I-CON: Blah

By Dustin Herlich
Science Editor

I-CON 24 came, went, and that was it. I must say, personally I do have fun at I-CON. I like walking around and taking pictures. I like socializing with old friends who wander back to campus and occasionally I enjoy making fun of something absurd. This year the dealer room was more crowded than it has been in the past. I don’t really think more people were buying this year; I just think that less people wanted to go to the other events. I-CON has become expensive, and kind of ho-hum. Unfortunately it’s also become much more of an anime event than anything else. Some programs, like Rocky Horror, draw huge crowds, and that was interesting, but for the most part I just didn’t see myself interested in most of the other programming. In years past they had herbalists and historians and experts of all interesting kinds. This year they had a program by the Christopher Reeve Foundation, but many charge that I-CON is not the place for this.

Some programs, like “How To Pick Up Women” were funny--not on purpose, but based on what kinds of creatures packed the room. There was some good advice given, like if someone steps back from you, don’t keep moving forward. What was missing though was the REASON someone is stepping back away from you. It’s called soap, and too few of the people at I-CON use it. I’d like to open a soap stand at the next I-CON and see if anyone buys even a single bar. I don’t think they know what it is. I-CON has just lost the spring in its step.

Maybe I’m alone in my observations, but I really don’t think so. No one really seemed that overly enthusiastic this year about anything. Prices in the dealer room are up, and thanks to the University’s backwards ways, you can’t sell anything that really sells in the dealer room any more. There’s nothing in there you can’t get cheaper online these days, and very few unique items. There were a few new stands that were interesting, but just too much of the same, year after year. I-CON really needs to break away and do something completely different. They need more guests, they clearly need a better location and they need more energy and life.

The people who run I-CON are dedicated individuals who donate countless hours of their personal time to this event. For that, I thank them. I applaud the efforts of those who really care about I-CON, but what I see is that too many people have been running I-CON since its inception. They never leave and you never get fresh blood in the mix. They have their little sphere of influence, their little gem of power and they don’t give it up. That is why many left I-CON this year saying “it sucked.” There just needs to be something different. 40 more extra hours of Anime is nothing new and different. Change the formats, change the types of programs, have more sessions. Do something racy, something eye catching. The rocketry was cool from what I understand, but there needs to be more of it.

To have a better con you need more interactive activities, not just movies and some gaming. Give more exposure to HALO tournaments and less to DDR. How about bring back some old school games like DOOM II, or even have Nintendo tournaments. I bet those would be popular. How about more sessions on costume creation, significance and historical value of costumes, etc.? I-CON has really just lost some its luster. I’m a big supporter of I-CON, and a big fan. What I’m really getting at is that I-CON needs to grow, and really do something special and different next year. It’s going to be the quarter century anniversary of I-CON, and they’ve never had a Star Trek Captain. There is so much I-CON can do, they just have to actually do it. Fire all the old farts, and bring in more students. Get rid of guests who have been there for 25 years and invite some people who have never come. How about Stan Lee, and other comic writers, artists and now actors even. Heck, even let people like me in on I-CON planning, and I bet you’ll have a better year than this one.