9/3-Day One of the Con proper.Following a mostly sleepless Thursday night, the first day of Dragon Con proper began with me, A.C. and Jimmy enjoying some fruit and caffeine in the Hyatt Regency's VIP courtesy suite. They girded themselves for a day of signing in Artists Alley while I made my way over to another hotel for the morning's scheduled MYSTERY SCIENCE THEATER 3000 panel, but that event was postponed until Kevin Murphy arrived (he'd been delayed), so instead I wandered around and shot pics of con-goers until I had to take over at A.C.'s table so she and Jimmy could take a lunch break.
Barf enjoys a dog biscuit.
A family of MYSTERY SCIENCE THEATER 3000 fans. I love the idea of Mom as TV's Frank.
The best of the many cross-dressing cosplayers. The use of the choker to obscure the masculine Adam's apple was a brilliant stroke.
My favorite of several Buddy Christs.
Old school STAR TREK's Uhura. Bill Theiss lives!
Zero from THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS, complete with glowing nose.
Gennosuke and Usagi Yojimbo.
My favorite parent and child costumed duo.
The best of the many Hit-Girls. (There was an adorable two-year-old done up as this character but I couldn't photograph her because I saw her while in transit between buildings in an area where stopping to take pictures would have fucked up the flow of traffic.)
Gir, in disguise mode...
...and revealed.
Frighteningly, this K-9 is not all that far removed from the '70's version.
A Jeannie fan represents.
The family that geeks together...
Everything you need to know about Aquaman, summed up in one image.
A favorite from last year returns: The Bruces from MONTY PYTHON'S FLYING CIRCUS.
Never did I imagine I would think illicit thoughts about Pikachu.
The Matt Smith Doctor: "Fezzes are cool!"
Kickass, posing tough.
Not a planned stunt: From out of nowhere, Kick-Ass was assaulted by the Gingerbread Man, who beat him like he owed him money. It was fucking brutal (and hilarious).
The first of a seeming legion of Deadpools (more on that later).
It's Barbarella! Yaaaaaaay!
The best Doctor Fate I've ever seen.
Harley Quinn has been a ubiquitous cosplay presence for nearly twenty years, but this is the first time I've ever seen The Squire.
"Spider-Man on vacation."
My second-favorite of the many bunnies in attendance.
Most unexpected costume of the expo: Freddy Mercury.
Old school Thor fans, rejoice: an excellent Enchantress.
The best of several Ms. Marvels.
Note to self: thick, silver-painted black demonesses rock!
My favorite of the ubiquitous Poison Ivys, who gets the win thanks to her man-eating plant that growls.
The Dude abides.
A superb Red Sonja and Conan. For the curious, Sonja says the individual scales for her armor (what there is of it) were fashioned from plastic, so it's all relatively lightweight and non-pinchy.
The one and only Darwyn Cooke.
Prince Namor, the Sub-Mariner.
One of many Turanga Leelas. I see more and more of these with each passing year, and the simulation of her cyclopean eye keeps getting better.
I nominate this shot, taken by me, as the most pimp photo ever of George Perez.
Donna Troy, aka Wonder Girl. Possessing perhaps the most convoluted origin story/stories in comics history (next to Hawkman), the character has nonetheless been one of my Top 3 female heroes of all time and I've been in love with her since discovering her while she was drawn by the legendary Nick Cardy (who designed her classic outfit), and then forever polished and defined by Marv Wolfman and George Perez in their NEW TEEN TITANS run. That said, this woman is the first cosplayer I've ever seen to truly nail the character.
When a camera flash provides unexpected special effects.
Awesome Zatanna, decent modern Wonder Girl (a character I fucking loathe), best/worst Aquaman ever (the beard makes him look like a waterlogged Gabby Hayes), and the current version of Donna Troy, complete with sparkly star-field outfit.
A fuzzy Usagi Yojimbo.
Fry, Leela, brain slugs and Slurm.
More old school STAR TREK. She built the phaser and tricorder from scratch!
Two enemies take a stroll.
No matter how many times I see it, this gag never gets old.
We all know that everybody loves bacon, but when this guy walked into the room the sentiment became quite literal. Everywhere he went, people would shout, "I love you, Bacon!" This was especially true of the plethora of hot chicks who draped themselves all over him for photo ops throughout the day.
The Monarch gets his drink on.
During my formative years there was no greater influence on my taste in what is female than Julie Newmar as Catwoman, so I love it when I see cosplayers who favor her version over all the others. This woman totally nailed that rare Newmar thing and completely appreciated it.
Not only did this lady nail it, she's also the first Newmar cosplayer I've ever seen who had the famous cat-gun. She said it was made for her by a friend.
I may despise He-Man, but I love Orko. Go figure.
Expect a lot more of Thor as of next summer...
Gotta love that Black Widow on the end.
The same lady who rocked the Batman look the previous night returns, in a visually coherent Huntress getup.
Keg party Hulk.
The Black Canary and the Green Arrow, perhaps the most popular couples costume for comics geeks. Extra points for the boxing glove arrow!
Harvey Birdman, lawyer.
While Gil Gerard signed in the same room, a fan rocked the Buck Rogers look.
The most petite Power Girl I've ever seen.
An exceptional Dr. Rockso, from METALOCALYPSE.
The Red Skull represents in the name of sheer, balls-out evil.
I have no idea if this guy was supposed to be a specific character, but imagine wearing this outfit at the end of the summer in the American South. Sheer lunacy.
A lithe modern jungle girl stretches for the lads.
I'd say the Dark Phoenix is the last person you'd want to have tell you "Talk to the hand."
The jungle girl archetype represented: Sheena, Queen of the Jungle.
A FUTURAMA fan rocks a brain slug. The brain slugs were very popular this year and were all over the place.TO BE CONTINUED
