Currently, I’m trying to this thing where I don’t try to look forward to anything because everything eventually gets here anyway. To spend all week looking forward to two days that always fly by is hopeless.
But I can’t seem to stop myself from getting giddy about attending NYCC – New York Comic Con – next week. When I went for the first time last year, I marveled at all the different cosplayers, the panels that were available, and even the celebs that showed up (I saw Chad Michael Murray!). Seeing all the creators working to get their art out is inspiring, and magnificent – you’re exposed to people you’d never get the chance to meet otherwise.
Fondly I think back to seeing other people with their NYCC passes hanging around their neck, carrying their keyblade with them as I eagerly asked for directions (as I have this chronic “no sense of direction” problem). I look around, half-stunned at the outfits some people chose to wear in the chilly October weather, but being impressed at their dedication to their cosplay. Even now, I imagine myself walking down those same streets, pushing past the gathering crowd (once I got inside) as they all lined up to play the new demo for Resident Evil, or watch the trailer for Final Fantasy XIII-2.
I remembered the angst I felt when everyone, it seemed, had a Viz tote bag but when I finally asked for one they had run out, or the excitement as me and my friend followed behind a man on stilts dressed up as Bumblebee from Transformers. I remember the anxiety as I waited for my friend to show up at his table, but never got a chance to see him. Or meeting up with the other women who also created their own stories in the all-woman anthology called Womanthology. I also recall the great boredom – sometimes I would just wander around and stare at the long lines outside of panels and marveling at people who waited nearly two hours before just to secure themselves a good spot. I remember how a group of people sneaked into the Resident Evil panel, despite the line – and complaints – of the people who had been waiting for ages.
Last year, that was the second (large) con I had ever gone to – and I loved it. This October will mark my second year of attendance at the massive convention, and this time I’ll be going as a member of the press – crafting articles for the comic news site I write for.
But I also remember the extreme sadness (and withdrawal) I felt once NYCC had ended, and I had to go back to my normal life. I remember looking longingly at my pro pass, wishing I could be back there. Even months after NYCC had ended, I had to pass by the Javit’s convention center on my way to work – and I was instantly taken back to the con.
Time flies.
So I’m trying this thing where I don’t look forward to stuff, because when it finally gets here, it’s going to end just as soon as it started.
-Tatiana Christian
