Centenary University hosts the annual pop-culture convention CycloneCon. With over 620 attendees and over 90 vendors on April 11, this marks CycloneCon’s most successful turnout yet since its beginnings in spring of 2024.

CycloneCon first entered the roster of Centenary University’s annual events three years ago. Back then, Dr. Erica McCrystal, associate professor of English and event director of CycloneCon, was expecting a small turnout for the new and frantically thrown together convention. In its first year, CycloneCon became the second most attended event on campus that year, the first being graduation. 

Reeves Gym

Vendor tables were set up in aisles in the Reeves Gym, transforming the building into an unrecognizable space full of books, art, trinkets, and plushies. Among the stalls, artists and authors were the most prevalent vendors you could find. 

Authors

While the library was reserved for engaging activities for children, writers found themselves in the middle of the hustle and bustle, at the main event itself held within the Reeves Gym. Whether your preference is romance, fantasy, or horror, there were plenty of options for you to choose from. 

Too many options. The Cyclone Chronicle staff found themselves emptying their wallets while hoarding books. The promise of no more money spent was broken more than once. Please pray for our bank accounts. 

Some standout authors include Jack Scully, author of Manor of Death: To Be Decided. Video game lovers, this one is for you. Manor of Death: To Be Decided is a choose-your-own adventure style book where at every turning point, you are given a choice on how you want the story to proceed. Based on your choice, you will flip to a specific page to continue your adventure until you are prompted with another choice. This unique concept adds incredible re-readability value to this book.

The Will of the Magi by Paul Dickinson Russell was a perfect choice for fantasy lovers. This book is full of magic, politics, and tension. Russell was more excited to talk about writing as a whole than his own book. After learning that I was a fellow writer, he recommended classics related to the genre that I’m working on, asked questions and gave advice.

Lisa Hodorovych is a suspense-thriller author, blogger, and owner of her own publication company. Her table featured a spread of her horror books, including her Lake Minnetaha series and Vampire from Hell: Vol. 1, the first book in her upcoming trilogy of the same name. 

CycloneCon was an unexpected place to network, share, and chat with fellow authors and writers. These authors were more than happy to talk about their works, were excited to talk to other writers, and willing to help aspiring authors network. Let this be your motivation to finish your project so you can sit at a table next CycloneCon. 

Artists

Tevis Isaac and Christian E. Santo are two comic book style artists who sat side by side. Santo revealed to me that the pair were responsible for the gorgeous art displayed on all of the CycloneCon badges. 

“I met Erica here during one of the previous events, and we got to talking on how to improve CycloneCon. We got to the idea of badges, and we were happy to do the art for it,” said Santo.

Fierce Girl Art, owned by Victoria Siedt, displayed coasters featuring adorable art of state cryptids (folklore creatures associated with different states), like the Jersey Devil, the Wendigo, Mothman, and Bigfoot. They also had hand-painted wood slices that featured popular Pokémon and other animated characters. 

Pyrateko sold keychains, art, and stickers prominently featuring characters from video game publisher Square Enix. Iconic characters from Final Fantasy and Nier were available for you to buy. The owner, Ang, is an aspiring video game concept artist.

“I personally see video games as art, it’s my dream to work on one,” said Ang. 

If you were looking for an adorable plushie to add to your pile, Ravishing Admire displayed hand-crafted crochet plushies of famous characters like Kirby and various famous Pokémon. 

Food Trucks 

Right outside the back doors of the gym, four food trucks were parked and ready to serve all CycloneCon attendees. Including Hackettstown’s own Marley’s Gotham Grill, Kitchen 787, The Little Cafee, and Tommy Scoops Ice Cream Shack.

If you backtracked into the Reeve’s Gym, you would have found Latte Lounge & Bake Shoppe set up in the hallway. Here many a sweet tooth was satisfied. In addition to the sweet treats offered, there were fresh pretzels and a large jug of lemonade. When choosing your lemonade, additional flavors like strawberry and mango could be added. 

Library Activities for the Kids 

CycloneCon was not just limited to students; the convention was open to the public as well. Many community members brought children to enjoy the activities. With all of the chaos and crowds within the gym, the kids needed a quiet space of their own to relax. 

The library had that covered. CycloneCon volunteers stationed at the library—all of which were education majors—were available to lead activities for the kids. There was a coloring wooden shapes station, where kids got to color to their hearts’ content with a crayon box that would make any five-year-old jealous. There were also coloring puzzles available nearby.

The Sitnik Theatre 

The excitement didn’t end at the Reeve’s Gym and food trucks. In the evening, WNTI’s Tanner Sullivan and Dr. McCrystal hosted a special interview panel with Hackettstown born actor, Jimmi Simpson. Following the panel was the Cosplay Masquerade, where those in costume finally got to show their outfits off on the stage. 

Jimmi Simpson

Jimmi Simpson – a Hackettstown native actor – joined McCrystal and Sullivan in the Sitnik Theater for a special panel in the early evening. Their discussion delved into his Hackettstown upbringings, the current state of his career, and the overall impact of pop culture. Simpson highlighted his early acting experience – including a production of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory on the Centenary stage – while recognizing how far he has come as an actor.

McCrystal and Sullivan maintained a consistent conversation, asking questions about his favorite acting experiences and advice for overcoming challenges. They also showed clips of some of his most celebrated performances, such as Westworld and Black Mirror: USS Callister. The result was a discussion full of entertainment, insight, and humor. Simpson even got to speak with members of the audience in an open Q&A towards the end of the panel. 

Once the conversation concluded, Simpson headed to the President’s Circle Room, where he signed autographs, took pictures, and spoke with fans one-on-one. His presence on the Centenary campus, along with his positive energy and sense of humor, resulted in one of the convention’s standout highlights.

“Wow- the creativity, art, magic, and full-tilt cosplay spirit of Cyclone Con might officially have San Francisco Comic Con checking its rearview mirror. What struck me most wasn’t just the talent on display, but the joy of everyone connecting. A pretty sweet reminder that fandom isn’t just about what we love-it’s about what we make together. I had an absolute blast- thank you for having me, new friends,” said Simpson. 

The Cosplay Masquerade 

The Cosplay Masquerade took place in the evening as the festivities began to lull.  Attendees got the chance to walk down the Sitnik Theatre stage in their costumes.

While there was no competition for best cosplay or any prizes this year, Dr. McCrystal revealed that it was an idea that she was looking into for next year, with the possibility of a table of more experienced cosplayers as judges.

Workshops and Game Tournaments

No pop-culture convention is complete without a video game tournament. In true Comic-Con fashion, a Super Smash Bros tournament was held in the Littel building. Hosted by the Student Electronic Gaming Company (SEGO) from the Community College of Morris (CCM), over 25 attendees got the chance to verse each other in 1v1 matches, or in group matches in the popular fighting game, Super Smash Bros Ultimate for the Nintendo Switch. 

Grieco’s Game Spot also had a display in the Reeve’s Gym with a variety of games available and an Xbox Series X set up to play them on. Attendees could try their hand at any of the games, including a handful of multiplayer games to play with your friends. 

In the hallway of the Reeve’s Gym was a Warhammer miniature painting table. Warhammer 40k is a tabletop rpg where you use small figurines as characters you control. Many of these figurines come unpainted, where you can either pay someone to professionally paint them for you – yes, people take Warhammer that seriously – or paint them yourself.

CycloneCon planning begins eight months before the event itself in the spring. Dr. McCrystal is dedicated to improving the event every year and greatly encourages feedback and volunteer contribution. Dr. McCrystal shared that she is incredibly interested in recruiting business/marketing student volunteers to aid in the advertising and visibility of the event. 

While it is still too early to begin planning, if you are interested in volunteering for next year or have ideas on how to improve and make next CycloneCon bigger and better, you can reach out to Dr. McCrystal at erica.mccrystal@centenaryuniversity.edu.