RomeoCon was back! In its third year, RomeoCon 2024 was bigger and better than ever. Not only was it a great time, but my buddy Tony and I ran into a lot of friends there.

Our first stop was world-famous cartoonist Art Baltazar. Also co-owner of Aw Yeah Comics, Art runs great comic shops, one of which happens to be mere blocks from my home. I spend many hours meeting artists or just soaking in pop culture greatness in Aw Yeah.

Next, we saw “Chicago’s favorite sweetheart,” Missa Kate. A longtime favorite of ours, we never miss a chance to see Missa Kate. This time it was extra special, as proceeds from her merchandise and a big raffle benefitted wrestler Chris Bey, who suffered an in-ring injury.

Missa Kate was as fun and lively as ever, but she got serious in the Trivia contest a few minutes later. Her team took the title, but it was a fun time for all of us.

The POWW Entertainment booth was one of the busiest. Owned by longtime friend Jimmy Christianson, POWW is Chicago’s longest-running independent entertainment company.

We met Chavo Guerrero, Jr., a member of the legendary Guerrero wrestling family. Guerrero was a consultant on The Iron Claw movie. The rest of the packed celebrity lineup included voice actor Phil Parsons, actor Manu Bennett, John Gremillion, Jill Harris, Erik Kimerer, Dave Trosko, Dallas Reid, Kent Williams, John Swasey, Chuck Huber, Linda Young, Power Rangers Tracy Lynn Cruz and Blake Foster, and children’s author Dr. Aaron Ozee.

Chavo Guerrero, Jr.

We couldn’t be ensconced in so much pop culture without doing a bit of shopping: a Funko Pop here, a t-shirt or two there. Vendors were well-stocked and fair-priced, the best combination. There were also panels, podcats, costume contests and more.

Photo courtesy of Michael Bare Photography.

Presented by Encore and held at Romeoville Athletic & Event Center, RomeoCon 2024 was an awesome two-day event. For a smaller con, it had everything collectors would want. Additionally, it was extremely well-run and -organized.

This was our first time at RomeoCon, but it certainly won’t be our last. While we relive memories by seeing our friends’ posts on social media, we look forward to the next RomeoCon.

— John Wroblewski, online writer