Long Beach Comic Con Takes Place This Weekend
By Erik Sugay
New York Comic Con is just two weeks away, but if you just have to have your comic book convention fix right now, Long Beach Comic Con takes place this weekend. Of course, this would require you to be in Southern California at the time, which is all the way across the country from New York, but hey…options.
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It’s a decidedly smaller event than the big guns like New York Comic Con and San Diego Comic Con, but what these more intimate affairs lack in spectacle they make up for in substance by offering something for everyone. Long Beach Comic Con will play host to more than 80 panels covering diversity, young adult books, banned comics, animation, cosplay and more.
The con also welcomes esteemed guests like Greg Weisman (DC/Warner Brothers’ Young Justice, Marvel’s Spectacular Spider-Man, Star Wars: Rebels, Gargoyles) Marc Silvestri (Top Cow), Mike Mignola (Dark Horse Comics’ Hellboy), Amanda Conner (DC Entertainment’s Harley Quinn), Babs Tarr (DC Entertainment’s Batgirl), Man of Action’s Joe Casey, Joe Kelly, Duncan Rouleau and Steven T. Seagle and so many more.
Honestly, one of the best facets of these smaller conventions is the fact that the guests are a lot more accommodating to fans. Without all of the hustle and bustle and to-the-minute scheduling of larger cons, guests actually have the chance to speak candidly and in-depth with attendees. It’s not a guarantee, of course, but the opportunity is there.
It’s also a much easier comic convention to take children to. There are several workshops and panels tailored directly for the younger set like drawing events that teach kids how to illustrate their favorite characters.
Long Beach Comic Con takes place Saturday, September 27, from 10:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m. and Sunday, September 28, from 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. at the Long Beach Convention Center in California.