Every year, the Blerdcon show keeps getting better. Blerdcon is a convention that celebrates black nerd culture while also being inclusive of all backgrounds. Last year was a little bit challenging because the July temperatures climbed up to over 100 degrees Fahrenheit, which made it especially difficult for cosplayers in heavy costumes. Because of that, the show was pushed back a few months this year into March, a change that everyone seemed to really appreciate. And as we have seen every single time that we have covered the show, it grew even larger this year with more activities, vendors, seminars, shows, entertainment and fun.
Blerdcon did more than reset to a new month this year. It also changed its format by launching in 2025 with a massive three hotel footprint in Arlington, Virginia. It was still just minutes from DCA (Ronald Reagan Washington Natonal Airport) and both a DC Metro and bus stop were located right near the festivities.
The theme for 2025 was horror as was evident in the name of the show, Thrilla, which was based on the famous Michael Jackson song and video. Everyone seemed to really enjoy and embrace the horror theme, which was all throughout the convention. For example, many horror movies were screened throughout all three days of the show that people could drop in and enjoy. There were quite a few classics as well as some brand new films like Mr. Crocket and the vampire movie Fanged on the schedule. The movies were very popular.
On a sad note, one of the main stars that was going to be in attendance this year was the extremely talented actor Tony Todd. He sadly passed away before the convention. Blerdcon responded by hosting a memorial showing of one of his most popular movies, Candyman. Todd, in addition to his famous live action movie roles like Candyman or Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, was an accomplished voice actor for both movies and video games. His deep, haunting voice can be heard in the games Indiana Jones and the Great Circle as the character Lucas and in Spider-Man 2 as Venom. His influence and the memorial event will be covered by Ron Williams, our other reporter at the show this year.
There were also lots of promoters and stars who came to Blerdcon this year to let folks know about new projects that would be launching very soon. One of those was IYANU, an upcoming animated series based on Roye Okupe’s graphic novel series, “Iyanu: Child of Wonder.” It contains elements of Nigerian folklore and is produced by a black-owned animation studio, Lion Forge Entertainment. There were also multiple advertisements and promotions for the new Daredevil show that just released. This was great to see, as it demonstrates that the entertainment industry now considers Blerdcon to be a premiere destination to help launch new products and shows. Blerdcon even got international exposure this year with Voice of America: Africa covering the show alongside us.
The food at the show was excellent as usual. All of South Clark Street out in front of the convention was closed to accommodate food trucks (see picture) and to make it easier to walk the two blocks to the Hilton Arlington National Landing from the Hyatt Regency Crystal City. Jolly’s was there with some great soul food and the local DC Slices handed out hot and tasty pizza quickly for those on the move going to all of the events that the show had to offer this year.
All passes were picked up at the Hilton, with most of the events of Blerdcon split between it and the Hyatt. One hot spot that was always packed was the video game arena where rows of Xbox Series X, PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch consoles were set up to play with an array of the latest and greatest games. There were a lot of stations, and they were normally all filled with happy players.
There was also a tabletop gaming room, but it was set up at the Hilton, which did not have a lot of programming beyond hosting hotel rooms for convention guests. I do miss that room being over at the Hyatt, where it got lots of traffic from people who wanted a pickup game last year. However, I can see how having it positioned far away from the big crowds and loud noise of the show is beneficial too.
One of the reasons we started covering Blerdcon many years ago was because longtime Blerdcon tabletop gaming organizer Montel Thompson asked us at the time to check out the new show. He was one of the first interviews we conducted at Blerdcon 2018.
Thrilla was a perfect and fun theme for Blerdcon this year, and everyone seemed to have a really great time, especially since the temperatures cooperated. Of course, Blerdcon will be back in 2026, where it will run for three days starting on March 6. The theme will be “Carz and Barz.” It will celebrate car and music culture, and will be according to the press release, “staying true to Blerd culture and remaining inclusive of our POC, Disabled, LGBTQ, Women, and International geek family!” GiN will be there next year, and we hope all of you will be as well.