Tampa Fanboy Expo 2015! Review and Photos

Each year I find myself saying "THIS was the best Fanboy ever!" It's true, I have heard some very valid complaints but these were complaints about the staff of the hosting Hotel not the convention itself, with that said a growing Con is never going to be "Perfect" for everyone because people have different ideas of how a Con should be ran. As a Con attendee and Fangirl Fatale booth member this is my personal review.

Year three certainly takes the cake for me! All of my favorite Iconic Men were here this year! Adam West and Burt Ward (The original Batman and Robin 1966)and Dave Prowse (Darth Vader).

It was such an honor to meet them and I thank Fanboy Expo for the opportunity to be part of the family this year!

Adam West said I did a lovely Julie Newmar Catwoman and that she was his favorite Catwoman! Burt Ward took 15 minutes out of his busy con schedule to have a conversation about his Large breed dog rescue and dog food that can help your fur baby live a much longer healthier life- Gentle Giants. You could tell he is a dog lover which I can relate! He even had notes on where we could find it local in our area!

Dave Prowse surprised me the most though! Emerald and I had seen him both Friday and Saturday but Sunday I attended alone and he waved me over to his booth. We chatted for a little bit then I said I had to go make my rounds walking the convention and he asked me to return when I was done! Who says no to Lord Vader?! I was more than happy to oblige! He invited me to sit with him as he signed and we spoke for about an hour longer, just two regular people talking! No Star wars just everyday hobbies and interests. We are both interested in Kinesiology. This was an amazing opportunity and I love getting to know the man behind the mask, He is a lovely person!

Tom Rose and Jeremy Bulloch (Admiral Ackbar and Boba Fett) were both a delight to meet! They both were so kind to Emerald getting autographs and taking photos on several days! Tim Rose even playfully held the "It's a trap" sign to Emerald's baby belly! Did you know that Tim Rose has never met Erik Bauersfeld? We spoke about it as he was signing my poster and I told him I got it last year here at Fanboy Expo!

Julius LeFlore is best known for several characters in Star Wars Episode VI – Return of the Jedi including Skiff Master, Biker Scout, Stormtrooper and Stunt double for Billy Dee Williams. He is soft spoken and very open to talking with all the fans. Away from the booth He called me over to introduce me to his friends and his most lovely wife! I was probably every shade of red as he said to his wife "This is the Catwoman I was telling you about last night!" She was so nice and made me feel like things were backwards! Meaning they made me feel like a star when I was the one honored they took the time to even speak with me! This is why I love Fanboy Expo so much! The personal fan experience!

James Marsters spent all of his time at the booth laughing it up and having fun with all the fans! We seen him three different times in the hotel and each time he said hello! and yes, he does have a nice chest :P

Tom Nguyen is best know for his work on Green Lantern, Batman, Catwoman, Superman, JLA, Ghostbusters, Marvel Legendary Gaming Set and many more! I always take the time to stop and talk with Tom, he is an amazing artist and all around person! He is also the very first person I ever met at Fanboy expo year one and I had no idea WHO he was at that time! Imagine my surprise!

I have way too many photos to add them all in this review but here are a few of my favorites from this past weekend!

The Fangirl Fatale girls were a delight to work with! The guests and other cosplayers were all respectful to each other! What more can I say?

How About...

Knoxville Here I come! October 16th-18th!

I've been invited to attend with "Two Faries And A Dwarf" How could I say no to that?! I love Fairies and Dwarves! So! Be sure to stop by the booth to say hello and smell all the leather goods! Man, their booth smells amazing!

Chain Female!

A few little things I've been working on! Getting ready for Tampa Bay Comic Con at the end of the month!

Cosplay Interview with Emma Rubini

Cosplay interview with Emma Rubini Cosplay Character: Gaige (Borderlands 2) Facebook page: facebook.com/emmarubiniart Other Social media links: Instagram: @emmajiqrubini Photographer name and/or link: Bert Rubini and Alex Taranoff

Interview Questions:

1. How long have you been Cosplaying and why do you do it? I’ve been cosplaying since 2009. It’s one of my favorite creative outlets. I think of it as creative problem solving. My first cosplay was American McGee’s Alice.

2. Do your family and friends support you as a cosplayer? Yes! In fact, my dad and I often cosplay together (for instance, he has a cosplay from Borderlands as well).

3. What was your FIRST convention you cosplayed at? I made my first cosplay in 2009, but I didn’t wear it to a con until MegaCon 2010.

4. Are there any charities you work with locally? I haven’t done any cosplay charity work yet – a lot of my cosplays are kind of scary and from video games which aren’t very charity-friendly. But, I have a few Disney cosplays planned, so we’ll see!

5. Do you follow other cosplayers? Who inspires you the most? I follow a ton of cosplayers! Honestly, too many to even pick favorites. But, the skills I really look up to in other cosplayers are detailed sets of armor and intricately sewn costumes, because those are things that I can’t do.

6. Are you an avid comic book reader? Which is your all time favorite? I think my favorite comic series is probably Neil Gaiman’s Sandman (although I’ve fallen behind on the Overture series!)

7. Other than Cosplay, what else are your hobbies or interests? I’m in school for illustration, so most of my hobbies are still art-related. Also, I play a lot of video games.

8. Why did you choose Gaige? As soon as I played Borderlands I knew I wanted to cosplay from it. I really like Gaige’s personality and character design, and it seemed like the right about of challenge for my first Borderlands cosplay. Also, the fact that she can summon a giant robot is pretty neat.

9. Have you done other versions of this character? I haven’t, although I have cosplayed another character from the same game, Tiny Tina. However, all of the playable characters in the game have alternate skins and outfits, so I may do another version of Gaige in the future.

10. Are there any other characters you cosplay as? Yes! I think by now I have created over thirty costumes. Some of my favorites that I’ve made are Little Sister from BioShock, Toothiana from Rise of the Guardians, Emily from Corpse Bride and steampunk Tinkerbell, which was an original design.

11. Have you ever “CrossPlayed”? I’ve done a few male characters, the most recent being Newt from Pacific Rim (my father cosplayed Hannibal Chau from the same movie). It’s interesting to experiment with gender-changing makeup, but I prefer to do “genderbent” cosplays, where I reimagine a male character as a female one. Most recently I did this with Cecil from Welcome to Night Vale.

12. Do you have any upcoming appearances? My remaining cons for 2015 are Hyper Japan (in London!), Fanboy Expo, Tampa Bay Comic Con, DragonCon, and Baltimore Comic Con. In 2016 I’m hoping to make it to at least Katsucon, MegaCon, Metrocon and Dragoncon again, but it’s too early to tell for sure!

13. Can you give us a detailed description of how you made your cosplay and props? My Gaige cosplay is probably the one I’ve put the most work into. I originally started it in April 2014, and made the costume as well as Claptrap (the smaller, yellow robot) for Metrocon that year. I probably spent about three months on it. Sometime in the last year I decided that I was insane enough to make Deathtrap, which is about seven feet tall and also a robot, and I figured I might as well improve on the costume itself as well, because I’ve learned a lot in the past year. I’ve spent the last month or so not only altering most of the costume, but also creating a life-size Deathtrap, which I brought to Metrocon with me this year. My favorite part of the two Borderlands cosplays I’ve made (and the ones I’ve seen) is the cel shading, which is the comic book-y lines that I’ve applied to all of the costume as well as my makeup. My favorite part of the costume is probably my wig, which I made out of Model Magic on top of a plaster cast of my head!

The Rise of Superheroes and their Impact on Pop Culture! with STAN LEE!

I have been taking a class online through EdX, It's called "The Rise of Superheroes and their Impact on Pop Culture" and it's taught by the Legendary Stan Lee and Michael Uslan!

The course was 5 weeks long and you have the choice to either join for free using the Honor system or if you'd like a certificate of completion and a link to your Linkdin profile it's $50.00. I opted for the $50.00 verified course since I'd like to be able to add it to my resume.

Once you've decided to join the class they offer all sorts of social media communication (Twitter, Facebook and EdX) I joined all 5 of the Facebook class related groups during the class and I am now a member of the "First class" group. They have a group for Artists, writers, history buffs, Science buffs and then the general classroom group. They also have a killer optional reading list for week one, people in our class formed mini book groups where they shared their thoughts and opinions about the current graphic novel they were reading.

I found this class to be extremely fun and had a FANtastic time getting to know other fans of comics and fandom films! I was even chosen as a staff pick based on my project! That really surprised me because there were SO MANY really talented people in this class! It can seem a bit overwhelming but don't let that get to you at all because everyone was SO helpful and willing to share and help each other out!

If you are interested in taking a look at my project HERE is the link, I've set it to view

Cosplay Interview with Gothic Sushi

Cosplay interview with Gothic Sushilady Cosplay Character: Lady Dead Pool Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/gothicsushiCP Other Social media links: Gothicsushi2 (Instagram and twitter) Photographer name and/or link: E-mazing photography https://www.facebook.com/emazingphotoz

1.How long have you been Cosplaying and why do you do it? I have been cosplaying for officially about 1 1/2 years now! I did some Renfairs for a few years before moving down to Florida and being introduced to this world of cosplay. Why do i do it? That starts out with me being dead pool (my favorite cosplay) why, you see it was a way for me to just be crazy silly old me for the first time in years and not have to worry about people judging me for who I am.. because well most people at that point just thought i was just being sill taco loving dead pool and not... what every one knows me as today... Crazy ass maria! It made making friends a whole lot easier when moving to a new state.. and it still does!

2.Do your family and friends support you as a cosplayer? Well the depends.. My KIDS LOVE IT!!! my youngest (he is 9) has even made his first cosplay almost all by him self (rocket raccoon) and even though my oldest ( who is 13) is not into dressing up he loves to go to Cons and play the video games! he is hoping to enter his first tournament at some point this year which is amazing because he is Autistic!

3.What was your FIRST convention you cosplayed at? This one is a little tricky because my first Con was "Evil con" and I was talked into dressing up right away into my cheap Halloween costume dead pool suit, but right after that I got EXTREMELY HOOKED AND couldn't wait to get out there and go for real and make it an adventure! so the next month I had decided to go away for the weekend and hit up Animate Miami! Wow, what a huge DIFFERENCE THAT WAS from a little tinny first year con to a huge one!

4.Are there any charities you work with locally? Here in Florida not exactly. I was way more into the Charity stuff in N.Y. mostly SPCA type things and animal rescues but in the summer I helped out at a lot of children with disability events... wish I had known about cosplay back then it would have been awesome! Down here (in Florida) I have done a few small event to raise $ for low income family's but I have yet to get into any actual groups for it here.

5.Do you follow other cosplayers? Who inspires you the most? I fallow a TON of other cosplayers! but my personal biggest inspiration Is Face of Freya! She was the very first cosplayer I have EXTREMELY LOOKED UP TO that actually answered me back like a human! she is just so beautiful on the inside and out! and after watching her for some time I found out me and her had gone through a lot of similar life problems and even now with her own crap going on she still has such a strong heart and she is also the reason I hit the gym and try to get in shape! for a while i had thought i was never going to be able to work out or even get to my personal goals after having surgery but she always motivated me to keep trying and push my self! I love her so much and she is 100% the main reason I am happy with the woman i am today!

6.Are you an avid comic book reader? Which is your all time favorite? I was an Avid comic book reader until I started cosplaying! I am defiantly not as up to date with comic knowledge as I use to be but yes I do still check out new issues and hit the comic book store at least once a month! by far my favorite comics are dead pool or most things Xmen related... when i was younger thought i was all about that manga... and sailor moon...

7.Other than Cosplay, what else are your hobbies or interests? oh so many... I like to keep very busy, for starters I am a Tattoo Artist so that's my main profession, which leads into my art back ground! I love drawing and painting on all type of medians! also cosplay has got me into actual carving, shaping and building of things!

8.Why did you choose Dead pool? I posted a little about why I started off doing dead pool earlier! because it was easy for me to be my self and not be a complete weirdo! also he is one of my FAVORITE characters of all time!

9.Have you done other versions of this character? I have about 5 running costumes of the same character... and actually still coming up with new ones... if not for me for my friends!

10.Are there any other characters you cosplay as? HAHAHA! would you actually like my to list these? because I'm starting to think i have a cosplay building addiction problem.... here I will list some of my FAVORITES! 1.Abe Sapiean 2.Purgatory 3.Android 18 4.Launch 5. Vaporeon

11.Have you ever “CrossPlayed”? No I have not.. I think not any way o.o;;

12.Do you have any upcoming appearances? Lets see the next cons for me are Supercon, Tampa bay and Fanboy expo in Tampa.

13. Can you give us a detailed description of how you made your cosplay and props? I have so many cosplays I can give you an Idea for my biggest one yet that I am Re creating! which is my Lady Loki! this will be my first ever show piece costume! and first I will be happy to enter into a contest! I am working with Micky flint and creating a full under body of leather from skirt to corset all hand done with green and yellow leather.... with serpents burned into the leather! also I am welding, cutting and carving my very own LEGITIMATE metal head dress, chest plate, and belt guards! with the help of some of my very close friends! this costume is in the works still so i dont know exact details yet for we have barely just started but when its finished it will be a costume that will defiantly stop a crowed!

Cosplay Interview with Myriad

Cosplay interview with Myriad: Cosplay Character: Claire Redfield Facebook page: Facebook.com/myriadmargo Photographer name and/or link: Jimmy Talley

Interview Questions:

1. How long have you been Cosplaying and why do you do it? I've been cosplaying for 10 years, but it was on and off for four of those years. I do it because I enjoy going to shows and being in character. I enjoy it when I see the face of another nerd light up at seeing a character brought to life before their eyes. Its like working for Disney, but without all the crappy rules.

2. Do your family and friends support you as a cosplayer? Oh yes! Almost all my friends are cosplayers, and even my mom and dad do it too!

3. What was your FIRST convention you cosplayed at? AdventureCon 2007

4. Are there any charities you work with locally? I work with my local library, and I do fundraising for some small charities in my area, including a wildlife rehab clinic, and a local food bank.

5. Do you follow other cosplayers? Who inspires you the most? I really love Nana Bear. Ivy Doomkitty, too. I love that curvy, plus sized women can get far in this (the cosplay), world.

6. Are you an avid comic book reader? Which is your all time favorite? I don't read that many comics, except for old star trek ones. I like really off beat stuff when I can find it, and really inappropriate ones. I once found one called Battlepope which was amazingly hilarious and one of those things where you think 'I Shouldn't read this'...and I loved it!

7. Other than Cosplay, what else are your hobbies or interests? I love knitting and crochet and spinning my own yarn. I run a fiber processing business on the side, where I turn wool fleeces straight off the sheep, and into useable yarn and wearable products.

8. Why did you choose Claire Redfield? I'm a huge Resident Evil fan! I love the games, and the horror game genre. Claire always spoke to me as a character, I love what kind of a badass she is. I also love how simple her costume is, and comfortable for convention wear.

9. Have you done other versions of this character? I did her about four years ago, her 'Code Veronica' outfit. It wasn't flattering at all! I really hated how it came out, and I'm glad I got to redo it.

10. Are there any other characters you cosplay as? Oh yes! I regularly do Black Canary, which is my other 'go to' costume. I also do a version of Jubilee, which is one of my VERY favorites, since I get to be annoying and hyper and a lot closer to my normal personality.

11. Have you ever “CrossPlayed”? Define cross play? I haven't done a straight up guy character as a guy. I'm a fan of rule 63 if its done well. I've done a girl version of Hellboy (retired now) and I've done a girl version of Dean Winchester (from supernatural.)

12. Do you have any upcoming appearances? My next show is going to be Marble City MiniCon, a one day show in Knoxville , in October. I'll be part of a huge Game of Thrones group there. I'm doing Sansa's black raven dress, which I'm excited about!

13. Can you give us a detailed description of how you made your cosplay and props? For being such a SIMPLE costume, I really love this one. The Jacket was the hard part. It started out as another version that I had painted as a trade at a show (I did a favor for an artist friend, she painted my jacket.) But that jacket failed. I cut the painting out of it, and glued it onto the red denim version shown here. The red denim vest was originally a dress that I cut down. I purposefully didn't hem anything, since the character was a biker chick, I wanted the rough-edged look. The shirt was a last minute 'I ripped my shirt' stop by goodwill on the way to a show, but it looks better than the original. The jeans were the hardest part to find. I'm a big girl (size 12) and I'm short, and the character is very lithe and lean and tall, so it took some doing to find the right ones on a budget, that gave the right look. Everything else was a closet dive. The prop weapons were already in my closet, I have a habit of buying them and sticking them away just in case.

Cosplay Interview with Mico Kessler!

Cosplay Interview with: Mico Kessler Cosplay Character: Wonder Boy Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/MICOmkessler Other social media links: https://instagram.com/mia.c0c0/

1. How long have you been Cosplaying and why do you do it? It’s been about a year now cosplaying I started last year when I went to Comic Con in Tampa. I began to cosplay because as a potential actor, I always wanted to build character or to be a versatile actor; wanting to do action movies and comedy mostly. So I thought that while doing cosplaying it allows me to stay in character and get to feel what my character is about.

2. Do your family and friends support you as a cosplayer? Absolutely, they love that the fact that I’m a creative person and they always love to see me in my costume.

3. What was your first convention you cosplayed at? To be technical, I first cosplayed at Nan Desu Kan in Colorado, but I didn’t really commit to it. Hence why I explained before that last year was my first time cosplaying. My first convention is at Comic Con last year (July 31, 2014) at the convention center here at downtown Tampa, FL.

4. Do you follow other cosplayers? Who inspires you the most? Two people I actually follow and inspired me to cosplay is Nana The Red (Local cosplayer here in Tampa, FL.) and Yaya Han. I use to watch "Heroes of Cosplay" and when I first saw Yaya Han with her cosplay outfits, I was immediately inspired to start cosplaying. Nana The Red inspired me as well, because at the point before going to comic con I didn't know anybody and so I look into cosplaying groups on Facebook and then I saw her group page and so I entered it. Just looking at her pictures just inspired me to keep continuing on with my cosplaying and never give up.

5. Are you an avid comic book reader? Which is your all-time favorite? Yes, all my friends and co-workers knows that I am an avid comic book reader; They would sometimes come up to me and ask me “Have I seen the latest episode of this show”, because now these days some of the comics are turning into TV shows (i.e. Flash, Super Girl, Arrow, Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D). My all-time favorite comic is Wonder Woman and Super Girl

6. Other than cosplay, what else are your hobbies or interests? Besides cosplay, I also perform in drag, my drag queen name is Mìa Coco, and I just love to perform and entertain people. I also like to write my own stories (sometimes Fan fictions). I like to sing and dance, play video games, watch action movies (to a certain point) and comedy movies. Like to cook, bake and go to beaches and theme parks.

7. Why did you choose Wonder Boy? I mentioned earlier that my all-time favorite comic is Wonder Woman, so I wanted to dedicate my cosplay to Wonder Woman. So I created my version of what Wonder Boy will be like. I made up a story on how Wonder Boy became to be. Wonder Boy is the son of Wonder Woman, Diana Troy and Steven Trevor’s child.

8. Have you done other versions of this character? I haven’t yet, this is the first official cosplay that I came up with. But this year’s comic con, I’m going to do an updated version from last year’s cosplayer (from the picture).

9. Are there any other characters you cosplay as? Last year, besides Wonder Boy, I also cosplayed as a male version of Sailor Pluto for Halloween at my work, I tried to ask the person to send me the picture but I can find that person sadly. This year I’m planning to also go as Wiccan from Young Avengers, the son of Scarlet Witch.

10. Have you ever crossplayed? I have thought about crossplaying with my drag performances. Like I am planning to crossplay as Poison Ivy someday.

11. Do you have any upcoming appearances? Not the moment I don’t think, unless appearing at this year’s Comic Con counts as an upcoming appearance.

12. Can you give us a detailed description of how you made your cosplay props? Well for the first time I bought the lasso, boots, and the gauntlets. For the costume the compressor shirt, pants and the red shirt were bought as well. For the red top I altered it (I cut the sleeves). I self-patterned the W emblem and sewn it onto the shirt. The material is from a dance fabric (Lycra/spandex)

Bags of holding

Here are a few snaps of some totes/bags I made this week. The ChocoCat one is for Emerald Dee, the teal steampunk looking one is for a Yulemas gift and the one with the leather topper and brocade trim is for my Dungeons and Dragons supplies! I'll be making more of these to sell at Tampa Bay Comic Con next July/August in Fandom themes~

Finished Product! DM Dice tower

Here are a few snaps of the finished project, I'll take some more when I bring it out to play on July 18th for Emerald Dee's Baby reveal party (My first time DMing)

D&D Dice tower DM wall

My FIRST ever wood project! It's bad ass too! I already have 5 people wanting to make an order for one and I just posted it today! Made of smooth Birch wood and wood burned it has dual dice tumblers and a divider wall. I'll post a finished photo when it dries.

Fangirl Fatale Photoshoot

Fanboy Expo has asked me to be part of their Calendar! Below are a few of the shots taken from our photo shoot. I'll be signing calendars and collectors cards this coming July @ Fanboy Expo Tampa!

AGE OF ULTRON

"Just Becos Players of Tampa" was invited to attend the pre-screening of Avengers: Age of Ultron this week.

Here are a few photos from our cosplay movie night! There was 20 of us in all! Great group turn out pulse we got our photo featured on Blindside reviews!!

That's my Daughter in the very pregnant WASP cosplay!

An actual D20 dice bag

I made this D20 bag of holding for Emerald Dee but I couldn't post any photos until after Yulemas!It's an actual 20 sided bag that zips and I made a chainmail handle to add an extra zing!

See you at the Cons!

My new business cards have arrived!

Pretty excited about it too! They turned out better than expected!