Hi ya peeps… I was offered Press Passes to cover this year’s FAN-X but alas I was busy and could not attend, in my stead I reached out to the two best ComicCon nerds in Utah, so Please Enjoy this…
GUEST REVIEW from FirstComicsNews correspondents Kallie Smith & Jeremiah Ward
This spring’s Salt Lake Fan X took place April 19th and 20th at the Salt Palace Convention Center, and, judging by the fact I’ve taken a month to review it, has left me unsure of how I feel about the whole experience. The convention took place during Easter weekend, making it a shorter event than usual, and therefore lacking the same energy I’ve come to expect over the years. Without as many big name celebrities as the convention usually boasts (think Stan Lee and Jeff Goldblum), and panels that didn’t spark much interest, I was at least looking forward to try out an experience that was new this year, something called Endzone’s Excellent Adventure. Attendees could pay extra to be part of an original D&D 5th Edition adventure and play through a fully designed dungeon with pre-made characters.
I’d love to tell you what I thought of it, but the deadline came and passed while I was waiting nearly an hour to enter the convention (press passes come with the price of waiting for one specific person to hand over an envelope that sat on a table within my arm’s reach the entire time).
Of course, one of the greatest highlights of this and any con, is the cosplayers. Fans spend months carefully crafting detailed, stunning costumes of their favorite characters, and their work really shows. There were startlingly realistic characters from the horror game, Five Nights at Freddie’s, walking around among the Disney princesses, Marvel superheroes, Pokemon, and several Jon Snow’s throughout the venue. Out in the courtyard, Astrid (from How To Train Your Dragon) spun around with her battle ax to a dramatic soundtrack. The vendors and Artist Alley never disappoint as well, with patches, pins, action figures, cosplay accessories, and my personal favorite, an artist that will draw a bad portrait of you while making uncomfortable eye contact for just a dollar.
With the event taking place just weeks before the release of The Avengers: Endgame, it may have been wise for the convention to seize that opportunity to draw in the Marvel fans with focused panels and speakers to spark the energy and excitement that we’ve come to expect over the years. In 2017, for example, the convention did a brilliant job of catering to Star Wars fans with the release of Episode VIII: The Last Jedi just months away.
Fan X’s next convention will be held in September, but after this spring’s experience, I don’t think I’ll holding my breath in anticipation (unless Jeff Goldblum comes back. Please bring Jeff Goldblum back).
Pros: Parking was much easier to find than usual and the Fan X app didn’t crash as often.
About Author
Writer, Producer, Ghost Rider enthusiast, & cat dad. Watch his movie THE NUDELS OF NUDELAND at NudistHumorist.com or HELLs COMING FOR YOU on Amazon.com ****** “I would especially read anything by Tim Chizmar, I go in that direction.” – KEVIN SMITH, Writer/Director of Clerks, Tusk, etc. ***** “Tim Chizmar reaches past the conventions of the commonplace and holds nothing back!” – CLIVE BARKER, the Writer/Director of Hellraiser, Lord of Illusions, Candyman.
