Columbia Closings   What's not in Columbia anymore

Well, I don't really need much of an excuse to visit Fernandina Beach, one of my favorite places, so when my sister noticed that there was an Amelia Island comics, steampunk, gaming and anime convention, , I decided to check it out.

Compared to the Charlotte Heroes Convention, Ameliacon was quite small. There was one exhibit hall, in the park on Atlantic Avenue which houses the municipal swimming pool, with gaming and presentation events in the town womens' center behind the park. It seemed to me also that the convention focus was definitely more on gaming, costuming and cosplay than on comic books, though there were some authors and artists there.

I certainly felt out of the loop on some issues! Magna/Anime character design generally hurts my eyes, so I was pretty clueless about one of the properties that seemed to be a very big thing Attack on Titan. There were a number of costumers basing their characters on that. I was also completely in the dark about what is apparently a very popular podcast Welcome to Night Vale, something the contest winning cosplayers based their presentation on.

I missed the morning presentation on Steampunk, having somehow convinced myself that it was in the afternoon, but did catch an interesting presentation by Joshua Johnson on doing video special effects on, basically, zero budget.

The audio for the presentations was the most problematic facet of the convention. I got the impression from listening to one of the organizers talk during the costume contest that someone had promised the convention a PA system and then left them totally in the lurch. I could follow ok during the effects presentaion, and parts of the Marvel/DC artist's presentation, but I gave up during the Homestruck panel where the panel were all using their indoor voices, and where I was only sitting in to try to figure out what Homestruck actually was anyway.

The costumers were out full force in the exhibit hall, and then at the closing costume/cosplay contest.

During the costume contest, it was announced that the convention would be shifting out of the fall and into February, so there will be no Ameliacon 2015. The next will be Ameliacon 2016 though they did announce a sequence of local get-togethers in advance of that. I certainly enjoyed myself -- I don't know that I would have driven that far for a convention of that size in a place I didn't have other motives to visit, but in the event, it was a nice trip.

Fernandina has some costumers of its own, mostly pirate themed for the Shrimp Festival. Although obviously not a pirate, I believe this regal lady is one such, and was also a judge for the costume contest.

This troika who will show up later during the contest are playing, I believe, parts from "Once Upon A Time".

I missed shooting a really great male steampunk warrior costume somehow, but got this spunky distaff steam-punker.

One of the Doctors, and his faithful robot companion K-9.

Around the corner to the presentation venue.

More steam-punkers.

Costumers and cosplayers lined up for the start of the contest.

For reasons I didn't quite understand, this is a female costumer playing a male version of Frozen's Elsa. Sort of a Victor/Victoria thing, I guess.

Fixit Felix, Jr.

I didn't quite catch the backstory (still no working PA) but apparently this young steam-punker is playing an incredibly cute and psychotically dangerous anime character.

This girl identifes her costome later in the contest as "Sexy Joker". It's not bragging if you can bring it..

A Sith.

A psychotic Alice Liddel (Alice In Wonderland) apparently from a game.

Did not catch at all who she is supposed to be. Nice costume though.

Again, did not catch this, though I believe it is from Anime.

An anime based costume largely done in painted duct tape..

Again did not catch the specifics, but an anime duo.

A deadly angel from the Dr. Who episode "Blink". They can only move when you're not looking at them, so don't blink..

The lead in an "Attack On Titan" cosplay group. She will appear solo and with the others.

Also has an Alice in Wonderland sort of look, but once more I did not catch the specifics.

"Glowcloud" from "Welcome To Night Vale". All Hail Glowcloud!

A poignant moment from another Dr. Who episode as the gas-masked boy (in a pure English accent) asks for his mother.