Dublin Comic Con – Review
by Fran Winston

Convention Centre Dublin 1. August 6th and 7th 2022

After an absence of two years, Dublin Comic Con made a triumphant return in April this year which only fuelled further excitement for this, their sell-out Summer Edition.

Over the course of two days, thousands of people, many of them channelling their favourite pop culture characters, made the trek from far and wide to the Convention Centre in Dublin drawn by the promise of exciting guest stars, photo ops, brilliant panels and, of course, meeting like-minded people. As a massive geek myself, I always look forward to events like this and it was honestly thrilling to see so many people embracing all that the Con had to
offer.

One of the most popular homages this year was to Stranger Things character Eddie Munson. Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ll know that this character, played by actor Joseph Quinn, was the breakout success of the latest series of the smash hit show. On Saturday there was a group photo op for everyone dressed as the iconic metalhead which drew an impressive gathering. However, on Sunday his presence was also heavily felt with plenty of attendees proudly brandishing his trademark “Hellfire Club” t-shirt.

The guest roster this year was impressive, with Robocop himself, Dr Peter Weller, proving a huge draw. He was a fascinating guest who managed to basically give “An Audience with…” style show when it came to his talk rather than the standard Q&A fare.

Also hugely popular was Irish actress Dominique McElligott who rose to superstardom in recent years thanks to her role on the hit Amazon show The Boys (as Maggie Shaw / Queen Maeve). There really was something for everyone with actor Peter Fogler, (who appears in the Fantastic Beasts franchise) Craig Parker (from Lord of the Rings), writer and actor Donal Logue, (from Batman origin show Gotham), Supernatural’s Felicia Day and the voice of Mario (amongst many other characters) Charles Martinet all making appearances along with several other well-known icons.

While there was a fee for photos and autographs their talks were free and fans flocked to these eager to get up close and personal with their favourite stars. A lucky few even got to engage with them and ask them questions leading to some hilariously unpredictable moments.

Artists Alley saw a wealth of talent showcasing their talents while the main hall saw an array of trade stands and also some popular TV sets that provided photo backdrops for attendees.

Particularly popular were the Alien and Stranger Things sets and Irish Star Trek homage, the USS Cuchulainn, which also had quite the queue waiting to take pictures on their bridge.

The world may be falling apart with a housing crisis, rising cost of living and the war in Ukraine but for two days all of that was forgotten as people lived out their superhero, sci-fi and pop culture fantasies. Perhaps it’s the lockdown talking but it felt like there was a greater excitement about this one than any of the previous Comic Cons (some people still had trepidation about attending the Spring edition as restrictions had just been lifted). The atmosphere was absolutely joyous, and the overall vibe was just sheer friendliness and loveliness. Dublin Comic Con proved the perfect antidote to all the current world madness. Roll on 2023.