After two postponements on 2021 and May this year, Ian Somerhalder and Paul Wesley attended Comic Con Liverpool last weekend at Liverpool Exhibition Centre by the Docks. Alongside them, other vampire fellows came: Sebastian Roché (Mikael Mikaelson in The Originals), Riley Voelkel (Freya Mikaelson in The Originals), Nathaniel Buzolic (Kol Mikaelson in The Originals) and Arielle Kebbel (Lexi in The Vampire Diaries).
They invited so many guests from different franchises, but what truly caught fans’ attention was the Twilight cast: Ashley Greene (Alice Cullen), Jackson Rathbone (Casper Cullen), Kellan Lutz (Emmett Cullen) and Peter Facinelli (Carlisle Cullen).
Saturday morning
I arrived to the venue pretty early, since I had an early entry ticket. It was so cold, but my hoodie and my minion onesie kept me warm. Once I went in, I left my coat and checked the merchandise area. They had plenty of stuff, very original and varied. Soon after that, I went to my photo with Ian. It wasn’t even 9:20am, and the queue was enormous!
I quickly got in, the session started surprisingly on time and moved pretty smoothly. As soon as Ian saw me in the queue, he started screaming at me and talking to me. It’d been 3 years since we’d met, so it was pretty special and heartwarming. Ian was super lovely and attentive with fans, it was absolutely touching. We had a quick chit chat before our photo, and he wouldn’t stop hugging me from time to time until I had to leave.
I wandered around for a bit until it was time for the autograph, and when it was my turn, it was the absolute best. He asked about my cochlear implant, and when I told him about my new job, he told me he was super proud of me. We couldn’t talk much, but in the end he stood up and hugged me super tight. The staff was also super amazing!
Saturday afternoon
I made a friend during the photo queue, so I accompanied her to her extras until it was time for the m&g. It got super delayed -not a surprise-, but it was super cozy and heartwarming. We talked about many things, mainly about VWars and Brothers Bond Bourbon. Can’t say much, but there are COOL things coming up!
In the end, they allowed us to take selfies, so when we were done, I asked him if I could tell him about my campaign for a deaf person. He asked me to wait for him in a corner until he was done, so we could talk about it. The moment he finished, he came to me and explained to him my campaign idea. I suggested he sign an autograph to give away, but he had something else in mind. Since he told me we could sign more autos and merch, I offered to get some things the next day. He then told the staff members that they would come with me to get it, and that he’d take care of whatever I might need. I was in absolute shock, but was super thankful.
Funny story: It was SO late when we were done that I couldn’t retrieve my coat from the cloakroom, so I had to return to the hotel in my minion suit.
Sunday morning
This time, I enjoyed the day with some friends, and it was the best. One of them didn’t have a photo with Ian, but she came with me and we shared mine. It was so great to see their reunion! I taught him how to say “I love you” in sign language, and he automatically did it to pose for our photo. It was the sweetest.
Later, I accompanied my friend to her extras, since I only had the panel and autograph left, and I’d do that in the afternoon. We got to see Twilight actors from a close distance, it was very cool. After getting lunch, my friend had to go, so I got the merchandising and waited near Ian’s room for the panel. Funny thing happened…I got a duo photo with Ian and Paul. It was so spontaneous, but the best experience, as always. I told Ian I had the merch ready for later, and he approved.
After that, I went straight to the panel, which was hilarious and amazing to watch. Arielle did come in for a couple minutes, for our great surprise. They talked about The Vampire Diaries, Brothers Bond Bourbon…and even sang a very cute song!
After the panel, I had to run for my coat and get to Ian’s autographs. Even though I had quite a poor experience with a security guard to return to Ian, I made it in the end. He was the sweetest, and I truly enjoyed that last autograph. It was the most important one since it was the one for the campaign. We kept chit chatting while he signed, and he thanked me for what I was doing.
Before I left he got up and hugged me SUPER tight, which absolutely warmed me.
Comic Con Liverpool Review
As always, attending Comic Con Liverpool, meeting new people and reuniting was absolutely amazing. However, I do have a few complaints:
On Sunday evening, I had an argument with a security guard. After I retrieved my coat from the cloakroom, he wouldn’t stop yelling at me that I couldn’t return to the other building. I explained to him that I needed to, because Ian was still doing autographs. It was useless. He kept yelling and even refused to call a staff member to help solve this.
Luckily, a staff member came by soon enough to prevent an anxiety attack, and I could go to Ian’s autograph.
I think security guards should learn basic manners and respect their own rules. This almost ruined my entire experience. In the end, it was an amazing weekend: the staff was lovely, everything went by pretty smoothly, and the experiences were EPIC.
I’ll never thank Toni and the staff enough who helped me get the merchandising for the campaign and to have the best experience with Ian.
Can’t wait for German Comic Con Dortmund next week!
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Hello! I’m Paula, a Spanish deaf girl who absolutely enjoys and loves watching movies and shows, as well as traveling, reading and writing. I grew up reading adventure books and writing fictional stories, and continued watching cartoons, movies and shows. I soon found myself enjoying that SO much that it became my special place and a way to escape from reality and problems, while it helped me to learn a lot and grow. My friends call me Dori and/or minion, but it's only my distinctive aspects that make me unforgettable. Don’t believe me? Well, consider yourself challenged to prove me wrong.
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