It's a brave new world for geek culture, as made evident by the vast emergence of the comic conventions across the country. Wizard World, once known for the popular Wizard Magazine, plays host to many of said conventions all year long and they just recently wrapped up one of their longest running shows in the form of the annual Columbus Comic Con.
It was a grand spectacle, as per usual, in the heart of the great state of Ohio. Many celebrities, comic creators and cartoonists were on hand to enjoy the weekend with their loyal fans.
Guests on hand for the occasion included the likes of Ian Somerhalder – best known for his starring role on the popular CW series, The Vampire Diaries – as well as fellow "vampire" James Marsters, Hercules actor Kevin Sorbo, long-time Kevin Smith cohort Jason Mewes and Terminator 2's villainous T-1000, Robert Patrick.
Somerhalder and Patrick, among the other film and TV celebrities, wowed the crowd with their Q&A panels. Meanwhile, James Marsters and Jason Mewes played nice with each other on the convention floor.
Just saw @JasonMewes backstage. Awesome dude. Fellow gamer! pic.twitter.com/V6TL1pcacr
— James Marsters (@JamesMarstersOf) July 30, 2016
Then, of course, there were the cosplayers. No good comic convention is complete without its legions of costumed fans exposing their talents with arts, crafts and a little touch of imagination. And this weekend was no exception. One can browse the photos from the costume contest and cosplay photo ops at the Wizard World Facebook page.
But I want to shine a particularly bright spotlight on the very impressive group who cosplayed as He-Man, Skeletor and the rest of the Masters of the Universe. Words do not begin to do justice to just how awesome this is to look at. [Director] McG should really take some notes on how to properly do the MotU characters for his upcoming theatrical adaptation.
Other panels and events included Tekken and Street Fighter boot camps and game tournaments, discussions about whether or not comic book movies should follow their source material, a look towards the future of the Star Wars franchise following the release of The Force Awakens and a special screening of Star Trek Beyond.
All in all, I would say it was a pretty effective weekend for the popular convention host. Their next stop is in the windy city of Chicago, which is also one of their biggest events and definitely one that I would like to attend in the future. If you've never been to a Wizard World convention in any city, I strongly suggest that you do. Big or small, they are always a lot of fun.
Until then, see you all next time.
Were you at Wizard World Columbus? Sound off below with your experiences.
Sources: Wizard World Columbus Programming