I may have said this in a prior review, but Connecticon & other conventions are a quasi-spiritual experience for me. For a single weekend, the horrors of the world are completely held at bay by the convention center, as well as the legion of convention goers that frequent it. This year was especially important for me, as something pretty bad took place in my life earlier this year, but I’ll get to that later in the review. Suffice it to say, I had a damn good time, so let’s get to it! Here is my review for Connecticon 2024. Let’s begin!
Good Points
The Hartford Marriot has been a perfect venue for Connecticon ever since I started going all the way back in 2009. Outside of one fault (More on that below), the entire complex is filled from top to bottom with things for any of our needs. The Starbucks in the lobby was particularly nice this year, and I don’t know if it was because of when I got there, but the baristas were exceptionally on point this year & got orders out fast. There’s also the Bar, the tiny store by the front desk, and the restaurant, which always has a nice breakfast buffet in the morning & much cheaper this year as opposed to last (22 dollars this year as opposed to 37 from last year if I recall correctly). There is also the pool on the highest floor of the hotel, but I never use it on account of not being able to swim. It’s a nice little place pack with quite a lot!
Dealer’s Room & Artist’s Alley as usual was stuffed to the brim with various vendors & artists peddling their wares. Outside of 2 shocking omissions this year (More on that in the “Bad Points” section), Connecticon 2024 might have had the most vendors and artists. So much so, that for the first time I’ve been going in 15 years, there were a few of them on the floor of the convention center on the top floor, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen that in the decade & a half of going. There was an absolute horde of things to purchase, but this year I didn’t because of a MTG pre-release in just a few days (Bloomburrow baby!), and yet I came home with a small but nice selection of stuff.
Panels & Events are always varied for Connecticon, and this year was no different. AMVs, Idol Groups, Cosplay Chess, and Cosplay Deathmatch (Which was incredibly on point this year) were just some of the events that took place. The guy that ate the entire Costco chicken last year came back, and this time he had an opponent to go up against. Panels were all over the place, but in a good way. From learning how to make your own Kandi bracelets, to optimism in Dr. Stone & the game Celeste, and John St. Jon’s Sexy Late Night Panel (Which is tons of fun if you’ve never gone to it), the convention continues to hold it’s motto close to it’s heart: “Everything But The Kitchen Sink”
Cosplay Championship Wrestling continues to be a highlight of Connecticon, and one that I love very much. Since their in convention debut in 2021, the various wrestlers embody the characters of comics, gaming, anime, and manga, & the end result is nothing more than a fun time. What the group lacks in spectacle, they more than gain in terms of connecting with the fans & providing an intimate experience for about an hour. 2024 was particularly a delight, as we had some new characters enter the ring, and engaged in some damn good fights. Definitely look forward to what CCW brings the convention in 2025!
And finally, I want to touch on the Food Truck festival that happens right by the convention center, and I don’t think I’ve done this in any prior review. Good on Connecticon staff to host the event just as a horde of some of the best damn street food I’ve ever had, and I think just about everyone else will agree! There’s stuff for meat eater, fish lovers, and vegans as well! Not only that, but there are also a couple other vendors as well selling some nice stuff, and some music from a live performer or two. Everything there wasn’t horrifically expensive, and the quality was fantastic, so I might go for the food trucks almost exclusively in future events.
Okay Points
So I only have one thing to place here, and that was the locked-off escalator in the main lobby of the hotel. Both ends were locked off, and at no point during the weekend did it open back up. Now, it doesn’t cover the longest distance, and as such isn’t the biggest dent in the con’s armor. On the other hand.....
Bad Points
It was incredibly frustrating that it was closed! If there was an announcement that the hotel shut it down before the convention, then I never saw it. On top of that, it made the Sunday rush to leave frustrating, as me & my group has to go around & through some groups of people. Like I said above, it doesn’t make a big dent, but it is frustrating.
The thing that did make my blood boil was near non-existent presence of manga sellers, and the non-existence of anime sellers! Camp Anime was the only stand where I understood why they didn’t have manga (One of the sellers said that it was easier to move figures than a horde of books), but the other 2 I found only had a small selection, and had nothing of what I was looking for. As for anime’s non-presence in the dealer’s room, I have no clue, and I admit I was kinda mad. If any convention goer or convention staff member has the answer, then please leave a comment, as I would genuinely like to know why.
Other
So, this section is going to be a bit personal, so bear with me.
If any of you have been paying attention to my blog since this past March, then you’ll know that my friend Isabelle passed away 6 days before her 90th birthday. I originally began working for her to get money for this very convention, and obviously that wasn’t the case this year (Technically this happened last year as well, but not as bad). For almost 15 years, she always wanted to know what it was like, as while she wasn’t a geek herself outside of liking the Harry Potter books, she was always curious about my hobbies, and I always told her what happened. The con this year was bittersweet, as it’s the first one that I can’t tell her about or show off the stuff I got in the dealer’s room. If anything, it hurts a lot that I can’t say anything or show anything to her, but that’s life sadly.
Final Thoughts & Rating
This year’s Connecticon was one of the best. Faults & annoyances not withstanding, I had a fun time with what was set up for me and all of the other con-goers. All of the panels I went to were great, all of the events I watched were great, and the food trucks this year brought their A-game. If this level of quality can be maintained, then I definitely look forward to what’s next.
Connecticon 2024 gets a 9 out of 10.
And that wraps up my review for Connecticon 2024. A damn fine Connecticon if there was one, and I can only imagine what the rest of them this decade will be like. With that said, I got 1 last tribute post about my friend Isabelle to put up, and then the Summer of Sabaton will conclude in August. See you then!
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