Gen Con Giant Photo Post

Are you ready for some Gen Con goodness?

 Once again, I had a lot of fun – I learned from last year and didn’t overextend myself with planned events, I tried some new things and did some old favorites, and I finally experienced the glory of staying in a hotel that was connected via skywalk to the convention center. (No struggles to find parking? No having to walk outside in August? Magical.)

That said, on to the photos!

Costumes packed up and ready to go! I found the garment bags at IKEA – 3 bags for $2.99. Yes, 2.99. IKEA is magical and I’m so happy there is one right up the highway from my house.

Robin looking out the window, en route to Indiana. Right after I took this, a trucker passed us and gave us the weirdest look. It was hilarious.

Farewell, Ohio! Hello, Indiana!

…Indiana, your welcome sign is weaksauce in comparison. As a native Hoosier, I expect better. Step it up.

Inside the Grand Hall at Union Station, for The Stink (an annual pre-con gathering for mingling and games). This was also the site of the Gen Con Dance.

Robs and I chill while waiting for the Thursday opening ceremonies. Thursday is my casual (non-cosplay) day, and the one day Robin gets to come with me inside the ICC. It’s just too hard to carry her around along with all my costume accessories.

She did get her picture taken with the Fourth Doctor and Lego Batman.

And she posed for a picture outside the ICC.

I gave blood on Friday! The Indiana Blood Center had a bloodmobile set up outside the ICC. I try to give blood (when I remember to make appointments) – when my sister had her accident, she received a lot of blood transfusions, and it was thanks to those donors that she was able to hang on long enough for all of us to be at her side before she passed. So yes. Give blood – even if it doesn’t save a life, it can help someone’s family member have a little more peace of mind.

AND NOW, THE COSPLAY:

There was a biiiig Frozen turnout this year:

Weeping Angel from Doctor Who.

The Rocketeer.

 

Dr. Girlfriend and a Henchman from The Venture Brothers.

San from Princess Mononoke.

I found another Eighth Doctor! Turns out he was from the ‘Nati as well, and he invited myself and my friends to join the Cincinnati Steampunk Society, which apparently meets monthly at a pub here in town.

We then traveled to the Who North America booth, to get photos with the lifesize TARDIS and Dalek they bring every year.

As I was dressed as Paul McGann’s Doctor, I felt contractually obligated to recreate his famous Dalek-hugging photo.

Dalek selfie!

 

My friend Amy made a rather cracking Eleventh Doctor.

Saturday morning – Queen Elsa is GO.

The bottom of the dress.

Wig and makeup in place!

I entered the ICC right at the area where they were doing costume contest registration, so I got lots of pictures first thing.

Vash the Stampede.

A Maester and Eddard Stark from Game of Thrones (along with some strange futuristic costume I didn’t recognize).

Jareth the Goblin King and Padme Amidala.

A DC Comics group. Poor, poor Superman.

This guy was a great Nicholas D. Wolfwood – I’m so mad that all my pics of him were blurry.

This Ice King was super friendly, and we posed together for a few pictures, “freezing” each other.

GLaDOS and Steampunk Poison Ivy.

Daenerys Targaryen with handmade dragon eggs. She mentioned that they were covered in hundreds of tiny little cardboard scales. (Hilarious note: Microsoft Word 2013 knows how to spellcheck Game of Thrones characters. What a time to be alive.)

Tiny Cap and Iron Patriot!

Dad!Cap and Tiny Spiderman! Kid cosplays are the best.

I ran into this Anna and then we were stuck for a good 15 minutes, as everyone and their brother wanted a shot of us together.

Kaylee from Firefly.

Thor and a very in-character Tony Stark.

Tiny Doctor! He had these little Doctor Who toys he was playing with. I think he was annoyed that I interrupted his galaxy-saving to ask for a picture.

Aang and Korra! I love Avatar-verse cosplay. Avatar Kyoshi is on my eventual to-do list.

Yet again, a Bob Ross. Not the same Bob Ross as last year, which is hilarious.

FAMILY POKEMON COSPLAY OH MY HEART.

These LEGO Movie cosplayers were in the costume contest – along with a 9-foot tall Lord Business, which I assume was too large to safely navigate the halls.

A Companion Cube!

Ruffnut and Tuffnut! These kids won the Kids Category of the costume contest, and well-deserved. They even did a little in-character skit.

Midna from The Legend of Zelda. Her costume was wonderfully detailed.

The Winter Soldier. He said it was his first costume, and I was damn impressed. So annoyed this picture came out blurry.

Gilded Age! Lady! Loki. I didn’t get the character until I saw her headpiece, but I didn’t need to know it was Loki to be impressed. This costume was insanely detailed – the pleating! - and she said she used historically accurate construction and closures. Ohhh, for this kind of patience and talent.

Tiny Iron Man and Thor!

Hey look, it’s me! With a very nice crew of fellow Disney cosplayers.

Hey look, it's me again! I stole this picture from the Gen Con Facebook page, of the Costume Parade. The Frozen brigade started out as about four people and kept growing. There were about 10-12 of us by the time we were done, including another coronation!Elsa, a male coronation!Elsa, an Olaf, and a Kristoff.

And the aftermath…

The husband with his board game haul. He (unlike me) actually goes to North America’s largest board game convention to, y’know, play and buy games. Weirdo.

(Also, check out our hilarious wolf throw. It belongs to my husband.)

Pieface with Mr. Chomps, who is a robotic dinosaur sidekick character from the card game Sentinels of the Multiverse. Joe picked this up “for both of us”, which means Mr. Chomps lives in Pieface’s room with no signs of ever leaving.

So, that’s my pictures. Some notes for next year:

Breathable fabric. The suedecloth I used for Elsa, while lovely, did not breathe at all. I didn’t have any major issues – I stayed indoors, kept hydrated, and didn’t do anything more physically taxing than walking around – but there were times I would have to swish the skirt around to get air moving around my legs.

Updos are my friend. Yes, I was scared to death of Elsa’s hairstyle, but even after 129849737 hairpins and a gallon of hairspray, it was still a more comfortable wig than the face-eating curls of Eight.

I love doing kid-friendly cosplays. I joked with Pieface beforehand that people my age would love her costume, and people her age would love mine. That’s exactly what happened – women in their 20s and 30s were squeeing over Kiki, and many a little girl yelled out “LOOK MOM LOOK IT’S ELSA MOM LOOK” as I waved hello. :D
 

Also, I think I'm going to try building prop armor for next year. Ahahahahasomeonepleasestopme. :D