Rhode Island Comic Con returned to Providence, RI from November 3-5, 2023 for an action-packed weekend full of all things comic book and pop culture! For their 11th year, 150 celebrity guests, over 100 vendors, and nearly 100 artists took over the Rhode Island Convention Center and Amica Mutual Pavilion. Among the headlining guests were Carrie-Anne Moss, Ron Perlman, Carl Weathers, Famke Janssen, Seth Green, Marisa Tomei, Evangeline Lilly, Anthony Daniels, and Linda Hamilton.
This year’s convention also assembled one of the biggest reunions of the 1992 X-Men: The Animated Series voice cast. Alison Sealy-Smith (Storm), Alyson Court (Jubilee), Cal Dodd (Wolverine), Chris Britton (Mr. Sinister), Chris Potter (Gambit), George Buza (Beast), Lenore Zann (Rogue), Ron Rubin (Morph), and producer/director Larry Houston were all there! And accompanying them was an X-cellent collection of cel-shaded statues made by designer Greg Maraio, where fans could sit & pose as Professor X:
Not to mention 4 different Superman actors, the original 1987 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles voice actors, several wrestlers, and Star Wars actors, too! All the while you could shop the many vendor areas across both venues where you can feast your eyes (and wallets) on such collectibles as action figures, LEGO, Funko Pops, video games, mystery boxes, jewelry & apparel, 3D printed items, trading cards, anime merch, and, of course, comic books:
It’s always an eclectic mix of items for sale at RICC, on top of the already diverse Artist Alley ranging from local fan art to mainstream published names like Jae Lee, Simon Bisley, Jim Salicrup, Ian Chase Nichols, Craig Rousseau, Jason Keith, and Buzz. But this year Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles artists Steve Lavigne & Jim Lawson and co-creator Kevin Eastman made themselves at home in the 5th floor Rotunda Room for limited signing opportunities:
In fact, most of the special guests do offer autograph & photo op pre-sales on the official RICC website, so be sure to grab your tickets early, just in case they sell out before the con! You’ll also see that there are tons of panels and activities going on all weekend long. So if you’re looking to hop in a Q&A with your favorite actor, you’ll want to check that out, too! Plus other staple experiences you can almost always expect at Rhode Island Comic Con… like iconic television & movie vehicles, Ink Fusion Empire tattoo artists, a Featured Presentation photo op, Geek Speed Dating, and the legendary 501st Legion professional Star Wars cosplayers on the 5th floor:
This year there was even a game room with board game & TCG battles hosted by Massachusetts-based Awesome Gaming & Collectibles, food trucks outside the convention center, and free video gaming by Grandpa Gaming of Las Vegas:
Rhode Island Comic Con is called “the biggest show in the smallest state” for a reason! It always feels like there’s not enough time to see & do everything (which makes the 1-hour early entry VIP badge quite handy) but if you scour the official website and meticulously plan your trip out for this massive convention, you’ll be ready for next year’s event, which is slated for November 1-3, 2024. In the meantime you can check out some highlights in the video below, as well as our full photo gallery!
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