Do you recall I mentioned PAX a week or so ago? Here’s the best costume I’ve seen come out of the PAX events this year. It’s Carl…from the pages of the short story Automata. Post-PAX the forums were abuzz with people discussing the awesomeness of this particular costume. It’s fantastic. Truly.

The idea kept niggling at the creators and so came back to finish the tale. Read part two, three, four, five, and the conclusion in part six.

Not all of their experiments in art and story succeed…thank goodness Carl did.

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I read Penny Arcade. It’s funny more often than it’s not funny and they have a good attitude about most things in the game/tech/geek/sci-fi genre. I like that. I also like that the men and women of Penny Arcade give back in big ways. They host PAX and PAXEast for the gamers of the world. The LAN guys and the tabletop gurus and the console warriors can hang out in a mostly Klingon and Frodo free environment. Yay! Better than PAX, the Penny Arcade family also started Child’s Play. People can donate games to childrens’ hospitals around the world. What’s better than bringing a smile to a bedridden kid? Nothing! Donate now. Okay, it’s more of a suggestion than an order, but you should consider it. (more…)

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I only snapped a few pictures at this year’s Dragon Con. I tried not to take the same pictures of the same costumes I see every year. There were a lot of great costumes I didn’t capture because my camera wasn’t out or because I couldn’t get close due to the crowds. I expected the GI Joe and Cobra costumes as well as the Star Trek factions. I didn’t expect to see so many Venture Brothers costumes. The Steampunk genre continues to explode. Alice in Wonderland was huge. There were traditional Wonderland costumes as well as some inspired by the upcoming movie….but I didn’t get any pictures of those.

Highlights:
The first 15 minutes of Season 4 of The Venture Brothers
Adam Savage dressing as a Wookie
Felecia Day at karaoke
Christopher Pike

Yes, he did communicate in light bleeps.

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I had a fun at Dragon Con this year. I was there for Saturday, Sunday and a teensy bit of Friday night. I took two new costumes and a couple of older backups with me.

Friday night and most of Saturday I was dressed as Colonel Hunter Gathers from The Venture Brothers cartoon. I used a sports top and bloomers I already owned as the base for the outfit. I painted the pieces, as is quite obvious, in a camo-like way. I wore two pairs of bloomers because I may be dressed as a stripper, but I am not a stripper and needed to feel like I was covered up. The stubble was dark eyeshadow stippled on with a contour brush. The cigarette holder was an eyeliner pencil with medical tape on the end. The hat is spare green material folded up like a newspaper hat and stitched in the corners to keep it together. I left my white gloves sitting on my bed. D’oh. Combat boots, fishnet stockings, wig, and glasses round out the ensemble. This picture includes a young lady who modified a Sexy Army costume.

I ran into the two creators of The Venture Brothers at a gonzo show. Jackson Publick laughed hysterically and never did say a thing. Doc Hammer shook his head while saying, “He wasn’t supposed to look that good.” I was nervous wearing that getup but that comment gave me all the confidence I needed to keep going. I had my picture taken more times than I could count while in that costume. Now I know how ManWithPez feels when he wears the Seymour and Audrey II costume.

Sunday was my Dr. Saunders day. You may remember my scar test. My technique improved, unfortunately, I forgot to bring my reference so the scars were a bit misplaced. Oh well. I wore the costume briefly on Saturday and discovered my subtle scars were too subtle. No one noticed them. Sunday’s scars are much darker. Dr. Saunders jacket is unique and could only be replicated if I made it…which I plan to do. Until then, I have a simple lab coat with a popped up collar. I wore a blouse, fluted skirt, and heels with the scars and wig. I heard there was another Saunders at D*C but I never found her.

My Dragon Con 2009 gallery is posted. I didn’t take as many pictures this year since I was there for two days and missed the parade. Sorry. I tried to take pictures of the costumes I loved. I hope you like them too. My recap post is on its way.

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Dragon Con 2009 is in one week. That’s right, Labor Day weekend is almost upon us. I won’t be doing daily posts like last year, but you’ll find a recap or two here in the following weeks (maybe not by me). Here’s a commercial just in case you don’t know about Dragon Con.

My biggest gripe with this ad is the treatment of Anthony Daniels. He’s just C3P0? Anthony Daniels is by far the best emcee I have seen at the Masquerade. D*C TV, you should have been nicer to mister Daniels. He deserves a name check.

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Several years ago I made a friend on a Firefly fansite. Eventually I met this friend, Chris, at Dragon Con. Last year he brought his girlfriend Brittany to Dragon Con and introduced her to the weird internet people he knew. She is incredible.

Here are a few of their costumes from Otakon 2009. First up they’ve dressed as characters from Bleach. Chris is Kurosaki Ichigo in his bankai Hollow form. Brittany had fun spraying the color on his hair. Next is Brittany as Neriell tu Oderschvank. She drew the pattern, made the costume, and sculpted the mask. Chris painted the symbol on her back. Teamwork! More costumes after the jump

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