By Ariyana Griffin
AFRO Staff Writer
agriffin@afro.com
Baltimore Comic-Con welcomed thousands of enthusiastic fans to the Baltimore Convention Center from Sept. 20-22. The three-day event highlighted comics, anime, cosplay, book lovers and gamers.
This year was a memorable one. The convention celebrated its 25th anniversary of bringing people together in downtown Baltimore. Each day was jam-packed with activities and panel discussions, during which attendees could hear from some of their favorite artists and authors in the industry.
T.L. Price, an author, shared that she created the “Exiled Elementals Series” to provide representation of Black people in the urban fantasy space.
“I have three sons, and it was very important to me to have a fantasy book series that features African Americans, including females and strong male characters,” Price told the AFRO.
The convention center’s main floor was separated into several sections, including an area to get comic books and artwork signed, a fantasy book alley, a gaming area and plenty more.
Cosplayers from Charm City and beyond arrived in detailed, creative costumes ranging from anime characters to superheroes. Each day, there were cosplay competitions for adults and children.
Farrah Jones and Michael Thurston attended the Baltimore Comic-Con in cosplay. Jones shared that this was her first time at a Comic Convention, but she was excited.
“I’m a cosplay geek,” Thurston said. He explained that he was excited to bring Jones into his world. “This is her first time, and she’s super excited. She bedazzled everything herself, and I am excited for her,” Thurston told the AFRO.
Retro games were a hit at the conference and are only becoming more popular. While some fans collect and store the games, others use them to relive memories.
Alex Thomas reunited with one of his favorite childhood games, Pokémon Crystal, for the Nintendo Game Boy Color, released in 2001.
“Finding this game feels amazing,” he said. “I can’t wait for my Game Boy Color to come back out. I bought one, but I didn’t buy any games for it—I was waiting for this.”
