The East Coast’s largest pop culture convention, New York Comic Con (NYCC), returned to the Javits Center in New York City earlier this month for its annual four-day event: featuring unique panels, celebrity guests, an artist’s alley and so much more.
NYCC, which ran from Oct. 17-20, stated on their site that they chose to keep the “New York” in Comic Con and made “Bodega” this year’s theme. I am speaking as a non-New Yorker, but from what I have read on their website, they cited bodega as “a cultural institution and a community staple; the heart and soul of the neighborhood,” if you will. It seems fitting that NYCC drew inspiration from that, as Comic Con is not only a convention, but also a place for people to truly feel that they belong.
As a fan of all things nerdy, I geeked out over the chance to attend NYCC and interview one of their event managers. On Oct. 3, I hopped on a Zoom call with Chris D’Lando, who manages New York Comic Con. D’Lando was kind enough to give me an insight into what goes on behind the scenes, talked about all things NYCC and even told me a little bit about himself and how he got into the pop-culture business!
“I am a lifelong nerd,” said D’Lando. “I have been at ReedPop for seven and a half years, and before that, worked at Marvel Comics. When there became an opportunity for me to do that full-time, I took the chance to do so,” he said.
We got to talking about what makes New York Comic Con the convention that it is, and to that, D’Lando said: “There’s a community aspect to New York Comic Con with a show that is this size, [and] you wouldn’t think that a show of our size still has that community aspect. That’s one of the things that I really love about it: that it still hasn’t gone away.”
We also talked about how conventions are truly safe spaces for people to be themselves. “When you get that many people in a room who are all just there to celebrate their fandom, it becomes a truly wonderful safe space for them to be themselves and geek out with other people and be in a place that is totally free of judgment. I love that we’re still able to offer that to people,” said D’Lando.
As someone who has always loved comics and pop culture, I am bound to agree. I spoke about this with my friend Andy Loftus while walking to the train from the convention, and realized that, for me, NYCC is that place. It is proof that while life goes on, you can find the moments and the places that make you happy and continue to exist in them. You can meet other people with similar interests, while also discovering something completely new that blows your mind!
I, for one, discovered artist Natalie Andrewson, who makes beautiful art and Riso prints. I absolutely fell in love with her art, and am grateful to NYCC for helping me discover another wonderful artist!
Now, I must confess I could only attend two days out of the four that the convention runs for, but I did my best to spend every moment there soaking up the fun and immersing myself in the best NYCC offers. Loftus and I cosplayed, interacted with other cool cosplayers, and even got our pictures taken (which was insanely cool and has never happened to us before)! Every corner was filled with brilliant art (such as Natalie’s), writers (Alex Hirsch, creator of the animated show “Gravity Falls” and author of many related books, such as “The Book of Bill”) and so much more, such as the panels, show floor and workshops.
When I spoke to D’Lando, I asked just how the decisions are made when it comes to the panels. They start with gathering data and, most importantly, listening to the fans. “Every single person who attends NYCC receives a survey from us at the end of the show asking about their experience and what they want to see … and we read every single one of them,” said D’Lando. The fan surveys are the baseline and assist the team in making their decisions on which guests to invite.
“We have to play the world’s most difficult game of ‘Jenga.’ Sometimes it goes great, and sometimes it’s challenging. Everyone’s a fan of something, and sometimes there can be two panels going on at the same time that people want to go to and can’t,” says D’Lando. He went on to tell me that truly, it’s all about organizing and managing the event well. There are only so many panels, and they have to decide between many publishers, actors, studios and everyone else that applies.
The Comic-Con itself was founded in 2006 (more specifically, Feb. 24, 2006). When looking at the 2023 milestones on their website, the convention has had over 200,000 fans attend, 68.9 billion — yes, billion — media impressions, 1,200+ panels and so much more! Wow, it truly is New England’s biggest pop convention.
I was able to attend a few events and panels, but the most special one to me was the “Hannibal” one. Hugh Dancy (Will Graham) and Mads Mikkelsen (Hannibal Lecter) reunited for an exclusive, unique panel and discussed everything from “Hannibal” to their future (and past) projects. The actors shared their experience playing the murderous duo and said that for them, the fans make the experience.
“It’s all about the way that people talk about how the show has affected them or been significant in their lives. It’s a lot to take on because it’s not something that you consider when you’re making the show and then, years later, someone will say what it means to them and it’s kind of astonishing,” said Dancy.
Dancy is right in the sense that media affects people’s lives in so many different ways, and that’s what is special about New York Comic Con. Fans are able to go into this event and experience meeting an actor who changed their life, an author who wrote the most impactful book they have ever read or see art that they’ve dreamed of seeing. New York Comic Con: Thank you for a wonderful time and see you next year?
Great article! It’s insightful, and covers Comic Con thoroughly. Really appreciated the clear explanations about the history and how fans and engaged.