Nickel City Comic Con, Western New York’s premier celebration of comic books, movies, television, anime, cosplay, and anything nerdy is coming up once again. This year, however, is a bit different. The hit convention, presented by Dave & Adam’s, is celebrating its 10th anniversary, so this year promises to be even bigger and better than ever. By the looks of their announcements, they are pulling out all the stops and not holding back one bit.
The celebrity guest announcements have been massive, to say the least. The legendary Sean Astin of Lord of the Rings and Goonies fame will be in attendance, as well as Hellboy himself Ron Perlman, the always talented Katey Sagal from the likes of Futurama and Married… with Children, Pixar and Cheers icon John Ratzenberger, Shaggy from Scooby-Doo voice actor Scott Innes, pink Power Ranger Catherine Sutherland, the cast of the 90s live-action Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movies, and many, many more. Each of these huge stars will be there signing autographs and taking pictures with fans.
This is Comic Con, so of course there will also be some big comic book guests at the show. Comic book writing phenom Stephanie Phillips, celebrated comic writer and artist Renee Witterstaetter, comic artist Michael Golden known for co-creating the X-Men’s Rogue, talented comic book artist and painter Arthur Suydam, critically acclaimed comic writer and artist Chris Burnham, and more will be there to talk about their work in the industry and sign autographs. Animation icon Tom Cook will also be in attendance, celebrating his work on classic cartoons like Masters of the Universe and The Smurfs.
Nickel City Comic Con is also the place to be for unique fandom photo ops. Board a replica of the Inferno, One-Eyed Willy’s pirate ship from The Goonies, or snap a picture with the ‘67 Impala from Supernatural. Attendees can also expect to see a real-life Turtle Van from the world of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, an interactive Hobbit house straight from the Shire, and Terrifier 3 pop up exhibit featuring hundreds of screen-used props from the gory horror flick.
Folks can head over to the video game arena for free gaming, as well as competing in tournaments for prizes. They can also hang out with the Buffalo Ghostbusters, the Superhero Alliance of WNY, or some Star Wars droids and Stormtroopers at a variety of exhibit booths.
Definitely expect to see lots of cosplayers walking around the show floor. See some of the coolest costumes fellow attendees have crafted and take some pics with them. Cosplay yourself, and show off your passion for your favorite character and connect with fellow fans and cosplayers. See if you have what it takes to win the Cosplay Contest, or just have fun as a character from your favorite piece of pop culture.
The con celebrating its 10th anniversary is truly special. It means ten years of providing a fun and exciting atmosphere for us “nerds of all kinds” to feel welcome. It’s only grown in the ten years it has been around, so it will be cool to see how it continues to evolve over time.
Nickel City Comic Con will be held at the Buffalo Convention Center at 153 Franklin St. from June 26th to the 28th. Get your tickets and see any updates leading up to the big show on their website. I’ll see all you comic readers, gamers, anime fans, cinephiles, and cosplayers there!
