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by Seth Ferranti

If C2E2 was a race I was in it to win it. As I stood in the long line waiting to get in, I felt like I was being herded like cattle. But instead of cattle around me, I turned to my right and there was Captain America, or at least a facsimile of him. A C2E2 staff member bellowed on a megaphone, “Move up closer to the people next to you. More people have to fit in. If you don’t move up I’m going to tell you the ending of Daredevil.”

I had only been to one Comic Con before, Planet Comicon in Kansas City, just this past February. I had a good idea of what to expect, but from everything I read and heard, the C2E2 event in Chicago was way bigger then the KC Comicon I attended. The C2E2 events by ReedPOP were supposedly the creme de la creme of comic cons and I was ready to find out.

As I stood there waiting I wondered what does C2E2 stand for? I guess its a take off on R2D2, I did see a lot of those little robots moving around. Maybe I didn’t know what C2E2 stood for but I was ready. At the starting gate and chomping at the bit. It seemed everyone around me was eager to get in also. We had our programs, our Star Wars lanyards and our Naomi Novik Uprooted bags, all freebies that the organizers were passing out.

Looking through my program I identified several panels that I wanted to see- Comic Book Secrets Revealed, Self-Publishing Unmasked, How to Manage Your Brand as a Creator, How to Write for Video Games and Breaking into Comics the Marvel Way- and quickly scheduled them on my C2E2 app. I wouldn’t be missing any panels. My iPhone would alert me. I had business to attend to.

You see not only was I a Comic Con newbie, I was an aspiring comic creator. My plan was to soak up as much knowledge and wisdom as I could from the pros by listening to them at the panels. C2E2 provided a unique opportunity to hobnob with the writers and artists of the comics that I loved. I would immerse myself in their craft. Comics is one of the only industries that offers this type of meet and greet to their fans.

I listened eagerly to superstar writer Mark Waid and fan favorite Gail Simone. I was schooled on branding by Dirk Manning. I learned video game scripting from Andy Schmidt and got the 411 on the Marvel way from C.B. Celbulski, Charles Soule, Dan Slott and Al Ewing who advised us to “fish for contacts, don’t hunt them.” These are the people responsible for Amazing Spider-Man, Mighty Avengers, Inhumans, Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark, Write or Wrong, Swords of Sorrow and The Avenger so I took it all in attentively.

Surprisingly, the panels that I was attending were full. It seems like a lot of people were at the comic con for the same reason I was, to learn how to break into comics. It just wasn’t all cosplay, celebrities and exhibitors. Although there was plenty of that. As new celebrity guests arrived at the autographing booths their sessions were announced by intercom booming through the convention center, “CM Punk is now signing autographs in booth 2.” I was surprised how much they charged for an autographed, most were like $50 a pop.

Cosplay is a huge element of the cons and even though I wasn’t dressed up I tried to interact with them. I found that they all wanted to punch me, or shoot me or use the Force to control me. I ran into a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle, a giant robot and Darth Vader. I was looking to mix it up with some stormtroopers, but I missed them. With the new Star Wars trailer out the characters were very well represented.

I took in the screening of Wayward Pines, the new Matt Dillon and M. Night Shyamalan vehicle and came away impressed. Matt Dillon has always been a big actor to me ever since The Outsiders and Rumble Fish. That screening was on the main stage.

I wanted to see the Jay and Silent Bob Get Old Podcast that night, but it was sold out and I couldn’t get in. I was a big Kevin Smith and Jason Mewes fan ever since Clerks. I hung around the main stage hoping to sneak in, but it wasn’t happening. Not getting into that show was one of my only regrets. I vowed that next time I would pay closer attention to the panel scheduling and buy tickets beforehand for the stuff I really wanted to see.

My Friday complete, I took the shuttle bus back to my hotel and rested up for Saturday. I still had two more days of adventure in store. And everyone told me that Saturday was always the big day for comic cons because on Friday most people were working, except for the die hard con goers. So I went to sleep dreaming of the new Avengers movie, The Age of Ultron.

On Saturday I woke up early in anticipation of the day. I expected the crowds to be humungous and they were. I barely caught the shuttle to get there in time. There were more people, more costumes and a lot of kids walking around with light sabers, cutlasses and swords. “Walk the plank, matey,” one kid told me. I just kept moving. I didn’t want any trouble. There were so many characters represented in costume I didn’t even know half of them. And the police box people were crazy. (I later found out that was a Doctor Who thing.)

I walked around Artist’s Alley. I went by Scott Snyder’s booth, but he had a long line. He was the most popular creator/artist there by far. Other guys had lines, but no one had a line like Scott Snyder. It was constant. Even when he wasn’t there people were lined up waiting for him to get there. That’s the price of fame for a superstar artist who writes Batman, among other books.

I stopped at the Marvel booth and got some free swag. I picked up as much stuff as I could. Everyone was giving out flyers promoting their work and some were giving out free comics, like Marvel. Image had a massive exhibit set up with towering posters of the Walking Dead and the other comics they put out. I went by the Block exhibit and checked out the graffiti that artists were drawing right then and there. I saw Captain Jack Sparrow and Poison Ivy, multiple times. Comic Con is like a fantasy world where you can go and just be someone else. I’m not into cosplay, but a lot of people are.

I went to the panel Breaking into Comics and Staying In, the Jason Momoa Spotlight (he is the dude who played Khal Drogo on Game of Thrones and will star as Aquaman), and that night I went to the Hip-Hop and Comics panel which looked at how the cultures are combining, a very informative and interesting panel since I have always been both a big comics and hip-hop fan. I talked to Matthew Rosenberg, who wrote the Wu Tang Clan and Ghostface Killer comics and was on the panel.

Later on that day I saw Jason Momoa walking around the con and I went up and shook his hand. He didn’t look that big on stage, but right in front of you the dude is massive. He played Conan the Barbarian also and being right next to him I can see why. He was a cool dude, very relaxed and at ease with himself. He was checking out some artwork at my friend K. Anthony Lawler’s booth. I met K. Anthony at the Kansas City con and we are collaborating on a graphic novel that is in the works. He also drew a bad ass portrait of my wife and I that we are going get framed and hang on our wall. Another C2E2 memento.

By Sunday I was getting kind of tired. The floor at C2E2 was like multiple football fields. You had to walk a mile to get to one place from another. And the crowds of people were so thick you had to press your way through. I was enjoying myself tremendously. Moving through the dense crowds was a skill I was acquiring. It became a game to see how quick i could get off the floor and up to the rooms where the panels were.

The comic con was like an escape into another world. All the movies, video games and comics that I enjoyed were all represented at the con and I got the chance to meet the creators, artists, editors, and media producers that helped to bring these works to life. It’s a one of a kind experience. Where else do you get the chance to meet your hero up close and personal?

My trip wasn’t going to be complete without going to the Stan Lee Spotlight on the main stage Sunday afternoon. To me Stan Lee is what comics are all about. I saw him walking around, but he was so mobbed by fans I didn’t get a chance to meet him. But I saw him talk at the panel for an hour. He was gracious and funny and forthright. I had a lot of respect and admiration for the man who basically is Marvel comics. Watching his appearance topped of my weekend.

I grew up reading the X-Men, Spider-Man, the Avengers, Iron Man, the New Mutants and all the Marvel comics. I have always been a Marvel guy. When they started making big Hollywood blockbuster movies on all the characters I grew up on I couldn’t believe it. To me comics were always kind of this trendy, almost counter-culture genre, but now it is so mainstream and it really hits home how big comics are when you go to these cons and see how many people are there.

This was only my second con, but I will continue to go. As a fan, as an aspiring comic creator and as a journalist. I am working on some comics projects with the goal of being a guest at a comic con in the future, but for now I am just a fan and journalist who enjoys the atmosphere and spectacle of the event, writing about my adventures and journey into the world of comic cons.

Seth Ferranti is a regular contributor to The Fix and Vice. His most recent book is The Supreme Team.

Text and photos ©2015 Seth Ferranti

(You can access the above interactive map here.)

C2E2’s on once again, and just like your favorite superhero who is–yet isn’t–quite the same, it’s being held again in the same place, but different.  (Oh, how I await the day when it takes up the entire complex!  2.6 MILLION sq.ft. of exhibit space!  60 acres! 45 football fields!  Can you imagine the programming going on all over the building?  The theater?  The ballrooms?)

*ahem*  Sorry…

Here’s the scorecard for each year:

2010  Lakeside  Hall D   300,000 sq.ft.

2011   West Building   Hall F   470,000 sq.ft.

2012   North Building    Hall B1   369,000 sq.ft.

2013   West Building   Hall F   470,000 sq.ft.

2014   South Building   Hall A1/2   430,000 sq.ft.

So here’s the layout, with some insider tips from your intrepid exploring reporter!

Food?  Here is the McCormick dining guide!

Level One (the ground floor)

When you enter from the square, you’ll see the concierge desk and the dancing water fountains.  Immediately to the south is the ballroom, host to various fannish activities.  (It’s divided in half: one half is for gaming and other geekery, the other side is for families.  Brilliant planning… it’s part of the show, but removed just enough to create a safe space.)  Aside from the coat check near the gateway to BarCon at the Hyatt Hotel, the only other item of interest on this floor are the hotel shuttles.

Comics Beat C2E2 Inside Tip: Walk down that long hallway southward.  You’ll see the massive escalators which lead to the show floor (but not working this weekend).  There are vending machines squirreled away behind and beneath these escalators.  Since McCormick doesn’t always refill the machines in the buildings on a timely basis, you might have better luck here on Sunday.  (But check Lakeside…it’s not being used this weekend. Level One.)

If you forgot a power chord or other necessity, the Hyatt has a vending machine in the hallway leading to the check-in desk.  The Hyatt is also where you can catch a taxi, although you might want to “New York” everyone and wander south on MLK Drive a few blocks to catch a taxi before it pulls into the line.

Just north of the bus stop, there’s a bike sharing rack here, know locally as “Divvy“.  $7 for 24-access, 30 minutes per ride, overtime if you take longer.  If you cycle, and want a scenic route, head north on Calumet, there’s a path that will lead you under the railroad and then south to 18th, which takes you under Lake Shore Drive.  From there, you’re in the Museum Campus, and then Grant Park.

Level 2.5 (the mall)

There’s a food court tucked away on the west side.  I’ve never eaten there, so no idea.  16,000 sq.ft.   No Yelp page. Here’s the official description:

This eclectic food court offers several options to choose from: Little Italy, Pacific Rim, American Grill, Fiesta Brava, Express to Go Sandwiches, Salads and Snacks as well as a fabulous Soup Bar.

Caveat cenator…

There’s also the First Aid station, and a FedEx Office supply store (helpful if you need to rent a computer, or purchase a poster tube).  This level also connects to the food court in the North Building, where McDonald’s and other eateries are located.  Starbucks is located on Level 2.5.  And on North Level Three, right across from the show floor entrance.  And at the “Daily Grind” in the Hyatt Hotel.  McDonald’s also serves coffee.  Doubtful that this location has been renovated into a McCafé…

Comics Beat C2E2 Inside Tip: The restrooms (at least the male ones) next to McDonalds in the North Building are quite large, if utilitarian.  Right next to these bathrooms are vending machines with two microwaves. There’s a vending machine alcove near the retail stores as well.

Level 3  (the show)

C2E2 is only using the front three-quarters (Hall A1 and half of A2), so there are no shortcuts you can use.  (There is a hallway behind A2, which leads down to bathrooms, and runs the width of the South Hall from .  But you’ll probably be arrested for trespassing.)

Registration is right across the Grand Concourse, in the North Hall.  They’re just using the front section for check-in. Starbucks is here.

Comics Beat C2E2 Inside Tip: There is an escalator on the east side which runs from the show floor to the Fourth Floor meeting rooms.  This may be blocked by the attendee lines.

Under the food court (that section in the middle) should be restrooms and vending machines.  Unknown if that will be open during the show.

Also, this level connects to the Grand Concourse, so you could wander over to Lakeside.  Forage for vending machines on the second floor of Lakeside (site of the very first C2E2).

Level 4 (the panels)

This is where the event hall is located all…the…way…at…the…(are we there yet)…end…of…the…hallway.  The panel rooms are located here as well.  It’s a nice sunny hallway, so rest when needed.  There usually are water stations strategically placed along the way.

Comics Beat C2E2 Inside Tip: The Fifth floor above this is accessible from the Fourth.  The rooms should be locked, but the restrooms and public spaces should be accessible.  A great way to view the crowds below, and escape the hustle and hubbub.  Also a great space for cosplayers to hang out.

There are also two small panel rooms on the fourth floor, accessible from the North Building: S400b and S400c.  That walkway and hallway is a bit tight, but there are restrooms located over there, and it’s accessible via elevator from the South Building.  That walkway is also a good place for an overlook.

Everything Else

The West Building is also accessible, but distant.  There is an auto parts trade show taking place over there, so the 400-seat food court area and 200-seat fine-dining restaurant should be open.  Also, the coat check on the first floor!

Lots of accessible wall outlets!  I recommend the fifth floor of the South Hall. 

If you can locate access in and out from Lakeside, I highly recommend taking some time to enjoy the lakeshore.  (Test the doors to make sure they open from the outside before shutting them.)  If you have a lot of time in the morning, it’s a nice walk south through the museum complex to the convention center.  The big question, of course, is getting into the convention center from the lake shore… there isn’t a pedestrian overpass if Lakeside is locked.  Perhaps you can find an employee to pop open one of the doors…

Got any suggestions?  Tricks?  Let us know!

Art by Ryan Stegman  (Hmm… Is Sam Wilson a Red Wings fan?)  (It also reminds me of this.)

The Chicago Comic & Entertainment Expo, also known as C2E2, is set to begin Friday! If you’ll be attending, here are some helpful hints on how to make your way to the South Building of McCormick Place!

First, here’s the official link to Reed Pop’s info! That includes car, taxi, train, and plane! (I assume those using less traditional methods such as flight rings or rocket boots should approach low from the east over Lake Michigan–to avoid triggering area radar–and enter the convention center from the Lakeside Center.)

McCormick Place’s official directions page is here. And you can pre-purchase parking online! Scroll down for all the transportation alternatives.

If you’re using Google maps (or other map software), McCormick Place is located near the juncture of the Stevenson Expressway (I-55) and Lake Shore Drive (Highway 41). If looking at a Superman’s-eye-view of the city, follow the lake shore south until you hit the Shedd Aquarium and Northerly Island Park, which juts into the Lake. Soldier Field is the other landmark there… it’s the building that looks like a UFO crashed on top of a stadium. (Science geeks: your landmark is the Field Museum. No relation to the football Field.) McCormick Place is south of the park, at approximately 23rd Street. Or follow Interstate 55 east until you hit the Lake. McCormick is directly north.

Here are a few tips on traveling to and from the C2E2 convention at McCormick Place.

1) The train (Metra). This is Chicago’s commuter train line. The line you want to take is the Metra Electric line to McCormick Place. If leaving from Millennium Park, the cost is $3.25. HOWEVER, this is a commuter train, and runs less frequently on the weekends. Also, on the weekends, McCormick Place is a FLAGGED stop; the train only stops if there are people on the platform, or if you notify the conductor ahead of time. On the weekend, trains leave about every ninety minutes. Metra does offer a weekend pass. The platform is a bit spooky (the center is built over the platform), but walk northwards to the stairs, which will lead you directly to the Convention center. When you enter the Center, turn left, and walk to the South Building. Nice, but not convenient. Info here. Metra also runs trains from other regions.

2) The subway/El.

D’OH!  Chicago built a station near their convention center before New York!  (Actually, they rebuilt a station…  no tunnel boring necessary, or funicular elevators).

• Take the Red Line to Cermak-Chinatown.
• Take the Green Line to Cermak-McCormick Place.

Then hike eastward along Cermak, or catch the #21 bus to the convention center. $2.25 one way (bills and coins), and the Chicago Ventra Card will save you time and money (as well as grant free transfers).  Here’s how you can pay.

3) The bus. The #3 and #21 buses stop in front of the McCormick West Building on MLK Drive.

• The #3 runs north along Michigan all the way to downtown.
• The #21 begins at McCormick, and runs along Cermak, connecting with the Red, Green, and Pink lines.  (Although, the Pink line connection isn’t that convenient.)
• The #1 and #4 buses also runs along Michigan, but only on Michigan Avenue. It does not go to the convention center. You’ll have to walk two blocks along 23rd Street, then through the West Building, or transfer to the #3 or #21.

If you’re coming from downtown, catch the #3 and do some sightseeing. As always, ask the bus driver if the bus is headed to McCormick. Cross the street and look for the giant C2E2 sign.

4) The shuttle. C2E2 is sponsoring shuttle buses (but I can’t find this year’s info online). Information is available at the convention, as well as the Concierge desk in the South Hall. If shuttles use the exclusive busway, travel times will be faster than regular surface traffic. Hotel shuttles are located on Level One of the South Hall, near the ballroom, behind the concierge desk.

5) The taxi. Outside the South Hall, near the Hyatt, is a taxi stand. I asked my hotel concierge about the cost, and she said it would be about $17 (from the Loop to McCormick). If you can’t get to the train, bus, or shuttle, then this, of course, is your last resort. If you have a lot to carry, this will probably be the most convenient mode of transportation.

Here’s the word from C2E2:

Taxi Services

More than 5,800 city taxis are at your service in Chicago. Facility direction signs and personnel at the Concierge Desk will direct attendees to gates that are designated for your event. To calculate your taxi fare, check out TaxiFareFinder.com. Tell the cab driver you are traveling to McCormick Place – South Building, and you’d like to be dropped off at Gate 4 (off of Martin Luther King Jr. Drive).  [If the driver doesn’t know that location, ask to be let out near the Hyatt hotel.  Walk through the hotel.]

6) The car. McCormick Place has a map of the area, as well as information about parking (see above). Lots of space, but the flat fee is $19 a day, each time you enter the garage. There is also surface parking to the north of the convention center, used by Soldier Field. Access to the parking, pedestrian access to the convention center, and cost is not known. Google Maps offers street views for most of the area, and you can plot your path .

View Larger Map

7) The miscellaneous. If traveling from above, DO NOT LAND at Meigs Field/Northerly Island. It is no longer an airport, and once you land, you will be treated as a celebrity by the local constabulary, complete with round-the-clock news coverage, front page coverage on all local newspapers, and private accommodations with an around-the-clock security detail. If necessary, your privacy will be protected by flying you to a remote government-run spa in the Caribbean.  Best to land in Gary, Indiana.  No one will care/notice.

Otherworlders often mistake Soldier Field as an interdimensional Trans-Port terminal. The terminal is actually located at the Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park, but reservations are required, as the broadcast grid is sometimes used for concerts. Higher dimensional beings can use the Cloud Gate located nearby. While primitive, it does offer enough perpendicular transgentials to accommodate the eleven classical dimensions of this reality. From those, the Infinites can be easily excessed.  Time travellers should, of course, consult the Master Clock to avoid paradoxes.

Chicago is based on a grid. The center of all directions is State and Madison, located within the elevated loop downtown. East-West streets are numbered from State; North-South streets are numbered from Madison. Numbered streets follow the grid numbering, and all subway/el train stations post the coordinates on the station signage. McCormick is approximately 2200 South, 400 East.

Well, we’ve recovered from the East Coast Comic Con and MoCCA Fest. Did our taxes. Watched the trailers. And this weekend, instead of relaxing and ruminating…I’m getting my act together to fly to Chicago on Thursday, for ReedPOP’s C2E2 show! (And if you think my schedule is crazy, the ReedPOP crew is in Anaheim right now, running Star Wars Celebration!)

Here’s the show planner. (PDF available!) Panels are accessible here. Exhibitors, along with show specials and exclusives, can be found here!

So… how does this show differ from last year’s?

Not much, really. Panels are upstairs, just like last year. (Make use of the water stations. Seriously…it’s a long walk to the Main Stage.) Family and fans are once again in the ballroom on the First Floor. The sales floor… is still in Halls A1 and A2 (McCormick South).

Like last year, they use 3/4 of the hall.  Last year, the last third (or the front half of A2) was the food court area.  What’s changed?  Autographing and Food have switched places.  Artist Alley has been pushed back a little.  With no stage and a better layout, hopefully it doesn’t feel as slapdashed as last year.  350 tables are planned this year, down from 353 last year, but still ahead of the 207 from the first show).  Looking at the map, they can expand that area as well.  (Personally, the first C2E2 in Lakeside set the bar.  Lots of natural light, wide aisles, lots of space behind the tables, far from the rest of the show yet still accessible.)

The Block seems to be a new addition this year, or maybe the memory’s tumbled in with all of the other stuff from last year.  The Tattoo Pavilion is in the same space as last year.

Only three booths remain unsold:  two small booths right next to Marvel, and a quad near the Food Court.  (Some of the Artist Alley tables are on hold, but all are sold.)

As I said here, C2E2 already is larger than New York Comic Con in regards to exhibition floor space. In this hall, there is 20% not utilized. (It’s the bottom quarter in the map to the right, with the stair-step edge.)  840,000 sq.ft. of space exists in Hall A, 670,000 is currently used. That back quadrant is 170,000 sq.ft. in area. If you’re familiar with Javitz’ North Pavilion, site of Artist Alley at NYCC, this back space is TWICE the area (80K).  Just think of the twenty studio booths you could place back there!

As for panels, there’s a FIFTH floor above the fourth, with five rooms, which can be divided into fourteen spaces (just like the rooms on the fourth).  Not to mention the six meeting rooms on the first floor, south of the ballroom, which can subdivide into 15 spaces.  Plus ReedPOP uses the North Hall (B1/B2) for registration, and the meeting rooms beneath for back of house purposes.

So, what’s the estimated attendance this year?

The average (slope) is 7,100 a year.  If we take the recent increases into account, the math suggests 70 – 75,000 attendees. NYCC in its sixth year did 105,000.  C2E2 is growing at half the rate of NYCC, which is not a bad thing.  Of course, McCormick has a lot of space available, so with my estimated 1.235 MILLION capacity, with a growth of 10K/year, it would take C2E2 120 years to fill the entire convention center!  Me, I’m thinking 2030.  Once shows hit a certain threshold, they reach critical mass quickly.  (I’ll share my mad dreams later.  In the meantime, read this!)

But until then, other parts of McCormick Place will be used by other shows.  What else is happening that weekend?  Automechanika Chicago.  400 exhibitors, 8500 attendees, and it’s all about the auto aftermarket. (Oh man… a month later is the Sweets & Snacks Expo!) Last year, some company held their sales meeting in Lakeside, meaning most attendees trekked by the show floor on Thursday.  I even spotted one professional lady stop to take a selfie with a Batman75 standee!  There was also a national high school chorus competition… yeah…theatre geeks! Another year, there was standardized testing for educators.  And the first C2E2 had a bath show where the current con is located…

I’ll have more later, but I do recommend the show.  It’s a large regional show, with myriad guests of all sorts, great programming, not as crazy as CCI or NYCC, and I think most of the snow will have melted by now.  Until then, peruse our posts from previous years.  It’s a good sample of what the show offers.