I can’t imagine that SDCC is any fun at all. I love going to things like HeroesCon in Charlotte, though - much smaller convention, very artist focused, you take a sketchbook and get people to draw stuff for you.
I suspect for many, the appeal is how ridiculously large it is. It is the biggest event of its kind and a lot of people want to experience that, at least once.
My husband is there this year, as a professional. He’s pretty blown away by the scale of it. 
This scene from “Paul” sums it up nicely I think.
I went to a pro-con once a few years back. It was like paying to go to a themed shopping mall during Christmas, and I vowed never to go back to another one again. Fan-run not for profit conventions are the best kind.
Exactly.
For many people, a huge crowd is *the *reason to go. For many other people, it’s *the *reason to stay away.
In 2014, about $178 million. It really is a big deal, and they should never move it to Las Vegas. LA, maybe. But not Vegas.
I’ve never understood the idea of paying money to go into a place where all they do is want to sell me stuff.
Plenty of people pay for Costco memberships. Plus there’s a whole lot more going on than just buying stuff at a convention like this. I could see going and not buying anything. On the other hand, some of the stuff is only available for sale at the convention.
I guess you didn’t read the rest of the thread, eh? 
Yanno, the part about talking with creators, listening to panels, playing games, participating in costume contests, watching films, taking part in workshops, concerts…all stuff that’s a benefit to you rather than trying to sell you something.
That being said sometimes the organization of a con really hurts it. I went to the first New York Comic Con and it was abysmal due to planning. Not enough panels, not enough maps, unhelpful staff, all the tote bags gone if you weren’t there directly at opening, too many attendees for the space. I’m fine with crowds but when the artist hall is so jam packed I cannot move to get somewhere else, it’s not a nice situation. It’s the only con for which I did not go back for Sunday despite buying a multi-day pass. So it’s possible to have a badly run con ruin the experience.
But the well-run ones? Whooo are they a blast. I love going to panels and hearing creators talk about what works, what doesn’t, how to get into the industry, what the industry needs, what’s changing, what the future holds, all sorts of stuff. And of course I can go out and support the artists I like by purchasing their books and prints at discounts (con pricing is almost always a little less than online, and of course no shipping). That’s not a bad thing.
Yes, there are women in skimpy outfits. Some of those women are hot. Some of them not-so-much. They are definitely a place where women who resemble the Venus of Willendorf more than a Hollywood Waif seem comfortable wearing a fur bikini. The TV cameras tend to focus on the hot more than the typical.
So… forewarned and all. You will see all body types. Also applies to the guys.
^ This.
I, too, prefer the smaller fan-run cons. In my younger years I’d go to one and just stay awake for 3 days, there was just so much to do and see. Now, since I’m entering into old fart territory I need at least one nap in there somewhere.
It’s not all about selling stuff. There is a LOT of socializing. There are typically (outside of “pro/studio cons”) plenty of things to see, to go to, and participate in that don’t involve you paying more money. I’ve gone plenty of times and paid for nothing other than my room (which I usually shared with more other people than the hotel would have liked to split costs) and food (and sometimes brought my own from home in a cooler). Oh, and admission ticket, though for some cons if you’re willing to volunteer to help with it you can get some or all of that waived.
In other words, you can do this on a budget if you want and still have a lot of fun.
Some cool stuff I remember from over the years:
[ul]
[li]A live concert using giant Tesla coils as musical instruments[/li][li]Live raptors and other birds in a seminar/show where the animals can be seen up close, some of them handled under supervision, and a white-shouldered crow that would accept dollar bill donations, carefully folding each bill before putting it in a lockbox.[/li][li]Klingons kidnapping people for charity[/li][li]The con where all the security wore red shirts with targets on their backs[/li][li]All sorts of old and vintage stuff[/li][li]Getting my favorite set of Tarot cards signed on the card of my choice by the artist who designed them[/li][li]Meeting some of my favorite writers, artists, editors, and other creators[/li][/ul]
Lots more, really. That said, they aren’t for everyone.
A scene from yesterday’s San Diego Comic Con. Barry, the guy on the right, is a friend of my wife from way back.
[quote=“Broomstick, post:30, topic:724749”]
…[ul][li]Klingons kidnapping people for charity[/li][li]The con where all the security wore red shirts with targets on their backs[/ul]…[/li][/QUOTE]
I got off the hotel van from the airport one evening and was greeted by an honor guard of Klingons. Not what I had expected after a long day at work. They were friendly in a gruff sort of way.
The pixies at the bar later were kinda cute although they only had eyes for guys with elf ears. Of whom there were disconcertingly many.
PAX hires a local bus company to shuttle people to and from the con and hotels. Well one year our hotel shuttle just happened to be a limo bus. Yep, inside was the coolers, the lighting, the TV, sound system, plush seats, chrome… anyway, what I’m saying is, at cons, sometimes even the buses are fun.
I used to go to cons all the times. I went with my friends, and we’d party together all night, drink, and dress up in costumes. The panels and art shows and trading floors were also fun. I cherish some of the celebrities I got to see, especially at the smaller cons. But it was mostly about being with friends, and being outlandish. I loved playing dress up.
Now my con-going friends and I are planning trips to Cancun. We got older and lazier.
Yes.
Also, the aforementioned hot chicks.
Lots of well done cosplay (at some of them) by all sorts of people. It’s not all hot chicks with T&A hanging out, but that is an issue we’ll just have to deal with somehow.
Nerdy acquisition stuff.
Last, and DEFINITELY not least … I get to wear my Spock ears.
:dubious:
To see/hear them on stage performing the music I like? Sure! To see/hear them on stage talking about the music I like? Nope.
YMMV
Yeah, I used to go, after it stopped being 100% comics but before it got overcrowded. It’s just too crowded, lines for everything, hotel prices crazy, etc.
And, I am not a fan of Film previews. If I know I dont wanna see it, the preview is annoying. if I know I do want to see it, then it’s also annoying as it often gives up stuff. Or the cool scene is not in the film, which is super-annoying. Yes, a few times I didnt know about a film and decided to watch it based on a trailer, but that’s rare.
Sure, but can I get a 90-pack of Fruit Roll-Ups and a jar of cashews the size of a trash dumpster at Comic-Con?
Probably. That stuff is ConFood 101. Just ask around.
Yeah I was about to say, I’d bet actual money that if we could ask every attendee what snacks they brought to Comic Con, you’d find at least one of them admitting to having a ridiculous amount of fruit roll ups back in their hotel room.
People do bring straight-up cases of Pocky to anime conventions. I’ve seen it.