MarsCon was well attended, despite the winter storms that hit the region on Thursday and Friday, with 675 people in attendance. Although down a bit from last year due to snows and bad driving conditions, the con was an overwhelming success.
The Rakehell was very well represented, with most of the crew on hand for the festivities and mayhem.
On Saturday, Sue, Anna and I had breakfast with Walter Hunt, author of the Dark Wing series and had a great chat with him about cons and non-fandom stuff.
Qob participated in a panel to recreate the look of Elizabeth I, with G’Mar serving as the subject. The end result was including as a presentation piece in the Masquerade on Saturday evening.
Kosh ran a presentation on mask making as a result of his Gargoyle costume from Convergence last summer.
There were many excellent panels over the weekend (seriously!) that made it not only hard to figure out which ones to attend, it was impossible to go to lunch or dinner without missing something good. Panels ran the range from writing and writers, to films, film making, and discussions with the Actor Guests of Honor (Don Davis and Patricia Tallman) to science, weaponry and prop making. From a literary perspective, it was no surprise that the focus was on Robert A. Heinlein, in advance of the centennial celebration of his birth, and there were several lively panels covering his work and the impact he had on writers and society.
The science room was an educational experience, with many models from the U.S. Space Program, computer simulations, informative handouts and even educational materials for kids.
Kosh spent a chunk of the day doing a “Warrior on the street” gig, interviewing con goers to get their reaction to the recent downgrading of Pluto from planetary status. I hope to see the results of the video soon.
New this year was a prop room, where many props, mostly fan made, but also a few genuine movie pieces, were on display. Although strictly hands off, photography was allowed. There were pieces from Star Trek:TOS (of course!) and quite a few light sabers from Star Wars, as well as props from the Indiana Jones movies, Starship Troopers and the Rocketeer.
The masquerade was well attended by most of those present. I was an exception as the Rakehell’s currently youngest active member (but no longer the youngest member) decided to be fussy and wanted to run around, so I ended up stepping out and letting Sue’la enjoy some free time to enjoy the masquerade while our little one got some quality daddy time in. Kosh represented the Rakehell with an entry as a redneck Klingon, which garnered many laughs. G’Mar, as mentioned earlier, came on as a presentation of Elizabeth I. Regrettably, I have no clue about the rest of the entries, however, based on the reports I heard, there were 11 entries in all.
Saturday’s party scene was as good as Friday, maybe even better, as more people were dressed up for the event (and a few mundanes coming up to hang out with us). The Rakehell party pulled out the stops, with good tunes and a variety of drinks that went beyond the standard “Hot Sex with a Klingon.” There were about ten parties in all (not counting the con’s hospitality suite) all of which were packed to the gills.
Top honors for room parties went to the Tardis Tea Society and the World Defense Force (the Rakehell and Cosmic Tulip won last year, so they were non-competing). First prize was $100, second prize $50. Both parties looked really great and were just plain fun.
The hotel had free wireless Internet. Unfortunately connectivity was sporadic. So much for plans for regular updates, and that is probably for the best.
A great time was had by all.
Photos coming soon.
