Convention - Comic Con France 2024 : review of this first edition

By Sabine, Paris, Porte de Versailles , 30 to 31 march 2024

This Sunday morning, the Comic Con France's second day begins in Paris. There are fewer people than the day before, so walking around is pleasant. A look back at the strong points of this edition.

Yavin's exhibition of giant Star Wars models is impressive. This Polish artists'team is talented, available and generous. It took Bernard Szukiel three months to create robots like R2D2. Marek Kuleska spend three years to recreate the magnificent 2 meters long Millenium Falcon. Since then, the team has traveled Europe with their magnificent creations. On another stand, a team also brilliantly recreated the base and ships from Cosmos 1999 and the ship from Stanley Kubrick's 2001 Space Odyssey.

After having tested Japanese sweets and Candy sodas (Candy,my childhood heroine), I head towards the artists' aisle to discover the red and black posters of Grim, or the book Gremmens, which describes Futterman's battle against the Gremlins during World War II. I browse comics at the Fine Art Comics booth. SFX special effects artists Master of Horror are present with their creatures including Freddy Kruger, an evil white clown and a trio of Chuckys. Change of register with the Caliban association and its team of enthusiasts of robotics and new technologies. Their robots are so cute at a time when artificial intelligence is seen as a threat.

Massed in front of a small stage, the spectators attend the conferences standing. This morning, Richard Dean Anderson teaches them how to save the world with a paperclip and travel through stargates. Unfortunately due to the height of the stage, as soon as he sits down, we can no longer see him. No translation is made into French. Too bad because the guests are interesting. Anthony Daniels, who played C3-PO, recounts his filming anecdotes in French but with very English humor, especially his costume nightmare.

A little further on, fans wait their turn for an autograph, a dedication or a photo with American celebrities, used to monetizing their presence, as is the case at Comics Con. In the setting of the Clock Tower of Once Upon a Time, an actor awaits visitors for a paid photo. The same goes for posing next to legendary cinema cars, or being scared next to the giant spider Aragog. BumbleBee cars and robots are here. There are the usual merchandising sellers, t-shirts, stuffed animals, sword accessories, lightsabers... I stop at the Bat Factory stand, which offers handcrafted accessories.

Fortunately, the cosplayers are here, with their kindness and generosity. They liven up this convention. They put on a show on the stage, which is dedicated to them. The Star Wars came in force, with their legions and their (free) settings: Jedi of the West, Imperial Alliance, 59th Legion,... The power of the force is still great, as the waiting line for the training with the Lightsaber Academy shows. Around the stands, it is however possible to come across a Disney princess, a Tinker Bell, Cruella De Vil, recreated by Callie, or Mario Bros, Spiderman, the heroes and heroines of the Amf, the french multiverse fantasy association, and the superhero of the plates Assiette Man. His ecological costume made from white paper plates took two months of work. The Last Hope Squad entertains the military who patrol as part of the french vigipirate plan. Young and old cosplayers parade, with more or less professional costumes, in a warm atmosphere and a tolerance which restores confidence in humanity. The term cosplay was used for the first time 40 years ago. Since then, the first ones have started families. The succession is here.

This first edition can be improved, but criticism is easy and doing things difficult, particularly the evaluation of the number of visitors this Easter weekend. So, congratulations for this first edition to the team and see you next year.

You can find our selection of photos on our Flickr page
and the videos on our YouTube