First, I'd like to say this is only their second or third year. Hopefully, they learn from problems that arise, and improve.
The convention was held with a split venue (the first mistake). The science fiction, fantasy, and comic tracks were at the McWane Science Center, while the Anime and Paranormal tracks (how in the world do THOSE two genres end up together?) were halfway across town at Old Car Heaven. You had to take a shuttle between the two (or pay $5 for parking each time you left the McWane).
Then there were the shuttles. While nothing wrong with the shuttles in particular, it still made for a miserable experience. The shuttle travelled between McWane and OCH, which was a twenty minute round trip. Now, a twenty minute wait doesn't sound so bad, but lines to get on the shuttle were so long on Saturday that I ended up waiting three shuttles- an hour- before I could go. In this time, I missed several panels and events (though I did make some friends in the bus line =D ).
As far as the venues go, McWane was a neat place. There wasn't always something going on that fit my specific tastes at the con, so the exhibits gave me something to do. Unfortunately, it was still operating as the Science Center during the convention. This meant children, EVERYWHERE. Non-convention-going parents would give me evil glares because their children would scream and cry upon seeing me in costume (really, I'm not THAT ugly, am I? ;-;) I shouldn't be treated like that for normal convention behavior while at a convention.
Gaming was split up between the McWane and OCH- yet another bad choice (although I do find it funny that the table top gamers were in the basement).
Despite all the negatives, I did have fun. With the exception of a couple of pirate cosplaying staff, the people running the convention were friendly and helped add to the entertainment. The Aliens diorama (run by a predator cosplayer o.O) was well set up, though it could have been in better lighting for photos. The costuming panels were excellent. I learned quite a bit from those.
I will probably go to the con again next year, but only if they fix the split venue problem. Heck, I might volunteer to be staff.
Now, for Pictures!!
