If you missed the MCM Expo on the 24th and 25th of October, shame on you. The movie, comic and media exposition 5000 rocked the Excel centre in London’s Docklands. Again. This year’s turnout was, well, normal really and the show itself packed in more movie, media and comic titillation than an entire interweb.
Shows like this happen all the time, all over the world and while they’re full of memorabilia merchants and obscure comic book artist signing their obscure comic books, there’s also interesting things on show like new video games and celebrities from old TV shows like Star Trek Deep Space Nine. Oh, DS9, we miss thou.
But are Terry Farrell and Nicole De Boer really all that? Well, no. Not unless you’re me and you’d always wanted to meet them. Even though I didn’t. I was in the same room as them! Which, really, is very, very rubbish. Still, there was a DeLorean and an Ecto 1 and a Warthog from Halo. Also, TV’s Ronny Cox was there. Look him up, I promise you’ll recognise him from something. He’s a quiet, evil legend.
Top of the gaming demo booths were Left 4 Dead 2 and Bayonetta. The first is a sequel. Well, it’s not so much a sequel as a poorly time mismanaged add-on to the original Left 4 Dead - which is a very good game. Happily, the zombie shooter/survival/team-co-op type game’s second outing is a far tighter copy of the first.
Wicked witches
If you don’t know, Beyonetta is some kind of witch, or something. With clothes made from her hair. You battle lots of angelic demons and jumps around. Butterflies come out sometimes. I’m not sure what it’s about, but it’s a lot of fun. Just proves that a big-boobed gaming heroine can actually be in a half-decent game. And Sega made it too. Amazing. Sega can still make good games. Huzah!
As for the rest, well, I’m 30 so most of the rest of the show didn’t appeal to me; Yu-gi-oh things, role playing type card games, Japanese artists signing things, an over-crowded Rock Band stand (had I’d been a little earlier this would have been placed in my ‘good things about MCM Expo’ list).
There were other games on show as well, but you weren’t allowed to get your grubby mits on the gameplay - like Avatar The Game, based on James Cameron’s world changing, not-yet-released movie. You could get your paws on Star Trek Online - the massively multiplayer online role playing game (MMORPG) based on the massively popular Sci-Fi franchise. And massively off-canon. I ain’t touching that one, Mr Roddenberry’s licence holders. You can’t just make up uniforms and stick them in a Star Trek game. Forget it.
Costume-play. Yes!
An Expo like this wouldn’t be an Expo like this if it wasn’t for the costumes. Playing in costumes. Or, Cosplay, as they call it - dressing up as your favourite fictional hero or thing. It’s fantastic. Well, some of it is. Most of the home-made get-ups are just cute - well done for trying, Billy! Well done! But others were jaw-dropping. Like the full-suited movie Iron Man, some girl as the hologram woman from Halo and two proton-pack sporting Ghostbusters - with an Ecto 1. I think I mentioned that already. But it was very important.
All in all, a fully excellent experience. And worth the trip to the Docklands. Shame on you for not going, but, lucky for you, the next one is in May. Just book your tickets.
