EDMONTON- Thousands of people, many dressed in their finest costumes, took to the Expo Centre Saturday, for one of Alberta’s largest comic conventions.
Coming off a hugely successful first year, organizers have high hopes for the second annual Edmonton Comic & Entertainment Expo.
“We’re expecting between 25,000 and 30,000, hopefully a few more,” said Shane Turgeon, event coordinator.
Turgeon says people should expect anything and everything “nerdy” when they come down to the show.
“More than that, you can just really expect a good time. That’s what we’re all about here, is just projecting a good time for everybody; it doesn’t matter what kind of stuff that you’re into.”
With hundreds of vendors, exhibitors, and artists from every corner of the pop culture community, there is a little something for everyone. And it’s not just for the hard core fans anymore.
“People in the mainstream are now into nerd culture,” Turgeon said. “They don’t have to be a hard core collector, or a hardcore anime fan, or into a particular thing. You can just come here and just have fun and soak it in and enjoy whatever nerdie things you’re into.”
With movies like Avengers, Spiderman and Batman topping the box office, conventions like these are evolving.
“It’s great to see that, you know, more people are getting into it, people that wouldn’t necessarily be into Superman, but again, being into Breaking Bad,” said Sam Desaulniers, who was dressed as a teutonic knight from the 12th century.
This year’s event has drawn some big celebrities, including Christopher Lloyd, best-known for his role as Emmett “Doc” Brown in the Back to the Future trilogy, and Jon Heder, a.k.a. Napoleon Dynamite.
Also making an appearance at the Expo Centre this weekend is Zoie Palmer from the popular Canadian supernatural crime drama Lost Girl.
Watch: Shane Jones speaks with Zoie Palmer on the Global Edmonton Morning News
Over 14,000 people attended the convention in 2012. Plans are already in the works for next year’s event.
“What we had in our first year was tremendous. And we were like okay, we know that this is what the city wants, this is what the city needs, and we can keep growing it and growing it and growing it,” Turgeon said.
The Edmonton Comic & Entertainment Expo runs Saturday until 7:00 p.m. The doors re-open at 10:00 Sunday morning. For more information, visit the convention’s website.
With files from Shannon Greer, Global News.
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