Montgomery comics convention Urban Nerd Con moves to Atlanta
Montgomery's fans of comic books, action figures, movies, games and all kinds of geekery should look on the bright side: You've got plenty of time to work on your next cosplay outfit before a convention rolls back into town.
According to the Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce, there is no plan in place for an upcoming comic book convention in our area.
On the bright side, a convention that has its origins in Montgomery is happening this weekend — just not in Montgomery, or even in Alabama. Urban Nerd Con, which celebrates Black creatives and comics, is being held in Atlanta on Friday-Sunday, July 21-23. Info and tickets are available online at theurbannerdcon.net.
"It's coming along," said Roy M. Evans II, executive director for Urban Nerd Con. "We're dealing with last minute issues and things of that nature."
The convention started in Montgomery in 2022. While open to all fans, it was geared heavily to "Blerds" — Black nerds, which is how Evans previously described himself.
Along with several special guests from TV, film and comics, Evans said this weekend's convention will include a tribute to Montgomery comic book creator Lashawn Colvin, who was one of the Urban Nerd Con's organizers in Montgomery. Colvin, 37, died Oct. 3, 2022, about 3 months after the convention.
"That hurt," Evans said.
Though Montgomery is without a convention for comic geeks, gamers and cosplayers, Evans said that's going to change.
"We actually are working on something still in Montgomery," Evans said. "We're actually working with Alabama State trying to get some things locked in. We definitely will be coming back."
Montgomery's comic conventions gone by
Besides the Urban Nerd Con, much of Montgomery's other comic book gatherings happened prior to the pandemic:
A message on River Region Comic Con's website says that it's closed. The convention was supposed to open in 2020. The pandemic squashed those plans. We may, or may not, get another.
"At this time, we are still not sure," organizers replied to a message from the Advertiser. "It's a lot of work and the city wasn't very helpful. So still thinking about it."
The only recent update on River Region Comic Con's social media account was for an event in March called Hero Con, that was only open to people with access to go into Maxwell Air Force Base.
A separate convention called Sono Con, which previously operated as Gump City Con, had its last convention pre-pandemic in 2019. Sono also shows no sign of returning. It still has a social media account, last updated in 2020, but its website doesn't exist anymore.
There's also the ginormous comic convention that never was.
In 2017, Wizard World Comic Con announced plans for a huge convention in Montgomery. That didn't happen. Plans to come back in 2018 fell through also. Today, Wizard World has been rebranded as FAN EXPO, which also has no apparent plans to come to Montgomery.
Montgomery Advertiser reporter Shannon Heupel covers things to do in the River Region. Contact him at sheupel@gannett.com
This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: After 2022 start in Montgomery, Urban Nerd Con in Atlanta this weekend
