Saved by Spider-Man (True Story!)

This past weekend, I wrapped up my “Summer Tour” of conventions as a guest at Fan Expo Canada, where I hosted a panel called “Weird Superhero Merchandise” with my long-time friend Sam Noir (@heysamnoir).

My prior cons (SDCC and MegoMeet/Zolocon) both had problematic beginnings (I have severe travel anxiety) and well, now I have a complete set. It took me over an hour and 10,000 steps to find my pass, as every volunteer sent me a different way. Once inside, I would compound this issue by not knowing where the theatre was (shame on me.)

I was late, lost, and stuck in a massive, slow-moving crowd (another nightmare I frequently have.) I began to panic.

My friend Sam phoned me from the panel and, unbeknownst to me, shared our conversation with the audience; he ingeniously made it part of the panel. He tried hard to guide me, but being vision impaired, he was unable to find me himself. A voice piped up on the phone saying, “I’ll find him,” and Sam handed his phone to the man who said, “Look for the guy dressed as Spider-Man!” Which made me chuckle, at a con, that’s like look for the guy with a nerdy t-shirt.

As I made my way down, I asked the first guy dressed as Spider-Man if he was “looking for a Brian,” and he was! He led me to the panel, where a very sweaty, anxious man got a hero’s welcome thanks to Sam’s crowd warm-up skills.

I wish I had the time to set up a camera, but we gave 25 minutes of the tightest comedy we’ve ever done. It was infectious and wonderful. In less than an hour, I went from wanting to cry to… well…wanting to cry for better reasons. My sincerest thanks to that audience; you were INCREDIBLE!

From L to R: Sam Noir, The Amazing Spider-Man, Sweaty Man.

Spider-Man joined us on stage and never revealed his secret identity. All I know is this was his first cosplay, and yes, he was quite hot in that get-up.

I cannot think of a better allegory for this summer; I’ve had some real lows and some incredible highs. Despite some of the troubles, conflicts and disappointments, every experience ended with me being glad I came.

“The PlaidStallions Summer Tour” was not financially successful ( I knew that going in), but it was the best thing I could have done for my mental health and well-being.

After the panel, I sat with Sam (a true warrior of the convention scene) and watched him give the same enthusiasm to each Sunday afternoon table visitor he probably had on the first day. His voice was gone by this point, but he kept talking away.

I said, “I did three of these things, and I’m exhausted; I don’t know how you keep going every other weekend.” His answer was “I latch on to the people with good energy and enjoy the conversation, it’s like a recharge.”

That stuck with me. I’ve always been public about my struggles with depression and anxiety, and I’ve been in some dark spaces. However, this past summer has taught me that if you show good people some kindness, they will return it in droves. Thank you everybody for this summer who popped by and made my worldview better, I can hope I did the same.

Speaking of Debt, Spidey, if you’re reading this, I would like to send you something, so reach out if you can.

Sincerely,

BrAiN