Guests met and
discussed in this review (with the franchise(s) I most associate them with
personally) :-
• Sonequa Martin-Green (Sasha from "The Walking Dead" & Michael Burnham from "Star Trek: Discovery")
• Seth Gilliam (Father Gabriel Stokes from "The Walking Dead")
• Sarah Wayne Callies (Lori Grimes from "The Walking Dead" & Sara from "Prison Break")
• Cailey Fleming (Judith Grimes from "The Walking Dead")
• Emily Kinney (Beth Greene from "The Walking Dead")
• Lauren Ridloff (Connie from "The Walking Dead" & Makkari from "Eternals")
• Maggie Grace (Shannon from "Lost" & Althea from "Fear The Walking Dead")
• Madison Lintz (Sophia from "The Walking Dead")
• Paul Lieberstein (Toby Flenderson from "The Office")
• Arthur Darvill (Rory Williams from "Doctor Who")
• Spencer Wilding (White Walker from "Game Of Thrones", Darth Vader from "Rogue One" & Lots More)
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With that being said, let’s dive in…
Comic Con Manchester was my 10th con organised by Monopoly Events, with 4 more scheduled for later in 2024 - Comic Con Wales and For The Love Of Fantasy in August, For The Love Of Horror in October, and Comic Con Liverpool in November. My Wife, Susie, my friend John and I attended Comic Con Manchester on the Saturday, which was a legit sell-out, yet again proving that Monopoly are now living up to their name and are the #1 Comic Con organisers in the United Kingdom. I've been doing conventions for over 15 years and I've been to conventions organised by around 25 different companies so I feel I'm something of a con expert at this point. I feel confident saying that Monopoly are no longer taking over the con scene in the U.K., they've taken over. With MCM, Wales Comic Con, and Showmasters not being the powerhouses they once were and with MegaCon still being something of a fledgling, Monopoly are ruling the roost uncontested. What really highlighted this to me more than anything was July. LFCC Saturday - once Showmasters' busiest day of the year - was quiet by its own standards, while Comic Con Manchester Saturday - Manchester isn't Monopoly's flagship show, Comic Con Liverpool is - was a sell-out and rammed to the rafters. For a long time Monopoly's slogan has been "Europe's Leading Pop Culture Event Organisers" and while I'm not sure about the Europe part (I haven't been to enough European cons to judge), it's definitely true of the U.K. now.
(photo credits to Charlotte Wellings / @realmofpixels)
As you can probably tell from the "guests met and discussed" section at the top, this was a Walking Dead heavy con. What did surprise me instantly was just how popular The Walking Dead still is when you get multiple actors together at the same event. The queues were slammed. Another interesting point to note is that the Bowlers Exhibition Centre in Manchester where this event was held is also owned by Andy Kleek, the owner of Monopoly Events. This means that the arena can be custom-built to accomodate Comic Cons. When reading the reviews for the event on social media, the one criticism I did hear a lot was the heat. Now, for me, this wasn't really a problem. I've survived the days of LFCC summer when it was legitimately 33 degrees outside and therefore closer to 40 degrees inside the greenhouse-like Olympia on days where the air-con was either broken or unfeelable. Comic Con Manchester wasn't that bad, but I do suggest an upgrade on the air-con system if events are going to be held there in the height of England's summer...if such a thing exists. Plus, the lighting could do with an upgrade as it's quite dark in there.
Comic Con Manchester was the busiest day I've had at a con since they returned after Covid: 11 people to meet. While this is far from my one-day record (26), it was still the most I'd done in years, so I was a little concerned. There was no need to be however. One of the best things about Monopoly is that each guest has two photo sessions. You just turn up to the one you want. Because of this I was able to plan my day immaculately - 6 photos in photo area A, then 5 photos in photo area B.
As you can see, even if there were delays in photo area A it wouldn't impact anything as my photos were all in the same area, then a gap, then the rest all in the other photo area. It was virtually impossible to have problems or issues, or clashes....all thanks to the "two photo sessions per guest" system.
Now that my day was planned, it was time to look around and soak up the atmosphere!
One of the really cool things about Monopoly is that they have lots of free prop areas included with the entry ticket price. Manchester's included an Ecto-1 car from "Ghostbusters", a TMNT car, a Simpsons display, a Los Pollos Hermanos display from "Breaking Bad"...Star Wars displays, Walking Dead displays, a TARDIS...you name it, it had a display - even Jeremy Kyle, bizarrely!
On top of the display section, there was a retro gaming area, where I kicked a little ass on the Sega Megadrive classic "Streets of Rage 2" - the best game in that series. Plus, a colouring area for kids to keep them entertained during the long comic con day. That was a decent addition. Throw in the typical merchandise stalls, celebrity guests, Q&A panels, and live music throughout the day by "Lina and the Li0ns", and you've got yourself a pretty damn cool weekend.
In addition to all of that, one of the things that differentiates the BEC arena from other Con venues is that the upstairs has a fully decked-out Cantina bar replica from the O.G. Star Wars movies. It was my first time seeing the bar in the flesh and it didn't disappoint!
It was an early start for Susie, John, and myself, leaving Gloucestershire at 05:30am, ready to arrive in Manchester at 08:30am. Doors open at 09:00am, but I've noticed that one of the cool things Monopoly do is let people in early where possible. I assume this is to give people a chance to get their bearings and get some extra money in the vendors' pockets before doors officially open. We arrived at the BEC at 08:15am and were in the venue by 08:25am. Awesome! With an hour or so to kill before my first photo, we decided to look at the merchandise stalls. After that was completed it was photo session time!
First up was Toby Flenderson himself, Paul Lieberstein, who was very humble, down-to-Earth, and engaging. Next up was Sonequa Martin-Green, who was arguably the best guest of the day. So fun! So much energy! So interactive! I've got to say that every single guest I met was awesome. All eleven of them. Not a dud in the bunch, which is always a nice bonus. Arthur Darvill, Spencer Wilding, and Sarah Wayne Callies were my "repeats", while the rest were new. Sarah was an interesting case in that I met her 11 years earlier at LFCC 2013, but her photo was sold out, so I got her autograph, but never a photo. It was time to rectify this ELEVEN YEARS later!
Sarah was awesome, just like 11 years earlier. Cailey Fleming was delightful. So energetic, so polite, so much fun to be around! Seth Gilliam and Madison Lintz were amazing. That was photo A done. Then it was time for a small interlude before the 5 photos in photo B began. The interlude was spent gaming, relaxing, and chatting...plus catching the 2nd half of the Amy Acker panel! "Angel" is my all-time favourite show and I've been fortunate enough to meet Amy a number of times and she's always perfection. Yes, Illyria was going to turn back into Fred during Angel season 5, but the show got cancelled in the middle of the story so they just left Illyria as Fred and killed off Wesley. Damn you, Joss!
(Amy Acker panel video credit to eline55 on YouTube)
It was nice to be at a con that had such a busy schedule for me, yet still had time to relax and have a seat. Once again thanks to the two photo sessions per guest system that Monopoly utilise. I must say that pretty much everything I did during the day ran on time or close enough that it didn't matter. Monopoly run so many events now that they really do have it down to a fine art. I guess the main negative for the event was that it got battered by pretty big cancellations such as Rainn Wilson, Karen Gillan, Catherine Tate, Tom Payne, Tommy Fury, and Callan McAuliffe. It can't be helped, but it always sucks. It's not the first con to get hit with a load of cancellations and it won't be the last. Life happens, work happens. It is what it is. That's why I never book a con for less than 3 guests. Chances are they won't all cancel.
It was now 4pm. Time for 5 photos in an hour to finish off the day! Maggie Grace, Emily Kinney, Lauren Ridloff, Arthur Darvill, and Spencer Wilding. All awesome. All fun. Particular shout-out to Lauren Ridloff who was fantastic. I can't imagine how difficult it must be to interact with people all day at a Comic Con while deaf, but she did it with grace.
Time to get back on the road for the 3-hour drive home. I was hanging by this point. Thank God I wasn't driving! Overall, Comic Con Manchester was a fantastic day. It's not as big as Comic Con Liverpool, nor is the venue as fancy as Comic Con Midlands, but it was a really fun day. It was my busiest con day in years and everything went off without a hitch. Another Monopoly event, another success. Probably my fave Monopoly con of the year so far.
FINAL SCORE: 8/10
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