We♥Comics! – Planet Comicon Kansas City 2024 (March 8-10) recap – Part One
Celebrating a full quarter century, Planet Comicon Kansas City celebrated their 25 years as the region’s largest and longest-running comic and pop culture event celebrating comic books, science fiction, superheroes and fantasy and its creators; with large daily crowds who converged downtown at Bartle Hall and the Convention Center.
The show has been in existence since 1999, starting small in the south suburbs, moving to larger venues as it grew exponentially along the way to become the Midwest’s premier comics and pop culture gathering and remains a locally run, independent venture, when so many shows have been sold to trade show and exhibit corporations.
The dealer exhibit space covered over seven football fields worth of area featuring comics, pop culture collectibles, anime, anime, nostalgia and memorabilia, along with gaming, entertainment, and other retail options.
Beer was even served via Boulevard Brewing, free play pinball and video games were available, and workshop presentations were held for would-be hands-on creators.
Paid celebrity meet-and-greets and photo opportunities were available as usual, and one of the best ways to learn about these attendees or ask a particular question, was to attend their public Panel discussion/Q&A.
Some of the numerous guests attending this year included:
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Adrienne Barbeau Melissa Barrera Jon Bernthal Paul Bettany Simon Bisley Corbin Bleu Barry Bostwick |
Tim Bradstreet Bernard Chang Spencer Charnas Ming Chen Chris Claremont Amanda Conner Keith David Kevin Eastman |
Glenn Fabry Danielle Fishel Garrett Hedlund Charlie Hunnam Jamie Kennedy Sid Krofft Matthew Lillard Francis Manapul |
Jason Marsden Ian McDiarmid Donny Most Dermot Mulroney Jimmy Palmiotti Ron Perlman John Rhys-Davies Eduardo Risso |
Adam Savage Tara Strong Rider Strong Ben Templesmith Skeet Ulrich Mark Waid Anson Williams Henry Winkler |
Japanese animation and its associated culture aka Anime is even more popular in recent years; so much so, that a sister show Planet Anime Kansas City will make its successful return for a second year, this October.
As for Planet Comicon Kansas City, plans are already confirmed to begin their second quarter-century with the next installment set for March 21-23, 2025.
