The good, the bad and the ugly.
The good:
Overwhelmingly most of my experience. TFCon continues to be an incredible show and the highlight of my summer.
I particularly liked the panels about giant robots in Japan (by Ninjatron) and Eastern vs Western Transformers. These panels were great and I learned stuff I didn't know. Yes, more of this!
I was so happy to meet Frank Welker. I also liked the way the panels were arranged so that my Frank Welker signing didn't conflict with my ability to see the other voice actors or Mr. Dille. This was much better than last year, and I greatly appreciate it.
Most of the panels went right on time and this is appreciated. I actually thought it was good the way they didn't just stop the movie but arranged to finish it while also accommodating faction feud. However this leads into...
The Bad:
When the script reading started early. I arrived to watch it at 3:25, in plenty of time according to the schedule, only to find the reading almost over. I would have appreciated at least an announcement; I am sorry I missed the reading, as I was on time and it is always great fun.
I know the con has limited power over the Quest Bar's pricing, but this year's prices meant more of my money went to Burger King. Service was great, but prices were...mostly beyond my budget. I had some drinks and one meal. The drinks and food I did have, though, were great--I can't fault the quality, only the pricing.
The ugly.
I've been coming to this con for 11 years now and have always felt very welcome and at home. I found this year's convention comic in bad taste, on account of having a number of friends, newer fans, mostly female, asking me if they are welcome at this event, if it is a boys-only club, how they will be treated, if they are going to face unwanted advances, etc. I get that the comic is supposed to be satire on a number of general convention tropes, but I feel like I've got one more hurdle to jump over now to convince some of my friends that this con is a good place to be, and that's...hard.
I really want to see all my friends at tfcon, girls and boys. I want to see this con succeed and be welcoming to everyone. I think that when people say "this is tfcon!" it means everyone, girls and boys, all ages, all physical abilities, all races, literally everyone. That's not the vibe the comic gave off and that's a shame because that's in no way the actual experience I've had in the last 11 years. This is a great convention and I want everyone to feel as welcome as I've felt over my history with this con.
In summary.
Oh hell, I spent all my money on toys and art again.
See you all next year