The Albuquerque Comic Expo enters its giant-sized (dare we say “Giant Man-sized”) sophomore year this weekend. With so many exhibits, lectures, signings, parties, screenings and gaming tournaments to choose from, how do you figure out what to spend your time on? Should you comb though the dealers’ room looking for bargains on back issues of Justice League , or should you get in line for Katee Sackhoff’s autograph? We’ve chosen our top 10 faves from the still-growing lineup of events. Sci-Fi Speed Dating 4 p.m. Friday, 3 and 6 p.m. SaturdayPanel Room C, Convention Center The crew of the TLC show “Geek Love” will be in town helping hardcore action figure collectors hook up with serious bishoujo lovers (look it up). To sign up for a slot, email speeddating_signup@yahoo.com. You don’t have to wear a costume, but you do have to be 18. Stan Lee Q & A 11 a.m. Saturday Panel Room A, Convention Center Stan “The Man” Lee, the driving force for decades behind Marvel Comics, will be the subject of a titanic Q & A session moderated by longtime pal Lloyd Kaufman of Troma Films. There’s no bigger figure in comic books, so save up your questions, fanboys and fangirls. (And please don’t ask if you can appear in the next Avengers movie.) Tromadance New Mexico 11 a.m. SaturdayPanel Room B, Convention Center Toxic Avenger creator Lloyd Kaufman returns to ACE to show off more patented Troma-style weirdness in film form. His two-day festival of B-grade blood and guts starts off on Saturday with Mr. Bricks: A Heavy Metal Murder Musical . Dance Central Cosplay Competition 1 p.m. Saturday, 1 p.m. SundayMain Hall, Convention Center The National Video Game Association Supercon 2K Series will host a number of tournaments throughout the convention on Wii, Xbox 360 and Playstation. If you just want to watch, though, you cannot miss the Dance Central Cosplay Competition. You haven’t geeked out until you’ve seen a half-dozen Stormtroopers, three of the X-Men and a couple of Loli-Goths getting down to Kool & The Gang. ACE Costume Contest 2 p.m. SaturdayPanel Room A, Convention Center If you wanna show off your awesome Skeksis costume from The Dark Crystal , registration is from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. A maximum of 75 people can sign up, so get there early. If you prefer to act like Uatu the Watcher and observe, the show begins at 2 p.m. Grand prize is $500. Categories include: Comic Book, Anime, Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Group Costume, Video Game and Movie/TV. Enter the Dragon With Jim Kelly 7 p.m. Saturday Guild Cinema (3405 Central NE) Noted actor / martial artist Jim Kelly ( Black Belt Jones, Three the Hard Way ) will host a screening of the classic 1973 kung fu film Enter the Dragon. He’ll talk about working with Bruce Lee and take kick-ass questions from the audience. (Note: separate admission fee.) Jay and Silent Bob Get Old SModcast 8 p.m. Saturday Kiva Auditorium, Convention Center Filmmaker and noted comic book lover Kevin Smith ( Clerks, Chasing Amy, Dogma ) will join forces with actor pal Jason Mewes for an irreverent live podcast. Expect plenty of raunchy rants and observations from the duo that brought Jay and Silent Bob to life. (Note: separate admission fee.) VIP Party 11 p.m. Saturday Ibiza, Hotel Andaluz (125 Second Street NW) If you’re one of the lucky people who purchased a VIP pass for the entire weekend, you can’t miss this exclusive shindig on the roof of the Andaluz. Have a drink with your favorite comic book artist or rub elbows with a TV star. (Note: 21+ only.) Kevin Sorbo Q & A 11 a.m. Sunday Panel Room A, Convention Center Hero of televised fantasy (“Hercules: The Legendary Journeys”) and science fiction (“Andromeda”), Kevin Sorbo comes face-to-face with his fans and answers their probing questions. Creating A Legend: The Secret Origins of Wolverine 12 p.m. SundayPanel Room A, Convention Center Writer Len Wein and artist Herb Trimpe will spill all the juicy details about creating Wolverine, one of the most popular characters in comic book history. They did it back in 1974 on the pages of The Incredible Hulk .
Albuquerque Comic ExpoFriday, June 8, through Sunday, June 10 Albuquerque Convention Center 401 Second Street NW
Advance single-day passes: $15 adults, $7 kids under 12 Advance three-day passes: $35 adults, $20 kids under 12 Jay and Silent Bob, VIP passes and other packages: $30 to $175abqcomicexpo.com
