I remember, if you will...the dark ages of the horror genre. When any television show that brought forth nightmares and monsters aired at the latest possible time that it could and only lasted a season or two at a time simply because the interest was never there outside of a handful of fans.

We all know that the times have changed when it comes to that, since The Walking Dead has become one of the biggest shows on the planet and plenty more horror is starting to pop up in our prime time programming, but what I never realized, is how big of a genre horror has now become and how along the way the need to be scared and the fun that comes with it has given the genre a life it has never known, until Walker Stalker Con that is.

This awesome convention, one that travels from city to city to celebrate the wonder of the living dead and all things horror, made its way to the Mile High City this past weekend and having never attended it before, I have to say that I was blown away by it. For starters, I've never seen such an incredible gathering of cast members from The Walking Dead, but more importantly, I've never seen the zombie genre or the horror genre celebrated quite like this. It was amazing to watch people jumping up and down in line to meet their favorite stars from the show, and every single smile that went into a selfie with Michael Cudlitz or Josh McDermitt went from ear to ear. But what truly surprised me most...was how many families I saw in attendance.

Everywhere you went, there were generations of horror and zombie fans to be found. I saw little kids dressed like Freddy Krueger waiting in line with wide eyes to meet Robert Englund himself. I saw families dressed up like walkers roving about to stop for pictures and see the sights and well...the images blew me away. For a genre that was once relegated to the midnight hour to be forgotten because it was deemed to be only for a niche audience, how far we have come. Horror has finally become a true staple of mainstream pop culture and judging from how long those lines went outside the National Western Complex and from within the con itself, it's not going anywhere any time soon.

Much of that is courtesy of Walker Stalker Con itself. Sure, you'll find Walking Dead guests at conventions all around the country, but to have this many under one roof, all ready to greet their fans and say hello changes things, especially when they are this accessible to everyone in attendance. After all I had the chance to shake hands with Judith O'Dea and Russ Streiner from Night of the Living Dead and I even got to pose for a picture with Eugene Clark from Land of the Dead, all included in the price of the autograph I picked up from him and that's what makes Walker Stalker so incredibly special. It removes the mythos of horror, the stigma that the actors are tied to their characters and allows the fans to see them for the great people they are. Because of that it makes Walker Stalker Con a can't miss event, and I certainly hope they swing back through Denver and allow us to celebrate the wonder of pop culture's hottest new genre once again.

Going to Walker Stalker this year, I had no idea what to expect since it is the first time Denver has hosted this event.  The one thing that I can say for sure is that this event is made up strictly for the fans, but not just for The Walking Dead, but for the people that love a little bit of horror in their lives.  With many cast members from The Walking Dead, you also had guest members from the Nightmare on Elm Street movies, Z Nation and then a couple outliers from Comic Book Men and Night of the Living Dead show up to greet their legions of fans.

Since I am an old school zombie fan, I was happy to see that a couple of the stars that had an integral part of bringing zombies mainstream were in attendance. Judith O’Dea and Russ Streiner helped to pioneer the zombie movement in George A. Romero’s original Night of the Living dead.  I must admit that I was blown away to see these two icons in attendance since there are not many people left from the movie that shocked the world.

There is no way to even guess which of these two actors I was more excited to meet since they both hold a special place in my heart. Russ is a very nice gentleman and happy to talk to you about anything that you want to hear, but one of his favorite stories to tell about making Night of the Living Dead is how he had to fight to keep his driving gloves on, for no other reason to give Johnny some sort of feature so that when he returned on the screen to eat his sister, everybody would know who he was. Then meeting Judith, well, what can I say, she is just a beautiful woman inside and out.  With more talk about the classic movie, we really hit it off in talking about the Music Box scene and how she was really surprised when the box opened up.  This scene holds more of a personal tie to me, not only because of the unknown around the house, but my grandmother had the exact same box that I would play with growing up for no other reason than it being something completely different than anything I have ever seen. Sometimes movies are able to connect with you on another level and this one, even though it is a classic zombie uprising tale, it just helps me remember my past on so many levels.

The biggest surprise I think at Walker Stalker was the appearance of Eugene Clark, ‘Big Daddy’ from George A. Romero’s Land of the Dead.  Being a vendor at the show and not a special guest, Eugene had one of the busiest booths on the floor, especially when people saw who he was.  I was happy enough to see him when the rest of the group was buying Pop figures, and I must admit for his size, he is not really a frightening man.  Running his own production company, Eugene does a ton of work for charities and will occasionally sing if requested.  I would have never guessed this from seeing him as one of the biggest and baddest zombies in the Romero Dead series, but I don’t think that there could have been a better actor to fill the role.  Being the first zombie to show consistent compassion, I can see how he was able to land the role after talking to him for a couple seconds about what he does in his free time.  He is also a stand-up comedian, which is why I think it is so easy to talk to him without feeling out of place.  If you ever get a chance, this is a person to meet that you need to add to your bucket list, he is one of a kind.

Since this is primarily a Walking Dead convention, I could not leave without talking to someone that is a little bit closer to the series, but not as an actor, but as a writer.  Jay Bonansinga was in attendance and if you don’t know the name, don’t worry, you will.  Jay is a writer that has helped bring The Walking Dead to novel form.  I never hold back on my love for writers and Jay did a great job in giving you the backstory on the man you love to hate with the Governor, and The Rise of the Governor and Fall of the Governor are two of my favorite zombie stories and he is even able to integrate some of your favorite characters from the show into the story.  But his work does not stop there as he has also completed his Ulysses Grove series and several stand-alone novels, one which I had to pick up called Self Storage.  No zombies in this one, just psychological thriller stuff that might or might not be supernatural related.  I cannot wait to jump into this one.
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I had my list of people that I wanted to meet and talk to this year and Walker Stalker was able to make that dream come true for me.  I am sure if you have friends that attended this event, you will see their Facebook pages blowing up with pictures of themselves with their favorite actors from the series, I know that I am seeing a ton of them.  Like I said, this is truly an event for the fans of the genre, putting all of your favorite characters in a massive venue and allowing them to go buck wild with autographs and selfies, it really is a dream come true for so many fans.  I hope to see Walker Stalker come back to Denver again in the future, it is really fun for the entire family.  

It's funny when you think about just how far the zombie genre has come in the past twenty years or so. If you go back in time to the late 1990's, it was all but forgotten. The living dead were just another footnote in horror trivia and men like George A. Romero were just noted as quality filmmakers in a genre that seemed to be ready to fade away into history.

But then something magical happened. In 2002, 28 Days Later hit the big screen and the zombie suddenly found new life at the box office. Fast forward to present day and it's a wonderful time to be a fan of the living dead. They dominate the ratings in AMC's The Walking Dead, George Romero is a household name and the need to consume all things zombie has grown to the point where it has spawned it's own con by way of Walker Stalker Convention.  

Now this brief lesson in zombie history is important for a particular reason. While I was already incredibly excited to go to Walker Stalker Con tomorrow here in Denver, my close friend Scotty pointed out something to me about the con this weekend that not only put a giant smile on my face, but helped WSC earn extra points in my mind as well when I learned that Russ Streiner and Judith O'Dea from Night of the Living Dead (1968) were coming to the convention as well, because this is quite frankly a huge deal.

For starters it shows that the folks behind the scenes at Walker Stalker have a deep respect for the zombie genre as a whole because Russ and Judith are well...icons from a film that more or less changed the landscape of the genre. These two actors were the first to encounter the modern zombie if you will, and their fine work in selling the terror of the moment helped draw us in to a new era of zombie storytelling and the rest as they say is history. But how cool is it that WSC is bringing these two horror legends to Denver to celebrate a weekend of all things living dead? 

It speaks to the fact that this is a show for the fans, by the fans and now I'm scrambling to decide what NOTLD collectible I'm bringing along to have these two zombie pioneers sign. Either way, it's going to be an incredible Saturday and Sunday, one filled with childhood memories of the first time we fell in love with the living dead and new ones we will forge with our friends and I can't wait to see all of you at the National Western Complex tomorrow for this unique and wonderful convention.

Within every single one of us, there is a passion that drives us in ways we never thought possible. It keeps us up late at night. It consumes our spare time and we love every single second of it. Our passions define us and we wouldn't trade them for anything in the world because of the happiness and joy they bring to our lives. 

Not that long ago, passions and the talent that comes from within often times remained hidden from the world. Networking and the internet simply weren't a thing, but as the years have progressed the web has helped people find new ways to get their work out to the masses and build a fan base and thanks to Charlie LaGreca and Frank Romero, two of the original founders of Denver Comic Con; they have found a way to give passionate artists that work tirelessly to bring their work to life a convention of their own to put their incredible art on display and in the process, help a new audience discover their fine work and give fans that already love them a chance to say hello with DINK Comic and Art Expo.

This two day event kicked off on Friday and turned out to be a true celebration of art and I had the opportunity to attend this inaugural session of DINK and I have to say...it was an impressive sight to see. For starters, the venue, the Sherman Event Center was the perfect place for an event such as this since it provided a homely and comfortable feel for both the fans and the artists present and that was the best part of the whole thing...the fact that they managed to pack in artist after artist in impressive fashion because the main floor was loaded to the brim with talent.

There was something for everyone on the floor and it was great to see and say hello to many of the artists we here on the site have come to know over the years. Robin Childs, the creator of Ley Lines had a line of fans at her table every time I walked by and I was able to pick up a copy of Teenage Love Zombies from Kevin Gentilcore's table that I've had my eye on for a while, and talk with him for a bit about his work among other things as well. But my haul and experience paled in comparison to the people I saw wandering about the convention. I took a lot of time to people watch and all I saw on the faces of both the artist and the attendees was joy, and why wouldn't there be?

The artists were getting an incredible amount of face time with fans that follow their work on social media or their respective sites and at the same time they managed to draw new fans into the fold as well. But the best part of this event was the fact that everywhere attendees turned there was something either familiar or new to see and I loved watching people go from table to table with a smile on their face as they found something to catch their eye. Either way, this is one of the coolest new conventions I've been to in years, and I cannot wait to see how much DINK grows in year two because to give artists who work tirelessly to get their passion out to the masses is a wonderful cause for celebration because in its own special way, DINK is making dreams come true.

There's a lot of reasons as to why we love Denver Comic Con. If you're from Colorado, you're proud of the fact this is a home grown convention. Or maybe you're all about the awesome guests that attend year after year. But for me, there's one big reason I love this convention over any others out there...the fact that they legitimately care about the people who take the time to attend the con and give back to the community that they serve.

After all, Pop Culture Classroom is an amazing program and having seen it in action, up close and personal, it allows me to take great pride in knowing one of the largest conventions around makes the world a better place and gives children a chance to succeed in life by teaching them important skills in reading and writing, and it is perhaps the best way to quantify how DCC and PCC take care of the community that has embraced them over the last five years.

But Pop Culture Classroom's initiatives and programs are just the beginning. Denver Comic Con wants to be remembered as a convention that instantly makes you think about unity and diversity because pop culture knows no bounds and it doesn't matter where you come from, who you love or what you look like, this is a place for you to celebrate your favorite fandom with others who enjoy it as much as you do and that push is how they demonstrate that attendees matter and this year they have taken it to a whole new level by announcing a partnership with Denver PrideFest. 

This year Denver Comic Con will celebrate diversity and welcome the start of PrideFest Weekend by featuring LGBTQ programming on Friday, June 17. There will be panels that include topics on how we can add diversity to comics, science fiction and fantasy along with a discussion as to how young adult literature with queer themes can disrupt norms, and it doesn't end there. Because on Sunday, June 19 from 4-5 p.m. in the Bellco Theatre, DCC will play host to a group wedding ceremony where couples both gay and straight are welcome, in their finest cosplay of course, to be wed in the geekiest of fashion.  

There will be geek themed wedding vows on display, along with live music of course and any DCC guest with a valid Sunday badge will be allowed to attend. If you and your significant other wish to take part in this unique and lovely ceremony, head over to this registration form at the DCC website and apply before April 22nd, and the best part is...there are no fees associated with any of this. Either way, this inaugural event is truly something to behold because it continues to demonstrate how Denver Comic Con is committed to unity, diversity and the wonder that is humanity with this celebration of love.

John Barrowman
The first actor that DCC announced today that has myself and a bevy of other fans as happy as can be is a man that can be considered a modern legend of the small screen, John Barrowman.  John is of course best know for his work in the Doctor Who-niverse as Captain Jack Harness, a character that Whovians around the world adore to this day. 

He reprised the role for Torchwood and grew the mythos further in the process and these days John appears as Malcolm Merlyn on Arrow and he is truly the epitome of what I described earlier. An actor with instant presence and the kind you follow from show to show simply because he oozes talent. Heck I even found myself geeking out over the fact he popped up briefly in Zero Dark Thirty. Either way, he is an incredible addition to the already growing list of Doctor Who guests attending the Con this summer.

Camren Bicondova
The other actor that DCC announced today, is the ultra talented Camren Bicondova. It's been nothing but praise from the fans for Camren since she made her first appearance on the show as Selina Kyle/Catwoman and it's safe to say many of us tune into the series to see more of the incredible dynamic she and David Mazouz (Bruce Wayne) share on the screen. She will join Robin Lord Taylor and Sean Pertwee on the stage for what is shaping up to be quite the Gotham panel.

Regardless, the list of incredible names just keeps growing and growing for Denver Comic Con 2016 and if you haven't picked up your tickets, please do so now from the DCC website and we will see all of you at Colorado Convention Center in June! 

The last time we all gathered around Denver Comic Con's website to learn more about another quality guest coming to the Mile High City, we took a little time to discuss how some actors are able to pull off the impossible and garner the love of fans everywhere when they take over an iconic role and give it the respect that it is due.

But believe it or not, there is a class of actor out there that can actually one up their fellow thespians. These are the kind of actors that can not only do an iconic role justice...but they actually manage to make people forget about the original actor that brought the role to life and supplant them as the only person that comes to mind when you say the character's name.

It's rare that you see this happen, extremely rare in fact but in recent years, one talented lady has pulled this off, Katee Sackhoff. I distinctly recall the flak in the press when she took over the role of Starbuck in the 2003 reboot of Battlestar Galactica, and I distinctly recall when the critics were silenced by her powerhouse performance of this flawed character and by the time the series ended, the only person that comes to mind when you say or think of Starbuck is Katee. 

Of course her career has spanned beyond BSG, with feature roles in the sci fi epic Riddick and the horror film Oculus, along with a ton of voice acting work on shows like Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Robot Chicken, and she currently plays Victoria "Vic" Moretti on the well loved show Longmire. But what matters most...is that Katee is coming to Denver Comic Con 2016. That's right, DCC has added another top notch fan favorite to the 2016 lineup and seeing as to how I am a huge fan of Battlestar Galactica, this is an announcement that brings a big smile to my face. 

So to see what Katee has to say in her panel and to snag an autograph and say hello, get your tickets at the Denver Comic Con website today and I'll see you at Starbuck's line in a couple of months. 

It's a long list of reasons that goes into why we love our favorite comic books. For some folks it's the character and all the things that they can do or what they stand for. For others it's the storylines, ones so rich and powerful that you simply cannot put the book down, and for others...it's all about the art.

When you really think about it, the art is truly the key to any comic book. Superman's adventures mean nothing without being able to see him soar through the air and the Batman is nothing if we can't see how his incredible gadgets work and all of that is courtesy of the many artists that put in endless time and effort to create these characters and there are many artists out there who have been recognized over the years for their outstanding work.

But for every George Perez and Neal Adams, there are plenty of artists trying to reach their level and often times they find themselves living a "double life" as an artist. They have a day job to pay their bills and work on their art at night and there's nothing wrong with that. They love what they do and well...it's high time they enjoyed a little appreciation of their own and that's why DINK has come into existence. 

DINK, also known as the Denver Independent Comic and Art Expo, is a celebration of the artist working in the trenches. These are the folks that have their own vision and in some cases their own comic books and their work will be on display on March 25-26 at the Sherman Street Event Center for all to see and I for one, think this is a fantastic idea. How awesome is it that artists who spend hours on end promoting their work on the web to make their passion into a career finally get their own convention to highlight everything that they do? 

It's incredible to say the least and this brain child of Denver Comic Con founders ​Charlie LaGreca and Frank Romero is already shaping up to be a can't miss event. You'll find awesome independents like Kevin Gentilcore and his company Creephouse Comics at the event or artists that work in both the independent and mainstream market like Amy Reeder on hand as well and that's just scratching the surface of an impressive guest list assembling at the end of the month. Either way, this is an event we cannot wait to attend, simply because it is so incredibly unique and because this convention benefits charity as well, since part of the proceeds from DINK will help in the creation of a one week youth camp to help out inner city youth. Either way, get your tickets today at the DINK Webpage and we will see you at the Sherman Street Event Center for a celebration of creativity. 

There are some actors out there who have done such a fine job with their respective role that when you hear their character's name, they are the first person you think of. Case in point, the name James Tiberius Kirk instantly reminds you of William Shatner, and all the magic that came with his portrayal of this iconic Captain of the Enterprise.

I make mention of this because that kind of brand recognition if you will makes it extremely difficult for the next actor to fill their shoes. We've seen it time and time again when a reboot or remake comes around and we carefully judge the new actor taking on that character's persona. Sometimes they royally mess it up, but often times they are adequate but we always say that so and so is or was better.

Then once in a great while an actor comes along that manages to do something incredible with the role. They not only do such a fine job of giving the character new life, but they are able to channel everything you love about the original performance as well, and that's the kind of work that Karl Urban has pulled off in his portrayal of Dr. Leonard McCoy. Not only has he managed to update the role, but there are moments that Karl has actually managed to channel DeForest Kelley on screen.

In fact, throughout his career, Karl has been nothing short of a chameleon, and for further evidence of this, look no further than his work in Dredd. As the iconic Judge, Karl not only gave the fans what they wanted by never removing the helmet once on screen, but he gave a tough character that is well regarded for lacking emotion and depth just that and there's not a person that saw that film that wasn't rooting for Dredd to succeed in saving the day at Peach Trees. So why is all of this important? Because we've established that Denver Comic Con is all about bringing in some top notch actors and it was announced today that Karl will be joining us in the Mile High City for Denver Comic Con 2016.

I have to say this is another announcement that I am ecstatic over. The two roles that I just made mention of have made me a big time of fan of Karl's work, to the point where I find myself watching just about anything he stars in to see how he will lose himself in the role for that particular tale. Of course an announcement this epic means everyone needs to get their tickets as soon as possible and I look forward to meeting Karl come Father's Day Weekend.