San Diego Union-Tribune (Sunday)
MORE FANS ENTER ROCKET CON’S ORBIT
Attendees enjoy smaller crowd for comic convention
There were no Hollywood stars at Rocket Con on Saturday, but that was fine with attendees.
Now in its fourth year, Rocket Con was gearing up for 5,000 attendees over the two-day event in Mission Valley. That would be nowhere near the more than 130,000 that descend on downtown for San Diego Comic-con every year, but that’s not to say the upstart doesn’t have momentum.
Rocket Con was started more than five years ago by father-son duo Steve and Chase Lirley, who co-own comic book store TC’S Rockets in Allied Gardens. It had 500 people in attendance the first year, Chase Lirley said, 1,500 the second and 3,500 last year.
Last year was the first that the show turned a profit, he said.
He admitted to being a bit overwhelmed Saturday morning as a line stretched around the parking lot of the Scottish Rite Center, with some comic book fans waiting nearly an hour to get entrance badges. What makes this convention different is there isn’t a gigantic crowd that prevents fans from talking to artists, voice actors and vendors, Lirley said.
“You get a more intimate experience,” he said.
Kaylee Worsham, 14, of Lakeside was dressed for her first convention as a soldier in the scout regiment from the anime “Attack on Titan.” She was waiting in line to meet the English voice actress for one of the show’s biggest characters, Mikasa Ackerman.
Her mother, Heather Worsham, 39, said she liked that Rocket Con was smaller and not an overwhelming experience. “It’s a cool first convention,” she said. “It’s back to basics for what comic conventions are about.”
Unlike Comic-con International, or other big conventions like New York Comic Con or Emerald City Comic Con, it was was easy to walk around and interact with comic book and collectible sellers.
Marcus Jacinto, owner of new business Serpent’s Tale, said Rocket Con was his first convention and the smaller crowd made him feel like he was ready for it. Serpent’s Tale, mainly online, sells dice for role-playing games like Pathfinder and Dungeons & Dragons.
“I can lower prices,” he said, “and there’s a chance to build a community.”
There were also San Diego-specific items for sale that you might not expect at larger conventions. One of the most popular, by San Diego-based Planet Kamino, was a Padres-themed helmet based on one worn by Din Djarin in the Star Wars show “The Mandalorian.” Instead of a silver helmet, this version was brown and gold with the Padres logo on both sides.
Creator David Ancheta, 45, of San Marcos said he normally would charge $300 for the helmet online, but decided on a discount to $250 at the convention.
Of course, it wouldn’t be a comic convention without people dressing up. Eva Kaynak, 12, of Yuma was dressed in Mitsuri Kanroji cosplay, a character from the anime “Demon Slayer,” and she was pumped. Eva had a large pink wig and black gi worn like the character.
“I feel really good in the costume,” she said. “Like a whole different person.”
Her mother, Zehra Kaynak, said Eva found the convention online and asked to go for her birthday. Her little sister, Liv, 7, was also in full costume as Nezuko, another character from “Demon Slayer.”
Perhaps the most excited person at the convention was Angelo Koolen, 33, of Antioch, who drove eight hours with his family to meet English voice actors from the anime “Dragon Ball,” including Stephanie Nadolny, who has played several roles in the long-running series.
“I love ‘Dragon Ball.’ It’s my passion,” he said.
Koolen said he has been to many conventions but this was his first time at Rocket Con. Buzzing after getting several Funko toys and posters signed, he said he couldn’t believe how quick the lines were to meet the performers.
Arguably the biggest name at the show was British comic book artist Jim Cheung. Many characters he cocreated with writer Allan Heinberg for the “Young Avengers” comic book have been showing up in Marvel films and TV shows. He might have been somewhat overlooked at a larger convention, as many television and movie studios have pushed hard to have their actors make San Diego Comiccon appearances. Instead, Cheung had one of the longest lines at Rocket Con.
Tickets for a two-day pass to Rocket Con were $45, or $30 for a Saturday-only badge, and $25 for a Sundayonly badge (still available). It’s not exactly the most expensive event in town, but Chase Lirley said he was hopeful the convention would continue.
If San Diego’s big comic convention goes away, could Rocket Con take its place? Lirley laughed off any comparisons.
“I just want to put on my show,” he said.