Jedi Retiree Luke Skywalker swigging green milk, a nutritious part of every space breakfast.
Previously on Midlife Crisis Crossover:
It’s that time again! The ninth annual Chicago Comic and Entertainment Exposition (“C2E2″) just wrapped another three-day extravaganza of comic books, actors, creators, toys, props, publishers, freebies, Funko Pops, anime we don’t recognize, and walking and walking and walking and walking. Each year C2E2 keeps inching ever closer to its goal of becoming the Midwest’s answer to the legendary San Diego Comic Con and other famous cons in larger, more popular states. My wife Anne and I missed the first year, but have attended every year since 2011 as a team.
In this special miniseries I’ll be sharing memories and photos from our own C2E2 experience and its plethora of pizzazz. If it’s a convention, that means it’s time for more cosplay photos! Anne and I are fans of costumes and try to keep an eye out for heroes, villains, antiheroes, supporting casts, and various oddities that look impressive and/or we haven’t seen at other cons…
Part Two featured the majority of Marvel characters we met. This time around, the arbitrary chapter divisions bring us to the amazing world of DC Comics, including a handful of Marvel/DC team-ups. As a value-added bonus, also on deck are heroes and villains from the Star Wars universe plus a selection of video game personalities, just because. Same disclaimers apply as in Part Two. Enjoy! Again!
Blue Beetle (the Jaime Reyes version) and Okoye from Black Panther.
Batman Beyond and an unlikely partner in the Mole Man, the very first Fantastic Four villain.
Bane and Doctor Octopus, hoping in vain for a future Batman v. Spider-Man film.
We previously hung out with the Joker at Wizard World Chicago 2017 as part of a group stymied at a seriously annoying security checkpoint. His vocal and physical performance are an eerily accurate tribute to Mark Hamill, and lend themselves to some great photos on his Instagram feed.
Vigilante, one of DC’s cowboy heroes from way back when. He also appeared in an episode of Justice League Unlimited with the voice of Nathan Fillion.
Also animated: the Legion of Doom from Super-Friends — Gorilla Grodd, Captain Cold, Bizarro, Catwoman, and Black Manta. Bonus points if you know which one was not a Legion of Doom member.
I’m old enough to remember watching Plastic Man’s show on Saturday mornings. Too bad nobody ever cosplays as Hula-Hula or Baby Plas.
I believe you know Wonder Woman.
Mera, star of the upcoming blockbuster Aquaman, whom you may recall from three of the weirdest minutes of Snyder and Whedon’s Justice League.
Speaking of which: Aquaman alongside Winged Warrior Woody Woodpecker.
Costar of another blockbuster franchise: Supreme Chancellor Snoke, whose backstory will probably be explained some day in a six-part Algerian children’s audiobook, but never ever in an actual Star Wars movie.
Clone Wars star Ahsoka Tano.
Mara Jade Skywalker, proving the Star Wars Expanded Universe will never actually die as long as all the bookshelves of its fans never catch fire simultaneously.
Jawas! Making the world safe for undertall cosplay.
Darth Vader: the original Kenner action figure! Complete with unyielding, awkward, hard plastic cape and lightsaber that retracts inside his arm. This is a painstakingly accurate depiction of why I preferred GI Joe figures.
Also from my childhood, sort of: Super Mario’s big bad King Bowser.
Another Bowser, this one riding in his Koopa clown car from Super Mario World, plus a Princess Peach who’s scandalized that we paparazzi have caught her with him.
A hero from my young-adult arcade years: Johnny Cage from Mortal Kombat.
From my old-adult gaming years: 9-Toes, one of the first bosses from the original Borderlands.
To be continued! Other chapters in this very special MCC miniseries:
Part 1: Another Jazz Hands Gallery!
Part 2: Marvel Cosplay!
Part 4: Last Call for Cosplay!
Part 5: Comics Creators Cavalcade
Part 6: Who Else We Met and What We Did
Part 7: Random Acts of Pop Culture