There’s nothing quite like attending a convention and being surrounded by people who love what you love. Seeing aisles of booths celebrating comic books, video games, movies, and more brings a special feeling to anyone who considers themselves a nerd. This is no different at Nickel City Comic Con, which was recently held June 27th to the 29th at the Buffalo Convention Center in downtown Buffalo, NY.

I was only able to stop by for a short while this time around due to scheduling, but there was still big fun to be had. For starters, there were plenty of surprisingly big names on the celebrity guest list this year, from the likes of Danny Trejo to Napoleon Dynamite’s Jon Heder. I had the pleasure of meeting Karan Ashley and Steve Cardenas from Mighty Morphin Power Rangers and got them to sign my vintage 90s poster, adding their names to a prized possession of mine. I also met Bam Margera of Jackass and Viva La Bam fame. We talked about his time on each show as well as the Tony Hawk’s Underground 2 video game, of which he signed my copy of.

There were several exciting attractions on the show floor, like Bill Diamond’s Movie Museum, some spooky displays from 7 Gates Screampark, and several local cosplay groups including the Buffalo Ghostbusters and the Superhero Alliance of WNY. The one I was most excited for was the screen-used Batmobile from 1989’s Batman and 1992’s Batman Returns. I couldn’t help having a big, goofy smile on my face as I admired it, taking in the moment of coming face-to-face with something so special to my childhood. The Griswold family car from the Vacation films was also present, which was very cool to see up close. It’s apparently been signed by some of the cast, which /i thought was a neat detail.

During my unfortunately short time at the convention, I did take a lap around the show floor to take in the exciting sites. There were plenty of local artists and vendors selling crocheted creations, impressive illustrations, and collectible goodies, as well as indie authors selling their books. One booth that particularly caught my eye had replica weapons from movies, comics, and video games, including several Kingdom Hearts Keyblades. Buffalo has a fantastic and sizable indie scene for creatives, so it’s nice to see folks getting the chance to showcase their skills rather than just bigger names in their respective industries.

That being said, after a few years of attending Nickel City Comic Con, I will say that quite a lot of the artists, writers, and other vendors who attend are the same as previous years. It’s nice to see them, and I’m happy they’re able to get their names and work out there to folks who are unfamiliar with them, but more fresh faces would lead to more unique experiences every year.

Of course, there were cosplayers as far as the eye could see at Nickel City Comic Con. I didn’t cosplay as I usually do due to my short time attending this year, but some of my favorites that I came across were Six from the video game Little Nightmares, a particularly impressive Doctor Doom, an adorable couple’s costume of Howl and Sophie from Howl’s Moving Castle, a brilliantly put together Tiny Tina in her Tiny Tina’s Wonderland garb, and a Nathan Drake who looked identical to the Uncharted character. The cosplay contest was held on a day I was unable to attend, so I’m sad I had to miss that, but very happy I got the chance to see some incredible costumes while I was there.

Other than the cosplay contest, the options for panels were lacking, to say the least. The only panels on the entire schedule outside of the cosplay contest were celebrity Q&As. Those can be a lot of fun and a great way for fans to interact with their favorite celebrities, but there could have been so much more variety. Other conventions I’ve been to have held panels about getting into the comic book industry, game shows with audience participation, improv shows, major comic or gaming companies giving an insight into how things are behind the scenes as well as announcing future projects, and so much more. Seeing literally nothing but Q&A’s on their schedule is boring and disappointing. Sure, attending ones you’re really excited for is totally worth it, but there needs to be more.

Another drawback of Nickel City Comic Con this year is one that I’ve been vocal about in the past, and others have online as well. The comic book guests they get to attend are great, but there’s not many of them. Four or five big-name comic book creators and a couple of booths selling old comics is miniscule for how comics should be represented at Comic Con. With how it is, it feels more like Celebrity Con than Comic Con. Either comic books should have more focus, or it should be an even split. I find myself hoping for more comic book representation each time I attend.

All in all, even though I was only at Nickel City Comic Con for a short while this year, I still had fun, met some cool people that I’m a fan of, saw some incredible sites, and got to explore some nerdy booths and attractions. Sure, I’d like to see some improvements made at this particular convention, but it’s still so much fun and definitely worth checking out each year.

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