Rose City Birthday Con: Rose City Comic Con 2015 Report
written by Justin Prince (@prince_justin)
Sometimes you just need a chill convention weekend…
Everyone talks about how huge the party is at some of the biggest fan conventions around the globe, from the almost intimidating sea of people at shows like San Diego Comic Con, to the packed halls of the Washington State Convention Center during shows like PAX Prime and Emerald City Comicon. Being something of a convention veteran, I’ve seen the big shows and the small shows, but when it comes to cons of a more modest size, Rose City Comic Con in Portland, OR sit high on my list of shows to attend; even among some of the heavy hitters in this whole fan convention business.
What makes a show like Rose City such a success for me is how small it is. Now while I know they are always looking to grow and expand, but even the big kids in the industry came from humble beginnings. Rose City is rapidly growing but still feels very much like a close knit gathering of fans. It’s what makes this show such a fun event to attend and is sort of its charm.
Rose City Comic Con falls on my birthday every year, it’s basically my birthday con and makes inviting people super easy; none of that awkward “will they show up or am I blowing out the candles on my birthday cake all on my lonesome” business, folk already wanna come by and as an added plus… all the costumes!
Speaking of costumes, Rose City Comic Con once again impressed with all the cosplay. Fans of all skill levels showed their love of fictional characters in stunning fashion. The cosplay contest further impressed with some fantastic entries all across the board. It was the highlight of the show for us and actually was the only event we really went to. As much as I wanted to attend more panels, I had too much fun just running around the show floor and geeking out with my friends.
Sometimes you just want to have fun with your buds…
Lifted Geek was built not just on uplifting geek culture, but we are basically a big ol group of friends like any big ol group of friends who attend cons; except we write about it and get invited to cover conventions as members of the press.
My friends are what make my birthday awesome… my friends are what make conventions awesome… roll em into one and you get Rose City Comic Con for me. While the cosplay contest was the highlight of the show when it comes to official events, running around the show floor with old and new pals makes the show for me.
What continues to impress me is how kid friendly this show is, with a large area of the convention center as a dedicated kid zone with kid friendly activities and even a stage to show of their costumes. I don’t have any kiddos of my own, but I know if I did have a little Prince or Princess, I’d love to take them to this show.
For three years in a row we’ve covered Rose City Comic Con and we’ve been privileged to see it grow steadily each year.
It’s like watching a kid grow up…
I know that Rose City Comicon is destined for greatness. I’ve watched how it steadily grew over the last three years. This past year was no exception. Attendance swelled this year and I see it continuing to grow as the years go by. I know that eventually Rose City will continue to grow and that means this little con will eventually grow up and grow past the charming little kid phase its currently in.
While its still only two days, I feel like it isn’t enough; hopefully soon we can see it becoming a three day show to give us more RCCC for my birthday… like, it would be the best birthday present ever.
