Portsmouth Comic Con – Review
It was a beautiful sunny weekend on the South Coast of England, so what else would a nerd want to do than… hide indoors and look at comics? Well sarcasm aside that is what a whole ton of people chose to do this weekend as Portsmouth Comic Con made its much heralded return to the UK convention circuit, following two years of pandemic-based postponements.
The Good
People seriously turned out this weekend. The event was all but sold out, with Saturday tickets all gone before the doors opened, and only late entry tickets on the gate by Sunday morning. There was a great showing of cosplay, with Jedis outnumbering Deadpools for possibly the first time ever at a comic con! The event was spread out across the entirety of the Portsmouth Guildhall this year, with four floors of rooms, panels and photo opportunities, as well as a marquee and external stage, and a full on food court tucked around the corner of the building.
It was good to bump into so many people from the local comics scene, many of whom I (obviously) haven’t seen in a long while, and the number of families and children at the show was wonderful to see – even if I still can’t get my head round small children dressed as Harley Quinn or Joker…
The different fandoms represented all had something for them, whether it was photo opportunities with Dr Who props, the Star Wars walk through exhibit, or the “World of Witchcraft and Wizardry” which was in no way associated with a certain other magical franchise and made that clear through their signposting areas such as ahem “Cogwarts”.
The panel line up was pretty varied, with something for almost everyone in the various rooms and areas that were being used, and a packed lineup of discussions, from breaking into comics, to what cosplay is. I managed to catch the Local Heroes panel on the outside stage, and was impressed with Russell Mark Olsen and Warwick Johnson Caldwell being particularly eloquent on their careers so far.
The Bad
Whilst only anecdotal, several of those tabling that I spoke to said that sales were not great, with people either not spending money, or choosing to put it towards toys and Pops rather than, say, comics. Having the event on the same weekend as Free Comic Book Day must surely have an impact on this well, as I know of several local-ish retailers who didn’t have a presence as they needed all hands on deck for that event instead.
I have been to all of the Portsmouth Comic Cons so far and the layout has always been as issue for me, with the number of comics creative always outweighed by the merch tables and non-comics “stuff”. This is just a personal bugbear, and it is always good to see other fandoms represented, but I really would like to see more comics and less Lego set next time out. It is rather more of a toy fair in some places, and one area ostensibly labelled as “Comics Village 2” was literally four tables opposite the toilets in the basement. I felt for those folks if I’m honest, I walked past them twice looking for the village before I realised they were it.
The (Downright) Ugly
A more cynical person might have suggested that perhaps those two years the show did not go on could have been put to good use, organising the show and bringing in the best possible guests and comickers. But apparently what the organisers chose to do was stuff as many resellers, toy sellers and general merch tables into the Guildhall space as possible, while sticking “Artists Alley” into a badly signposted corridor upstairs, and relegating a number of the indie scene folks into a marquee located behind the outdoor stage. If I sound bitter, dear reader, it is because I feel it.
I have been to only one convention since the world turned upside down in March 2020, which was last Novembers brilliantly organised, uncrowded and safe-feeling Thought Bubble. This con was… not that. There were rumblings that all was not well from Friday, when the organisers did an insta-story Q&A which included telling people they could not bring in any food or drink (including water) but could purchase these items from the “many” retailers in the venue – I saw three – which led a number of people on social media to question not only the legality but also the morality of this move. Personally, I lost a bit of faith when they said there would be no covid-based policy. While I realise this isn’t considered an issue for large numbers of the population anymore, I have underlying health conditions that mean I have to be extra careful, and the lack of any provision here meant that largely wasn’t possible. Closely crowded tables, full to bursting ticket sales and no mention of masks meant that I felt at risk virtually the entire time I was at the con.
It took me less than hour – probably even less than 30 minutes – to do a circuit of the whole venue, including stopping and speaking with friends. Most of the upstairs Artist Alley tables were abandoned when I walked through, and there just wasn’t the buzz or atmosphere that you get at some other conventions. Maybe I was hoping for something more, but I didn’t get it. In previous years I’ve been able to conduct interviews and have some great chats with creators, but this year just didn’t give me the chance.
On the plus side, I did get some pretty cool art, and saw some friends, and got to see a whole mess of people who were enjoying their day out. So not a total bust.
Disclaimer: I received a free pass into the event courtesy of Portsmouth Comic Con. The opinions are completely my own based on my experience.
