When 40,000 people descend upon Salt Lake City with the intent of showing off their inner passions you have to know that something incredible is about to happen. April 17 kicked off like Christmas at age 6 when I started my morning by wandering through downtown SLC towards the mecca of nerd, also known as Salt Lake City Comic Con: FanXperience. Where else are you going to see Edward James Olmos, Sean Patrick Flannery and the art of greats like Bill Galvan and Matt Page all under one roof? Guys, today was my nerd Christmas.

After a relatively loosely rehearsed speech from Governor Herbert—in which he unwittingly recited the Green Lantern’s oath—and an introduction of many celebrities by none other than SLCC Producer Dan Farr, I took to the floor to see what I could see. First stop was the artist booth of Shelby Robertson, where you can acquire a series run of six awesome prints for a scant $20. Being a Ninja-Turtle-minded fella, it was easy to snag his incredible prints of the green crime-fighting mutants. Next was a visit to Scorched By Britt to ogle the incredibly designed dorky wood burnings and, finally, a quick stop by Bill Galvan’s booth to acquire my final piece in the Frankenstein collection.

After snapping photos of the Delorean, the 60s T.V. Batmobile and, of course, the Ghost Busters of Salt Lake, it was time for me to wander aimlessly until my next panel. I’ll level with you guys, the icing on the cake for today was the Super Smash Bros: Melee grand final sponsored by Gamer’s Abbey and Utah 3DS StreetPass. Watching some incredibly talented players face off with my favorite Nintendo characters on a giant screen completed what was an absolutely incredible day downtown. This is dwarfed only by the incredible amount of cosplay wandering around the convention—there was the most incredible Borg assimilating passers by and a hilarious AT-AT Walker made out of cardboard and colored with markers. Pick a hero or villain and they are wandering the floor, the display is simply stunning. Though I may be sad that I missed the Next Generation panel, I’m glad some of our other SLUG staffers were able to snag it. You still have time to grab tickets and swing down, there are panels galore and live podcasts everywhere. If anything, go visit all of the incredible booths on display. It’s about time Salt Lake is on the map. See you all tomorrow!