Well, it's getting to be THAT time again...

Mrs. Adorkification is a HUGE Steampunk..."ite" I guess you'd call it. She loves the fashion, literature, artifacts, artwork - all of it.

It got to the point where she more or less dragged me to a Steampunk dance a few years ago, and while I wore what she made and went with the flow, what really interested me were the other people there.

They had hand-made costumes, plastic guns, outrageous hats, time-machines, even fully-developed original characters. I hadn't seen anything like it outside of a comic convention.

It blew my mind that not only was this Steampunk thing popular, it created Steampunk 'dorks' who went around attending events and showing off their wares.

I've mentioned before that my wife is also an anime...'otaku' is the word? It started with Ouran High School Host Club, went into Black Butler, and then she was off - watching anything she could find even if she changed her mind after like two or three episodes. Adorkette became a fan of anime through her.

So when there was an anime convention nearby last month, my daughter and I went (Mrs. Adorkification had to work, and along with ticket prices she let Adorkette go in her place).

Again, I knew about as much anime as I did Steampunk, but the similarities to comic conventions were everywhere, including - of course - cosplayers. These fans were hardcore and proud.

It was hard for me to get out of my comfort zone - comics and superheroes - and attend these events. I've seen Trekkies, and Trekkies 2. I'm well aware of the Star Trek fans, the BSG fans, the D&D fans and even the Buffy fans from the Wizard World New England con I went to in 2010. But I observed those either from afar, or (in WWNE's case) off to the side. With ASF and PortCon, I was immersed. There was no 'comfortable distance'. I actually felt out of place, worried that my lack of education would show, but at both events I met interesting people willing to share their knowledge with me. They weren't shy about what they knew, or what they wore, and everyone was accepted. Some people even took part of the PortCon costume contest dressed as Steampunk Avengers.

I've come to realize that while comics in general, and superheros in particular, are my thing, I have a tremendous amount of respect for anyone who has that level of devotion to theirs...whatever it may be.

So with SDCC coming into full swing, I wanted to tip my top hat with a wink and a Zod to all attendees and newbies:

Embrace your dorkiness...
Ask questions...
Respect all...
and have fun, you lucky SOB's...