Review: LA Comic Con 2021

Update: L.A. Comic Con is back for 2022 from December 2nd - 4th, get your tickets here!

For those familiar with West of The Rockies—they know that, in addition of exploring unexplained mysteries and paranormal phenomena, we also enjoy a healthy dose of pop-culture. After all, it’s through movies, TV shows, and graphic novels that we are often given a visual representation of things few seldom see or experience.

For that reason, we were very much looking forward to Los Angeles Comic Con, which made it’s return this past December 3 - 5, making it the 10th installment of this popular convention, and the excitement was palpable with over 94,000 fans, vendors, artists, celebrities and cosplayer in attendance.

After the COVID pandemic forced organizers to cancel the annual event in 2020 (or as —— host of the Cosplay National Championship called it “the year that never was,”) LA Comic Con went ahead with this year’s convention, with safety being a top priority by asking attendees to show proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test and requiring face coverings.

You didn’t need your Spidey-Sense to feel the spirit of LACC’s founding father, Stan Lee (who sadly passed away on November 12, 2018) at this year’s convention. Not only were there amazing figures in the likeness of the comic book legend, but there was even a booth from “Stan Lee Forever,” where those attendance were treated to a beautiful painting being done of the God of the Marvel Universe.

On Friday night, the world famous Laugh Factory kicked things off with a set from various comedians including Tehran, BT Kingsley, and Jade Catta-Preta—they certainly were a great choice to bring on the laughs to LACC after the woes of this past year.

LA Comic Con 2021 was a full-scale production, occupying both the South Hall and the West Hall of the Los Angeles Convention Center. The South Hall was home to the Main Stage, Vendors, and the Artist Alley; while the West Hall housed the E-Sports Arena Anime and Gaming where gamers could put their skills to the test against other opponents, and fans lined up to meet some of their favorite celebs.

At the South Hall, LACC’s Main Stage was the epicenter for a weekend full of Panels and Q&A’s. A personal favorite was the interview conducted by Jock (best know for his work on Batman: One Dark Knight) and David Choe (of the Choe Show) with the legendary Frank Miller (creator of The Dark Knight Returns, Sin City, and 300). Frank talked about his career, art, and he even shared what his favorite art tool is for creating (a horsehair brush).

Giancarlo Esposito (known for his work on Breaking Bad and The Mandalorian among others) was another big draw with his Q&A, hosted by Jonathan Landon of the popular website, Geekscape. Among other topics, Giancarlo talked about his approach to acting and what he learned from Michael Mann, and there was even a surprise proposal by Jonathan to his girlfriend Heidi, making this an extra especial occasion. We wish them the best!

Another favorite of those in attendance, was the panel, “Representation Matters: Telling Our Stories Through Comics” with Emmy winning actor, John Leguizamo, and award-winning producer Peter Murrieta (Wizards of Waverly  Place). As the title of the panel stated, John talked about how in spite of the millions that make up the Latinx community, they go underrepresented in the entertainment industry.

To put John’s point into perspective: the population of Los Angeles (which has long been regarded as the Entertainment Capital of the World), is 48.6% Hispanic/Latino—yet Latino characters only make up 4.5% of Hollywood speaking roles (per the findings of the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative).

John also talked about his own comic book, PhenomX, for which he teamed up with Spawn creator, Todd McFarlane. As fans may remember, John played the character of The Clown in the 1997 Spawn movie, and after a meeting with McFarlane at New York Comic Con in 2018, they decided to collaborate and bring the story of PhenomX to life. During the panel, John shared the inspiration for PhenomX’s main character, Max Gomez.

The Main Stage also showcased the 6th Annual Cosplay National Championship, featuring contestants who pulled out all the stops to recreate the look of their favorite characters from film, television, comics, video games, sci-fi, anime, horror, and competed for $20,000 in cash plus other prizes.

The winners where chosen by a panel of judges who have excelled in the cosplay and costuming communities, and participants and their original creations (store-bought costumes are not permitted) were devided into three categories: Master, Journeyman, and Novice.

Dominica and her Sisters of Battle cosplay won LACC’s Best in Show.

The competition was fierce with some incredible costumes gracing the stage. The judges definitely had a difficult decision to make ahead of them—and after much deliberation, Dominica and her Sisters of Battle cosplay walkaway with the prize for Best in Show.

But the specular cosplay was not limited to the Main Stage—the convention’s floor was filled with cosplayers in some impressive costumes, and they were more than happy to pose with attendees making for some fun photo-ops that filled the cosplay hashtag on Instagram.

Speaking of the convention floor, there were aisles and aisles of booths filled with some truly wonderful products that made fans and collectors stop in their tracks. One such booth was by Sideshow Collectibles—manufacturer and distributor of premium format figures and high-end collectible pieces.

Figures like the Joker (as played by Joaquin Phoenix in the 2019 film), had people stopping to take a closer look—and it was certainly deserved in order to fully appreciate it. No detail was spared.

Further down, there was the Superbad Action Figures booth where one could admire more pieces by Sideshow Collectibles and other makers close-up, without the glass barrier. Some, like this huge Lobo figure attracted a lot of attention and elicited some excited reactions from those stopping-by.

There were some life-size replicas, too, as could be seen at the Ecto1x booth. Here attendees could marvel (no pun) at these amazing recreations of Lighting McQueen from the animated movie Cars, a very cool Volkswagen Beetle done-up to look like Herbie from the movie The Love Bug, an impressive version of The Ectomobile from the movie, Ghostbusters, and a Pontiac Trans Am converted into KITT from the original Knight Rider TV series—the detailed interior on this vehicle was truly jaw-dropping.

For those looking to update or diversify their wardrobe, Hot-Topic along with other booths, offered some new and fun fashion options to choose from, as well as giving collectors the opportunity to grab some con-exclusive Funko Pops—and pops were plentiful throughout the convention, with countless characters that appealed to fans of just about any and every fandom.

Speaking of fandom: one booth I had to stop at, was that of Fandom Productions, who had legendary Disney Imagineer, Bob Gurr, in-person. Bob worked closely with Walt Disney himself to design some of Disneyland’s most iconic vehicles like the Autopia cars, the monorail, and submarines for The Submarine Voyage ride. At 90 years young, Bob enthusiastically greeted, chatted, and took photos with fans that lined up to meet him.

A personal cool-moment was getting a chance to meet the talented artist and animator, Steven E. Gordon at his booth. I was excited to walk away with a signed print of Holli Would from the 1992 live-action/animated movie Cool World, and a signed Jimi Hendrix print from the 1981 animated movie American Pop. Mr. Gordon worked as animator on these cult movies (both directed by animation legend, Ralph Bakshi), and they’ve been personal favorites of mine for many, many years.

Los Angeles Comic Con 2021 had something for everyone and, more importantly, provided a welcomed break from all the doom-and-gloom from the past year-plus. The joy emitted by crowd definitely made for a fun atmosphere for all attendees, vendors, and celebs present. I can picture Stan Lee smiling—proud of the team that put this event together, and of all the “true believers” that made this LA Comic Con one to remember.

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