This year marked Boston Comic Con‘s 8th convention – the largest and most successful one to-date. Held at the Seaport World Trade Center, the 2015 event attracted approximately 50,000 attendees, 300+ artists, and many A-list celebrities from the artist community, most notably Stan Lee, the creator of Spider Man and many other famous comic heroes. Starting out as a grassroots event with only 900 attendees, Boston Comic Con has transformed into New England’s premier comic convention, showcasing the strength and vibrancy of the region’s creative community, and becoming the largest comic convention in the region.As Boston Comic Con continues to grow, several new events were added in 2015 to enhance the guest experience including the first annual Boston Comic Con event at Boston’s iconic Fenway Park, as well as an opening kick-off party and “Drink and Draw” event where comic book artists are on-hand to literally drink and draw for their fans.

Prior to the start of the convention, on July 22, Boston Comic Con hosted its third annual Costume Contest in partnership with Faneuil Hall Marketplace, Dick’s Last Resort and Newbury Comics. The Costume Contest gathered people of all ages from near and far, many of whom were avid comic book, television, and film fans hoping to display their best costumes and take home the top prize.

The weekend was filled with fans, artists, and writers who gathered together to take part in Boston Comic Con’s various festivities and to celebrate the comic and creative communities. Attendees enjoyed photo-ops, autograph signings, panel discussions, and Q&A sessions with celebrities such as Manu Bennett of the hit TV series “Arrow,” Billie Piper of “Doctor Who,” Hayley Atwell of Marvel’s “Agent Carter,” Thomas Jane of The Punisher, Robin Lord Taylor of the hit television show “Gotham,” and many more.

For the first time in its history, Boston Comic Con was honored to welcome comic industry icon Stan Lee to the 2015 convention, where he signed autographs and held photo-ops for countless fans. As the preeminent spokesperson for Marvel Comics and co-creator of superheroes such as Spider Man, Iron Man, the Hulk, the Fantastic Four, the Avengers and the X-Men. Stan Lee, who is 92 years old, is credited for ushering in the Marvel Age of Comics and continues to appear in nearly every film, cartoon, and television show that Marvel produces.

Boston Comic Con has always honored its mission of supporting local artists and the 2015 convention was no exception. Plans for the 2016 convention are already underway.

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