Geeked Out

If only high school had been like this: Hollywood actors contractually obligated to not only hang out with nerds but also pretend to like them. Welcome to the idyllic world of the Florida Supercon, where nerds will be disappointed to learn that Oliver Phelps, Devon Murray, and Stanislav Ianevski — né George Weasley, Seamus Finnegan, and Viktor Krum, respectively — of the Harry Potter films, are real people and not wizards at all. You, however, are still a muggle.

Conversely, nerds will be overjoyed to find out that Jem from Jem and the Holograms is a real, live woman named Samantha Newark, and if they take off their Darth Vader masks, they can actually talk to her. Thirtysomething nerds can relive Saturday mornings gone by in the person of Larry Kenny, voice of Count Chocula and Lion-O in the Thundercats, while hipster dorks can geek out to Dana Snyder, voice of Aqua Teen Hunger Force's Master Shake. Other nerd-ecstasy comes in the form of performances by several so-called Wizard Wrock bands, a scantily dressed chick with bananas on her belt named Monkey Woman, and the Heroes Alliance, a nonprofit organization of adults who wear multicolored tights. Somehow the Hyatt Regency Bonaventure Conference Center has discovered a way to contain all of this magical power under one roof. Tickets cost $20 at the door, $30 for a weekend pass.
Sat., May 24; Sun., May 25, 2008