Anthony Bergamini
From August 15th – 17th, a celebration of pop culture came to San Jose’s McEnery Convention Center in the form of GalaxyCon. For three days, fans of all backgrounds had the opportunity to meet actors, voice actors, musicians, television personalities, writers, artists, colorists, and more. The convention also featured a wide variety of booths selling unique items. Beyond the exhibition floor, GalaxyCon hosted numerous panels highlighting professionals from across the industry, as well as dedicated areas for gaming, tattoos and piercings, cosplay competitions, meetups, and photo opportunities.
The weekend kicked off with a ribbon-cutting ceremony, followed by the grand opening of the convention floor. This is where one of the more unique aspects of GalaxyCon San Jose stood out. At most conventions, the first two days are typically the busiest, with fans arriving early to grab the most sought-after items, while the final day is often slower, with some creators and celebrities leaving early and vendors offering discounts. GalaxyCon San Jose felt almost the opposite. Friday was the quietest day, though it’s worth noting that programming didn’t begin until 2:00 p.m. (four hours later than the other days) and tickets were offered at a reduced price. The lighter crowds made Friday feel more like San Diego Comic-Con’s “Preview Night,” giving fans a chance to explore with smaller crowds and full vendor inventories.
Before getting into my personal experiences and the events I attended, I want to note a couple of disclaimers. As with most conventions, not every aspect appeals to everyone. Personally, I’m not heavily into anime, so I wasn’t drawn to the anime merchandise or most of the voice actors in attendance. Additionally, GalaxyCon hosted a wide range of events, many of which I didn’t attend, including cosplay contests, gaming tournaments, tattoo and piercing sessions, and various “after dark” events.
My convention experience began on Friday afternoon, shortly after the ribbon cutting. I was eager to meet comic book creators before the crowds grew. Like many fans, I brought favorite comics from writers, artists, colorists, and inkers in attendance to get signed. Signature prices varied, but all of the creators were friendly, and their booths were visually engaging, offering everything from original art to recent issues. Approaching comic book creators is always a great look behind the lens of the issues we read on a weekly/monthly basis, as the creators often offer insight on aspects of books we often don’t think about. For example, I approached John Dell with Ultimate Spider-Man #91 and we ended up talking about one of his favorite panels that he worked on, a control panel that Mark Bagley had drawn, for several minutes. One of the highlights was meeting Tony Fleecs and begging him to bring back more Local Man. Thankfully, it sounds like he and Tim Seely are happy to bring back more of the series, with the big number “1” on the side of the deluxe edition signifying that more chapters can follow. Another highlight was meeting the legendary Kevin Maguire and getting to discuss his work on Justice League International and his recent visit to the Superman (2025) set.
I then made my way to the celebrity area. It’s worth mentioning that several celebrities were only scheduled for Saturday or Sunday, which may have contributed to Friday’s lighter turnout. My first stop was Lou Ferrigno, the legendary Incredible Hulk, who was graciously greeting fans. While I didn’t get a chance to meet him personally, seeing him in person was an awe-inspiring way to start the weekend. A little later, I stopped by James “Murr” Murray’s booth to say hello to the Impractical Joker. Murr was very welcoming, and our conversation set up a playful plan for the following day that I was excited to carry out.
The rest of Friday was spent exploring booths in the exhibition hall. I held off on purchases, assuming Saturday would give me another chance, though in hindsight, Friday was probably the best shopping day due to the lighter crowds. The sheer variety of vendors was impressive and made the floor worth exploring.
Saturday morning was a different story entirely. I brought my wife with me, and we arrived about 30 minutes before the doors opened. Even before entering, the crowd size already dwarfed Friday’s. Once inside, the excitement was palpable.
After showing my wife some booths I thought she’d enjoy, we returned to Murr’s table. As planned, when he saw me, Murr pretended to be upset, accusing me of harassing him and calling over staff to get security involved, all while hiding behind his cousin. My wife was stunned. Then, just as security started approaching, Murr broke into laughter, and we revealed the prank we had set up the day before. It was a classic Impractical Jokers moment brought to life, and one of the highlights of the weekend. The best part was seeing how convincingly Murr pulled it off, even the security staff seemed fooled.
The rest of Saturday morning and early afternoon were spent exploring more booths and buying artwork, comics, and homemade creations. The convention center’s downtown location was a plus, making food options within or just outside the venue easily accessible.
That afternoon, we attended two panels. The first was with Timothy Zahn, acclaimed author of Star Wars novels including the Thrawn trilogy. His panel offered fascinating insights into writing Star Wars novels during a period when no films or TV shows were in production. Zahn’s stories gave fans a glimpse into the birth of the expanded universe. One of the most surprising revelations was that despite being credited as a consultant on the Ahsoka series, Zahn clarified he was never actually consulted, Lucasfilm had simply briefed him shortly before the show premiered. This revelation gave fans a rare and eye-opening behind-the-scenes perspective.
Next, we attended a Superman panel with Mark Waid, Kevin Nowlan, and Gavin Guidry. Decked out in my Superman hat, shirt, jersey, and lanyard, I was thrilled for this one. While I had already met these creators on the convention floor, hearing them discuss what Superman meant to them, and their thoughts on the character’s latest film appearance, was inspiring. During the Q&A, I asked if studios or DC Comics had ever pushed to incorporate film costumes into the comics, referencing Superman’s new look from the film that had been inspired by Waid’s Kingdom Come series. Waid’s answer surprised me: there has never been any push from studios to merge film elements into comics, going all the way back to Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man movies. This honest look at the creative process was both fun and insightful, and the panel as a whole was a highlight of the weekend.
These were just a handful of the exploits from my weekend at Galaxy Con San Jose, a convention that I hope I can attend annually moving forward. Northern California has seen its share of conventions, with Fan Expo in San Francisco being one of the largest, so for a summertime convention to also pop up on a yearly basis is a dream come true.
