Emerald City Comic Con is back ... to 2013 levels: Today So Far

• Emerald City Comic Con is back ... but it's not quite the same.
• Washington spoils its dogs.
• The U.S. Forest Service is trying some new tech to fight wildfires — balloons!

This post originally appeared in KUOW's Today So Far newsletter for August 19, 2022.

I love Thursdays at Emerald City Comicon. The event draws a considerable crowd over the weekend. You'll be sure to see cosplayers, families, collectors, and more swarming the Seattle Convention Center over Friday and Saturday like an army of orcs at the Battle of Helm's Deep. But on Thursday, it's pretty chill and I feel like Maria in the "Sound of Music" running through vendor booths, singing "The aisles are alive with the sound of comics." Not to mention the indie art, DIY crafts, and all the creativity our region's geekonomy produces. As the first day of the con, Thursday is pretty light. But I have to admit, yesterday, it felt a bit lighter than usual.

KUOW's Soundside spoke with ReedPop Vice President of Global Comic Events Kristina Rogers. ReedPop owns ECCC and it estimates this year's event will bring in between 65,000 and 70,000 people. That's back to 2013 levels. Just from random conversations I had with folks yesterday, some feel the mask requirement ECCC implemented just a couple weeks before the event rubbed people the wrong way. Personally, it made me more inclined to attend. Anecdotally, adherence to the mask rule on the first day was not 100%. Still, ECCC has mask stewards on the floor to remind people about the rule.

"Largely, it’s the science,” Rogers told KUOW. “When we were looking at rolling everything back, we were hopeful for a different space as the summer progressed, and then the summer progressed … it just wasn’t in the cards for us. We were looking at case rates, we were looking at how folks were feeling about it, and decided to bring back the masks.”

I admit that the mask thing was part of my own mental calculation I went through Thursday: "How many people will actually stick to the mask rule, and how many people will drop their mask below their nose, or chin, and call it good? King County's community level of Covid right now is 146 per 100,000 residents, which is 'low;' officials aim to have below 200/100,000. Still, I should wear an N95 mask because that convention center can get muggy."

Other considerations came into play for Jennifer Kretchmer, actor, author, and disability advocate. For her, hybrid and virtual options are a big part of the equation. She told Soundside that despite mask rules, there remains a portion of our society who still cannot participate in these beloved events.

"Having virtual components, having virtual events, making sure you have webcams and rooms and ways for people to access and participate from home. Ways for panelists to participate remotely so that you're including disabled panelists or panelists with young kids," Kretchmer explained. "Accessibility really does help everyone in so many ways."

ECCC has jumped on the virtual bandwagon (or what I'd like to call "the future") and is offering a $15 digital ticket, which allows access to stream panels and get video on demand of the con events. I have to admit ... with all the panels, and so many that conflict with each other, that sort of sounds better than attending. On the other hand, I wouldn't be able to pick up an awesome Ron Solo t-shirt in person or scan comic boxes for old issues of "Icon."

Check out Soundside's full coverage of this year's Emerald City Comic Con here.

If comicons aren't your thing (and if not, why? What's wrong with you?), then KUOW's Mike Davis has a few ideas for what to do around town this weekend, starting with Pier Sounds at Waterfront Park. Check out Mike's weekend arts suggestions here.

Switching to some science/environment news, the U.S. Forest Service is trying some new tech to fight wildfires — balloons!

OK, balloons aren't exactly new tech, but what they are carrying will offer firefighters on the ground more information about the blazes they face. These high-altitude balloons, using helium, are equipped with thermal cameras and other sensors (all solar powered) that allow officials to peer through the smoke and know exactly where the flames are. The balloon does this as it hovers between 60,000-70,000 feet; staying in place by going lower or higher, depending on the direction the wind is moving at different altitudes. A balloon tested during a wildfire in Idaho this month was able to stay over the area for 11 days. Science!

Northwest News Network's Tom Banse has the full story here.

AS SEEN ON KUOW

Reginald Dennis, who has lived in the Central Area and Rainier Valley for most of his lifetime, waves to a passing friend in a car outside the rental home where he lives. Davis tells KUOW that, as a young man, he predicted what would happen to his Central District neighborhood — neighbors would leave, one-by-one, as costs of living rose higher and higher. He's concerned about the lack of Black homeownership and how Seattle's housing climate is harming it. (Joshua McNichols / KUOW)

ALSO ON OUR MINDS

Seattle just had one of its hottest nights on record

Seattle had one of it warmest nights on record, with Wednesday night into Thursday morning being 14 degrees hotter than average, according to the National Weather Service. The nightly temperature reached 71 degrees, one of only three nights in the city's climate record where the nighttime temperature got above 70 degrees.

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