DC in the 80s visits 2023 Montreal Comiccon

We were thrilled to be invited to the 2023 Montreal Comiccon taking place at the Palais Des Congrès in Montreal, Quebec from July 14 to 18, 2023, mainly because when Montréal celebrates, they celebrate in full force (a comiccon being no exception). 

This was also a truly special occasion since co-editor Mark Belkin travelled all the way from New York to join me as we worked the floor and interviewed Mike Grell, Gail Simone, Renée Witterstaetter and Mike Rooth. We also chatted with Geof Isherwood and Dan Parent, but unfortunately missed out on Yanick Paquette and Greg Capullo due to time constraints. Rags Morales was, unfortunately, a no-show due to a last-minute flight cancellation. Also attending Montreal comiccon that weekend: Stephen Amell, Laura Vandervoot, Tom Welling, and a few other celebrities who had starred in DC TV shows. 

Montreal was extra hot and humid, yet this event had more than 65,000 attendees throughout the weekend. I mean, seriously, it was packed. The vendor areas were packed, the main foyer was packed, the panel rooms were packed -- but everyone was very respectful and mindful of others, and the crowds parted like the Red Sea for Moses whenever someone in a wheelchair or crutches needed to navigate through the busy convention centre. 

There was a bit for everyone this year: plenty of panels with celebrities and comic book creators, autograph sessions and photo ops, an Indie gaming zone, a tabletop gaming zone, plenty of vendors selling a lot of everything, exhibits,...

Did you know that Montreal is home to a lot of game development companies? Many of them were displaying their new games in the Indie Gaming Zone

The Tabletop Gaming Zone had open tables with games all set up to go. The only games being played were Marvel or Star Wars tabletop games; no DC comics games unfortunately. 

...and the Brampton Batman with his own Batmobile:

As mentioned, we stopped by to briefly chat with Mike Grell who told us that he's currently working on completing his Maggie the Cat graphic novel that's set to be released anytime soon. Grell was in fine form and drawing up a storm trying to fulfill his overflowing commission list. 

Mike Grell and co-editor Mark Belkin

Lots and lots of cosplay this weekend -- more DC than I've seen in previous years. The most popular female DC characters cosplayed were Harley Quinn, Catwoman, Poison Ivy, Wonder Woman, and Raven. The most popular male DC characters cosplayed were Batman, Deathstroke, and Green Arrow.

As per usual, we're going to feature the most stand-out DC cosplay that we saw this weekend:

Dr. Fate

This is the first DC cosplayer we saw as we walked in on Saturday morning, which we'd consider... a good omen. We chatted briefly with this cosplayer and they told us that Dr. Fate was one of their favorite characters, and that he was still looking for a Super Powers Collection Dr. Fate action figure for his own personal collection. (Can't argue with good taste.)

Batman and Batman-related character cosplay are always quite popular at the cons, mainly because I don't think a single person under the age of 65 hasn't been impacted by Batman in some form or another during their formative years. We always appreciate seeing the less common bat-family characters represented: 

Batwoman and Robin

Nightwing, Cassandra Cain (aka Blackbat) & Spoiler

This husband-and-wife cosplayer duo made a really great Zatanna & John Constantine. I especially appreciate his 'super serious' face and her 'about to burst with excitement' expression. Super adorable. 

Zatanna and John Constantine

Death of the Endless even made an appearance:

Death

I don't think I've ever seen a Roy Harper/Red Arrow/Arsenal cosplay at a comiccon, but there's a first time for everything and this cosplayer totally nailed it. They took the extra time to set up the bow with trick arrows and pose for us. Just fantastic attention to detail:

Arsenal/Roy Harper/Red Arrow

I always love seeing characters from the Justice League Giffen/DeMatteis/Nolan run, and no, we didn't ask them where Blue Beetle was:

Booster Gold

We saw a lot of Ravens (of Teen Titans Go), and this one really stood out for the attention to detail:

Hey, it's Rorschach:

A few non-DC cosplayers that stood out...

...Johnny 5 from 1986's Short Circuit: 

...Marvel's Dazzler:

...Barbie (no doubt in reference to the soon-to-be-released film):

...early 90s Ghost Rider:

 

..She-Hulk (have you seen the Disney+ series yet?):

...and Angela (actually, there were a few more Spawn-themed cosplayers than usual, no doubt because Capullo was in attendance):

All in all, this comiccon was resounding success. Thanks to Leeja Murphy and Agence Pink for organizing such an impressive event. We can't wait to see what they come up with next time.

-Justin