As I type this, the fourth annual Chicago Comic and Entertainment Exposition (“C2E2”) its wrapping up this year’s three-day run, April 26-28, 2013. C2E2 dreams of becoming the Midwest’s answer to the fabled San Diego Comic Con, or any of the large-scale comic-book conventions that all your glamorous coastal cities hold and monopolize to a sickening, sybaritic excess. Not that we easily dismissed, frequently deprived, flyover-state residents are bitter. My wife and I missed the first year, but have attended every year since then. I’m there for the comics; my wife’s there for the entertainment. Our respective hobbyist enthusiasms enable a sort of synchronized synergy so that neither of us is bored all weekend long.

This week I’ll be sharing photographic souvenirs from our C2E2 experience, divided into media categories, to be apportioned and shared as quickly as possible. Many of them are costume pics, but not all of them. Several attendees may find themselves strolling through backgrounds as living, walking, oblivious Easter Eggs.

Four caveats for first-time visitors to Midlife Crisis Crossover:

1. My wife and I are not professional photographers, nor are we worthy of press passes. You’ll notice that right off. These were taken as best as possible with the intent to share with fellow fans out of a sincere appreciation for the works inspired by the heroes, hobbies, artistic expressions, and/or intellectual properties that brought us geeks together under one vaulted roof for the weekend. We all do what we can with the tools and circumstances at hand.

2. Though two of us took the photos, Midlife Crisis Crossover is written and cobbled together by this one old guy, who suffers from the continuing distractions of a full-time job. I plan to post our results as quickly as possible, but they won’t be instant. If any C2E2 attendees out there are searching desperately for pics of themselves or of other specific costumes they saw, I’ll gladly check our files and, if we actually caught you on camera, will cheerfully move you closer to the front of the line, or at least let you know which installment will be yours. We didn’t catch everyone. Despite DC Comics’ insulting expectations to the contrary, McCormick Place is kind of big and was filled with many, many people this weekend. Oversights happen.

3. We didn’t attend Sunday. Sincere apologies to anyone we missed as a result.

4. Corrections and comments are always welcome. I like learning new things, especially when I’m trying to write about characters and series that are beyond my particular geek foci.

Onward!

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This year C2E2 had a separate costume contest each and every day. Friday’s was a smaller affair, but Saturday’s had a large corporate sponsor, bigger prizes, and (coincidentally?) fancier entries. Winners were selected in five different categories, along with a Grand Prize winner who took home $250.00 in American cash.

The Grand Prize winner: a living embodiment of the TARDIS console. Not quite “The Doctor’s Wife”, but circuit boards and working LEDs served as fascinating accessories.

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