San Diego Comic-Con is like living in a real-life fantasy world where reality is all in your imagination and what you see, even tho you may not necessarily believe it.
The event – the third weekend in July – overtakes the city’s Gaslamp Quarter and turns it into a TV, Sci-Fi magical world.
I enjoy hanging out on lower Fifth Ave., around the arched Gaslamp Quarter sign, by the little plaza between the trolley stop and Tin Roof bar across from the convention center and along the wide sidewalk parallel to the trolley tracks for a few blocks from Fifth to across from the Marriott Marquis.
The tall buildings are wrapped, pop-up activations are everywhere, Petco Park is one big activation zone and people are all over blocked-off Fifth Ave.. Many are in in superhero and TV show/movie costumes, happily posing for pictures. It is quite the scene.
The bars are lively, mostly with people sitting outside people character and people watching. “I’ve been here for three hours,” one Blarneystone patron told me. “This is awesome.”
I love it, too. San Diego Comic-Con is harmless fun that welcomes everybody and everybody in San Diego welcomes it. Smiles and laughs are more plentiful than even people in costumes. And I’m amazed at what I see.
For instance, one day I ran across a girl in a leopard outfit whose legs – let me see if I can describe this – were bent over her head. Her feet were on the ground; she was coiled up like a snake. The next day she was in the same pose on top of a small utility box in a Spiderman costume.
“It that even possible!?, “I asked her in amazement before the uncurled herself. She smiled at me and said “yes.”
Obviously it was but sometimes you can’t believe what you see. Turns out she is professional contortionist @emeraldgordonwulf), who has been in several movies, including The Conjuring.
But that was not the only amazing person I’ve ever seen at San Diego Comic-Con. A few minutes later I came across street magician Jesee Mock doing the ancient cups and balls routine. At the beginning of his show, he took at $20 bill from an audience member and had the person sign it. He then traded it for a lime. At the end of the show, Mock took a knife – “in Chicago, they call this a wallet,” he quipped – and opened up the lime to reveal the signed $20.
Comic-Con also has Darth Vader, Obi Wan Kenobi with a light saber, Batman and someone who was most definitely not Robin and an amazing Spock splitting his fingers in the Vulcan salute.
That’s all in the afternoon and in the evening, people roll into the Gaslamp bars in costume and party and dance like it’s Halloween. The passion of the people reminds me of Parrotheads at a Jimmy Buffett concert.
From a single guy’s perspective, let me also say that “heck yeah!,” in case you are wondering if San Diego Comic-Con has any hot girls.
San Diego Comic-Con is fun and you don’t have to be an over-the-top fan to enjoy it. I sure am an example of that, too.
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