You would be hard pressed to find a more passionate fandom than horror film fans. It would be equally difficult to find a convention that caters to this group of fans better than Monster-Mania.
For many years I have heard from friends that Monster-Mania was a must see especially if you’re a horror film aficionado. For one reason or another, I never made it until this past weekend when I finally attended Monster-Mania 40. I was quite impressed by not only the turnout which was massive but the star power that appeared. The who’s who of horror icons was led by Freddy Kruger himself, Robert Englund. But if you’re a casual horror fan like myself, there were a ton of other stars from sci-fi films, the world of wrestling and comedy to satisfy your needs.
Because of its modest size, MM40 took place at the Crown Plaza Hotel in Cherry Hill, NJ. Having attended other cons at hotels, I find them more intimate and convenient if you need to take a breather between panels and such by heading upstairs to your room. There’s nothing like seeing a hotel lobby overtaken by multiple sightings of Michael Myers, Jason Voorhees or even Pennywise the clown. This being my first go around, I had nothing to compare it to other than other conventions of this size that I’ve attended to over the years. I thought there were plenty of vendors offering a variety of goodies. The most popular being those that sold t-shirts and DVD’s in particular.
As great as the vendors were, the strength of this and conventions in general was the interaction between the celebrity guests and the fans. There were over twenty tables set up in the Riverside Pavilion where stars like Tobin Bell, Kane Hodder, Billy Zane as well as an E.T. reunion with Dee Wallace, Henry Thomas and Robert MacNaughton hung out all weekend. A complete list of all who attended are shown below. For the most part attendees seemed happy with the experience. The convention host did a very good job with their panel lineup and film choices to keep everyone happy engaged. A common negative was the wait time for certain autographs and professional photo ops. There used to be a time that photos at the table was included with your autograph. Pro photo ops are on the rise and conventions whether they want to or not, need to embrace them because there is money to be made. With it thought comes frustration to keep the masses happy.
Overall, I loved my experience. It is always made more special when you can enjoy it with someone. I bumped into old friends and made new ones. It’s a close-knit community of like-minded individuals all there to share their love of the genre with anyone they came across. Monster-Mania returns to Cherry Hill, NJ in March 2019.
Monster-Mania: Grade B+
May the Dork be with you,
JPB
The Dork Knight
