Comikaze 2015 - Day 2

Today was day #2 at Comikaze 2015 at the Los Angeles Convention Center, and it was sure to be our busiest day.

Gene had unpacked the droids and had them set out by the time I arrived before the show opened.



Princess Leia came by before the show started to say hi to her favorite droid.



At 9:00am the doors opened, and the booth was pretty much packed the entire day.



It being Halloween and all, Gene's serving drink cups were filled with Tootsie Rolls.



And there were more where those came from.



Early on, we got to get a group picture with Keir Dullea and Gary Lockwood, from 2001: A Space Odyssey. Cool!



One of the main highlights of the booth was Mike Senna's public debut of his BB-8! And yes, it did drive/roll.



It attracted Reys of all ages.




It also attracted BB-8's two-legged cousin.



Baby Predator now has an older sister, as little Kayla and now Zoe Miyamoto team up.



Gordon Tarpley suited up as C-3PO, as if the crowd wasn't big enough.



Then Mike Senna brought BB-8 over for an awesome photo op.



Milynn came by. I blushed a little less than usual.



Some other fun stuff:






We wrapped up with a group photo. Pictured from left-to-right:

Mike Senna, Michael McMaster, Gordon Tarpley, William Miyamoto, Dan Johnson, Victor Franco, Paul Thompson, Gene Arena, Ed Perello and Chris Romines.



And then it was off to bed for the droids.



Another great day! One more to go.

Comikaze 2015 - Day 1

Today was the first day of Comikaze 2015 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. R2 and I met up with our convention buddies for a fun weekend of droiding together.



We set up shop at our R2 Builders booth, and at 1:00pm the show opened and we were under way.






William brought his Chopper-in-progress. This isn't quite how I remembered him (Chopper that is, not William), but that'll work.



Michael McMaster and I took WALL•E and R2 exploring, and I was excited to discover that Keir Dullea and Gary Lockwood from 2001: A Space Odyssey were signing in a nearby booth. We bothered them for a few moments before moving on.



Chris denied that he was making droid repairs here, but we know better.



A low-carbon emission vehicle was on display.



Stan Lee, still going strong at 92.



We had a good day today and we're looking forward to a big day #2!

A Wedding Night at the Museum

This past April at Wondercon, I met a couple, Brianne and Phillip, who were planning to get married in October. They asked if I thought there was any chance that R2 might be a guest at the wedding, and I guess R2 said "I do." The wedding was held at a unique venue, the Los Angeles Museum of Natural History.

Since the museum is pretty much next door to where the retired Space Shuttle Endeavor now lives at the California Science Center, I decided to arrive early and check out my tax dollars.

Neat!




Around 4:30pm we had R2 take pictures with the wedding party before the guests arrived. R2's appearance was to be a surprise to the guests.




This time around, R2 was not to be in the ceremony itself, but he was to make an appearance at the reception. So I stowed R2 in the room where the groom and groomsmen were awaiting the ceremony.



Since I had some time, I looked around the museum a bit. I asked one of the employees what time the dinosaurs come to life, but I only got the weary half-smile that I give when I'm asked if R2 can fly, so I went back to the room R2 was in to wait for the reception.



Well, apparently the ceremony was a success, because the next time I saw Brianne and Phillip at the reception, they were man and wife.



R2 was indeed a fun surprise for the guests, and lots of them took pictures.






We wrapped up pictures, and that was a wrap for R2. After everyone retired to dinner, I covered him up, headed to the elevator, and tried to take an odd selfie.



Weddings are always fun, and I was glad I was able to help out with this one. Congratulations, Brianne and Phillip.