This past weekend, I had the good fortune of attending my first MeggaXP in Jackson, Michigan. Boasting four floors of pop culture fun at the Commonwealth Commerce Center, I can honestly say it was one of the best Saturdays of my 2016 (I was unfortunately unable to attend on Sunday).
Those of you who have followed Dark Knight News’ convention coverage this year have no doubt read a number of articles focused on the southeast Michigan con scene, as that happens to be my neck of the woods. I’m actually quite thrilled that events of this sort – large or small – are becoming more prevalent.
Despite MeggaXP being about an hour drive from the Metro Detroit area, I want to assure all who are reading this that it’s well worth the trip. The organizers have a lot to be proud of and I can say in all honesty that the event went on without a single noticeable hiccup. I most definitely hope to return next year.
Below you will find a breakdown of the various aspects of the con, along with some personal highlights.
– Media and Comic Book Guests
Having attended several small cons over the past few years, I can tell you that not all include guests from film and television, so it was quite pleasing to attend a panel featuring Efren Ramirez (Napoleon Dynamite) and Larry Thomas, perhaps best known as having played the Soup Nazi on Seinfeld. Both men gave incredible insight into their craft and I was fortunate enough to have a great conversation with Thomas following it. And, yes, I did get to hear him shout, “No soup for you!”
On the comic book side of things, I was able to get some books signed by Mark Bagley and Evan “Doc” Shaner. Hey, journalists are fans as well.
Furthermore, Bagley was kind enough to reflect on his time drawing Batman, which happened to coincide with when Dick Grayson donned cape and cowl:
“The cool thing about Dick Grayson’s Batman while I was drawing him was… Batman is now drawn like this solid, Frank Miller-esque figure, whereas when I draw Batman, in my mind I still see him as the Neal Adams light kind of muscular and large but not – I don’t want to say ‘over-muscular,’ but everybody knows what I’m talking about. That was, to me, kind of freeing because, in my mind, is what physically I think Batman should look like.
“Those three or four issues of Batman were pretty much the most fun I had at DC. I enjoyed the story a lot. I got to draw some pretty cool bad guys: You know, Two-Face, Clayface, Penguin. It was fun.”
– Costume Contest
Hosted by Krissy Victory, Sweets4ASweet, and Scream Queen, the costume contest featured many impressive cosplayers and had better presentation than even some larger cons that shall remain nameless. Congratulations go to my good friend Jazzmin Sharara, who reigned supreme as Best Female with her interpretation of the Mad Hatter, as well as Pyramid Head (Best Male), and Mario Kart: Fury Road (Best Group).
– Cosplayers in the Wild
It’s no secret that one of my favorite aspects of attending cons is seeing the many talented cosplayers walking about. Enjoy a look at some of my choice DC devotees and others who did such an awesome job on their costumes that they deserved some recognition.
– Cosplay Ball
I’m not always able to stick around for after-parties, so it was nice to attend the cosplay ball. It was great to see such an awesome turnout – many people whom I saw earlier even adopted a different guise for the dance! DJs on deck included Clone Bobalon and surprise spinner Efren Ramirez.
Photos taken by Alexander Leo Carr
