It's that time of year again - Comic Con. I have wanted to go to a Comic Con since I was a kid, but growing up in an East Coast state whose idea of "comic convention" was ten dealers with back issues in a Holiday Inn meeting room, I never had the pleasure. At age 33, I moved to Las Vegas, which with all its hotels, casinos, conventions, sporting events, and varied means of entertainment, does not boast an annual comic convention. Compared to the East Coast though, it's a short drive to San Diego, so that was one thing about living here that put a smile on my face. Alas, six years later, at age 39, I still have yet to make it to a Comic Con. Normal, everyday stuff has gotten in the way of it each year, but mostly, I forget about it. I pick up the quarterly updates that appear in the comic shops, but I never really pay attention to the dates, and one day, I'll be in the shop when the owners are talking about being gone for a week, for Comic Con.

The last three years or so though, I've heard disturbing reports. There are six or seven comic shops in Las Vegas, about three or four of which I pass through at varying times, and very consistently, I've heard nothing but complaints about Comic Con. Those complaints boil down to the area where you can actually find comics getting smaller, and smaller, and smaller, while the convention itself gets more and more crowded - almost too crowded to move comfortably. They say the comics are getting edged out for movie and video game booths, but they're still calling it Comic Con.

Now, I've seen some video on Comic Vine from recent cons, and I didn't see what I heard about in my LCS owners' reports. The aisles looked busy, but not overly crowded, and I believe one interview even addressed the space issue. I believe the answer was something to the effect of "The Con is under new ownership," and the report talked about the number of people who were there whose job it was simply to make sure you found what you were looking for. Awesome.

So I'm still wondering: is Comic Con worth my time? Movie previews are great and all, and fans in costumes are fun, but for me, I still think of Comic Con as a place to browse through back issues I might not normally find in my hometown. When the stores in Vegas see back issues as something in the way of new product, that's a detail of some importance. So what's the deal? With the new ownership, has the comic area gotten back to a reasonable proportion, or is it still disappearing? If my only reason for going to the Con is back issues and panels with the professionals, is it worth it? If you've been to the Con before, let me know what you think in the comments.

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I dunno, I'm not a collector... I usually just by trades however the main reason I think I would love to take the trip to ComicCon is to meet my fave creators and all the indie publishers I follow so religiously to hear their presentations on what the state of their business is and what they have in store for fans in the next year.  Ya, that I think would be the main reason for me going.

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So I'm still wondering: is Comic Con worth my time?  Movie previews are great and all, and fans in costumes are fun, but for me, I still think of Comic Con as a place to browse through back issues I might not normally find in my hometown.  When the stores in Vegas see back issues as something in the way of new product, that's a detail of some importance.  So what's the deal?  With the new ownership, has the comic area gotten back to a reasonable proportion, or is it still disappearing?  If my only reason for going to the Con is back issues and panels with the professionals, is it worth it?  If you've been to the Con before, let me know what you think in the comments.

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i plan on makin tha trip out there next year. and just like at tha chicago cons ive gone to in tha past years, and even tha small one day retailer shows, i plan on doin a lot of shopping. i spend plenty of time browsing thru tha retailers and i always buy a ton of issues.  especially if i find 25/50 cent and dollar bins. i mostly pick up older back issues, but i do buy more recent stuff that might seem interesting but never wanted to pick it up at full price. i even came up wit an idea to make a spreadsheet for listing my convention hauls, i just wish i came up wit tha idea when i first started going to conventions.    
 
and im just like u, tha movie and tv stuff doesnt interest me at all. i watch alot of tv and movies like everybody, but i dont care to sit and watch tha actors/actresses talk about tha show and off-camera stuff or whatever lol.  so that stuff worries me, cuz ive watched it happen to wizard world chicago.  and ive heard tha complaints about SDCC, but i stll gotta make tha trip at some point in my life, and im hopin next years show will be cool. so i'll be doin alot of plannin for it.

I went to a sci-fi convention last year and got a bunch of back issues. Spent a few hundred bucks that day

if u want to meet them yes if not stay home and save some money