Fan Expo Vancouver 2016 was three days of geek heaven. It was one huge hall full of amazing artwork, cool celebrities, plus all the fandom merch that you could ever want to own.
The atmosphere was overwhelming at first, especially for someone who has never been to a convention before. I wanted to make sure I saw everything, buy absolutely everything in sight, rush over to catch a glimpse of various actors and on top of all that, go to the different events and celebrity Q&As. The immense amount of things to do definitely made it worth going for all three days.
There was one thing that everyone was disappointed about however – Carrie Fisher, Princess Leia herself, cancelled. She was supposed to be attending Fan Expo on the Saturday and Sunday, but was unable to due to illness. We were told that she regretted not being able to come, but still wants to make it up to the Vancouver community.
Plenty of other celebrities attended the convention though. Everyone's favourite Slytherin, Tom Felton, was there, signing autographs and taking pictures with fans. He also did a Q&A session, and let me tell you, he is a precious cinnamon roll. He is currently in Vancouver working on The Flash, and he shared a couple of funny stories about things like fumbling his lines. He also tried to FaceTime his mom during the Q&A, but couldn't, so instead he just took a video of the entire audience yelling, "HI TOM'S MOM!" We also learned that he is shit at throwing a frisbee and thought that Gary Oldman was a cleaner the first time he saw him. When asked what he thought of Canadians he said, "You're very friendly and polite, but also insane and mental."
There were plenty of other events to go to in between spending all your money. Improv Against Humanity, Sketch Duels, Speed Dating and Cosplay Workshops were just a few of the cool things happening. You had to manage your time well to attend them however, since it was super easy to get carried away amongst the artists and vendors in the main hall. I missed out on all the Friday events since I was too distracted by everything there was to see.
I found Artist Alley to be the most exciting part of the convention. Tons of artists got the opportunity to display and sell both fan art and their own original artwork. There was a large group of local artists, as well as many from across Canada who regularly attend conventions and a few from just south of the border. Several had never sold their art at an event like this and were grateful for the exciting opportunity. There were so many different art styles – graphic novels about rebel Canadians in a united North America, a crocheted Tardis, detailed Star Wars paintings and tons more. Every fandom was represented, and even artists who were solely selling original artwork did well. It was difficult to choose what art prints to buy and even harder to refrain from just buying them all.
Unfortunately for my wallet, art wasn't the only thing to spend money on. Tons of different vendors were selling more fandom merch than I could ever dream of owning. You really had to go in accepting that you would be spending a lot of money. I had to keep a list of the things I wanted to buy and then decide which I really wanted and what was worth it. And I still spent more than I had planned to.
There were also exhibitors like Lego, with an area specifically to stop and build; Warner Brothers, handing out posters for their latest films; and London Drugs, displaying games on laptops in an attempt to prove that they sell more than just drugs. Then there were the local cosplay groups – Star Wars stormtroopers and bounty hunters, the Ghostbusters and more.
Speaking of cosplay – holy shit are people amazing at cosplay. Casually wandering around the hall, I saw people in full on Skyrim armour, several gems from Steven Universe and numerous superheroes, particularly an abundance of Captain Americas. I spoke with a woman wearing a Baymax costume who told me that she was unfortunately too short it and had to hold it up with her arms. There was also a giant Pikachu who everyone wanted to get a picture with. People of all cosplaying skill levels were present – cosplay professionals who somehow make a living from it, those who do it for a hobby and even newbies like me who threw together a costume just for Fan Expo.
It was certainly an event worth going to. By the end my feet were sore and I was exhausted, but I was satisfied with my experience and glad that I had finally gotten to attend a convention. Fan Expo Vancouver 2016 was a success and I'm sure that next year's event will be equally worth going to.