Updated on December 10, 2021
This year’s C2E2 is only a few weeks away, but I’m already looking over my travel plans and the schedule of panels for the show. As for when I’ll be there, I’m attending Friday and Saturday only; Sunday morning, I’ll be heading back to Milwaukee. After seeing how much slower Sunday was last year, plus some other factors, I figure I won’t miss much by skipping Sunday.
As for what panels and events I want to see (or might see), here’s a list of the more interesting ones so far. No guarantee (or likelihood) I’ll go to all of them, of course, but I’ll be carrying the schedule with me on my Palm Pre. A full schedule of events, including their descriptions, may be seen here. Suite numbers are in parentheses:
Friday:
3:30 PM-4:30 PM: Black Comix: African-American comics Art and Culture (473)
4:30 PM-5:30 PM: Food and Comics (470a)
5 PM-6 PM: J.J. Sedelmaier Hosts Showing of “Jerry Beck’s Worst Cartoons Ever!” (476)
6 PM-7 PM: ItsJustSomeRandomGuy (475b)
6:30 PM-7:30: PM DC Nation (470b)
Saturday:
11:30 AM-12:30 PM: Reading With Pictures – LIVE! (Stage)
11:30 AM-12:30 PM: DC Universe (474)
12 PM-1 PM: State of the Comicsphere (475a)
1 PM-2 PM: IDW Publishing Digital Update–Transformers, Digital Graphic Novels and More! (474)
2 PM-3:30 PM: CSC: Otherness in America (473)
2:30 PM-3:30 PM: DC Icons (474)
4:30 PM-5:30 PM: CSC: You Want to Study What?! Studying and Teaching Comics in College (473)
5:30 PM-7 PM: CSC: The Difficulty of Definition: Autobiographical Comics, Black Sci-Fi, Comics in the Classroom (473)
5:30 PM-6:30 PM: Marvel: Cup O’ Joe (471)
6 PM-7 PM: Zombies! They Just Crack Us Up! (475a)
7 PM-8 PM: Dwayne McDuffie Memorial (470a)
A few observations about this year’s panels/events schedule:
- I’m disappointed to see there’s no Archie panel at this year’s show.
- Also disappointed to see there’s no LGBT oriented panel this year (a few of the above ones look like they might deal with LGBT issues as a subcategory).
- I’m told the layout of the show this year will be different from last year’s. Hope it makes it easier/less of a hike to get to some events (or to the food court for lunch!), and gives everyone more space.
I wonder if the change in the panels makeup might reflect some vendors/comic companies not feeling last year’s was worth the trip to Chicago (and paying McCormick Place prices)? I didn’t mind the show being held at McCormick Place (beats some distant suburb that’s hard to get to by the L train/public transit), but I can see why some might be hesitant to return this year, especially in this economy.
Also wonder if the timing of this year’s show discouraged some from attending. Mid-March means there’s still some snow or slush on the ground here in the Midwest, plus C2E2 falls between two other sizable conventions, Seattle’s Emerald City Comicon (held this weekend) and San Francisco’s Wondercon (the first weekend in April). On a lesser note, I suppose there’ll also be some lingering St. Patrick’s Day weekend festivities.
Finally, I’m glad to see they’ve scheduled a memorial for the recently deceased comics creator and commentator Dwayne McDuffie.
