Why I drove out to North Coast Comic Con and didn’t go in.
Akron isn’t a terrible drive, but it is over an hour. I popped over to the website ( http://northcoastcomiccon.com/) just to check the address again so I knew where to go and then headed out. An hour and ten minuets later I was parking and about to walk in when I saw a sign on the door listing cancellations. There were six or seven names on that list, and it included everyone I wanted to see.
Now, I get that cancellations happen. Disastrous ones even. Screaming Tiki lost most of the important guests for their ’10 show – David Prowse and Glen Shadix both cancelled last minuet. I seem to remember there were a couple of others too. I still went to that one, because they informed everyone in advance on their website. And that’s where North Coast failed.
Remember I said I checked that website before I left (and let’s face it, I know a litle bit about running a site. I’ve been running Violent Blue for years now)? NO mention of cancellations. I double checked when I got back. The guest bios of the people who cancelled had been deleted from the “Guest” page, though they were still on that flyer pic on the front page. North coast is quick to put “Just added”! in big bold caps on that front page whenever they added a guest. They need to do that when a guest cancels too.
They do mention it on their facebook page, and perhaps it’s my fault for not discovering the facebook page earlier. However, this is important enough that it should have been in both places to reach as many potential attendees as possible. When I walked up and saw that list, I was so angry that they hadn’t posted it on the website where I could see it that I got back in my car and drove home. Admission may only be eight dollars, but you’re not getting that money from me, and all of those vendors inside? None of them will see a dime from me. Not from this show anyhow. You let all of us down North Coast. I’ll save my cash to spend at Cinema Wasteland instead.
Argo City Comics 