Let's Get Futuristic with Eternal Con!
Time to get Spacey and Futuristic with Eternal Con. A fun enthusiastic convention located in East Garden City, Long Island. The convention used to be held at the Cradle of Aviation previously but have moved to a bigger location. This convention peaked our interest quite a bit and here's why you should check it out:
Eternal Con is a comic and pop culture festival in Long Island, located at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum. As a first time goer to this convention I’m glad I had some friends to tag along with who previously been there. The center where they held the convention is more of a round dome, the entrance took a little bit of circling to find (there was plenty of Parking around if your driving).
If you purchased tickets online in advance, you get scanned and let in; It’s a bit of interesting structure as there are no physical passes or bracelets (unless you’re press or vendor), so you’re kinda trapped to stay inside and get marked if you choose to step out (but you would have to go though whole security process to get back in).
Inside you’re led to a tunnel, once through you get a general feel of the convention center: concrete and high ceilings. On one end of the wall are the guests and signings, on another is the stage, and in far back are the photo-ops (mostly banners though). The arrangement of vendors is very nice and covers everyone, there was an overwhelming set of comic sellers but a rather even distribution. The artist alley was great! A really big selection of individuals with styles from anime to more traditional. The space overall felt grant and not cramped as there were plenty of space between booths to walk through and stop for photos.
Along one of the walls was the photo-op set up consisting of various iconic vehicles such as GhostBusters, Back-to-the-Future and Tardis. Plenty of Harry Potter and Star Wars too! As for guests, you can meet Sesame Street Icons, DC voice actors, Power Ranger legends as well as wrestling Superstars - including Finn Balor (who had the longest line).
The gaming section was set up right outside of entrance of the dealers hall, which as the day went by got a little more crowded, as people gathered around the Super Smash Ultimate set up, making it a little harder to get inside the space. They had quite a few other games at the venue but if you went there specifically for Super Smash Ultimate then you definitely will need to get their early if your trying to get a game in. However, table top games are always enjoyable so it was great to see they had section for that as well.
Overall the con experience was great, it felt like there was plenty to do and the panels and contests were very engaging. Especially if you’re a resident of Long Island it’s definitely a con that anyone can enjoy. I would perhaps work a little on ticketing and identification as well as rearrange the gaming area so that crowding doesn’t happen (and again please put a banner or something so that newcomers can find their way to the con).
*Be sure to check out if your cosplay made it into our gallery!
