Another year, another round of conventions—this time we got to once again enjoy one of our favorite Atlanta conventions, MomoCon. For the last two decades, MomoCon has covered just about everything in nerd culture, with particular focus on the big pillars of anime, gaming, animation, comics, and cosplay. If you’re into any combination of the above, it’s definitely worth checking out. It’s also a family friendly convention with a ton to do over the weekend. There are panels to attend, arcade games to play, voice actors to meet, table top games to try, cosplay photoshoots, shopping—and that’s just what we managed to cram in this year.
One of us (Nico) has been attending conventions since we were 16 and now has spent a dozen years going to them, and MomoCon is officially our recommended first con for anyone in the Southeast. It’s the perfect size and welcoming enough for everyone, out of the entire line up if you wanna try one next year as your first Con, make it MomoCon.
One of our only issues with MomoCon last year was the layout, and this year it was infinitely better. It was still huge, of course, as Momo seems to grow in size each year with more attendees and more things to do—but it was much easier to navigate and required less walking. This year’s sponsored booths were a nice addition to see amongst the normal vendors and artist alley. Even the traffic flow felt good despite it being very busy and some of the escalators being out of service. From what we experienced, this was a really good year for Momo, and we had an amazing time.
We spent way more time than is recommended (as usual, if we’re being honest here) in Artist Alley shopping and meeting all the amazing artists who came out to the Con. It’s always fun to see what new things people create and how the fan art, especially, reflects which anime, manga and comics have everyone excited. In a similar vein, we always enjoy seeing all the cosplayers, whether it be new popular media, passion projects, or both, the cosplayers bring it every year. Also, if you want to check out some of the artist I likely spent “too” much money with this year check out @nemupan, @itsmandymo, @nsilvaart (SenpaiSauce), @celtisart, @say0ranarts—and I might have to stop there or ill be here all day. Support your local artists when you go to cons though; they make awesome stuff and I promise you will always find something you love when you take a stroll through artist alley.
We took some time over the weekend to get some signatures too, and no we didn’t skip the line—which were organized with hours were posted and easy to find. If you see a voice actor, writer, animator, whoever you wanna meet, I say go for it. It’s always been a joy, and I very much like getting a couple trading cards signed every year when we go. Oh, and if you care, we got signatures from Johnny Yong Bosh, Christopher Sabat, Mela Lee, and SungWon Cho.
Speaking of trading cards, MomoCon’s TCG section has previously been hit or miss for me. This year though it hit. There were plenty of vendors on the con floor all selling singles and packs, but the highlight was the TCG section held in collaboration with Pro-Play Games. They rock—events and tournaments firing all weekend across multiple different games. I could have sat there in that room for 96 hours straight. I did not, though, quick shout out to my boy Carlos Ceron for taking down the One Piece event. I was lucky enough to not have to play against him that day. I did get to play a good chunk of One Piece and Magic over the weekend, and it was a great experience. Cons are some of the best places to meet new TCG players and get to learn new games. Eventually I’m sure someone will teach me Lorcana at one of these things soon. I am very happy with Pro-Play as MomoCon’s Tournament Organizer, and if I’m not mistaken they are confirmed to be back in 2026!
Lastly, MomoCon was celebrating its 20th anniversary this year. Seeing the history of the Con on display was awesome. Getting to know how the convention has grown, changed, evolved, and bettered itself was a delight. Better than that though, was getting to remember all our past MomoCons, and getting to appreciate the tradition this Con has given us. From using Christmas money to early order tickets with my brother, to holding my wife’s props as she attends her photo shoot, MomoCon has been a fun weekend to kick off my summer every year. A weekend I highly recommend.
Looking forward to seeing you all at MomoCon next year. Where apparently we will be in both halls A and B?!! Kinda crazy.
