Wandering through empty hallways in the massive Orange County Convention Center, we realized that MegaCon was actually in the North/South Building this year. Damn! We must have parked 3 miles away from the venue. I had just wolfed down two Big Macs for lunch (1,080 calories, 58 grams of fat total), so I need the exercise, but this was ridiculous! There were even dudes speeding by us in Segways - which definitely sparked our jealousy and resentment. And one idiot in a Rascal scooter nearly ran us down, then got stuck in the doors. After we helped him out, did he thank us? Hell no! He sped off without a word but we breathed a sigh of relief because we knew we'd never cross paths again - the cretin was headed to the Home & Garden Show! Once again, we were on our way . . .

However, once we found the walkway overpass to the North/South Building and we started to see some druids, aliens, Imperial Stormtroopers and superheroes, we knew we were almost at MegCon - the Southeast's largest comics and pop culture convention! More than 20,000 attendees were expected to attend MegaCon 2008 but it seemed like 100,000, the place was packed to the gills! We've been to many MegaCons in the past but we agreed that this was the biggest and best of all!

I have to admit when I first entered the convention hall, I was feeling a little overwhelmed, it took me a few minutes to get my bearings - I felt like Quaid in Total Recall when he first arrives on Mars. Half the fun of MegaCon is all of the dedicated fans who dress up as their favorite sci-fi, horror or other characters. We saw Imperial stormtroopers, multiple Darth Vaders, General Grievous, Mario and Luigi, Spartan warriors, Ghost Rider, Blues Brothers, Tomb Raiders, Batman villains (including a rather nerdy Joker!), Poison Ivy, Ghostbusters, Boba Fett, Captain America and our favorite costume of the night - Mr. Freeze (see photo below)! We saw some chick getting three tattoos simultaneously. We saw 7'3" Peter Mayhew (Chewbacca) signing autographs. And Ninja Babes from Space! We also saw plenty of anime/manga costumes. And a dude in a green fright wig and V for Vendetta mask protesting Scientology. Believe it or not, we even saw some old guy with a beer belly dressed as Mr. Incredible!

There were also rows and rows of comic books and DVDs, as well as talented comic book artists everywhere. This was a true paradise for the collector! In addition, people were lining up in droves to get autographs from the likes of Adrian Pasdar ("Nathan Petrelli" from "Heroes"), Kristy Swanson (the original Buffy the Vampire Slayer), Gil Gerard (Buck Rogers) and many others. We were looking for Lloyd Kaufman, the legendary independent film director (The Toxic Avenger), but he couldn't find the guy anywhere. We wanted to discuss his latest effort, Poultrygeist: Night of the Chicken Dead.

MegaCon 2008 was wall to wall with anime, sci-fi, fantasy, comics, gaming and collectibles of every shape and kind! We were overwhelmed with the genuine enthusiasm around us, the quality of merchandise and artwork on display, and the sheer size of the event this year! I could go on and on . . . But let's face it, you had to be there . . .

Update: Next year's event, MegaCon 2009, will take place February 27-March 1, 2009, at the Orange County Convention Center (Hall SB). In addition, a Mini MegaCon has been added for August 7-9, 2009, also at the Orange County Convention Center (Hall D2). Don't miss it! For more information, visit www.megaconvention.com.

Mario & Luigi
What would MegaCon 2008 be without those two "Partners in Time" - Mario and his younger brother, Luigi? The overwhelming number of fans who dressed in costume for this event was unbelievable!

Mr. Freeze
The dude dressed up as Mr. Freeze was by far the best costume we witnessed as we roamed around MegaCon 2008 (General Grievous was a close second, the two should have battled it out for costume supremacy!). This guy showed true dedication to the craft and managed to stay in character as he was swarmed by dozens of amateur photographers.

Darth Vader on Escalator
MegaCon is full of surreal moments such as watching Darth Vader make his slow descent into the MegaCon 2008 convention hall via escalator. If you dress as Darth Vader at MegaCon, you are guaranteed at least 15 minutes of fame!

Elf Warrior
There's nothing like being greeted at the entrance to MegaCon 2008 by an elf warrior. We knew right away that this was going to be a memorable convention!

Three Faces of Frankenstein
These Frankenstein masks at MegaCon 2008 were full of detail and sold for a very reasonable $49.99 apiece. There were many other cool masks, including an Alfred Hitchcock mask, as well as Marlon Brando (Godfather) and Al Pacino (Scarface) masks for sale.

Jedi Warrior
A crowd favorite, this Jedi Warrior posed patiently for countless photos, seemingly oblivious to the swarming crowd engulfing the convention hall for MegaCon 2008.

Star Wars Quintet
Star Wars was well represented at MegaCon 2008 and we saw Darth Vaders everywhere we turned. The Jawa was cool too! We looked in vain for a Tusken Raider but no such luck!