Supanova has always been a must-see for the pop culture and fandom savvy; a convention balancing the tightrope between the newest, big-name celebs and the childhood faves that leave you binge-watching old shows for a week.
This year’s Brisbane Supanova (9-11 November) was a nostalgia-fest of epic proportions, with Clark Kent himself, Dean Cain, eternal Goth inspiration Christina Ricci – player of iconic murderesses Wednesday Addams and Lizzie Borden – and Drake Bell of 'Drake and Josh' fame on hand to leave guests fondly contemplating their misspent youth.
It’s always fascinating to hear such familiar faces talking about their experiences, both good and bad, even if it’s bizarre to consider that there was a racist backlash to Dean Cain’s portrayal of Superman (he’s one-quarter Japanese).
'Torchwood' and 'Arrow' star John Barrowman was a crowd favourite this year, teaming up with his sister Carole to talk about their incredibly popular novels and comic books, and former 'Torchwood' co-star Gareth David-Lloyd to talk about the realities of playing the first openly gay heroes on television.
Still, the big names kept on coming with Bonnie Wright, of 'Harry Potter' fame, dazzling fans with talk about the beloved franchise and life beyond the Potterverse.
Fans of 'The Vampire Diaries' were in for a treat, with Ian Somerhalder and Daniel Gillies getting hearts aflutter. And those with a love of comics and animation were gifted a long list of talents, both artists and actors, to answer any and every question.
Outside of the main celeb-fest, Supanova is a fantastic place to buy an obscene amount of merch or stumble onto the next must-read author in your favourite genre; and increasingly, it’s the go-to place for the opportunity to meet and chat with your favourite authors.
Queues to meet Aussie movie-ranter and writer of supernatural fiction Maria Lewis blocked traffic at times, and by the end of the con it was pretty common to see guests carrying a copy of one of her four novels (or wearing one of the matching badges).
Increasingly though, Supanova is challenging itself to tackle social issues with a focus on regular events concerning mental health and self-care, and panel discussions not afraid to come out swinging.
Whether it was the panel on mental health in the geek community, discussions on mental illness depictions in comics and movies, John Barrowman deriding the US President, or a two-part conversation on the issues of female characters in horror and fantasy, there were plenty of moments to get guests thinking – and talking – about wider social issues.
And 'Aquaman'. If you’ve ever wanted to walk beneath a gigantic bare-chested Jason Momoa, you missed a treat this weekend, with constant trailer screenings, gigantic banners and life-sized cut-outs on hand to make sure the upcoming DC release couldn’t be forgotten.
This year, Supanova has kicked ass and taken names rather spectacularly.
As the exhaustion fades and the new merch is given a home, it’s hard to imagine how on earth they’ll top this year’s line-up. I can’t wait to find out.
Supanova will be back in 2019, with confirmed dates for the Melbourne, Gold Coast, Sydney and Perth events.
