Hundreds descended upon the New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center this weekend in hopes of letting their nerd flags fly for the New Orleans Comic Con, a three-day look into the best parts of nerd culture.
Despite the low turnout on day one, Friday at “The Con” still held adventures in the form of panels and the miraculous number of people in costume. One of the highlights for many in attendance was cosplaying, the act of dressing up as a character from a comic book, video game or movie, and on the first day of the event, many were dressed in full garb.
The panels as a whole had few in attendance, but that didn’t detract from the engrossing information provided by those speaking. One of the most fascinating panels was “Getting Respect: Comics Go To College,” a talk focusing on the comic book’s place in academia. It was led by scholars from Henderson State University in Arkansas and Southeastern Louisiana University, all of whom use graphic novels in their courses (both psychology and English).
Another highlight was the screening of independent films, many of which were filmed in or around Louisiana, at the Wizard World Film Festival, where the short films spanned a range of topics, from a man nearly erupting from anxiety (“Stay Calm Stan”) to a zombie date night with an unexpected ending (“Date of the Dead”). Many of the filmmakers and actors were in attendance, giving viewers an in-depth look at the inventive process of creating an independent film.
The floor of Comic Con was packed with booths of artists and merchants gushing about their respective interests, giving event-goers a glimpse into the world of comic book characters. Among items sold were lightsabers, rare comic books and busts of original characters made by artists showing their work.
Fans of the BBC television show “Doctor Who” made for a strong turnout on Saturday at Comic Con. Matt Smith, the actor who played the show’s 11th doctor, made an appearance where he discussed his favorite moments in the show and his growth as an actor during his four year run portraying “The Doctor.” Many fans of the show were dressed as Smith, as well as other doctors in the show’s history. Girls in TARDIS (the time machine used throughout the show’s tenure) dresses were also prevalent at the event.
Most surprising, though, was the diversity in costumes. Popular characters, like Batman, were in attendance, but there were also many dressed as less obvious protagonists, like Pyramid Head from the video game turned movie series “Silent Hill.” The impersonation of these characters didn’t end with costumes; many of the cosplayers stayed in character when asked for pictures and videos. For example, a man dressed as Walt from the AMC drama “Breaking Bad” carried around a bag of faux drugs with him and kept repeating, “I’m on a nerd high, I’m on a nerd high, man.”
The main letdown of the entire event was “Sci-Fi Speed Dating.” From this title, many would imagine a large room complete with a stage and an announcer, but the charade consisted of only two lines of chairs facing one another with un-costumed people having basic conversation.

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Charles Champagne

cosplayers