Steel City Con August 2022 Review
Another Steel City Con is in the books. This weekend, attendees had the opportunity to meet some of their favorite celebrities from wrestling,like the Legendary Ric Flair, to the cast of Dexter (sans Dexter himself, Michael C. Hall dropped off) John Carpenter, members of The Walking Dead franchise, plus so many more.
experience though.
Before attending, prospective guests will need to be aware that just buying a ticket for the event just gets you inside the Monroeville Convention Center. If you want to make your Steel City Con experience memorable, you will need to be ready to spend some money. Yes, the convention does offer a few events, but most of the thrills come from paid experiences.
Fans who wish to attend Steel City Con must purchase a pass; guests can choose between a single-day pass or the ability to attend the convention for the whole weekend. Ultimately, purchasing a three-day pass is cheaper, even if you only plan to attend for two days. Guests who want the ultimate experience and shorter lines could purchase a variety of VIP experiences.
Once through the doors, we were overwhelmed by the sheer amount of Pop-Culture merchandise available to be purchased. But be sure to save up some cash for the weekend because Celebrity guests signings and photos can range anywhere from $40 to $300 for the experience of interacting with the guest.
So ultimately the major question at hand is, “Is it worth going to this event?” Well, first off if you are in the Pittsburgh area, then it is a pop culture event to go to. As for myself and my crew, we gladly made the 2 hour drive from Cleveland to see our favorite celebrities.
At the August 2022 Steel City Con, guests had the opportunity to meet a variety of celebrities. During the event, guests could get in line in order to meet the guest of their choice. Personally, we were most interested in the following:
- John Carpenter
- Ric Flair
- Alicia Silverstone
- Robert Patrick
- Zachary Levi
- James Remar
- Tom Payne and so many more.
Sunday ended with a costume contest for children, teenagers, and adults. First-place winners were granted a variety of prizes from collectibles to cash rewards for their co-splays.
Steel City Con does a great job at bringing in guests people want to see; and it seems to get better each time. I missed the National Lampoons Vacation one, which was also a stacked card. But to make the drive in and back home from Cleveland, it’s got to be worth the added expense of gas. I felt the opportunity to meet and thank 2 legends that influenced my childhood growing up, like Ric Flair and John Carpenter was more than worth it. I missed an opportunity with Stan Lee in Cleveland and have always regretted it. The money, time, and effort to attend this years Steel City Con was more than worth it in my eyes.
Looking at it from a general admission guests’ point of view, the prices can be off-putting. Yes, Steel City gives guests access to these celebrities, but ultimately, the admission cost is just a small part of what you will pay to have a memorable experience. Although meeting the celebrity guests can easily be the most expensive aspect, you can easily spend more just on collectibles.
Going into the convention the vendors are front and center. Before you can even make it back to celebrity autographs, you could have already spend a lot of money.
So let’s talk about the excellent vendors first. Most of the vendors at the show were great, they took their time to talk with people who came up to their booth, answer any questions, and even offer their opinion; some merchants were even willing to haggle or offer deals. On numerous occasions, we found ourselves just talking with one of the vendors about a general topic and having a good time. In fact, on those occasions, we were more willing to buy from them than someone else.
Steel City Con is ultimately a great convention for those looking to get Pop Culture collectibles or meet some of their favorite celebrities. Ultimately if you are on a tight budget, you will need to either plan carefully or stick to a set amount.
Overall the August 2022 Steel City Con was fun but not because of the celebrity guests at the show. Ultimately, the merchants are what made the show a memorable experience. Yes, Steel City Con did provide quests with a great line-up of guests but the limited panels and price can be off-putting. If you are looking for a pop culture convention, Steel City Con is worth checking out. If you feel like showing off your cosplay, you can definitely catch the attention of guests and potentially even win some money. And added Bonus is it’s walking distance from the Monroeville Mall for all of you Dawn of the Dead fans out there as well.
There were a few mix ups, and negative events that I could focus on, but ultimately the pros of the experience overshadowed the cons, so myself and the crew at Domain Cleveland Entertainment will continue to make that drive out to Pittsburgh, while I’m sure things with the organizers of Steel City Con continue to grow and improve. Hopefully we will score some more interviews in the future.
Bill Bailey