This year, ReedPop just held their 2nd annual Special Edition NYC (SENYC). A comics-focused convention considered as the little sibling of New York Comic Con that promotes comic book culture created specifically for comic book fans, creators, and publishers of the industry. This year, it was definitely visible that the convention had a great turnout. As I was just getting into the event I saw a huge amount of people lining up to order New York Comic Con tickets that made available for the attendees of the event.
First, let’s go back a couple months before the event. ReedPop, with plenty of experience running shows, promoted the event well. All the information you would need for attending the convention was available on the website. Guest list announcements, artist cancellation, and updates were provided on a timely manner leading up to the convention. Social Media was also utilized to provide information as I was getting updated information on Instagram.
So, what about the venue you asked? This year, the convention was held at Pier 94. Its first and somewhere I have never been to before. Previously, the convention was held in the ‘Artist Alley’ section of the Jacob Javitz Center. Since it's in NYC, the location is still easily accessible by public transportation. I highly advised against driving into the venue not unless you are willing to pay for parking. Now for my minor caveat, though the venue is bigger, the inside is not attractive, comfortable, or even well-lit. It was a working pier at one time so it had a very industrial look with large pipes running across the ceilings. It got too hot at times especially with the crowd that I had to step out a couple of times. The venue was not air-conditioned, for anyone interested to know. Another observation is that the entire queue line is outside. It would have been bad if it rained all weekend. Luckily, the weather was nice for most of the time so it was not an issue, though it could’ve been. I do have to give kudos to the convention staffs who were very helpful and kept everything organized. Nonetheless, many of the attendees I spoke to miss the space and the lights of the previous venue. However, most cosplayers, which had a higher presence this year enjoyed the wonderful exterior since Pier 94 is connected to an outside park. Definitely an advantage of Pier 94 over the Javitz Center because it was a great photography spot for cosplayers and photographers. I'm not even going to lie, I also enjoy this fact since I like taking photos of cosplayers in addition to the actual happenings in the event. And having a great location makes a lot of difference on how the photos comes out.
As for this year's guest list, though overall everyone enjoyed the selection of artist that was present in the event, It was not as star-filled like the previous year. This is according to several attendees I spoke to. However, there were a couple of standout guests that the attendees enjoyed seeing such as Brian Michael Bendis, Scott Snyder and Robbi Rodriguez. The turnout for these guests was great. Definitely, a success that needs to be noted since it's one of the main focus of the convention.
Meanwhile on the exhibitors side. Since, there were more space available in the venue, it allowed for more vendors. There were plenty of vendors offering everything from wall posters, comics and comic character inspired toys. I was definitely tempted to buy a couple of items during the event but had to control myself since I don’t have any room for it.
Overall, in its second year, Special Edition NYC is definitely a convention worth the price of admission. If you're a fan of comic culture, cosplay, or just enjoy attending conventions, it's a must go especially if you're in the NYC area. I personally enjoyed the fact that there was a park outside the venue for cosplay photography. Though, I hope it moves back to Javits. Nonetheless, it was a fun weekend and I can’t wait to see what they bring out next year. There is always room for improvement.
BY: Jose Febrero
