When you walk the floor at Comic Con, one thing becomes immediately clear; fans certainly like engaging in far more than passive viewing.
Comic Con may be the white-hot center of the fan world. Tickets to the convention sold out weeks before the doors opened, with 151,000 tickets sold in 2014.
Walking the floor, you see Dr. Who, Penguin, Deadpool, and Batman -- in fact, lots of Bat-men. But don't confuse these elaborately costumed characters as paid representatives of the movie studios, and comic book companies, that own the brands. In fact, very much the opposite -- these are fans. Young and old, children dressed up with their costumed parents, and provocatively dressed young women and dramatically festooned young men -- all arriving at New York's Javits Center to see and be seen.
The event -- run since 2006 by ReedPop, a division of publisher Reed Exhibitions -- isn't related to Comic Con International in San Diego, which launched the comic convention trend. And what Comic Con knows and embraces is that New York is a city that loves to engage in comics and characters, and isn't shy about flying their comic colors with other like-minded fans. Tickets cost $50 for a day pass, or $100 for a full four-day pass.
While there certainly are some big-name celebs and high-profile projects launched, the most exciting part of Comic Con is certainly the creative outpouring of costumes and cosplay attendees. This year, world-premiere screenings are slated from The Walking Dead, X-Files, and Jessica Jones. And celebs expected to appear include actors Bryan Cranston, Eliza Dushku, Rashida Jones, and Sean Bean.
Perhaps the best indicator of the powerful impact of Comic Con on the west side was a ride on the newly opened #7 subway. The brand new subway station was packed full of furry human creatures, skin-tight spandex superheroes, and a variety of flavors of wild scars and makeup-encrusted fans.
One thing is certain, walking the jammed floor at Comic Con, no longer are audiences interested in watching entertainment from the comfortable living room recliner. Today, fans embrace the characters they love with furry abandon. And in doing so, they go from being an audience, to very much a part of the show. Selling tickets to fans, so they can walk the floor and snap selfies with each other -- now that's a marketing trend worth paying attention to.
