I have always been a pop culture aficionado. That is why Montreal ComicCon has been for multiple years an event that I can’t miss. For its 14th edition, the variety of events is through the roof again, going with a list of guests from many domains, especially in sci-fi and horror. A surprising amount of anime content that was also presented, which pleased me. It allowed me to learn a lot.
Anime galore!
I used to be an avid anime watcher, back in the days of the original Naruto, Fullmetal Alchemist, Rurouni Kenshin, etc. Unfortunately, life made me so busy that I had to stop watching. This year, when I saw the lineup of guests, I was pleasantly surprised to see that there was a great representation from this side of the pop culture landscape! I was able to go to the panels where those guests seen above were, and it was a blast! Such kind hearted, intelligent and funny people! We could really feel the love from their craft, especially from Veronica Taylor. Voicing such an iconic character like Ash from Pokemon is definitely something that leaves an impact on you.
Videogames representation
Since its release in May 2021, Lady Dimitrescu from Resident Evil Village has definitely been often a subject of conversation. It even went to a point where its actress won the Best Performance prize at the 2021 Video Game Awards. Adding to the pedigree is the delightfully chaotic Orin The Red from Baldur’s Gate 3, a game that was pretty much universally praised for its quality and incredible cast.
Following all that, it was a great pleasure for me to have the occasion to meet Maggie Robertson at this year’s ComicCon. She was just amazing to talk to. Her Q&A Panel was very insightful on what kind of person she is and how grateful she is to have been able to play those roles. It is definitely in the most memorable meet-ups that I was a part of, in the same line as the one with Nolan North during last year’s edition.
A dream come true
Having the opportunity to have a photo with Kevin Smith (also known as Silent Bob) was definitely a dream of mine. He is a man that respect so much for his work, what he does, and pretty much is beliefs system. I’ve watched almost all of his movies, and listened to so many hours of podcast with him. Without ever meeting him, I almost feel like I do know him. I needed to meet him during a photo ops and keep this as a token of my appreciation.
Even though I was close to him for less than a minute, it was such an honor. It was apparent that he is so used to the conventions system. He was comfortable meeting every one. Also, he insisted to greet everyone one by one, shaking their hand and also give hugs. I still can’t believe that it happened, and I thank the ComicCon organizers for bringing him back after 9 years.
Lots of fun for everyone
ComicCon has always been a pleasant even for me. You can see many different fandoms under one roof, and everyone is just jazzed to be there. Sci-fi, Star Trek, Star Wars, superheroes, horror, pretty much everyone will find at least one thing that interest them. The variety of guests this year is again very striking. As you can see in the photo gallery above, the list of guests truly represented many genres for multiple generations.
Gaming is very important in Montreal
The amount of game studios in the region is very astonishing. It is not for nothing that Montreal is considered one of the most important cities in the world in terms of video game development. Many triple-A studios are present (EA, Ubisoft, WB, etc.), but also dozens upon dozens of independent studios. Each year, during the days where ComicCon is taking place, I spend a lot of time going through this part of the exhibit, talk to the developers and try out the games they demo. In upcoming articles, I will be talking about what I had time to play and appreciate. You can see a couple of examples in the photo gallery above.
Cosplay goes hand in hand with convention
I am also impressed by the creativity and ability of people that are able to make their own costumes and do cosplay. Every year, I take some time during ComicCon to actually walk around, take a look at people and take pictures of people. It is crazy the amount of patience, time, and sometimes money, it takes to actually create all of this.
The tradition continued this year. I’ve seen a bit of everything : from anime, to furries; from video game to TV series characters. Here is a sample of those that I appreciated the most.
Another successful joyful convention
I consider this year’s edition of Montreal ComicCon to be a success. Even though it’s been a tiring 3 days of walking, I had so much fun participating and meeting everyone. For the 2nd year in a row, I’ve shared this passion of mine with my 18 years old daughter, who also had a great time. I know the dates for next year’s edition have already been decided : July 4th to 6th 2025. I will again make everything in my power to go spend some time there.
