14 Days Until Comic Con 2008

Yesterday's offering was long. I admit it. If you take into consideration everything that an Evil Overlord has to watch out for to be successful at his or her job, then the list that I presented yesterday has its merits. After posting that list though, I realized that not everyone is cut out to be an Evil Overlord and are probably just happy being regular comic convention attendees. Today's offering is a culmination of my 12 years of experience as a comic con attendee and although many of you are not going to be joining me, I hope you can draw from my experience so that you can successfully survive a comic book convention that comes to your town, city, state, or country!

Jaycee's San Diego Comic Con International Survival Guide
1. Wear comfortable shoes: During your time at the convention, you are going to be doing a LOT of walking. For many of us, walking in itself is a superhuman feat especially considering how much time we spend seated reading comic books, graphic novels, surfing the internet, or playing video games. With an exhibit hall covering over 525,000 square feet of space plus over 90,000 square feet of space in the Sail Pavilion, you are going to be making the rounds so expect sore feet at the end of each day regardless of how comfortable your shoes are. Comfortable shoes just make the walking a little more bearable.
2. Bring an extra pair of comfortable shoes: By the time you are ready for lunch, your feet will be throbbing. Throwing on a different pair of shoes shocks your feet into thinking that they aren't sore so stow an extra pair in your car.
3. Bring a car and arrive at the convention center early for parking: If you get to the San Diego Convention Center later than 8:30AM, you're parking off site buddy. The ability to park at the Center reduces the amount of walking that you need to do at the end of the day. Bringing a car also gives you STORAGE space for all of the swag bags, collectibles, merchandise, etc., etc. that you'll be amassing at the Con.
4. Bring food and water: Convention food isn't the greatest fare (and it's expensive!) and walking to local restaurant involves... walking so bring food and water, juice, or whatever wets your whistle and leave it in the car. Bring an apple or something after all, an apple a day keeps the Dr. Doom away! You'll save a ton on walking and the money that you would have spent on food can go to that limited edition clear Obiwan Kenobi action figure that came in Cheerios boxes back in the 80's.
5. Deodorant: Use it. I don't care if you have body odor or not. Deodorant is your first line of defense against the stink and the stink will happen. Trust me. Over 500,000 square feet of space is a lot of space but when you cram over 120,000 people in there plus all of the booths, it gets really cramped, really quick. Unless you are going to the con dressed like a Klingon, you don't need to smell like one.
6. Bring a camera: The reason I'm bringing a camera is obvious... I'm registered to attend as a professional and my badge will be issued under my business name, Bagtas Photography. For everyone else, a camera is a great thing. The con opens at 10AM but I'm usually there by 6AM. I meet up with friends or end up making new friends. One year, a group of friends and I decided to walk over to the Marriott to get some coffee. As we were leaving the elevator, Stan "the Man" Lee walks in. After pissing our pants from basking in his awesomeness, we all realized that we had left our cameras in our respective vehicles. This was years before I bit the bullet and became a pro photographer.
7. Learn some handy Klingon phrases: Getting to know the language that some of the visitors from other planets goes a long way. Learning how to say, "Please don't kill me" or "Take Rob Liefield, he's in Booth 357" in Klingon can come in very handy. I've learned that I don't need to learn Klingon because I speak Tagalog and Tagalog usually gets the Klingons all excited. It sounds pretty close to Klingon that if one of the diehard Trekkies questions it, all you have to say is "Hoy, gago! Ang baho mo. Maligo ka nga!" and then explain that you're from the South East side of Klingon. Besides, uttering phrases like that will make your convention-going experience all the more colorful.
8.a. Deodorant: Did I say that already? Yeah, the smell is one of the things that Comic Con can do withouth.
8.b. Cash: Empty out your bank account, cash out your 401K, sell your house or your first born. Do anything you can to have money ready and with you BEFORE the con. There are ATM's all over the place but the lines are usually long and the fees can mean the difference between you getting that limited edition first appearance of Spiderman comic book or going home empty-handed because you were $3 short of the Holy Grail.
9. Read the program: Although a majority of the action that attracts non-comic book geeks happens on the Exhibit Floor, there are a lot of break out sessions that happen in the meeting rooms and the only way to find out what's going on is to read the program. A couple of years ago, I sat in on a breakout session for a new TV show called "Heroes" that had a short screening of their pilot and a panel interview of its cast and crew. A couple of years before that, I got to see a special pre-screening of the Chronicles of Riddick before it came out in theaters. So read the program. You never know what gems you'll find in it.
10. Bring a small notebook and a pen: When you first step into the exhibit hall, you'll be bombarded with all kinds of sensory input. You'll see booths that have deals on certain items but will quickly forget which booth carried which items. Whip out your notebook and pen and jot down the booth number so that you can come back to it later.
11. Haggle: Many of the exhibitors and vendors at the Comic Con can be talked into giving you a great deal on certain items. Negotiate, haggle, grovel, and beg if you see something that you really have to have. If all else fails, tell the vendor, "Fine, you don't want to give it to me at this price, I'm going to booth 42 (42 being the answer to the Ultimate Question). They're selling it for 42% (again, 42 being the answer to the Ultimate Question) less than your price!" That usually does the trick and if it doesn't, come back on Sunday, the last day of the con. If you luck out, the item may still be there and since many of the vendors don't want to spend what they earn on shipping back unsold merchandise, they'll give you a deal.
12.a. Deodorant: The toxicity of the odor coming from the exhibit floor has permanently burned off the fine hairs in my nostrils.
12.b. Smile and be friendly: For many of us, this is the only time in the year where we can be with others that truly understand us. I once told my boss that a Super Skrull had abducted them and taken their form and she looked at me as if I WERE THE SUPER SKRULL! See what I mean? You can talk the talk and walk the walk among friends. Live it up and make new friends.
13. Bring headache medication: It can get pretty hot on the exhibit floor as well as outside the convention hall so bring something to ease the pain brought on by a heat-induced headache. It's hard to enjoy the con when you're nursing a throbbing coconut.
14. Bring a cellphone (if you are married or in a relationship): The cellphone is your only means of communication with the outside world. Unless your wife or significant other is into comic books as much as you are, they are probably going to be at work while you geek out. Chances are, you're going to find a great deal on a life-sized bust of the Incredible Hulk and will need to call the missus (or the mister) to ask the age old question, "Can I buy it?" Enter the cellphone. It also comes in handy for making the people at work jealous. I love calling the other people at the office and saying, "Guess where I'm at?" I'm pretty sure they're jealous... or at least they sound jealous.
15. Deodorant: Seriously. If you didn't get it the first few times I mentioned it, please have some mercy and do us all a favor and get some.
16. Do your homework: I had to give up collecting comics when I had kids. Month after month, it was a dilemma. Comic books or kids? Comic books or kids? When I saw my daughter strike her first Marvelesque pose before she started walking, the choice was clear. Kids. Now, I do homework months ahead of time on which selected titles or graphic novels to get. That way, I can continue my own little convention at home by reading these titles that I missed.
17. Bring something to keep you busy: Admittedly, once the convention opens, you are going to be busy doing whatever but since you will be arriving early to get a great parking spot, you're going to need something to do from whatever time you arrive until 10AM. I like to take photos of the things going on outside. I see people with Nintendo DS's, Sony PSP's, iPods, etc. Bring something to do or the period from 6AM - 10AM because really, really boring.
18. The San Diego Marriott: This 4 star hotel is located right next to the convention center and is a great place to go before the convention opens. They have a Starbucks that sells its coffee for about $0.50 more than the regular stores but it beats having to walk almost 4 blocks to Horton Plaza and back. They have nice, clean bathrooms where you can take care of your business in case you drink too much coffee. They have free wifi access in case you have a laptop with you. They are also home to many of the big wigs and celebrities that are at the convention so you never know who you'll bump into in the elevators!
19. Stay away from the Dark side: If you end up staying at the con after the Exhibit Hall closes, there are a few breakout sessions that may be worth your while. Most of these breakout sessions are held at nearby hotels so you will be walking to them. Stay away from dark alleys and dimly lit areas on your way to and from these sessions. Unlike Gotham City, we do not have a caped vigilante roaming our streets to keep you safe if you happen to find yourself in a blacked-out alleyway.
20. Bring a towel: Follow Douglas Adams' advice and bring a towel. It gets really hot and a towel is a great way to wipe off any excess follicle percipitation. It's also the considerate thing to do because the last thing convention goers need is to brush up against your sweaty body especially if you look like the Thing. So wipe on, wipe off Daniel san and enjoy the con!!!