Lamour,

how to the 2 cons stack up against each other?

Anyone who has attened both is welcome to chime in...

Great thread Chad! . . . curious to hear opinions here too!

Two completely different animals quite honestly.

I'll compare this year's NYCC, which was WAY better organized than the last one IMO, to the SDCC I went to.

NYCC is a lot, lot, lot, lot, lot smaller than SD. According to a friend, you could probably fit 10 NYCC's into 1 SDCC sizewise.
I think for some people that makes it a bit more attractive because it is more manageable. It won't take you an hour to get across the con to meet a friend. It might take 15 minutes on Saturday, but the crowds are way less in NY.

SDCC has the name recognition to get the big movies and names into the con (if that's your thing), and yes NYCC had some big names and cool panels this year, but as far as variety goes, I think SD wins out because of the sheer size.

Another thing I did not realize is that NYCC has the folks in the artist alley picked by the con folks, which apparently is not the case in SD (correct me if I'm wrong please). I saw quite a few comic artists this year that caught my eye, and it is making me look more into comics.

Anyway, off the topic now, I would say that I like NYCC better for the size of the con itself, but I like SDCC a bit better to spend time with friends because more go to that.

I'll chime in with an observation since sadly I have NEVER been to a NYCC .....yet.

It seems like there are a lot more "hauls" from SDCC. The NYCC hauls seem to be from three different artists for the most part. Nice and simple, but when people post SDCC hauls they sometimes take up an entire bed.

Like Ed was saying I'm sure that has to do with the size, but variety is the spice of life no?

Chad, no comparison. The cosplay chicks are waaaay hotter at San Diego. Outside of the convention center is a different story;)

My first time at NYCC was an interesting experience. For the Con itself, although smaller, it seemed more congested. too many levels, too many bottlenecks. It was hard just getting around. Harder than SDCC IMO. More toys than ever at NYCC I understand, so that's good news and i'm sure more to come in future years.

But the real and obvious difference is the city. NY is a magical city. So diverse... so much going on. NYCC was a blip on the radar compared with everything else. in San Diego, SDCC literally took over the city.

I had a great time, but not sure I can swing both Cons every year.

i am heavily biased,,but i would have to say ny by a longshot...

sd had the advantage of size & more toys on offer,,but overall i would say head to ny for comic con over sd anyday of the year..

no matter which one you go to,,you will get your fill of being in a crowded nerd mall in no time...

kirkland nailed it on the head though,,,sd doesn't even come to close ny as a host city...sd has the sun & sea but the buck stops there...

to be fair to sd,,if the comic-con people really want to kill it off,,they will move it to vegas (biggest shithole on earth)

thanks for starting this posting. i stopped going to sdcc in 08 after my boyfriend was arrested for assaulting this guy. i was in line for krotch rot toy and they moved the line last minute. all the little bastards started running like mad knocking over people, i was one knocked to the ground and one booths table with all their stuff on it. derrick flipped and started beating this kid about 19 i guess and it was over for me. my canvas bag split open when i hit the ground and all my goodies went everywhere. this was one of my most embarassing moments ever. i have gone to sdcc since 2004 and it has gotten out of control. i like the sound of a calmer more relaxed con like nycc. yes there are a ton of releases at sdcc but with the crowd and nuts its to much for me now. plus i think less releases means less headache and time in line, rather than running from line to line like sdcc.

has anyone heard a rumor that sdcc will be moving to the los angeles convention center?

its dark to see the sub-human behavoir that oozes out from people over a toy or a black friday sale @ (insert any major chain).

that's terrible you had to deal with that.

bravo to your boyfriend for stepping in.

esp if the guy who knocked you down didnt offer an apology or help off of the ground.

let the pummling begin i say...

This is definitely a interesting thread. I have never been to any CC. I really dont like big crowds of people. That really sucks what happend to headsarereal. Like Mecha said if there was no apology "Let the beating begin"

I think I would probably goto NYCC over SDCC. for the same reason that everyone has mentioned. NYC is the shit

It kind of made me feel down, visiting NYCC and seeing how small the vinyl crowd was.

On one hand, it's nice, having the ability to get to know alot of the creators, and other collectors, because you have the space and time to interact- but at the same time, more so, it left me wondering about the future, interest, and growth of this hobby, especially seeing the current state of western, Blechh, there's not a trace of originality or creativity remaining in western vinyl. At least years ago, even if I quickly passed it by for kaiju, I found it somewhat interesting.

Back to kaiju talk though, It really is a labor of love for the guys making these toys. And alot of the time I have to wonder if they feel like it's worth it, or the reward and recognition (or lack there of) is worth their time and money invested. That's why I love these toys, these makers doing their own thing out of love and not for much else.

I just wish (and I know this will always be a topic of debate and disagreement) that this hobby had a larger audience, or that it just seemed like it could expand and become something bigger and really pay-off for the guys who have been pioneering. But I just didn't get that vibe at NYCC, it seemed like it all just got shoved into a corner and 99.999% of the people in attendance could care less about it.

I'm still trying to digest and process my thoughts on the kaiju "scene" locally and how it compares to SDCC and Internationally. Since I've never been to SDCC or any International shows, it's hard for me to compare, or place NYCC and it's attendance or importance on a larger scale.

Joe, there's definitely more of a scene of kaiju collectors at SDCC. That's another reason why I thought NYCC was weak. It didn't truly represent the scene like SD. I mean Super 7 has to be one of the biggest presence at SD and that really throws the kaiju in the limelight. At NYCC, there was such a weak presence. I mean Chad and John with MW really helped with PK, LASH, Bob Conge, and Toy Tokyo of course. It still didn't add up to Super 7, Real X Head, Gargamel, Secret Base and Toy Tokyo presence at SD. You really need to go with your figures next year.

I wish I could, I keep wanting to get out there, but I'm hoping to get married next Sept or so and follow it up with a Japan honeymoon. So I probably won't be able to do any other travel. I do want to get some figures out there though.
NYCC was still cool, some good pick-ups all around and as long as I'm here in NY I'll be there. Just didn't seem as exciting as last year. Maybe it was just because it wasn't my first time, or the former location of all the toy booths just made it seem a lot more congested with waves of people trying to navigate through. Besides SB was there last year and it was pretty cool seeing Hiddy.