In Time, I May Document These Comic-Cons With More Florid Prose, But Until Then It's the 2016 Tampa Bay Comic Con!

(Update: Thank you Infidel753 for the link to your wrapup!)

I almost didn't go this year, but changed my mind when I figured out my fiscal budget could handle the indulgence (just a little: there is no way I will be able to buy any booze for the next three months... which is okay because I'm sober and don't drink booze).

So much like I've done the year before and the year before that and the year... yeah, there's your trend for ya... SAY HELLO TO DOCUMENTED EVIDENCE that I attended the 2016 Tampa Bay Comic Con!

Early morning opening on the showroom floor. Don't worry, it'll get packed soon...

This year I was on a mission, more on that later...

And here's an early morning - way early, as most people were still in line up on the mezzanine - writer's panel! Bill Hatfield, remind me the names of the ladies joining you on the discussion.

This is still early in the morning: the gaming rooms were still getting set up.

Tampa doesn't get a lot of steampunk cosplay, unlike Orlando's MegaCon, but there's still some incredible designs here.

Alas, I did not dress up as a Jedi this year, as I had other plans. So I took pictures of everybody else being a Sith...

A Rey of Sunshine.

Yes, I punned. Sue me.

Getting seated for the one guest speaker appearance I could watch today...

It's Clara for the Oswin! (okay, it's Jenna Coleman).

Had to upload to YouTube and link the video from there.

Told you...

...it would...

...get busier!

That's Daryl from Walking Dead. Huge line for photos and autographs... He's incredibly popular. Don't forget, if Daryl dies we riot.

You know, I'm in this mob somewhere...

I AM GROOT guy wins best Cosplay costume in my humble opinion.

Guy was getting a lot of requests for pics in Artist's Alley...

SPIDERS! Nope nope nope nope nope nope... well, okay, Spider-Gwen can stay...

Gaming hall after lunch time. Definitely packed now.

This is the line for zombification. If you're here for parasitic infection, that line is back up on the third floor for the video game cosplayers.

Lady Loki did me a favor taking a picture of me, and I requested I get one of her. Thank ye again!

Look kids! Jim Shooter talking about writing comic books!

Say hello to Rochelle the Teenage Cockroach!

You might remember last year meeting John Crowther - a friend of my brother Phil - starting up this comic series via Antarctic Press. He's been busy promoting the title and it's started to get good reviews and brisk sales.

Things I didn't get pictures of: Pokemon.

With Pokemon GO an addicting phone app game, there was every likelihood the convention center would be a haven for Pokeball throwing madness. Well, it was kind of yes and no. The Tampa Convention Center - and a good part of surrounding Downtown Tampa - is rife with PokeStops and Gyms... But they were all well away from the building itself, too far to activate a Stop for supplies or battle for a Gym. However, the PokeStops were close enough to drop Lures on them to spawn armies of Pokemon to catch... meaning you can run out of balls real quick.

It also didn't help that there's no free WiFi inside the convention center. I know it's a for-profit convention where you gotta spend $15 for lunch, but complimentary WiFi isn't gonna wipe out the budget will it?

On the bright side I caught like 20 MagiKarps. You need like 150 of them to Evolve one to the powerful Serpent Pokemon. It all has to do with location: The Convention Center is right on the channel AND river, and geographic closeness to water spawns more Water-type Pokemon...

Anyway, my mission: I still owe my nephew Andrew a birthday present from last year (!) and one this year, so I bought a (information withheld until the gift is delivered). It took me months to get anybody to tell me (redacted) so I picked out (classified). I hope he likes it.

Anyway, there's my Saturday done and done. What's next, peoples?