Tag Archives: Wizard World St Louis Comic Con

Twitter is my super power (and yours too)

9 Apr

Last weekend, I attended St. Louis comic con. Although I paid for my ticket, I covered the event as press, with stories from Q&A sessions, the costume contest, cosplay and a story on the artists in attendance. From a fan-girl perspective, though, I was definitely looking forward to a couple of the celebrity Q&As.

Eliza Dushku was one of those. She was the little girl in “True Lies,” Faith in “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” Tru in “Tru Calling” and Echo in “Dollhouse.”

Saturday afternoon, a young questioner asked Dushku if she’d ever met a girl named Buffy. Dushku said she hadn’t, and the girl revealed that her name was Buffy. Dushku invited the girl down to the stage and shook her hand.

It was cute.

Twitter is made for breaking news and events. That Buffy-“Faith” encounter prompted Buffy’s mom to join Twitter in her hunt for photos of the exchange.

I didn’t have any photos, but since I’d live-tweeted the session and wrote a story about Dushku’s appearance, I knew some of her fans were reading my tweets, so I tried to help get word out.

Sure enough, it caught the eye of another Dushku fan, Sydney.

And that’s why Twitter is my super power.

See the whole session. (Find Buffy a little after the 11-minute mark.)

Welcome to St. Louis! Toasted ravioli!

7 Apr

This story originally appeared on RealTime/STL.

The midwest has a reputation for being kind and hospitable. At Wizard World St. Louis Comic Con, we were both.

Throughout the weekend, celebrity Q&As were peppered with shouts of “toasted ravioli!”

During Saturday’s Q&A with fans, Milo Ventimiglia said he’d had a great dinner Friday night, but when he tried to order pasta with tomato sauce, “like a good Italian boy,” he was disappointed to find the restaurant only had cream sauces. After shouting “toasted ravioli,” the audience sent Ventimiglia and Jon Bernthal to The Hill. Both shared a photo — the same photo — from outside Charlie Gitto’s on Sunday.

On Sunday, young questioner asked Karen Gillan if she’d tried “fish fingers and custard.”

Gillan said she had, and the audience yelled for her to visit Ted Drewes. (Gillan had not heard of frozen custard.)

Sunday afternoon, Nathan Fillion, Alan Tudyk and Adam Baldwin heard about toasted ravioli, too. Fans must’ve feared Fillion would starve while here: Online recommendations (often offered at the mere mention of St. Louis) included a lot of pizza and a little frozen custard (and a trip to City Museum).

Local artists evaluate St. Louis comic con

7 Apr

This story originally appeared on RealTime/STL.

Artist Kate Sherron sells buttons Sunday morning at Wizard World St. Louis Comic Con. (Photo by Erica Smith, RealTime/STL)

Artist Kate Sherron sells buttons Sunday morning at Wizard World St. Louis Comic Con. (Photo by Erica Smith, RealTime/STL)

Artist Kate Sherron of St. Louis sells prints Sunday morning at Wizard World St. Louis Comic Con. (Photo by Erica Smith, RealTime/STL)

Artist Kate Sherron of St. Louis sells prints Sunday morning at Wizard World St. Louis Comic Con. (Photo by Erica Smith, RealTime/STL)

Cosplayers grabbed the photos, celebrities grabbed the headlines, but local artists hoped to grab a few dollars at this weekend’s Wizard World St. Louis Comic Con.

“It’s been a positive show,” said Wendy Buske of St. Louis, marketing director for Nerd for a Living. “Everyone is so excited to have this here — there’s a palpable energy.”

“It’s very family-friendly,” Buske said. “Some shows aren’t as accommodating to all-ages. This has had so many families coming through, all in costume. It’s so St. Louis.

“If you like geeky, fun things, you won’t find a better place.”

A couple running the booth next door agreed.

“How cool is it to be able to own a little piece of art for $1?” said Rori of Live Nude Comics in Overland, as she gestured to a display of $1 4×6 portraits of the characters from “Doctor Who.” (Like Madonna or the Doctor, she goes by only one name.) “That’s cool.”

Several artists mentioned, however, that the setup was less than ideal.

The 2014 show was bigger (and busier) than 2013′s inaugural show. “There are a lot more new vendors, and a lot of variety,” said Buske. In 2013, attendees walked through Artist Alley, where artists are typically grouped at comic con and similar shows, to get to the autograph booths for visiting celebrities. This year, Artist Alley was pushed to the far east side of the convention floor, away from the celebs.

“Last year was a pretty good,” said Yale Stewart of JL8, a webcomic that explores the adventures of the Justice League as 8-year-olds. “Everyone had to go through Artist Alley.”

This year, Stewart said, there was “no signage, no … nothing.” On Sunday morning, hours before the day’s most popular celebrity Q&A, the traffic through Artist Alley was sparce. An hour before the convention floor closed, foot traffic had picked up a bit.

“I met a lot of cool people and got to hang out with buddies,” Stewart said. “It’s not all bad.”

“It’s been nice,” artist and author Kate Sherron said of the convention Sunday morning, just a few feet from Stewart’s booth, as she greeted passers-by and straightened a small stack of prints of young Avengers. Sherron recently moved back to St. Louis. “It’s been nice to connect with local artists. There’s so much amazing work coming out of the St. Louis and Kansas City area.”

Andrew Heath of Lexington, Ky., frequently travels with Wizard World, and said the St. Louis event was “the best of them so far” — even better than the more established Chicago show — partly because this was Heath’s first time in St. Louis, which, for him, meant new customers.

As shoppers lingered at his booth Sunday afternoon, he said his biggest seller was a sold-out “Futurama”-inspired print. Among the hundreds of “Doctor Who” and “Firefly” fans and pieces of art, Heath said “the things you don’t normally see” often sell best.

Comic con will return to St. Louis May 15-17, 2015.

Stargazing at the Arch

6 Apr

This story originally appeared on RealTime/STL.

Several celebs came to St. Louis for comic con over the weekend. Wanna guess where they ended up?

Adam Baldwin

Adam Baldwin also stopped at Ballpark Village

David Della Rocco, Sean Patrick Flanery, Jon Bernthal and Milo Ventimiglia

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David Della Rocco, Sean Patrick Flanery, Jon Bernthal and Milo Ventimiglia took the full tour.

Eliza Dushku

Read a recap of Eliza Dushku’s Q&A with fans.

Sean Astin

Read a recap of Sean Astin’s Q&A with fans.

Comic con day 3: Q&A with Karen Gillan

6 Apr

This story originally appeared on RealTime/STL.

On the heels of Matt Smith’s Q&A with fans, “Doctor Who” companion Karen Gillan took the stage Sunday afternoon.

Gillan is well-known for her role as Amy Pond on “Doctor Who.” The TV show, which traces its roots back to 1963, was reborn in 2005 and uses a clever plot device that allows the main character, the Doctor, to “regenerate” as a different actor. The Doctor also travels with friends, known as companions. The series’ 11th Doctor was played by Matt Smith, and for two years Pond and her boyfriend (later husband) Rory Williams were the Doctor’s companions.

Fans asked several questions about Gillan’s “Who” experiences and favorite memories.

There’s a memorable scene in season six of “Doctor Who” where Amy Pond holds her newborn daughter, and she melts into a puddle of flesh.

Gillan said she was a “Doctor Who” fan before she was cast, but not as big of a fan as her mother. She’s been able to collect a lot of “Who” memorabilia.

As for the most difficult scene, that had nothing to do with stunts or subject matter.

Gillan said her “Who” connection has helped her land other parts, too.

Before she was cast, Gillan said she talked to the director via Skype and noted he was drinking coffee from a “Doctor Who” themed mug. “Oculus” is a horror film that hits theaters Friday.