c2e2 2012!!

Welcome to c2e2 2012.  Surreal barely scrapes the tip.  I type with bad improv in the background...but it's about nerds.  As was the rest of the show.  Chris Hardwick has a big presence here, promoting his website.  Dot.com (yes Kevin Brown, as written by Tina Fey...he calls himself that) is hawking stickers and T-shirts at a table by the long boxes, bustiers, swords, action figures, and t-shirts -- really seems like something Fey could use for an episode of 30 Rock.  And I got to shake hands with Jim Palmer, who was almost too friendly (almost).  As always, though, there was a lot of good stuff for libraries here...mostly, focusing on the sociological study aspects.

Amazing! Pow! Costumes!  For people watching, it doesn't get much better than this.  So much avid fandom.  So much creativity.  So much skin... From the female Super Mario to the 15 year old Storm, I wish I'd come with a box of trenchcoats to cover these girls up.  It is a safe place and they are having a blast.  Repeat this mantra on the exhibits floor.

Seems like a lot of these people make their own costumes, especially the Mario-ette.  So, there goes...Mortal Kombat!  Black Canary.  Sailor Moon.  The lady at the ALA booth was dressed like Effie from The Hunger Games.  I'm surprised there's less Hunger Games here.  Maybe too mainstream?


Anyway, more costumes...Star Wars characters you vaguely remember and certainly couldn't name.  In fact, a lot of the costumes are hard to name because I just don't know who they are, neither does anyone I'm with.  They're for the devout.  For ex, I just overheard a couple of girls geek out: "Oh, there goes a little..wushubashoo..!" *gush* *gush* I obviously missed the last part, but whoever the kid was, she was dressed in orange and white and had a bishop cap.

Wonder Woman I get (though she needs a cardigan).  Poison Ivy, too.  Power Girl...  Costumes can be sexist, read here (in fact there's a whole panel I'll likely miss about geek girls.  Reminds me of this article that was hot about 6 months ago all about self-objectification and how geeks disinclude girls due to their sexism.)  Cat ears, silver and black bustier, tall boots?  Huh?  Jack Sparrow.  But random black and white guy with cowl?  Zombies are huge too.  And this brings in even more crossover...the haunted houses.  The Legendary Dungeon of Doom has a zombie/witch, with her mouth propped open on by a chrome device...all on top of an uncomfortable dual-foot stilt get-up that is as confounding as it is truly terrifying.  2 girls sat by me: orange hair, gold disc belt, black jumpsuit and red sash belt, black teddy, and lone ranger mask.  They were talking about gaming.  Exclusively.  I was really curious about their motivation, why they wear the costumes, (who they were supposed to be), etc, etc, etc.  But I didn't want to creep them out by asking a bunch of questions.  Whether it's empowering, it's not my place to judge.  Have fun kids.

Oh dear, improv!  What a collection of nerdiness.  As I type, they've actually announced that they are the Nerdalogues.  Nerdism is the thing here.  There's a Nerd City booth.  I know this because it's next door to the ALA booth.  Chris Hardwick is the star of c2e2 this year, funny stand-up (which is how he's on my radar) and he's making a small industry of it...