Cincinnati Comic Expo

It was a busy weekend in downtown Cincinnati, between “Octoberfest”, homecoming weekend for University of Cincinnati, the Bengals were at home vs. the Titans on Sunday, as well as Cincinnati Comic Expo.  Members from Great Lakes Base, Ohio Garrison and Rancor Clan were all in attendance – along with friends from nearby Kentucky – for Ohio’s largest comic book convention.

Because of changes to Episode VII filming schedule, Peter Mayhew was forced to cancel his appearance.  David Prowse also had to cancel, due to knee surgery.  Yet shortly after that news, it was announced a trio of Boba Fetts: Daniel Logan, Dickey Beers (stunts) and John Morton -- also known for “Dak” from Empire Strikes Back -- would replace Mayhew and Prowse on the Cincy Expo guest list.  This was the first time John Morton has appeared at a convention in Great Lakes Base, so the boys from Shadow Squadron made sure to offer him a proper welcome. (more on that in upcoming posts)

Another big debut this weekend was for the Ohio Garrison “Detention Block” display booth.  Joining last year’s Speeder Bike and full-sized Dewback -- provided by Midsouth Garrison -- was a full-sized Death Star detention block, complete with two working “cells” where people could be held prisoner as part of the “Bounty Hunt” charity fundraiser.  For a small donation, folks were given lanyards to walk around the convention floor – where troopers from Ohio Garrison and bounty hunters from Rancor Clan would “arrest” them, and place them inside the detention block for about 5 minutes; or until someone paid to “bail” them out first.  The proceeds from this weekend’s went to Families with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) -- a local autism support group. 

While we here at Great Lakes Base typically do our best to foil the Empire’s efforts, we did manage to help sign up several people for the charity fundraiser – I even helped a few evade capture from Troopers and Mercs for a little while longer!  Together, we helped raise just over $600 for the organization.  To learn more visit: http://www.familieswithasd.org

Along with the Star Wars actor guests on the lineup, Cincinnati Comic Expo featured a pair of local artists with ties to Star Wars.  One of the headline artists was longtime friend, Ohio native and Rebel Legion Honorary Member – Joe Corroney.  Also setting up shop along “artist alley” was aspiring artist and actual Great Lakes Base member Travis Perkins; who’s done several projects for us over the years.  If you are a fan of Star Wars artwork, I highly recommend you visit both of their respective tables and pickup something for your wall at home.