This past weekend was the 2nd Annual of the El Paso Comic Con (EPCON). We were fortunate enough to visit El Paso and attend the comic con for our first time. It was thanks to a couple of friends that are from El Paso and thanks to the Alien Warrior Comedian's Facebook for learning about the EPCON that got us interested. We are huge fans of pop culture and just attending the San Diego Comic Con is not enough anymore. We have become addicted to attending comic conventions and we are trying our best to attend as many as possible.
We have attended conventions in San Diego, Los Angeles, Long Beach, Tucson, Phoenix, Mesa, and now El Paso. What makes each of these comic conventions special are that they are all unique in the vendors, exhibitors, artists, companies, and entertainment they have. Each city takes great pride in what they can offer and they also want to bring in their local talents, which is important.
EPCON 2010 Banner
EPCON 2010 Banner
EPCON 2011 Banners
Crowd ready to enter the EPCON!
Artist Alley
The EPCON did this very well in bringing in many local companies and artists that were promoting their comics and artwork. Adversary Comix, 656 Comics, Imaginary Concepts, Dope Fiends Comics, Broken Tree Comics, L&R Comics, and many other exhibitors. The artists included Andy Kuhn, Brent Peeples, Terry Huddleston, and other artists.
Terry Huddleston
Dope Fiends
Dog Tacos : A Skateboard Novel
There were also many actors and special guests that were at EPCON as well, which included Peter Mayhew, Billy Dee Williams, Dickey Beer, and Bonnie Piesse from the Star Wars saga. A few Power Rangers were some of the guests as well that included Cat Sutherland, Nakia Burrisse, Jessica Rey, and Walter Jones. Of course, the Star Trek franchise made its presence known with Bobby Clark, James Horan, Anthony Montgomery, and El Paso's very own Chase Masterson. The Vatos from AMC's Walking Dead were also some of the special guests, which included Anthony Guajardo, James Gonzaba, Neil Brown Jr., and Noel G. There were also many other actors and special guests and what better pop culture comedian to be the Masters of Ceremony, but the Alien Warrior Comedian.
Peter Mayhew Q&A Panel
The El Paso Convention Center was the perfect venue for the EPCON with plenty of space for all the exhibitors and the artist alley. As mentioned earlier, conventions in different cities are great because they do show their individuality. EPCON did this very well by adding two stages inside the exhibit hall. There was a series of mini concerts and performances on the stages, which were part of the Guerilla Fest.
Wartime Stage
Guerilla Stage
One of the groups that were great fun and a special treat were the El Paso Youth Symphony. They were a group that consisted of two music conductors (one reminded me of Jack Black and the other, Val Kilmer), an orchestra of about twenty youth, and a full band with a lead singer. I was concerned at first when they performed the pop culture hits from the Simpsons intro to the Spider-Man theme, but they then began to play classic rock hits. Once they began to play these hits, the crowd really got into it and it seemed as if the whole convention froze to watch them perform.
El Paso Youth Symphony
We were very happy to attend EPCON and we had great fun. We got to meet some of the local talent that El Paso offers and they were great! There was a great turnout of attendees and plenty of costumes. There are a couple things that we felt could be different. The Best Buy room was set up well with great games for participants, but it was next door to the panels and the games could be heard during the panels. The last concern we had was the performances that were held in the Artists Alley room should have been on one of the stages to be showcased better. It made it tough to see sometimes when people would need to walk by to pass to get into the exhibit hall. Overall, the Angry Koala Gear crew really enjoyed EPCON 2011 and we will definitely be returning next year!!
We will have more EPCON posts very soon to showcase some of the costumes, exhibitors, and other events that were held at EPCON 2011. Please stay tuned!
You can follow us on twitter, @angrykoalagear, for updates!!
Terry Huddleston
Dope Fiends
Urban Myth
There were also many actors and special guests that were at EPCON as well, which included Peter Mayhew, Billy Dee Williams, Dickey Beer, and Bonnie Piesse from the Star Wars saga. A few Power Rangers were some of the guests as well that included Cat Sutherland, Nakia Burrisse, Jessica Rey, and Walter Jones. Of course, the Star Trek franchise made its presence known with Bobby Clark, James Horan, Anthony Montgomery, and El Paso's very own Chase Masterson. The Vatos from AMC's Walking Dead were also some of the special guests, which included Anthony Guajardo, James Gonzaba, Neil Brown Jr., and Noel G. There were also many other actors and special guests and what better pop culture comedian to be the Masters of Ceremony, but the Alien Warrior Comedian.
Peter Mayhew Q&A Panel
Looks Like the Alien Warrior Comedian is enjoying the show!
The El Paso Convention Center was the perfect venue for the EPCON with plenty of space for all the exhibitors and the artist alley. As mentioned earlier, conventions in different cities are great because they do show their individuality. EPCON did this very well by adding two stages inside the exhibit hall. There was a series of mini concerts and performances on the stages, which were part of the Guerilla Fest.
Wartime Stage
Guerilla Stage
One of the groups that were great fun and a special treat were the El Paso Youth Symphony. They were a group that consisted of two music conductors (one reminded me of Jack Black and the other, Val Kilmer), an orchestra of about twenty youth, and a full band with a lead singer. I was concerned at first when they performed the pop culture hits from the Simpsons intro to the Spider-Man theme, but they then began to play classic rock hits. Once they began to play these hits, the crowd really got into it and it seemed as if the whole convention froze to watch them perform.
El Paso Youth Symphony
We were very happy to attend EPCON and we had great fun. We got to meet some of the local talent that El Paso offers and they were great! There was a great turnout of attendees and plenty of costumes. There are a couple things that we felt could be different. The Best Buy room was set up well with great games for participants, but it was next door to the panels and the games could be heard during the panels. The last concern we had was the performances that were held in the Artists Alley room should have been on one of the stages to be showcased better. It made it tough to see sometimes when people would need to walk by to pass to get into the exhibit hall. Overall, the Angry Koala Gear crew really enjoyed EPCON 2011 and we will definitely be returning next year!!
We will have more EPCON posts very soon to showcase some of the costumes, exhibitors, and other events that were held at EPCON 2011. Please stay tuned!
You can follow us on twitter, @angrykoalagear, for updates!!
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