The entrance to C2E2
The Xavierite
On the weekend of March 27-29, Chicago held its annual convention C2E2, which is dedicated to comic books, anime, manga, movies, television, video games, and more. C2E2 is one of the many famous conventions around the United States, much like San Diego Comic Con and New York Comic Con.
I was lucky enough to attend C2E2 this year as a last minute plus one, and it did not disappoint. The convention was huge and filled with all sorts of fans, activities, guests, stands and pop-up shops. I was thrilled to be in a place that basically catered to all my interests at once.
It was such an exciting and wonderful experience, but I couldn’t help but think about how much con culture, or at least the hype around cons, has changed.
Around 2020, the view on anime, comic books and other “nerdy” interests shifted due to people’s boredom during the pandemic. People took genuine interest in these things that so many people had been made fun of for enjoying.
With the rise of TikTok as well, these so-called nerdy subjects started to become mainstream and popular. By the time the pandemic was over, nerd culture was all the rage. Suddenly, it was cool to have a room full of action figures, posters, comic books and manga.
The sudden popularity of all things nerdy also meant that events like C2E2 and Comic Con were now cool by association.
For a long time, cons were seen as a get-together of people who took their preferred media way too seriously. Shows like “Good Luck Charlie” and “Daria” have episodes where they make fun of people going to cons and dressing up. They go on to call them freaks, losers, and make them the butt of the joke.
So, when these new fans started to attend cons, longtime fans felt something was off with them.
They complained that this new crowd was mean and judgmental, and they felt as if they were being pushed out of the space they felt most comfortable in. With this new crowd coming, cons started to lose their speciality.
Merchandise started to become more expensive, and the products lost their quality. Cons were no longer about having fun and dressing up, but instead who had the best, most expensive cosplay. Many felt that cons were starting to lose their magic.
My trip to C2E2 was entirely different then what I expected it to be, but not in a bad way.
Yes, con culture has changed—that part is obvious—but this change is good. Cons are now starting to be a gathering of community and fellowship of not just one group of people.
There were a significant number of families attending, almost all of them dressed up. It was kind of astounding to me, considering cons were once something parents waved off as their child’s weird interest.
Cosplayers have definitely upped their game since the early days of conventions, but it’s the way they have that makes it a positive thing. There are so many tutorials and videos online to help people create and design their cosplays. The best part? They’re almost always budget friendly to make sure everyone can participate.
When cons started attracting this new audience, they brought shameless pride with them that previous goers didn’t really have before. They also disproved the stereotype of cons being for only one type of person.
Soon cons started catering to other interests like movies, television, video games, wrestling, pop culture, and so much more.
Cons might no longer be what they used to be, but this change is for the better. My trip to C2E2 showed me that, and it’s such a heartwarming thing to see everyone coming together. Interests are always better when you can share them with the world.
**Correction 4/10/2026: article cover photo & caption changed**
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