The Svengoolie Comic Book and the “Innocence of Seduction!”

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Last weekend, my daughter and I saw the new play, “Innocence of Seduction” courtesy of the talented folks at City Lit Theater. The story revolves around the rise and fall of Horror and Science Fiction Comics back in the ‘50s and the birth of the Comic Book Code. I’m an enormous fan of EC Comics, having a small shrine of masks and reprinted hardcover editions in my apartment. Since  I’ve already discussed EC Comics in this blog (albeit nine years ago), I won’t delve too deeply into their history but, suffice it to say, when I learned of this play courtesy of John Siuntres’ Word Balloon podcast, I knew I had to see it. The timing couldn’t have been better.

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The 2023 Svengoolie/C2E2 Diaries Day 2 – Saturday!

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9:00 am: As soon as I walked onto the train station platform, I was greeted by a woman dressed as Princess Leia on Endor (holding a toddler dressed as an Ewok) and a sixty-something-year-old Brony. Clearly, I wasn’t the only one heading up to the Chicago Comics and Entertainment Expo (C2E2).  I was also happy to see my son’s girlfriend, Rachel, who’d be taking the train a little further than McCormick Place to her job at the John G. Shed aquarium. There’s nothing like good conversation to make a ride go faster.

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The Creative Cosplay of C2E2 2021!

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Holiday cosplayers at the Chicago Comic & Entertainment Expo

The Chicago Comics & Entertainment Expo (C2E2) never disappoints when it comes to cosplay and 2021 was no exception. With the event pushed til December, one thing that set it apart was more holiday-themed costumes.  Despite the limited number of tickets sold, we were couldn’t walk more than a couple feet before stopping to take a photo of one of these creative artists…and, yes, these people are absolutely artists! 

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Chicago Comics & Entertainment Expo (C2E2) vs. 2021!

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Herman and Lily Munster cosplay

The Chicago Comics and Entertainment Expo (C2E2) is one of the few, if not only, major conventions that didn’t skip a year during Covid. As I discussed in my 2020 post, it was the last carefree event I attended before the Pandemic was declared two weeks later. In consideration of Covid, C2E2 pushed their original 2021 dates of March 26-28 to the weekend of December 10th. In the world of pop-culture fandom, this was the ultimate holiday gift as most major events had been canceled entirely. With safety guidelines in place, the event would hit Chicago’s McCormick Place with the force of Thor’s hammer. 

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C2E2: Before the Pandemic “Snapped”

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Although the Covid-19 virus had already begun hitting the news – with many of us probably already walking around with it – we could never have guessed the 2020 C2E2 (Chicago Comics and Entertainment Expo) would be our last major gathering before a social Apocalypse. Back then, Corona was just a side story and the only masks seen here were the kinds used to conceal one’s secret identity. If I’d known then what I know now I’d have done all three days of this event rather than just Sunday. But no-o-o-o-o. I had to give in to work demands while saving my vacation days for a Spring break road trip that would never happen. Sadly, “2020” would be an insane year rather than hindsight but it is what it is. So let’s look back on that carefree day that now seems like a lifetime ago. 

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