The weekend of May 30-June 1 in Indianapolis, a brand-new convention was born: Indy Pop, a pop culture and comics-based convention, held its inaugural opening in downtown Indianapolis’s Indiana Convention Center. Boasting an impressive roster of guests for a first-year con, and ticket sales around the 10,000 mark, what began as a Kickstarter dream came to fruition in a massive way on May 30.
With over 300,000 square feet of space dedicated to artists, vendors, panels and special events, it contained something fun for all ages and persuasions.
Celebrity and media guests included Ron Glass (Barney Miller, Firefly), Nicholas Brendon (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Criminal Minds), Kandyse McClure (Battlestar Galactica, Hemlock Grove), John DiMaggio (Futurama, Adventure Time), Joel Hodgson (Mystery Science Theater 3000), Kristian Nairn and Esme Bianco (Game of Thrones), and Sylvester McCoy (Doctor Who, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and the Desolation of Smaug). From panels and Q&A sessions to photo-ops, there were plenty of opportunities to meet and talk to your personality of choice. Plenty of artists were on hand as well, offering free head sketches and the chance to talk about your favorite comics. (Kevin Eastman, co-creator of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and all-around nice guy, suffered with Herculean patience through a five-minute speech about how I owe him my childhood.)
Special features of Indy Pop’s maiden voyage included a 24-hour board and video gaming room, a cosplay (costume play, for you newbies) contest wherein the Best in Show recipient earned a $1,000 cash prize, a free concert with Paul & Storm featuring the Playboy Psychonauts and the Harp Twins, and the never-before-attempted Cosplay Lounge: a place to rest, relax, and repair any emergency wardrobe malfunctions. An area complete with sewing machines, tape, patches and anything else you might need during your costumed adventures, the room included massive Xorbes beanbag chairs and a team of massage therapists.
For the ubergeek in all of us, all the way from Metropolis (Ill.), the Museum of Geek History highlighted the full evolution of the Man of Steel with several pieces from the world’s largest collection of Superman collectibles and memorabilia, including Action Comics No. 1—Superman’s first appearance—valued at over $1 million!
Indy PopCon 2014 photos by Greg Chaney
After-hours activities offered plenty to keep the party going with an all-ages meet up at Scotty’s Brewhouse and a no-cover, 21-and-over Official PopCon party at Sensu, one of downtown Indianapolis’s finest nightclubs, where Eric Stuart, Five Year Mission, and Kristian Nairn (GOT’s Hodor) performed for rapt fans. Sylvester McCoy even showed up in a slick black car and cut me in line. He shot me a thumbs-up, which is pretty much the highlight of my entire life.
All in all, it was a grand time. Like any first-time con, there were snags and glitches, but come next year, it will only have improved from an incredibly strong start. The panels were great, the numbers were impressive, and the atmosphere was one of camaraderie and community. Hosted by the incredibly hardworking and talented “Big Daddy Cool” Johnny Dellarocca (who is available for events in Middle Tennessee at bigdaddycoolshows.com), and expected to double in size by its next year, Indy Pop is a promising upstart on the convention circuit.
If conventions aren’t your bag but your kids are dying to go (and they’re old enough to be left unattended), Indianapolis has a slew of other entertaining options as well. Sports come to mind most readily, as Indianapolis is home of the Indy 500, the Pacers and the Colts; however, there’s more to the city than meets the eye. The Simon Skjodt International Orangutan Center at the Indianapolis Zoo opened on June 9, and the Museum of Art and the Children’s Museum are both top-rated attractions on Trip Advisor. Around the same time is the annual Crime and Punishment Indiana Humanities Bar Crawl, which really solidifies the “something for everyone” promise the city seems to offer. Take a week, visit the city, check out the con, and most of all, have fun.
For updates and ticket purchases for next year’s Indy PopCon, visit indypopcon.com.
