excited to be amongst people that love living in a world of make-believe.
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