HasCon 2017! The very first HasCon in Providence, Rhode Island combined what people think Toy Fair is with what people thought was going to be a Comic Convention. There were rooms devoted to Dungeons & Dragons and Magic: The Gathering. There was a booth with free Dunkin Donuts holes. The exclusive line was long every morning, but it was short by the end of the day - so patience pays, it turns out. A massive shop had tons of new and recent toys at prices below all big box stores, plus games and exclusives and other weirdness.
On Friday it was almost a ghost town, but Saturday was jam-packed with families and locals having what seemed to be a fantastic time - playing with demo toys, trying games, and a heck of a lot of face painting. Sunday was similarly busy, with sports celebrity signing lines no doubt bringing a lot of people to the fore. As less of "Hasbro: The Convention" than it is a Hasbro-curated convention with elements of a BotCon or a Comic Con, this may well be the greatest experience for locals. Or for people with good access to hotel or airline points.
Much discussion was had regarding "was this good?" and "would you come back?" Of all the conventions I've been to I can say this is one of the most pleasant, without too much stress or strain and plenty of things to eat within walking distance. However if you want to go to a zoo or a museum, seemingly you're on your own. I was able to take a bus from the aiport to the area with the hotel for only $2, and I'm generally very pleased with that.
Not all that many exclusives were for sale, but I'm OK with that. I picked up the Arcee/Ultra Magnus set, Captain Rex, and the Optimus Prime Power Bank, which we'll review on our front page in the coming weeks (most likely October).
Read on and navigate our links to the right for more!
--Adam Pawlus
