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The Biggest Little Comic Convention in Missouri

Published Sun, 08 Mar 2020 14:00:30 -0500

John L. Davis IV is the Editorial Assistant for The Ralls County Herald-Enterprise. He is also an independent author with several titles in the horror and action-adventure genres and he will be a guest at the Big River Comic Convention. He writes,

That's the goal of Darin and Deb Logue, to build the biggest little comic convention in the state of Missouri. Darin and Deb have been comic convention goers for many years, and their love of those events moved them to form the first Big River Comic Convention in 2019, with the idea of bringing a big ComicCon feel to the small-town venue.

Darin says, "When we set out to do Big River Comic Convention we wanted to target, in particular, our area, be cause we realize a lot of folks don't have the money and the transportation and the means to go to big conventions all over the US. We wanted to bring that vibe, energy and genre to the Hannibal-Quincy area. We looked at the good and the bad in those conventions and feel that our brand is very unique in the sense it's a small venue with a big venue feel."

The first Big River Comic Convention was a single-day event that recorded nearly 4,000 attendees and generated significant buzz in the area, prompting the Logue's to increase the 2020 event to three days, April 17^th through the 19^th.

Guests for the first convention were names such as artist Bob Hall, wrestler Dan Severn and actor Bishop Stevens. This year, the special guests will include voice actor Mark Dodson (Star Wars, Gremlins), Artist Michael Toth, (He-Man, Mulan), Actor/Voice Actor Carey Means (Frylock – Aqua Teen Hunger Force) and TV personality Ming Chen (Kevin Smith's Comic Book Men).

BRCC works hard to avoid the "flea market" feel that often plagues many smaller conventions. They hire a DJ (DJ Jeremey B) for the convention, which Darin believes "adds an entirely different energy to the event." From the adult and kids cosplay, to the guest panels, and this year BRCC is featuring a sketch battle, the show feels like a scaled-down version of any large con, compared to the yard-sale vibe of tables full of comics and merchandise that smaller "cons" tend to fall into.

In an effort to promote the convention and avoid the pitfalls of using copyrighted material, the Logue's came up with the idea of Hannibal's own superhero, Miss Big River. As the character took shape, people began to ask about her powers and abilities. They wanted to know her origin story, so a contest was held, and a story written by Charlotte Mila was chosen.

With Mila's story, which uses real-life elements stemming from Mark Twain, Halley's Comet and Twain's relationship with Nicola Tesla, art by David Faught, and input from Darin and Deb, Miss Big River has come to life in Hannibal's very own comic book. The first edition of The Adventures of Miss Big River is available now, and copies can be found at the event. More stories are already in the works, with plans to release 1-2 issues per year to help promote the convention.

It's this dedication that really sets Big River Comic Convention apart from many other small events that people may attend; all the little things happening behind the scenes to ensure that everyone comes away from the event feeling as if they've just left the San Diego ComicCon having experienced something special that they'll remember for years. It's sort of like the idea of the house that seems much larger on the inside than it would appear from the outside.

From the special guests to the numerous vendors, from the DJ and all the contests and special events planned for the 3 day Big River Comic Convention, this biggest little convention is sure to please fans of every genre, especially with the fact that a 3-day pass is $35. That's about the cost of parking at one of the bigger conventions. This makes the convention an affordable event, even for those that might be travelling from hundreds of miles away. Darin says, "I think what makes us unique in another way is the fact that we draw 1.3 million people into Hannibal every year as a tourism community. So, when people come to Big River Comic Convention, as opposed to other small communities, you're not going to just a comic convention. With Hannibal, we have so much more to offer, so people can really make this three-day event more of a weekend getaway or a destination with a lot of other things to do."

Big River Comic Convention is a community effort, bringing that big convention feel to small-town America.

For more information about Big River Comic Convention, including dates and times, guests, vendors, contests and events, go to https://brcchannibal.com/. Big River Comic Convention also updates their Facebook page almost daily with up-to-the-minute news, contests, guest and vendor announcements and much more.

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