Texas Tech University librarians Rob Weiner, Erin Burnes, Shelby Hebert and Jenni Jacobs host a Pop Culture Discussion Panel at Lubbock-Con 2024. Photo by Avery Mendoza.
By Avery Mendoza
Stormtroopers marched for the Empire, medieval warriors engaged in simulated combat and an assortment of vendors from across Texas made sales to people dressed like Ghostbusters – among other sights at the Lubbock Memorial Civic Center this past weekend.
Lubbock-Con, a Hub City nerd’s paradise, attracted crowds of citizens Saturday through Sunday. Citizens of Lubbock and Texas Tech students alike gathered to spread their fandoms, knowledge and joy.
Texas Tech University Librarians Rob Weiner, Erin Burnes, Shelby Hebert and Jenni Jacobs hosted a Pop Culture Discussion Panel. The librarians engaged in back-and-forth discussion with the audience going over different topics within modern day pop culture.
Topics ranged from the release of the online video game “Helldivers 2” and its connection to the classic film “Starship Troopers,” the growing frustration with the current state of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and their love for the recent Japanese monster film “Godzilla Minus One.”
A vigil at Lubbock-Con 2024 dedicated to the late Daniel “Captain AmeriDad” Calhoun. Photo by Avery Mendoza.
When asked during the panel which classic film he’d most love to watch in theaters again, Weiner was indecisive.
“That’s such an impossible question to answer,” Weiner said. “I’ve seen close to 25,000 movies.”
When asked about her feelings about video games that came out last year, Jacobs dropped a bombshell on the members of the audience.
“I know it won game of the year, but I did not like Baldur’s Gate 3,” Jacobs said.
Professional voice actors Mela Lee, Nicholas Roye, Johnny Young and Elle Newlands held meet-and-greets for fans and participated in a guest panel about their roles in the video game “Apex Legends.”
“I love Lubbock man, I came back here because I love the fans and the food,” Roye, voice of the Apex character Octane, said at the event.
The panel offered the actors an opportunity to give fans a peek behind the curtain of game production. Mela Lee, the voice of the Apex character Lifeline, talked about the difference between her current and early voice acting career.
“I [once] went into the recording studio to play a character named ‘guard three’ and a year later I found out I was playing ‘Jade’ in ‘Mortal Kombat,’” Lee said. “Now, with social media, companies are pretty open on who we are going to play.”
Cosplayers were spread across the convention center’s exhibition floor throughout the weekend, proudly showing off their intricate costumes to eventgoers. Cosplayers Alex Smith and Alex Reed displayed their skills with handmade cosplays of Husker and Charlie Morningstar from the Amazon Prime series “Hazbin Hotel.”
They were there along with their friend, Charlotte Dahmer, who was dressed as Loona from the adult animated web-series “Helluva Boss.”
Lubbock-Con also played host to a pair of cosplay contests to determine the best-dressed participant. Winning entrants of the adult cosplay contest consisted of Caleb Lively as Viper from the video game “Titanfall 2” in third place, a participant who identified only as Ayana dressed as Leafon from the “Pokemon” series in second place, and a cosplayer known as Sailor Horchata as Fire Princess Peach from the “Super Mario Bros.” series as the first-place winner.
Kyler Martin, winner of the children’s cosplay contest at Lubbock-Con, shows off his costume. Photo by Avery Mendoza.
In the children’s division, a participant named Archer dressed as Marvel’s “Daredevil,” and came in third place. Another, named Wyatt, dressed as Huggy Wuggy from the video game “Poppy Playtime,” placed second, while first place went to participant Kyler Martin who dressed as an ice dragon.
When asked how it felt to win the contest, Kyler said he was “surprised” because he “worked so hard on this.”
“We did a month’s worth of work in a week,” Kyler’s mother Markie Hicks said.
Kyler’s parents screamed out loud when their child’s name was called.
Describing the character in his own words, Kyler said he “loves mozzarella sticks,” drawing a laugh from the crowd.
Also drawing laughter was the Laugh Hub City stand up group, which hosted a comedy show during the event that featured local comics Seth Cheugy, Sarah Youngblood, Hailey Newman and Chris Crawford. Part of Crawford’s act involved performing humorous impressions of Mickey Mouse and Batman, which pushed the envelope of the show’s “PG-13 rating” with some colorful language.
Artists from around the state came together to show off and sell their wares in the convention center’s vendor hall. One group of artists took an extra step and created a scavenger hunt for patrons to participate in.
Shellby Gaddis, owner of HallowMonsterCo, poses by their wares at Lubbock-Con 2024. Photo by Avery Mendoza.
Eventgoers who purchased an item from this collective would receive a stamp – and patrons who collected a stamp from each of the vendors could redeem them to receive a gift bag containing merchandise from all the artists.
“We had seen other artists do this trend and thought it would be fun,” artist Shellby Gaddis said. “We wanted to add a bit of fun, and Lubbock-Con said it was a good idea”
Gaddis, whose art business is called “HallowMonsterCo,” operates an online shop and takes commissions from customers. They showcase their creations across all major social media platforms and can also be supported for their work on Patreon.
“Lubbock-Con 2024 was twice as big as [last year],” event coordinator Rey Ramos said. “We hope [Lubbock-Con 2025] is thrice as big.”
About Reece Nations
