After skipping this year’s Wizard World Los Angeles (see “Wizard World LA Postponed”), Wizard is returning to the Los Angeles metro area in 2010 with a show at the Anaheim Convention Center.  The dates, April 16-18, 2010, put the Anaheim show head to head with the new Chicago show from Reed Exhibitions, C2E2 (see “Reed Announces C2E2”).  

It’s unlikely the head-to-head scheduling with C2E2 was an accident; Chicago has been Wizard territory for conventions since it acquired Chicago Comic-Con over a decade ago, and Wizard CEO Gareb Shamus seemed to be spoiling for a fight when we talked to him about Reed’s new Chicago show in February.  “We’ve competed against many large, well-financed companies in the past, and we’ve always been able to produce a more compelling product,” he said in our interview (see “More on Competition in Chicago”).  “That’s not going to change now.” 

Although competition for attendees will be nil, there could be some competition for talent and exhibitors between the Anaheim show and C2E2. 

The Wizard show in Anaheim, called Anaheim Comic-Con, continues the re-branding of Wizard’s shows away from Wizard World to “Comic-Con.”  Wizard’s Chicago, Boston, Philadelphia, Dallas, and Los Angeles shows were all branded Wizard World shows only a few years ago.  Now only Philadelphia is still called Wizard World.  The Chicago and Los Angeles area shows have been re-branded as Comic-Cons. 

The new acquisitions among Wizard's shows also appear to be undergoing a re-branding.  Big Apple Con is now referred to as Big Apple Comic-Con, and Toronto Comicon is now Toronto Comic Con.