You never quite forget the experience of your first convention and with good reason. After all, you had no clue what to expect from that con, which means that your stomach was filled with butterflies as you stepped through those doors before relief washed over you when you realized you were in the right place once you laid eyes upon costumes and elements from your favorite fandom. Such a spectacular moment truly meant that you belonged and the awe and wonder that comes with such a realization…is near impossible to ever experience a second time around.
 
Because the familiarity that comes with conventions settles in when you attend your second, or third one. You know what to seek out and what to expect when you walk through those doors, and you simply settle in to a routine and go about your personalized experience. Which is why it is so supremely important to talk about conventions that manage to find a way to leave us breathless and surprise us and believe it or not, I managed to attend a con this past weekend that not only stunned me with its sheer awesomeness, but it did the impossible and replicated that sense of awe and wonder I remember from so many years ago, and the con in question that accomplished such a feat, is Fort Collins Comic Con.
 
Now how FCCC pulled off such a feat is equally as impressive in that, there we no gimmicks to be found at this con, nor did it reinvent the proverbial convention wheel. Simply put, Fort Collins Comic Con took its fans back to basics, by providing an absolutely fun experience for the ages. Now, this was my first time attending FCCC and walking up the Aztlan Center and seeing how intimate a setting it was going to provide evoked something within, that sense of awe of wonder that I made mention of. Because I had no idea what to expect, and the memories and emotions of that first con I ever attended washed over me in an instant and that was only further enhanced when I walked through the doors.

Because within the walls of the Aztlan Center, was a sight to behold. There were people everywhere. The main lobby was packed to the brim with attendees, all of them smiling wide as they headed toward the main floor and the joy painted on their faces didn’t stop once they crossed that threshold. Because in addition to the wall to wall crowds present in the main room, smiles were to be found on everyone’s faces. Vendors, attendees, cosplayers and myself for that matter seemingly had a grin plastered on our mugs over the fact that this convention only wanted everyone to have a good time and indulge their nerdy side to the fullest and we were certainly more than happy to accomplish that.
 
Not to mention the fact that I cannot recall the last time I’ve been to a convention where I saw every single booth be as busy as can be, and if by chance the folks at that booth weren’t busy, they only needed to wait a minute before fans of all ages stopped by to chat with the artist or the vendor and make a purchase at their table or booth. That was, in fact, another thing that struck me by surprise…the sheer accessibility of everyone at their tables. It became obvious early on for me that FCCC wanted to give the fans the opportunity to really take the time to talk with the people at these tables and by encouraging that in the first place, fans were able to discuss anything and everything with the artists, and I even had the opportunity to do that myself and it was refreshing to not feel rushed in my conversation and really be able to take the time to get to know the folks showcasing their creations.
 
But really, what impressed me most about this convention, was the sense of family that it exuded. Not only did I see families in cosplay everywhere, enjoying this con with glee…I also felt like I belonged there and that’s what matters most, that we feel like we aren’t just among friends, but our own nerdy extended family and it is for that reason, along with the many others that I have made mention of today, that I will definitely attend this convention next year. Fort Collins Comic Con truly understands the core elements of what makes a con worthwhile and I cannot wait to experience that sense of awe once again, all while taking in the other wonders that this convention has in store for us. 

The Colorado Symphony Presents: Wonder Women - Symphonic Music’s Pop Culture Heroines
Saturday 10:30AM - 11:20AM Gotham City Room - Mile High Ballroom DCCP5
Catherine Beeson, Shari Myers, Matt Krupa, Danielle Guideri, Carolyn Kunicki, Tristan Rennie.
 
Join members of the Colorado Symphony as they explore and discuss how strong female characters in film are represented in both story and music.

Catherine Beeson, who led the panel, wanted to show the progression of musical themes written for strong female characters, and how they evolved into the current Wonder Woman theme in the DC Cinematic Universe. It began with Wagner’s Ring (not Tolkien’s Ring, Precious), and his character Brunhilde, a Valkyrie (not to be confused with the Marvel character...then again, it’s all the same basic mythology) from his opera cycle ‘The Ring of the Nibelung.’ Probably the most familiar music associated with her is the ‘Ride of the Valkyrie’ (which was used in the film Apocalypse Now), which Tristan performed on bassoon for us. Another musical signature for Brunhilde is her battle cry ‘Ho-yo-to-ho!,’ which, though it sounds very different, connects to another strong female character: Xena, the Warrior Princess. Xena’s battle cry (demonstrated by audience members who were familiar with it, for those of us who weren’t), is meant to strike fear in the hearts of her enemies.
 
One of the biggest contributions of Wagner (seen here, holding a dragon), is the use of a theme or motive called a leitmotif, which usually references a specific character, item, idea, place, etc. and helps to musically guide us through the story. This was originally used in opera, but is also very common in film scores. Probably the best-known film composer to use leitmotifs is John Williams. An example, performed on cello by Danielle Guideri, is Leia’s Theme, which has a ‘searching’ quality, that doesn’t really find a resolution. Rey’s Theme, performed beautifully by Catherine on viola, has a very different ‘musical grammar’ which captures the qualities of her character. She is alone almost all of the time and she is not heroic, but we have empathy for her. She isn’t searching the way Leia is; instead, Rey is surer of herself and accepting of what her situation is. It starts off jaunty, but becomes very expansive, just like her journey. One of the advantages of using leitmotifs is that the composer can layer the different melodies associated with a specific character on top of each other in counterpoint, so that different aspects of their personality can be expressed simultaneously. This was demonstrated when Catherine, Danielle, and Tristan performed a later part of Rey’s Theme on viola, cello, and bassoon.
 
It was pointed out that one big distinction with the music for Marvel’s movies is that the studio allows the scores to be genre driven, meaning, Captain America: The First Avenger is a World War II film, so it is scored similarly to other WWII films, Thor is a space/alien/Norse/fantasy (?) so it is scored like other films in that genre, etc. This is opposed to the DC Cinematic Universe where all of the music seems to match and be very much part of the same world. Jessica Jones is a private detective, so her show is scored in a typical Film Noir Jazz style, but as we learn more about her dry humor, wit, and hard edge, the music moves to heavy rock with the addition of guitar.
 
Moving to another strong, female lead, we next discussed the main theme of Game of Thrones with its driving 3-beat rhythm (Dee Daa Dada, Dee Daa Dada, ...). The composer, Ramin Djawadi ‘quotes himself’ by taking material to make other themes (even the melody is based on the opening rhythmic figure). The music often used for Daenerys (or as Matt reminded us: ‘Daenerys Stormborn of the House Targaryen, First of Her Name, the Unburnt, Queen of the Andals and the First Men, Khaleesi of the Great Grass Sea, Breaker of Chains, and Mother of Dragons’) is based on the opening theme music, but it is slower and broader, and builds over time to seem unstoppable. Combined with a slow version of the melody over it, it creates a sense of, as it was said during the panel, ‘She’s comin’ for ya’.
 
Finally, we arrived at the core of the panel: the music for Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman. We first hear her new theme in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, during the battle with Doomsday. Hans Zimmer wanted a more feminine theme for Wonder Woman, but one that was also a warrior’s battle cry. Zimmer worked with electric cellist Tina Guo to come up with a theme that sounded like a ‘banshee wail.’ Catherine drew the connection from Brunhilde’s ‘Ho-yo-to-ho!’, and Xena’s battle cry, to Wonder Woman’s electric cello theme. This melody is accompanied by drums that are reminiscent of a 7-beat rhythm that you might hear in Balkan folk music. The drums are playing on all seven beats, but accenting beats 1, 3, 5, and 7 (1 2 3 4 5 6 7 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 etc., which Catherine had us clap so that we could really experience the rhythm). While Hans Zimmer composed that memorable theme for Wonder Woman, it was actually Rupert Gregson-Williams who composed the score for Wonder Woman’s solo film. Since the film told her origin story, and how she became the warrior we know, he composed another theme that expressed the hope, peace, and kindness of her character at the beginning of the film. This theme ‘reaches upward’ to show Diana’s optimism about the world and how good it could be. He does eventually use the theme from BvS, once Wonder Woman is in full ass-kicking mode, but then quickly drops the electric cello, continues with the drums, and adds the rest of the orchestra to arrive at a more full, ‘cinematic action’ treatment.
 
Oh, and the presentation ended with a picture of Bugs Bunny Brunhilde.
 
Next: Colorado Film School.

​It’s truly quite incredible how big the convention scene has become over the past few years. Everywhere you look, there seems to be a con that caters to just about any fandom you can think of and the real beauty of seeing convention after convention pop up is the sheer fact that it gives us all more opportunities to hang out with our fellow nerds and geeks and bask in all the wonderful fandoms that bring us joy.
 
However, with so many cons at our fingertips, fans tend to be a touch more selective as to which ones they would like to attend and often times, that means picking up a ticket to the big-name cons for the sake of sheer convenience, but that can have it drawbacks. Sometimes it’s simply too busy, or the con is 100% concerned with being a business over anything else and when you don’t feel as though your dollars matter, or you can’t find a good personal tie to said con, it makes for a mediocre or poor experience.
 
Thankfully, there are still cons that believe in interaction and community and that family feel and one such con that has my attention when it comes to this, is Fort Collins Comic Con. Now, I will fully admit that I have yet to attend this con, something I’ll be changing this weekend, but people love to discuss their experiences at a particular convention and what has me piqued about attending this one, is all the feedback I’ve received about how inclusive this con is and how much fun it is every single year.
 
In fact, everything I’ve seen when it comes to this con, screams ‘geeks are family’. Take the activities scheduled for example. Between live music and a cosplay catwalk, to a Ghostbusters Training Camp for the kids and a Nerd Prom for teens, it truly seems as though Fort Collins Comic Con has something to offer everyone and it doesn’t end there, because their guest list is pretty impressive as well. You’ll find a bevy of comic book artists at this con, such as Peter Krause, Jolyon Yates, Zach Howard, Ron Fortier, Lee Oaks and Mike Baron. Plus, you’ll be able to interact with some folks from the animation business such as, Victor Cook, Greg Guler and Michael Toth and there’s even a television writer in attendance this year since Kevin Hopps will be at the con.
 
As an added bonus, the show will also have a doctor in the house since Erica Macdonald, Phd, who has traveled the world to educate people on space science in popular culture and science fiction will also be in attendance. It’s a wonderfully diverse group of guests and it reinforces inclusivity for geeks from all fandoms and in the end, the impression that I’m getting when it comes to this con, is that it is all about a relaxed experience. Between the layout and everything we’ve talked about today, it really feels as though Fort Collins Comic Con is the kind of event where you can chat it up with the artists and the guests in a comfortable environment, giving us everything we love about conventions…all while making us feel like we matter. FCCC kicks off Saturday, 10 a.m. at the Aztlan Center in Fort Collins, Colorado, and I look forward to seeing everyone there. 

Shakespearean Wars in the Stars
Friday 7:00PM - 7:50PM Room 505 - Reel Heroes Film Series
​Ernie Quiroz, Stacy Quiroz, Neil Truglio, Derek Nason, Andy Ray, Nicolas Horn, Dan O’Neil, Parker Jenkins, Chantelle Frazier.

With a beginning like “A Long Time Ago, in a Galaxy Far, Far Away”, it feels like our favorite film franchise could have been written by The Bard. Join the Denver Film Society as we see what ‘Star Wars’ could have looked like on a stage with actors taking inspiration from arguably the world’s greatest playwright.

On the Friday night of Denver Comic Con weekend, members of the Denver Film Society performed a reading of the book 'William Shakespeare's Star Wars: Verily, a New Hope' by Ian Doescher (which is a retelling of ‘A New Hope’ as if Shakespeare had written it). They began by recruiting some audience members for a few key roles, including Greedo (which I was NOT selected for, unfortunately), and the audience as a whole was instructed to be the voice of Chewbacca. They also explained that, in keeping with the tradition of the times, there were only male actors...which meant that Princess Leia was going to be played by a man. With only a handful of actors, that meant that each one would play multiple roles. There was also a soundtrack provided in the form of the original score being played on vinyl.

Shortly after the show began, they revealed an added layer to their performance: their use of props. They had toy laser guns for the sounds of blasters, and when Darth Vader first spoke, his deep robotic voice was enhanced by a megaphone with voice modulating effects. Similar effects were also used when any of the Stormtroopers spoke and also when anyone use a communicator, Luke calling C-3PO when he was in the trash compactor, X-Wing pilots, etc..
 
All of the voice acting was top-notch. The (male) actor voicing Princess Leia used a beautiful, yet authoritative falsetto, while the actor playing R2-D2 whistled all of his lines (and at one point stood up exasperated and made a comic outburst about being a trained actor who was only getting to whistle). Luke was appropriately whiney, and the actor who played C-3PO captured his soft-spoken, articulate voice perfectly. Obi-Wan Kenobi announced his appearance when the actor playing him comically tossed his hood up over his head… and half of his face.
 
In the Mos Eisley Cantina scene, we met Han Solo, and the audience had our collective-voice-acting debut as Chewbacca. After Luke and Obi-Wan left, the chosen audience member came up to a mic to deliver all of Greedo’s alien dialogue. When Han shot Greedo (first), it signaled the end of the Cantina scene. This ‘should’ have been followed by the deleted-then-re-inserted scene with Jabba the Hutt talking to Han outside the Millennium Falcon, but as the actor playing Jabba the Hutt began to walk on stage, delivering his first line, the cast ‘booed’ him off. The audience laughed, realizing that this was the cast’s way of showing their disapproval of that scene.
 
The next memorable moment was the confrontation between Darth Vader and Obi-Wan Kenobi. The two characters stood up and incorporated a makeshift lightsaber fight across the other seated actors while still delivering Shakespearean dialogue. After Obi-Wan’s death (spoiler alert…), the full cast revealed the mightiest, most impressive of their performance-enhancing props when they performed ‘The Force Theme’…with an orchestra of kazoos.
 
After Obi-Wan’s death scene and the buzzing majesty that followed, it was about 7:45, meaning they technically only had five minutes before the end of the panel. I thought that they were going to end there, but instead, they decided to push through and try to finish in a hurry. It was like watching the rest of Star Wars on fast-forward (or as performed by the Micro Machines Man). They were all still in character, but they were spitting the dialogue as fast as they could. Luke squeezed in one more monologue before heading into the trenches in his X-Wing and destroying the Death Star. Their performance concluded with a return of the kazoo orchestra to perform the ‘Throne Room Them’ for the award ceremony, and the audience giving one final howl as Chewbacca.

Next: The Music of Wonder Woman (and some other bad-ass women).