As I saw Bane, Chewbacca and Iron Man walking side by side, taking photos and chatting it up, I knew I was home. These three guys, in costume of course, looked uncannily like the characters they were portraying, to the point where I half-expected a Tumbler to roll into the Irving Convention Center and pick up Bane. As they walked off, Jack Sparrow and two female models dressed as Wonder Woman garnered most of the attention.
Where on Earth did this take place you ask? Why, the Dallas Fan Days, the annual nerd event that occurs in October..
Like Christmas for nerds, the Dallas Fan Days are filled with vintage toys, creative costumes and surprisingly high-ranking celebrities. Me and fellow nerd and junior, Cody Elledge, went to the Dallas Fan Days with anticipation and excitement, this being our Fourth journey into the realm of geekery. With me in costume as the Red Skull, we journeyed across the Irving Convention Center with the glee of Luke Skywalker receiving his first lightsaber.
Our first big stop was a Q&A with Bruce Campbell, star of the “Evil Dead” movies and the TV show “Burn Notice”. His R-rated Q&A was filled with delightful insight into the life of a celebrity especially his refreshingly blunt opinions The best was one about how Twitter led to his home address being published a disturbing, yet amusing tale. The only downside to the panel was the Red Band trailer for the Evil Dead remake, which looked like a cheap Saw knockoff instead of the classic Evil Dead flicks. Still, the presentation was a blast and it was a pleasure for him to join the likes of Patrick Stewart and George Takei as celebrities I’ve seen in person.
There were tons of great costumes to look at, with some of the most imaginative including a Minecraft creeper, a Xenomorph from Alien and the two main robots from Mystery Science Theatre 3000 (pictured above). In terms of costumes, imagination and innovation were on full display this year.
And then there were the vintage comic books, posters, T-Shirts, toys, etc. I actually bought a vintage Iron Man toy myself, but was extremely tempted to pick up a Futurama shirt, a Gandalf The White staff and a poster for the Adam West Batman show. What I’ve listed barely scratches the surface in terms of the wonderful items on display for one to purchase. If you ever go to one of these Dallas Comic-Cons, be sure to bring a hefty wallet as you’ll need it to get some genuinely fantastic nerd goodies!
The best part about the Dallas Fan Days is the opportunity to see us nerds aren’t alone. While feeling insignificant and lonely next to those big football players or, later on in life, that guy who makes so much more than you at the office, these type of events give us the chance to be with our peers. We can say “EXCELSIOR!!” (Stan Lee’s catchphrase) and people will know what we mean. We can wear a shirt saying “My other car is the Batpod” and those around us will chuckle. Comparing the amount of people at a convention to the amount of Tribbles on the Enterprise will earn us nods of approval.
The Dallas Fan Days are a wonderful opportunity to be surrounded by your friends, your peers, your fellow nerds. For one day, you can be yourself and it won’t be something strange. I for one thought it was all fantastic leaving me eagerly anticipating Dallas Comic-Con in May 2013!
