By: Nadine Rodriguez – Staff Writer
nadi46@gmail.com
This year’s Florida Supercon is taking over the Miami Beach Convention Center Thursday, June 25 through Sunday, June 28. Considered the largest convention in South Florida, Supercon isn’t an event you want to miss.
Bursting with geek culture, the convention is going to feature guests and events from multiple sources of media. These include comic books, anime, animation, video games, fantasy, sci-fi, and pop culture.
For the attendees interested most in comics, dozens of merchandise booths await them, as well as events and guests including director and comic book writer, Kevin Smith, writer Jim Shooter and artist Juan Fernandez.
For those venturing more into anime and animation, there are an array of voice actors behind favorite childhood characters. Some of these are Dameon Clarke who was featured in “Dragon Ball Z,” Jessica DiCicco from “Adventure Time” and several actors for Funimation, the largest distributor of anime in North America, responsible for “Dragon Ball,” “Black Butler” and “Attack on Titan.”
Guests related to video games, fantasy, sci-fi and pop culture all fall into one genre in the schedule, therefore, the list of guests is enormous. Some of these include actors from “Guardians of the Galaxy,” “Once Upon a Time,” “The Walking Dead,” “Captain America” and “Arrow.”
Besides being able to buy your favorite comics or shirts from your favorite movie, what truly makes Florida Supercon special are three things: cosplayers, artists and the entertainment.
Cosplay is the act of dressing up and pretending to be a fictional character from any media. Although it is done mainly for fun, there are cosplay contests featured in Supercon for prizes. An array of costumes grace the convention center floor, ranging from Batmans walking alongside their Robins, to a legion of Deadpools clowning around.
Some may feel embarrassed for their first cosplay, but rest assured, the cosplay community that emerges every year at Supercon is welcoming and are quick to provide advice and tips. There is even a booth at the convention called, “Cosplay Medics,” where experts will help you fix your cosplay if anything goes wrong. They have a collection of tools ready at their disposal, including hot glue guns, string and paint.
Amongst the maze of booths, food and beverage sellers and people spread around the convention center, there is an artist alley. This “alley” is composed of dozens of tables loaded with original works of art, including stickers, pins, paintings, books, comics, web comics, food and trinkets. Some artists travel the country attending different conventions and some are local. Be sure to stop by for some unique souvenirs and gifts.
Besides the main exhibition room, Supercon also provides video game rooms. Some are traditional, featuring old-school Mortal Kombat, Tekken and Mario. Others are modern, featuring Soul Calibur, Skull Girls, Call of Duty, and League of Legends. There is even a room filled with computers where one can play Indie PC games.
Another form of entertainment provided without extra cost is live wrestling. Wrestlers dress up as characters and different personas. Some of these wrestlers have even gained fans, such as Supercon’s very own Joker and Lobo. Wrestling normally happens every day at the convention in the evening.
However, the most energetic form of entertainment happens at night when the convention shifts from a family oriented environment to an older audience’s club. With burlesque shows featuring women dressed as DC comic girls shedding clothes and a black-light lit Rave, guests will most likely leave the convention at late hours of the night.
Whatever it may be you’re interested in, Supercon is definitely the place to be next weekend. Ticket prices vary from $30-$85 depending on what type of package you choose.
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