This....this was a tough one you guys. There was a lot wrong with this year’s convention, a lot. There were issues that I think might have stained the con’s reputation, and time will tell if said stain can be cleaned up so easily. That said, there was also some things that I enjoyed. A few things, to be exact! So let’s sit back, relax, and take a look at my review for Connecticon 2016....enjoy?
Good Things
Alright, I definitely got some good things to say!
For starters, I pre-registered this year. I hadn’t done this in a long time, with the last being in 2010! I can’t remember what the process was like then, but I can say that it was a speedy process. Despite my issues with traffic around the city (See below for details), when we got to the convention center, it took less than 3 minutes to get in line, and get my ticket. There was no muss, no fuss, just quick efficient work on the part of Connecticon’s staff. Good job guys!
Next up is the people I’ve met. I know I’m repeating myself when compared to last year, but it’s the truth. There were a lot of fun & interesting cosplay, geeks, nerds, you name it, wandering the convention center. They were talkative, friendly, and always willing to provide a pose for pictures (Provided you asked). I did run across a few familiar faces, but for about 95% of the time, everybody I ran into was new. I didn’t even matter if it was someone in the Dealers Room or Artist Alley. Speaking of which...
I can’t tell you how much I managed to purchase this year! I came home with a bag full of stuff. A pretty huge one, to be exact. This all comes from the fact that there was a great selection of vendors & artists to converse & purchase. Some familiar vendors like Tea & Absinthe (Link) were around, but there were some new ones that I hadn’t seen in previous years. Practically all of my money (Apart from my emergency money that was given to me) was gone by the time I left the center, and while I was a little disappointed with myself spending so much, I was happy with how much I got!
Guests were particularly impressive this year. John Reyes Davis from Lord of the Rings, Walter Koenig from the original Star Trek, and Johnny Young Bosch of Bleach fame. This may have tied into some of the problems that this con went through (Read below for details), but it could have just been me & some of the other con-goers. My personal favorite was R.A. Salvatore, iconic author within the Forgotten Realms universe. He was personable, friendly, and always seemed to have a smile. All of the guests seemed to be like this, and that just warms my heart.
Finally, and this doesn’t pertain to the con itself, but I’d like to briefly talk about the hotel. Between last year & now, they refurbished the inside of the bottom of the hotel (Front desk, bar, Starbucks), and managed to change the look of the bathrooms. There’s a more modern appeal to everything that was changed, and it was very pleasing to the eye. Perhaps more will be worked on next year?
Okay Things
While this isn’t necessarily related to the convention, I should make note of the traffic in Hartford.....Holy hell was it a clusterfuck! Me & my friends accidentally missed our turn for the hotel/convention, and we ended up in 2 & ½ hours. Sweet zombie Jesus I had never seen such a massive mess. There were some concerts going on in the middle of the city, but for how far backed up all the traffic, there was absolutely no excuse for how bad things were. Hartford Police, fix up your act! Drivers in Hartford, fix up your act!
Bad Things ***
Eeeh, I’ve got some things to say here.....It’s not gonna be pretty.
For starters, I found out about this a week or two before the convention actually happened! So I got a comment from a buddy of mine, saying that the convention center was closing at 8 PM on both Friday & Saturday. Alarmed, I asked the Connecticon public Facebook page for details, and I got a reply, saying that it would close on both days at 9 PM. Here’s the list of reasons why this is going on:
- Lack of enough quality programming submissions
- Low attendance compared to peak event hours
- Attendee feedback (Shocked that this is a thing)
- Riverfest (Canceled this year)
- Lack of quality volunteer staff and resources to continue operating 18 hour days, two days in a row
I call BS on most of this. I remember seeing hordes of people at night, both inside & outside the convention center. There was plenty of panels going on at night as well, both 18+ & otherwise. As for lack of volunteers....maybe I’ll give that a pass. I certainly saw less staff members during the evening hours, but not enough to warrant this. This early closing/curfew really frightens me, as this could become a dangerous precedent for the convention staff to go down on. Hopefully this is a 1-time thing, and not an example for future Connecticon gatherings.
Secondly, there was no schedule printed in the con booklet. None! I was told by someone that there was no physical schedule put in because if a panel was canceled, there would have been little time to change things. I can’t fully complain however, as the schedule for all the events were placed on posters outside the doors, and there was an app made that had everything available for congoers. I don’t have a smartphone, but I can respect this.
Another thing I had a problem with was the panels. Now, this year has marked the 7th time that I visited this convention, and in all that time, I’ve loved going to each & every panel. I was thoroughly entertained.....until this convention. I only went to about 3 to 4 panels this year. 3 to 4! I don’t know what the hell it was this year, but so many of the panels seemed boring. So mind-numbingly boring! There was far more going on in the Dealers Room, Game Area, outside the convention center, and inside the hotel than their was in the panel rooms (Apart from the main/special events areas). Perhaps what angered me more was the severe lack of 18+ panels. Because of the 9PM curfew, congoers were promised that 18+ panel would be spread throughout the day. This was so not the case, as there were barely any 18+ panels at all! Even with the few that were on the schedule, they were still later into the night. Kinda defeats the purpose of “Spread Throughout The Day” don’t you think? If anything, this made Connecticon far more clean than it normally was, and I hope the convention staff spice things up a little next year.
Overall Impression & Rating
Connecticon 2016....I can’t hate the convention this year. I really can’t! Like I said earlier, I’ve being making a pilgrimage to Hartford for 7 years now, and in that time I’ve developed a sense of loyalty to this con. From 2009 to now, I’ve loved them all. Even this one! That said, Connecticon 2016 is easily my least favorite. The changes that have been made seemed to do far more damage than good. It will be interesting to see what the numbers will be (I’ll put them here when they come out), and I’m curious if things will be improved by next year.
Connecticon 2016 gets a 7 to 7.5 out of 10
So this was my review for Connecticon 2016. Again, it wasn’t a heinous abomination, but it may very well have been my least favorite. I can only hope that things change in 2017, and for the better. So I’ll see you all next week, when the Summer of Thrash returns, as we’ll be tapping that vein. See you then!
***
I did find out more as to why the curfew occurred, but if I said anything, chances are I’d probably get in trouble. Also, if you’re curious as to what I thought of last year’s Connecticon, check out the link below.
Connecticon 2015 Review
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