Cape Coral gets its own comic con with SWFL SpaceCon
For years, SWFL SpaceCon has been a strictly Fort Myers phenomenon.
Not anymore.
For the first time ever, the comic, anime and pop-culture convention will land in Cape Coral this Saturday. And it’s bringing along lots of comic books, cosplayers and celebrity guests, too.
“It’s definitely the first comic-book convention that I know of in Cape Coral,” says Michelle Wassall of event organizers Nexus9 LLC.
Here’s everything you need to know about the annual event, including ticket prices, cosplay contests, gaming events and celebrity guests.
When and where is SWFL SpaceCon?
SpaceCon moves this year to a brand-new venue: The German American Social Club, 2101 S.W. Pine Island Road, Cape Coral. It takes place 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, June 10.
How much are SpaceCon tickets?
Tickets are $12 in advance, or $15 at the door ($12 at the door for those in costume). They’re free for kids under age 12 with each paid adult admission, and $5 for each additional kid.
Parking is free. Q&A sessions, drop-in games and most other events are free with admission.
Why did SpaceCon move to Cape Coral?
SpaceCon has bounced around various locations in Lee County since starting in 2017, including Lee Civic Center, Araba Shriners Hall and (last year) Caloosa Sound Convention Center.
But Caloosa Sound was too pricey for a modest event like SpaceCon, Wassall says. And Araba Shriners Hall − the most consistently used venue for SpaceCon ― has been sold. The new owners plan to demolish it and turn the property into an apartment complex.
“That was a big hit not only for us but for a lot of events in the community,” Wassall says. “Because that was a really good venue for affordably-priced events.”
That’s when they started looking elsewhere and found the German American Social Club in Cape Coral, she says. “Size-wise and affordability-wise, we found this to be the best fit for us at this time.”
Wassall also loves the fact that Cape Coral has a population of more than 200,000 people ― including many families with children ― and two popular comic-book/pop-culture stores: JP Sports and Cool Comics and Games. Both of those businesses will be appearing at SpaceCon, she says.
Another bonus : On-site and free parking at the German American Social Club ― something Caloosa Sound doesn’t offer. That means they can have food trucks outside, “celebrity” show vehicles and more.
Who are the celebrity guests?
This year’s celebrity guests boasts comic-book artists, actors and more. The lineup includes:
Hollywood stuntman and tabletop game creator Brett Heneise, who did stuntwork for “V.R. Troopers,” “Star Trek Deep Space 9,” “Star Trek Voyager,” and also created the War-style card game “The Realms of Mindrin Wars."
Actor Ellie Darcey-Alden, best known as young Lily Evans in the movie “Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows: Part 2” and Francesca "Franny" Latimer in the Doctor Who TV Christmas special "The Snowmen."
Voice actor D.C. Douglas, whose anime roles include Yoshikage Kira in “JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Diamond Is Unbreakable,” Wooden Sword Ryu in “Shaman King" and Praetorian in “Super Crooks." He also played Albert Wesker in the Resident Evil video games.
Comic book artist Peterson Oliveira, creator of “The Angel of Sadhill” and artist for DC’s “DC Power” and “The Milestone Initiative” anthologies.
And voice actor Ogie Banks, whose animated TV show roles include Clawd Wolf in “Monster High” and superheroes Luke Cage and Miles Morales in “Ultimate Spider-Man.”
Previously scheduled guests Rags Morales and Hailey Renee Brown have dropped out due to a death in the family, according to the SWFL Spacecon website.
Will there be cosplay?
There's always cosplay at SWFL SpaceCon!
As with most comic conventions, people will dress up as various superheroes and fantasy characters. This year’s event features both amateur cosplayers and cosplay guests — professional cosplayers who are either paid or get incentives to attend cons.
“We’re going to have a lot of cool cosplay guests,” Wassall says. “I really look forward to seeing the costumes each year and seeing what all the people come up with.”
That includes members of new local Ghostbusters cosplay group SWFL Ghost Corps, who are bringing their replica of Ghostbusters vehicle Ecto-1 (also known as The Ectomobile).
The kids and teens cosplay contest starts at 4:30 p.m. Saturday, followed by the adult contest at about 5 p.m. Costume contest prizes are still to be determined, Wassall says.
What else is happening?
The vendor hall will be open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday. It will be packed with comic books, action figures, movies, T-shirts and other nerdy fun.
There will also be drop-in video gaming and board games, Q&A sessions with the celebrity guests, classes on costume building and armor making, game demos, game tournaments, autograph sessions, show cars, trivia, a theme-song guessing game and more.
How can you learn more about SWFL SpaceCon?
For a full schedule and more information, visit swflspacecon.com or facebook.com/SWFLSpaceCon.
— Connect with this reporter: Charles Runnells is an arts and entertainment reporter for The News-Press and the Naples Daily News. For news tips or other entertainment-related matters, call him at 239-335-0368 (for tickets to shows, call the venue) or email him at crunnells@gannett.com. You can also connect with him on Facebook (facebook.com/charles.runnells.7), Twitter (@charlesrunnells) and Instagram (@crunnells1).
This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: SWFL SpaceCon in Cape Coral: Comic con lands at German American club
