I had the excellent opportunity to visit Gulf Coast Fan Fest in Biloxi, Mississippi on October 13th and 14th, and I have to say that I loved having a comic book convention come so close to my home. The Mississippi Gulf Coast is notorious for its casinos and concerts, but there has never been a substantial presence of nerd culture until now. GCFF, like most conventions, had its problems, but I overall enjoyed my time there. I would like to touch on a few of my personal experiences with the convention, and I hope that it persuades you to come visit next year!
The Guests
For the most part, I really enjoyed the time I spent with each GCFF guest. Karan Ashley (Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie) was quite possibly one of the nicest people I have ever met, and guests such as Kevin Sorbo and Dirk Benedict (The A-Team, Battlestar Galactica) were reserved and professional in their demeanor. However, the celebrity row seemed a bit shallow.
To attract people to a convention, you have to have a wide-array of celebrities that speak to people from different fandoms and cultures. I just didn’t feel that with Gulf Coast Fan Fest. Perhaps this could have been caused by Ray Park’s plane getting delayed or Jason Mewes only appearing on Sunday, but I feel as though the celebrity tables and panels were the weakest aspect of a well put together con.
The same people that created this event also run Pensacon in Pensacola, Florida (which I attend every year for my birthday), and I know from my experiences there that these individuals are capable of bringing in many different celebrities. Despite not being able to meet many new nerd icons, I still enjoyed the time I spent with who I did meet, and I am sure that GCFF will expand their selection of stars next year.
Vendors
One of the most disappointing aspects of Gulf Coast Fan Fest’s second annual convention were the vendors. Obviously the convention has no control over what their vendors charge, but you would have to spend a lot of money to get something from what is being marketed as the Coast’s cheapest ever convention. Walking around and visiting with every store represented there, I found very few people who marked down their prices or offered special deals for the con. That is just simply not good business, and it will in no way attract me to the store that you are representing.
The Long Box was one of the few vendors that had the right idea. I had a conversation with the owner of this stand, and he told me that he does not have a physical store, only bringing his stock to local comic book conventions. This made me understand why he offered so many deals at his table. The Long Box being so familiar with conventions knows that they will make more money in the long run by offering special deals to the casual participants of each comic book convention, and I was really pleased to see them use this common sense tatic. Other people did not have the same idea.
I honestly don’t want to pay retail price for something I could easily find on Amazon, and it seems that a lot of these vendors do not understand that. I’m not sure if Gulf Coast Fan Fest can improve this in any way for next year, but I would really like to see them possibly bring this issue up to their participating vendors.
Cosplay and Turnout
Despite marketing themselves very well and appealing to the Gulf Coast’s need for a nerd culture outlet, there just was not a lot of people who decided to show up. This was strange to me, because the Mississippi Gulf Coast is (surprisingly) a hotbed for nerds and geeks, and there isn’t really anywhere for us to gather with like-minded individuals. We only have one real comic book store for crying out loud! So finally having a larger convention hit the Gulf Coast was sure to attract a lot of business, but it didn’t quite get the outcome I expected.
Aside from the attendance, I noticed that there were very few cosplayers. I did see a lot of amazing Darth Maul cosplays, and several other people bringing superheroes and Star Trek characters to life, but not nearly as many as a convention should have. Every other con I have ever attended was littered with some of the most mind-blowing cosplays I have ever seen. For some reason, it seems that Biloxi is short on fans dedicated enough come up with cosplays as awesome as the Bender seen above. I sincerely hope that the Mississippi fans step up their game next year, and I expect to see some amazing cosplays in 2019.
Conclusion
Overall, I was extremely pleased with my GCFF experience. Having a big, yearly convention come to Biloxi is the only thing that I have ever wanted, and I am so happy to finally have something so close to home. I didn’t have to drive three hours to Pensacola, I got to go home and sleep in my own bed, and I coincidentally ran into some of my best friends while I was there. Biloxi is the perfect place for this to happen each year, and I personally cannot wait until next year’s event!