SoldierCon El Paso 2024 Brings Comics, Cars, And Cosplay To Starlight Event Center
by Brendan M. Allen
It’s official! I’ve been announced for SoldierCon El Paso 2024. The event, which brings together comics, custom cars, and cosplay, began as a small on-post event at Ft Bliss, Texas in 2015. After nine years, it’s expanding to the Starlight Event Center in El Paso. The move off-post not only allows for a much larger venue, it also provides the opportunity for the local community to participate without having to jump through hoops to secure special passes to get on post.
SoldierCon is promoted by Army veteran and Projekt Cars’ Business Development Director Carlos Molina, whose goal is to provide a comics convention experience for servicemembers and to build bridges between niche geeky fandoms. Check out some of Projekt Cars’ custom comics-themed builds here.
Knowing that servicemembers don’t have a lot of disposable income, SoldierCon offers free admission to any active duty servicemember with ID.
As a veteran myself and the father of a recently separated soldier, I can vouch for the fact that my 24 year old son’s LES (Army pay stub) does not look that different from mine, and I separated in the late 90’s. One of the things these young men and women face daily is finding affordable activities and spaces to exist that ground them in their own personal individuality, separate from their military identities and occupational specialties. SoldierCon provides at least one opportunity for soldiers to revel in geeky fandoms they’ve had since childhood, and to geek out and connect with other soldiers who share the same affinity.
The most recently announced guest list features several comic book creators, including Deryl Skelton, Mickey Clausen, Jay Savage, Mico Suayan, Art of Breed, Sam De La Rosa, and the legendary Joe Rubenstein.
On the film and television side of things, the Fast & Furious franchise is represented by Noel G, also known for his roles in Training Day and Sons of Anarchy spinoff Mayans MC. As of this writing, there are rumors he’ll be joined by another Fast & Furious alumnus as well.
Christopher Serrone, best known for his role as young Henry Hill in the iconic mob film Goodfellas will be in available for photos and autographs.
Leilani Shiu of the Star Wars franchise, Matthew De Merrit, who played ET in the seminal 1982 film, and Martin Klebba of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise will also be rubbing elbows with fans.
Fan favorite toy expert Johnny Jimenez, of Vegas Toy Shack and Pawn Stars, will be on hand to buy and sell toys and collectibles as well. Check out our recent interview with Johnny here.
SoldierCon 2024 takes place September 6-8 at the Starlight Event Center. General Admission tickets run $12.50 for Friday, $26 for Saturday, $21.50 for Sunday, and $44 for a 3-Day pass. Active Duty servicemembers attend for free. As I mentioned, there will also be a custom car show, a cosplay contest, and other events alongside the comics content. You can follow guest and other event announcements on the SoldierCon’s Facebook page here.
