The 2016 Baltimore Comic Con was the first comic convention I ever attended. With that said, I was not sure what to expect.
This convention was a great way to meet your favorite creators as a number of writers and artists had tables set up for their work and offering autographs. I met one family whose main reason for being at the convention was to collect as many autographs as they could.
If you wanted to shop, this convention was the place for you. Many local comic stores had set up tables and booths. One could find a variety of trade paperbacks, Bronze Age, Modern books and some Silver Age. I personally did not rummage through the back issue bins, but from what I could see, just about everything was represented. There were also vendors of t- shirts, prints, posters and action figures. Some of the smaller publishers set up tables themselves. These tables were connected with various panels held throughout the convention.
I did see a number of amazing costumes, but it appears that Harley Quinn was the most popular character, especially the Suicide Squad movie version. I did see a number of other Batman characters as well, including Batman, Batgirl, Two Face and the Joker. I was disappointed that I did not get to see some of the more obscure characters.
There was a wide variety of panels. There were panels on art, writing, cosplay and indie publishers. The smaller publishers like Valiant and IDW had panels talking about their current books and what is planned for the future. For Batman fans, IDW is going to release a second crossover with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. This time the art will be in the style of the DC animated TV universe of Batman: The Animated Series. The turtles will be in the style of the current Nickelodeon series. DC and Marvel also held panels outlining Rebirth and the Marvel Now incentives.
I would have liked to have seen a schedule of what panels were planned so I could plan ahead what panels I would have liked to have attended. The prior advertisements were good about giving a list of the creators that would be present. Of course schedules could change. Overall, for a first con, it was a great experience.
