Rose City Comic Con Review! Jeremy Heads To The Portland Con! Critical Role! Cosplay! And More!

If you are driving down the streets in Portland, Oregon near the Oregon Convention Center, the sidewalks are lined with every costume in the galaxy. Seeing Spider-Man, Mary Poppins, and several hybrid Star Wars characters together can only mean one thing: It’s Rose City Comic Con weekend. And this year, they were out in force!

The convention has been in Portland for several years, and they consistently run a good show, with an interesting lineup of celebrities, artists and vendors. This year, the main celebrities were the cast of the show, “Critical Role”. Full disclosure- I have never heard of it, so other than one of them, I had no idea who they were. Judging by the insane lines to meet the cast and their online photo and autograph purchase sell outs, I may have been the only one (besides my boyfriend) who didn’t know of them or the show. Zoe Saldana and Karen Gillan from “Guardians of the Galaxy” made an appearance which was great. Again, Karen’s line was loooong all weekend, while Zoe, who appeared only one day happily signed for $250. That was out of my price range, so this convention I ended up with no autographs to add to my collection.

I’ve attended this con every year, and this year was easily the most crowded I have ever seen. We missed being able to see some vendors and other areas because of the massive crowds. At the same time, huge kudos to the convention for making it so quick to get in, or out, and for providing so many additional programs, exhibits and other things to manage the crowds. It is easy to see that the people who run this convention not only love what they do, but love making it special for each attendee. This isn’t always done at a convention, so thank you to the team at Rose City Comic Con.

Our motto in Portland is to “Keep Portland Weird”. Between the costumes worn by attendees, some of the items for sale, and the zaniness behind every corner, this years convention certainly kept that motto going. More importantly, I was beyond proud and impressed to see the positivity and support shown by every attendee. For many who attend they are an outcast of society because they look different, dress different, or love different. Being at a comic con is one of the only places where every single person is not only welcomed but fully celebrated. That alone is worth the cost of admission.