Comic-Con is really about community

When religious protestors showed up at Comic-Con, attendees responded with absurd signs. Photo: Liz Ohanesian for LA Weekly.

Liz Ohanesian, a writer who covers fan subcultures and comics, anime, and music conventions, has a thoughtful essay about Comic-Con in this week's LA Weekly. She ran into those same street preachers Rob wrote about here on Boing Boing earlier; the nerd crowd's reaction is part of why we love, and need, events like this.

Usually I try to ignore the people with the fire-and-brimstone signs. If world history has taught us anything, it's that religious arguments don't end with a cordial handshake. On Sunday, though, I was stuck on a corner across from the San Diego Convention Center just a few feet away from a guy with a megaphone. He was going on about "darkness," which I humbly submit isn't a bad thing, but we can talk about that later. I started grumbling to myself. Some others in the crowd challenged him loudly. The guy with the megaphone turned to one and lashed out with some insults. Then, in the back of this tightly packed crowd, a man started singing "Joy to the World," the Three Dog Night song that begins with "Jeremiah was a bullfrog." By the time he reached the chorus, the bulk of the convention-goers had joined him in song.

Why Comic-Con Is Really About Community. [LA Weekly]

More of Liz's Comic-Con coverage around the web.