Award-Winning Green Lantern Corps at Baltimore Comic-Con

I (Rob) went to the Baltimore Comic Convention as usual, and this year I decided to don my "Hal Jordan/Green Lantern" costume. Tom stayed home with the dogs as usual, so I met our friend Tom R. -a fellow comic book fan, and we enjoyed the well-attended convention.
    I registered for the costume contest and Tom R. and I shopped around from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Matt as Guy Gardner: Credit: Geek N

MEETING ANOTHER GREEN LANTERN - While we were walking around on the convention floor, I ran into Matt Christensen, who was dressed as another member of the Green Lantern Corps. - Guy Gardner, so we posed for a picture together. Later, I'd get an idea that would prove memorable.

LINING UP FOR THE BIG CONTEST -  Costume contestants had to report to the second floor at 12:30 p.m. so I made my way there with Tom R..When we got to the costume area, it was packed with a LOT of contestants! So, Tom and I hung around and looked at the costumes. I saw Green Lantern Guy Gardner (Matt), with the Batman villain -Scarecrow, Captain America and a 60 year old Tarzan in a very skimpy loincloth (he shouldn't have been in that outfit...).

BIG IDEA - Suddenly it hit me that "Guy Gardner" and "Hal Jordan" could enter the contest as a "group" - and the Green Lantern Corps!


WHAT IS THE GREEN LANTERN CORPS? 

John, Hal, Kyle (top),Guy- Cr: DC Comics

The Green Lantern Corps are an inter-galactic police force dedicated to protecting sentient life in every form, established thousands of years ago by the Guardians. Officers are chosen for their ability to overcome great fear and given a power ring fueled by the strength of their willpower, the mightiest weapon in the universe. They have two representatives for all of the 3600 sectors in the known universe, their headquarters located centrally on the planet Oa. (Credit: DC Comics).
    There are 5 Green Lanterns of Earth, Hal Jordan, Guy Gardner, John Stewart, Kyle Rayner and a new GL called "Baz." Of course, there are countless Green Lanterns consisting of all kinds of alien life, from the various sectors of the universe. Earth is sector 2814, so you can guess there are a lot of Green Lanterns - it's a big universe after all! 

GL John Stewart joins Hal

THE BIG DECISION - As any superhero would do, Guy (Matt) agreed to team up and represent the Corps. Just as we were walking over to an official to make the change we saw John Stewart (Mike) walk by!  John is another Green Lantern- and he readily agreed to join us to represent the Corps. We had come together under the "ring" of the Green Lanterns to overcome all competition!

THE PERFECT PHYSICAL ATTRIBUTES: Each of us Green Lanterns were perfect for the look and body type of the actual Green Lantern Corps members we were representing. Guy Gardner is a beefy, muscular guy with a military haircut, and light hair. Hal Jordan is a more lean/muscular type with wavy brown hair, and John Stewart is a bigger guy with more muscles and short cropped hair. Later when we walked the convention floor, a woman in her 50s came over to me and mentioned that we were all the perfect body-type and had the exact facial features for our characters. She also said that I had the same body type as a number of U.S. Air Force test pilots (which is what my character does in his day job), which made me feel pretty good.
Anyway, we were the perfect representation of the Green Lantern Corps members!
PICTURE FROM THE CONTEST - ON THE STAGE:

Telling the costume contest host who we are!

GETTING TO THE STAGE - Each of these Green Lanterns have their own personality.  Guy Gardner is a "smart ass" who thinks he's the ultimate Green Lantern. He's a former football player and he's really smart. Hal Jordan is a fighter pilot who is never satisfied and is cocky. John Stewart is the most grounded of the Green Lanterns - a former Marine. So, we each told the hostess who we were and put on the personality.

Someone in the audience RECORDED it on video and posted it!   We all decided beforehand, that after we told the hostess which Green Lanterns we were, that we would stand and recite the "Green Lantern Oath" out loud and proud.  The CROWD ACTUALLY CHEERED!!! It was so cool!

VIDEO OF US DOING OUR OATH!
(and at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ot5rtSAmWcw)

GREEN LANTERN'S OATH:  In brightest day, in blackest night, no evil shall escape my sight! Let those who worship evil's might, beware my power, Green Lantern's light!

Matt, Rob, Mike as the Green Lantern Corps!  Credit: http://2.bp.blogspot.com

THE BIG WIN - Afterward, we waited to see what happened- and there were only two prizes for the "best group costume." We won 2nd place for a $150 gift card to a superhero tee-shirt vendor!  We were amazed and really thrilled. So now we each get $50 worth of tee-shirts!

NEWS COVERAGE!

Posing with a Sheldon (Big Bang Theory) cut-out, clad in a GL shirt!

We got quite a lot of coverage and mentions in various news sources:

Here's a slideshow from the Examiner.com with a pic of us: http://www.examiner.com/article/cosplayers-wow-crowds-at-baltimore-comic-con
The BALTIMORE SUN: http://darkroom.baltimoresun.com/2012/09/baltimore-comic-con-2012/#1
There's a Great Pic of Matt Outside the Convention Hall at: http://geek-news.mtv.com/2012/09/09/baltimore-comic-con-cosplay/
 Great pic of Mike here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/guardian_angel18/7972586218/
Here's another story where we got a Mention: http://www.kasterborous.com/2012/09/terranovas-time-lords-at-baltimore-comic-con/

On the comic-con floor

Terranova’s Time Lords at Baltimore Comic Con  ByAndrew Reynolds

– September 11, 2012Posted in: Events

Give it up for Kasterborous’ own Associate Editor Brian A. Terranova who, along with an army of Doctors, took the Groups category prize at this year’s afternoon costume contest at the Baltimore Comic Con!
Beating Rob Gutro and his trio of Green Lanterns, the group were just a handful of the hundreds of entrants to this year’s competition judged by James Cucchiara of StylinOnline.com, Tim Swift of The Baltimore Sun, and Ed Norris of CBS Radio.
  But Brian and his fellow Doctor’s weren’t the only Who related entrants to walk (or roll away) with a prize – in the adult female category, Justine Glass won first with her amazing motorized Dalek costume, which also took the competitions grand prize.
     Other winners included; Michael Chapman won the adult male category as Lego Batman, Hayden Mallen who won the under 12 category as Hawkeye, and for ages 12-17, Dominic Conseco took first place with a character of his own design.  For a full slideshow of competition entrees and winners head over to Examiner.com

MY PICTURES FROM THE BALTIMORE COMIC-CON! 

Nick Fury, ?, and Green Lantern

Nova and GL

While I was on the convention floor, after I first met Matt (Guy Gardner), I later posed for pictures with other costumed heroes, including Nova (left); Nick Fury (right); and unknown hero in white (right); Nighthawk (below) - which is the original Robin or Dick Grayson -all grown up an in a new identity. There was a robot costume from Dr. Who that passed by, too. In fact, there were HUNDREDS of costumed characters that I didn't get a picture of- like the Riddler, Power Girl, Supergirl, Loki, Captain America, Wolverine, Kid Flash, Wonder Woman, the Phoenix (Jean Gray), and other X-men.

John, Hal, Guy on the convention floor

Green Lanterns: John and Hal

GLs: John and Hal - 2nd pic

GLs: Hal and Guy -Convention Floor

"Blackest Night" Wonder Woman  and GL John Stewart

"Blackest Night" Wonder Woman  and GL John Stewart square off

GLs: Hal and Guy- Convention Floor

Nightwing meets Green Lantern

Display by artist who draws "Kid Eternity" that I enjoy

Justine Glass won first with her amazing motorized Dalek costume, which also took the competitions grand prize.

Pic from the convention - from Mykell

VIDEO OF THE MEN'S COSTUME CONTESTANTS

 (credit: eyesofaPoet-You Tube)