StarFest in Pictures
/I love geek conventions. There is always so much to see in such a small amount of time. In order to try and remember everything that happened I let my photographers ADD go wild, and here are results.
StarFest - Jim's Report
/Hello readers. As you may have gathered from my Professional Gamer article this week, I’ve been at StarFest this weekend. More specifically, Crystal and Chris have had a table set up to sell art and plexiglass, and while I have gone to a few panels and talked to a lot fans. In the end, Chris spent a fair amount of time away from the table to take pictures, so I was often filling in for him to help run the table. Helping run a table for a whole weekend, is not the perspective that I am used to at a convention. In this case, it meant that I got to watch the convention crowd walk past me, rather than being part of that crowd myself.
In total, I was able to attend three panels/events. The first was on Saturday in Avistrum, a kid-friendly Harry Potter themed space. While I was there, an “instructor” presented a lecture on the History of Magic as it related to lucky charms and talismans. He talked about the various symbols associated with luck around the world, then provided the kids with materials to craft their own talismans. The kids all seemed to be having a lot of fun with the whole event. It is really welcoming to see a convention that is not just kid-friendly, but makes an effort to have dedicated spaces and events for kids. This was something that I haven’t seen in the other Denver area conventions, but I think it would be worthwhile for more of them to include this type of programming.
The second panel I attended was about recent and future exploration of Mars. The panel was presented by Carrolyn Collins Petersen with help from engineers Christopher Grasso and Pieter Kallemeyn. The panelist discussed recent missions, including Spirit, Opportunity, Phoenix and Curiosity, as well as the upcoming mission, Insight. This happened to be the first time that I had heard anything about Insight, but it sounds like a very interesting and scientifically promising mission. At its crux, Insight will help us to define the inner structure of Mars. The mission will include three primary scientific instruments: a seismometer, a thermal probe, and an X-band radio transponder. The planned mission has a 700 day duration in order to collect the detailed measurements required to characterize the inner structure of the planet.
The third panel that I attended was called “Star Wars as Story”, and included local authors Betsy Dornbusch, Carrolyn Kay, and Lisa Manifold, and was moderated by David Boop. The panel looked at Star Wars and Campbell’s “The Hero’s Journey”, and discussed how the authors applied these story elements in their own writing. The authors noted that in most cases, these story elements come out naturally in dramatic writing and therefore, authors who push against the norms tend to be more interesting.
Finally, in sitting around and watching the crowds go by I got to see a lot of great costumes. The most surprising to me was a guy wearing a Starfleet uniform based on Star Trek: The Motion Picture. I, like many others, have never been very fond of the movie, but I still enjoy the costume design (at least for the male Starfleet crew and officers.
In conclusion, the convention was well run. Staff and volunteers were easy to find and friendly. Being in the Crowne Plaza is a blast from the past (NDK used to hold their convention here). The fans were fun and full of passion. I’m planning to come again next year, and hope to meet a lot more fans and creators.
Denver Comic Con Beer-Naming Contest!
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If there is one thing that is unique to Denver Comic Con, one thing that you don't typically see at other cons (at least to my knowledge), it is the annual beer that is named by fans and available only during Denver Comic Con. Previous years winners have included The Fantastic Pour, Caped Brewsader, Brews Wayne, and Hulk's Mash. Well starting 2/29 the tradition continues with the 5th Annual DCC Beer-Naming Contest! In concert with Breckenridge Brewery; Denver Comic Con will have yet another unique brew that will sell out in no time flat.
Read MoreColorado Anime Fest 2016 - We Can Have Two Good Anime Cons
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So last weekend Colorado Animefest entered the foray into the growing Denver convention market. And despite this being their first year I would say the convention was a success. Sure it had it's share of problems, but it was nothing major and things overall flowed well. Now lets flashback to the convention itself.
Read MoreColorado Anime Fest, 2016 - Year One
/Debuting in the Colorado convention scene this year is the Colorado Anime Fest, a new anime oriented event organized by Corey Wood and William Foss with help from numerous veteran convention staff. Knowing this, all of us here at the Gameslave had high hopes for this convention. We were not disappointed. The convention organization and programming were both really great. The contrast between a small, first year convention and the huge, established conventions that I have typically attending for the past few years is astounding. I think I had forgotten what it is like to be able to move around a hotel with ease, attend panels without waiting in lines, and generally have a good relaxing time with other fans.
Read MoreColorado Anime Fest 2016 Floor Photos
/Any geek convention in Colorado always includes a good amount of cosplay. And with it there come plenty of photography opportunities. Here are the ones that I took from the floor. Expect photos from the costume contest soon.
You can also see the photos here.
Colorado Anime Fest - The Time is Nigh
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We are a week out from Colorado Anime Fests first convention. Happening February 12th - 14th at the Denver Renaissance Hotel (I-70 and Quebec) this will be Denver's third Anime convention. So why should you and your loved one spend at least part of Valentine's Weekend here?
Read MoreStan Lee Coming to DCC 2016
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A few years ago many of us were disappointed to hear the Stan Lee had to cancel his Denver Comic Con appearance. Well, those dark days are over and he is now scheduled to appear at DCC 2016! He will be appearing for all three days (June 17 - June 19) and will have a panel on June 18th in Main Events.
This is actually better then the original 2013 appearance were he was only slotted for one day. This year is looking good! Excelsior!
The Gameslave Podcast - Episode 217
/We've posted our interview with Lisa Ortiz. Go ahead and have a listen.
The Gameslave Podcast - Episode 216
/Our interview with Taliesin Jaffe is posted in the podcast feed. We talk about Hellsing, roleplaying, and the future of anime. You should give it a listen.