All in all, Phoenix Comicon has been an undeniable success. They even moved it to the larger convention center this year and they still had to stagger people at the entrance on Saturday to comply with the fire code capacity. No doubt it will just continue to grow exponentially each year.
Photos by Nerdvana contributor Pax Whitmore.
The most unforgettable moment, for me, has to be Leonard Nimoy’s talk on Saturday. He touched on what it was like being on the Star Trek set, and his accounts of how the Vulcan neck pinch and his signature hand gesture came to be were interesting to this admitted not-huge-Star-Trek-fan who didn’t already know the stories. But I really liked how he talked about what he’s done before and since he donned the pointed ears. I got goosebumps as he talked about being a young actor, just out of the Army and driving cabs to pay the bills, when he was called to pick up then-Senator John F. Kennedy. When Nimoy’s acting career came up in conversation, the future President said, “There’s a lot of competition in that industry. Same as mine. But there’s always room for one more good one.”
Man, what a life he’s led. His talk was extremely satisfying. It was funny, it was poignant, and it gave us an insight into his life that made the experience unforgettable.
There are other moments from this weekend that stick out in my mind. Like walking up to get Aaron Douglas‘s autograph just in time to see him photobomb Wil Wheaton at the next booth over. Watching Max Brooks lay into a critical zombie researcher who tried to poke holes in his book. Turning around at Geek Prom and being surprised to see Adam Baldwin and Paul McGillion about four feet away from us (Baldwin was a judge in the costume contest shortly thereafter, so of course the guy dressed as Jayne Cobb won). My husband shaking hands with George Takei. And being 20 feet away from Stan Lee was pretty cool.
So many of the costumes blew me away, too. There were a plethora of Boba Fetts and Harley Quinns, several of The Doctors, Anime and steampunk enthusiasts. One Batman was in a suit that could have come from the set of “The Dark Knight.” There was a Captain Jack Sparrow who had adopted Depp’s mannerisms perfectly and never broke character. A guy who looked exactly like John Marston from Red Dead Redemption, down to the lack of facial hair where his scars would be. A guy dressed in, from what I could tell, a homemade Master Chief costume from Halo that looked like the real thing. So many people put so much time and effort into their costumes it was a privilege just to be able to see them.
What were your most memorable moments? Any costumes that blew you away?
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