This year, the Chicago Comic & Entertainment Expo (known by most as C2E2) was bigger and better than ever in more ways than one.

Many Chicagoans (and other midwesterners) see C2E2 as one of the biggest events of the year. Why? Because year after year, C2E2 has brought big names and impressive vendors/artists to McCormick Place in downtown Chicago (which is the largest convention center in the United States, thank you very much).

This year was no different. Marvel, Funko, the Supergirl ladies, comic book writer Marguerite Bennett… all of these big names were in attendance and really drew in the crowds. (Seriously, there were so many people on the show floor that it was hard to move!)

With these big names and big crowds came one of my favorite parts of any convention: Lots and lots of cosplayers. And you know what? You can never have too much cosplay. It’s not a thing. Conventions are all about people getting together to celebrate and go crazy over their favorite fandoms, pop culture entities, and geeky loves, right? Well, there’s no better way to outwardly show your love and support for the things you enjoy than by cosplaying.

While other conventions encourage and cater to the cosplay community, C2E2 does it better than anyone else. If I were to give out convention awards to all of the conventions I’ve ever attended, I’d say that C2E2 is the king of cosplay.

C2E2 is really cosplay-friendly

C2E2 really has the perfect atmosphere for cosplayers to come and have fun. Not only does it have fan meet-ups and a giant cosplay contest (which I’ll get to in a second), but the convention also has amenities and aspects that cosplayers really appreciate.

One of the most helpful (and awesome) cosplay offerings C2E2 has is their Cospitality Lounge. Not only does it offer help with costumes (both changing rooms as well as emergency supplies like safety pins or a hot glue gun), but the lounge also coordinates photo meet-ups too! This is a really great resource for cosplayers. Accidents happen, so it’s great that they offer emergency supplies and help. Plus, it’s always fun when cosplayers get to hang out, so providing a space for that is a really great idea.

Speaking of providing meet-up spaces, another thing that really makes C2E2 cosplay friendly is its abundance of available open spaces. From the front entrance lobby to the large area outside of the show floor to large unoccupied areas on the show floor, C2E2’s set up in the McCormick Place (whether or not they had cosplayers specifically in mind when designing it) is really cosplayer-friendly. These spaces allow cosplayers to have fun with their costumes and with interacting with others without really impeding the flow of traffic.

Probably one of the most cosplay-friendly aspects of C2E2 is their adoption and promotion of “Cosplay is Not Consent” and their zero tolerance policy regarding harassment. People cosplay because it’s fun and it makes them feel good. But when others violate cosplayers because they see the cosplayer’s costume as an invitation, it’s no longer fun. Though I haven’t been a cosplayer for long, I speak from experience when I say that creepy and violating encounters are absolutely terrible. So, it’s really encouraging to see C2E2 not only hold its guests to the “Cosplay is Not Consent” rules, but also remind guests of it with signage and a section on all attendance badges. When cosplayers feel safe, cosplayers are happy!

Cosplayers on the floor

When it comes to large conventions, C2E2 has, by far, one of the highest ratios of cosplaying guests to non-cosplaying guests. When walking through any of the lobbies, the show floor, or the panel area, it’s really impossible to be more than five or 10 feet away from a cosplayer. In other words, if you were to try to stop and take pictures with each and every cosplayer, you’d never be able to because there wouldn’t be enough time!

While it’s super exciting to see all of the vendors and artists and do a ton of shopping on the show floor, cosplayers really make the whole experience so much more fun and unique. After all, it’s not every day that you’re standing near Spider-Man or Deadpool.

Cosplayers are a great reminder of what conventions are about: Celebrating what you love and reflecting on why you love it in the first place. C2E2’s setup, namely the wide open spaces on the show floor, make it easy for cosplayers to convene and pose for photos. Plus, it also makes it easy for non-cosplayers to interact with them!

The C2E2 Crown Championships of Cosplay

C2E2 is the home of the Crown Championships of Cosplay, the largest and most renowned cosplay contests in the world. This year, because it also happened to be the final stop of the ReedPOP “Quest for the Crown” international cosplay circuit, it was even bigger and better than ever.

This year’s event featured cosplay champions from different regions all over the world. Cosplayers from Australia, China, Indonesia and more participated in the championships in hopes of taking home $10,000 in cash prizes as well as having a shot at the “Global Champion of Cosplay” title. In other words, this was like no other cosplay contest you’ve seen or heard of before.

Not only were the C2E2 Crown Championships of Cosplay’s entrants notable this year, but the judges C2E2 brought in were pretty awesome too! Big names like Ann Foley (costume designer for Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.), Stephanie Maslansky (costume designer for all of the Marvel Netflix shows [so far]), and cosplay extraordinaire Yaya Han were all judges!

And what a prestigious competition it was. The local cosplay competition happened first, with the winner of that competition advancing to the final global competition round (with a bit of cash in their pocket, of course). All of the costumes (which were all 100% homemade, by the way) were amazing and the entrants all really rocked it. But it was Major Sam from Australia who walked away as the Global Champion of Cosplay (and for good reason)!

C2E2 publicizes their cosplay competition and makes the whole experience as exciting as can be. It’s definitely one of the highlights of the whole convention.

Photoshoots and meet-ups

Cosplay photoshoots and meet-ups are quickly becoming one of my favorite parts of attending a convention. It’s such a blast to be able to get together with fellow cosplayers and have fun by posing for a bunch of photos. Plus, it’s a great time to talk about costume creation and get inspired for your next costume.

Because C2E2 has such a great cosplay atmosphere, it wasn’t hard to find photoshoots and meet-ups. At all. In fact, there were tons of them over the weekend, covering almost every major fandom you can think of. C2E2 coordinated a lot of these meet-ups and included them in their schedule. They even went so far as to schedule them with panels in mind (so that fans of DC Comics, for instance, could go to their meet-up without missing a DC-related panel).

The best part about these C2E2-planned meet-ups is that they’re incredibly inclusive. Sometimes meet-ups are started by a small group of people and most convention attendees are unaware of their existence. But, because they’re in the schedule, even the newest convention-goer or cosplayer can join and have a good time.

That being said, there were also a few fan-led meet-ups and photoshoots happening throughout the weekend. After all, C2E2 has creative such a positive cosplay atmosphere that their official meet-ups just weren’t enough!

I went to a Marvel cosplay photoshoot on Sunday and had a blast! Not only did I see familiar faces from previous events and have a nice chat, but I also got to meet quite a few new people as well. People who share the same love for Marvel cosplay as I do. We took large group photos on a set of (stationary) escalators as well as some individual shots. The highlight of the whole experience? Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.‘s Ann Foley and Marvel’s Judy Stephens showed up and took pictures with people! It was definitely an hour of my life that I’ll never forget.

The bottom line

C2E2 is rapidly becoming one of the biggest events of the year. Its vendors, artists, and guests keep getting better and better, leaving no doubt that C2E2 will soon be one of the most popular conventions in the country. But, while that’s great and all, it’s C2E2’s cosplay-friendly atmosphere that makes it truly special and unique. From the huge cosplay competition to special cosplay and meet-up areas, this convention really cares about its fans’ colorful and playful means of self-expression. At C2E2, cosplay is king and everyone benefits from it.
 
Check out more awesome C2E2 cosplayers in our gallery!
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What’s the best cosplay you’ve ever seen?

 
Related: Heroes & Villains Fan Fest Chicago 2015: A fun DC TV fan experience