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Wizard World conventions... wtf?
Gundabad
PAX East & Unplugged Tabletop ManagerNJRegistered User regular
PAX East & Unplugged Tabletop ManagerNJRegistered User regular
So I was poking around the internet looking for upcoming conventions to go to, and for the first time came across the news that Wizard has purchased the company which runs the annual Big Apple Comic Con, and chose to schedule their 2010 convention on the exact same weekend as the previously scheduled New York Comic Con. NYCC is a very popular albeit young event that is second only to San Diego Comic Con in attendance (70,000+ last year). To top things off, Wizard is running a new event, the New Jersey Comic Con less than an hour away in Edison, NJ the very next weekend!
Why is Wizard doing this? From some of the articles I read it looks like Wizard has developed something of a fierce rivalry with Reed (the company that runs New York Comic Con, and incidentally, also contracted to help run PAX East). Wizard also chose to kick off a new convention in Anaheim the same weekend Reed had scheduled a launch of a new annual Chicago convention.
While I love to see some healthy competition, does it not seem like Wizard is taking it a little too far here? Having so many conventions overlap and/or butt up against each other dilutes the fan base, the availability of special guests, and the presence that companies and local businesses can have at these conventions. Unless there is a special convention crew, a company cannot represent itself at conventions week after week.
I can understand how a company like Wizard might see this as a move with potential to make them a lot of money, and that's the ultimate goal for a company right? However, I want to support the best of the two conventions with my dollars, but I'm not spending double admission and stressing myself by racing across town as to not miss things. If they were adequately spaced, I would probably attend both, and then continue going to the better of the two in future years. Instead, Wizard is being kind of a dick in my opinion, and I can't support that. The NJ con is just the biggest slap in the face of them all. I am from NJ and have huge pride in my state, but honestly we don't need our own con. There's no reason people can't get into the city, and it's just a move to appeal to people's laziness by saying "wait one more weekend and you can just go to the closer version", therefore keeping people away from the competing NYCC. You know it's just gonna be a watered down version though.
I love conventions even though I don't get to as many as I should. These should be special occasions, but a flooded market just leaves a bad taste in everyone's mouth. What are other people's thoughts on this?
Why is Wizard doing this? From some of the articles I read it looks like Wizard has developed something of a fierce rivalry with Reed (the company that runs New York Comic Con, and incidentally, also contracted to help run PAX East). Wizard also chose to kick off a new convention in Anaheim the same weekend Reed had scheduled a launch of a new annual Chicago convention.
While I love to see some healthy competition, does it not seem like Wizard is taking it a little too far here? Having so many conventions overlap and/or butt up against each other dilutes the fan base, the availability of special guests, and the presence that companies and local businesses can have at these conventions. Unless there is a special convention crew, a company cannot represent itself at conventions week after week.
I can understand how a company like Wizard might see this as a move with potential to make them a lot of money, and that's the ultimate goal for a company right? However, I want to support the best of the two conventions with my dollars, but I'm not spending double admission and stressing myself by racing across town as to not miss things. If they were adequately spaced, I would probably attend both, and then continue going to the better of the two in future years. Instead, Wizard is being kind of a dick in my opinion, and I can't support that. The NJ con is just the biggest slap in the face of them all. I am from NJ and have huge pride in my state, but honestly we don't need our own con. There's no reason people can't get into the city, and it's just a move to appeal to people's laziness by saying "wait one more weekend and you can just go to the closer version", therefore keeping people away from the competing NYCC. You know it's just gonna be a watered down version though.
I love conventions even though I don't get to as many as I should. These should be special occasions, but a flooded market just leaves a bad taste in everyone's mouth. What are other people's thoughts on this?
Gundabad on
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Arent they in the same building too?
it was in February mostly, except for the one time it was in April
I've never been to a convention but the trouble with today's convention schedule is that they are so ripe for online fodder and getting your info out that you're trying to spread out all that info among 8-9 conventions, to the point where it feels diluted. You also have so many conventions that it takes the creators away from doing their jobs (this should really be a contract stipulation for people like Phil Jiminez and Ethan Van Sciver, who goes to more conventions than issues he pencils each year).
With Wizard World Conventions it's not about meeting with the creators like these smaller conventions are (the one in Florida and in Charlotte come to mind, can't remember their names), it's about the news and CBR and Newsarama trying to make it a big deal and interviewing people on a boat and some such.
In my perfect world it would be like tennis: 4 big conventions spread out each quarter, the rest are smaller conventions where it's about meeting the creator and getting stuff instead of trying to have big news reveals. Ideally NYCC would be a hard court, SDCC would be played on grass, Philadelphia would be indoor rubber, Chicago would be clay. In December the top 8 publishers play each other in a round-robin format in London to decide the year ending champion.
we just have Wizard World and it's pretty much a joke
edit: although Kevin Maguire was here last year
Because they do them one week after another to the point where stuff they could just tell at one convention they spread out for three, like one place is a Spidey news, the next week X-Men.
It's convention decompression.
Regarding the Wizard World con, do they plan on running one in Georgia? Because I got an email from a very well respected convention organizer who runs a seasonal one day con near Atlanta reporting that he's helping Wizard World get a con set up. He acknowledged what WW did in the past but believes they are being sincere this time.
But yeah their rag has become nothing more then a fluff mag(some will say it was only that to begin with) and they are circling the drain so in their last effort to remain relevant you can bet they'll try to use the cons to get as much as they can while they can and if it means squeezing out others they will do it or make the attempt at any rate..
NYCC, on the other hand, is just plain gigantic. I love that show.
Me too, but I seem to be in this weird con bubble area of the country wherein all the decent Cons are too darn far away.
I live in Central Virginia.
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Also, as I understand it, this year a single ticket will get you into both NYCC and the anime con next door. Which, if true, will lead to hilarious conflict between those who are comics fans exclusively and those who are anime fans exclusively.
I just don't know if my desire to attend another con before SDCC overwhelms my reluctance in supporting Wizard.
Actually, if I recall correctly, when they announced the move from february to october they had something like what you mentioned in mind.
NYCC would be the last major con of the year and round everything up.
Yeah they didn't have any booths
I think the only "huge" name there was Garth Ennis. It was pretty big the one year that had Bendis and Michael Turner
Consider going to Baltimore Comic Con. I haven't actually been myself due to scheduling issues, but every single year I look at the fantastic guest list and wish I was there. Maybe this year.