MediaWest*Con/MediaWest*Con 2007

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Convention
Name:	MediaWest*Con 2007
Dates:	May 25-29, 2007
Frequency:
Location:	Lansing, Michigan
Type:
Focus:	multi-fandom
Organization:
Founder:
Founding Date:
URL:	2007 Convention Page 2007 Convention theme
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Some Facts About the 2007 Convention

2007 program book cover

• The theme of the convention that year was "Pirates of the MediaWest*Con": "Avast, me hearties! MediaWest*Con 27 was dedicated to buccaneers, brigands, & dread pirates. Be ye Corellian smugglers, mirror universe rogues, or denizens of the deep, buckle your swash & set sail for high adventure! If ye be landlubbers, prepare to be shanghaied!"
• Approximately 93 fanzines premiered at MediaWest*Con (as listed in the program guide).
• The dealer's room had an estimated 66 dealers (as listed in the program guide).
• There was a problem with the room lottery that year. In Progress Report #1 the convention organizers wrote: "Our apologies to those who participated in the early reservation request process and were affected by delays in processing memberships. By the time you read this, HIS should be working on sending out confirmations to those placed on the MW*C 27 member preference list and notifications to those on the waiting list."
• From Gordon Carleton: "The Return of Landing Party 6? With the 40th anniversary of Star Trek, ST panels and exhibits at Worldcon, and the "remastered" SFX on TOS episodes, Gordon has been inspired to possibly put out Volume 3 of the Compleat Faulwell/LP6, maybe for MW*C 28. There were a couple things that got left out of Vol. 1&2 and some new stuff is in the works. Does anybody care? Any artists and writers want to contribute? Also looking for some references if anyone happens to have them: Spectrum 32 ("Wanted" cover), and references to T'Kuht and T'Kuhtians in fanfic or pro stuff."
• The blood drive collected 35 productive units (helping over 100 people)

Fan Q Awards

For specifics, see 2007 Fan Q Awards.

Skit

The skit that year was a Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire skit set to music from Man of La Mancha. It was written by Bev Grant & Mitch Leigh and called "Goblet Survivor." See AuntieC's "Goblet Fire Skit" Flickr Album, ^{Archived version}

Fan Fund

Yum@ was the Fan Fund winner that year.

Party Suite and Other Gatherings

Room parties that year included: MediaWest*Con Vidding Enthusiasts (vidding), Eastern Media Con Bash, Vidcon party, SPN On Topic Yahoo Group (Supernatural), Browncoat Bash (Firefly), two MUNCLE parties, a Sentinel party, a Boston Legal party, and a Little Britches Brunch and Party (Magnificent 7).

• 

Masquerade Awards

A complete list of winners, with photos can be seen at MediaWest*Con 2007, ^{Archived version}.

• Best In Show - Riverdance Meets LOTR or Dances With Elves by Samantha Powell, Victoria Gold, Nola Thompson, Kelly Lowry
• Worst Dressed Tourist - Borat (& Barbie) of the Caribbean by Peter Cooper
• Audience Choice Award & Worst Identity Crisis - The Dread Pirates Robert by Karl Etheridge, Paula Neier, Kelly Dwyer, Lance Dwyer
• Workmanship Award - Royal Lady or ? by Beverly Brownlee
• Most Likely To Be Stew - Bunnies: The Farewell Tour by Julie Garner, Ashley Harp
• Workmanship Award - Painted Pappillon by Brenda Gasahl
• Best Before & After - First Year Harry, Harry When He Finally Graduates by Devin Bucke, Gretchen Kopmanis
• Audience Drawing Winner: Hollz Ballz

Door Decoration Awards

A complete list of winners, with photos can be seen at MediaWest*Con 2007, ^{Archived version}. A few sample doors are included below.

Door Decoration Gallery

• 

  Heroes Door - Save the cheerleader, save the con!

• 

  Closeup of the Heroes Door. Source: cannellfan

• 

  Torchwood Door. Source: cannellfan

• 

  Winner Best Slash Door: Slash Broadcasting Network

Art Show Awards

• Best In Show: Star Wars: 30 Years by Laura Quiles
• Best SF: Star Wars: 30 Years by Laura Quiles
• Best Fantasy: Kendrah the Huntress by Scott Rosema
• Best 3-D: Star Wars: 30 Years by Laura Quiles
• Best Critter: Dr D Pierce by Ursula Sandmann
• Best Needlework: Return of Fandom Quilt by Gail Felipe & Seth Cutts
• Best Glass: What's New Pussycat? by Laura Wootan
• Best Cartoon: Too Cute To Live by Leah Rosenthal
• Best Portrait: You Beauty! by Karen River
• Best Jewelry: From the Ruins of Rivendell by Siouxie Sherman
• Best Investigator: Night Owl by Scott Rosema
• Best Horror: Evil by Scott Rosema
• 2 Cute 2 Live: My Favorite Toy by Jesse McCLain
• Fandoms represented in the quilt: 1 King Kong, 2 Charlie & The Chocolate Factory, 3 Babylon 5, 4 Tales of the Gold Monkey, 5 Wild Wild West/Have Gun Will Travel, 6 Die Hard, 7 Bones, 8 NCIS, 9 House, 10 Dresden Files, 11 Buffy The Vampire Slayer, 12 Nero Wolf
• Identified the most fandoms represented in the quilt: Alesia, Marge Baskin, Grace Lisa

Source: 2007 Art Show Winners.

Art Show Review

"The Art Auction is always fun. This year one of the biggest jokes was one of the male auctioneers looking at the picture he was supposed to shill and saying, “In 27 years of doing this, finally…a het picture!”

We all laughed as of course the explicit pics all tend to be slash and they always give them to the male auctioneers.  ;) So this Han/Leia picture was quite the exception. Unfortunately for het fans, it didn’t get much bidding at all, and one of the female auctioneers said, “A Leah Rosenthal cartoon gets $500 and the Han/Leia (named a smaller number I can’t remember). No wonder this show doesn’t have het!” Laughter.

One woman dropped $1100 for a drawing of Jack Sparrow from Pirates of the Caribbean. Good luck to her! Even if I had the money I wouldn’t spend it that way, but to each her own. It’s fun to watch the bidding and everyone has a good time."

Vid Show

2007 Vid Show Playlist - cannellfan (click for larger image

Starting in 2007, the Award Winners were only announced in the Final Progress Report, but not until the following year. However, an attendee did pull together the playlist of vids for that had been submitted to the show. Thanks to cannellfan for the list and the photo. Winners are highlighted in bold.

A review of the vid show:

"It was quite an experience! When I got there people were exiting the room complaining that they couldn’t take another Supernatural vid! Seems there were so many vids of that show that people were getting glassy-eyed. Even the fans of the show had had enough! So the hot fandom this year saturated the video room. I did see a few non-Supernatural vids: one lovely one of The Ghost And Mrs. Muir (TV version) and a tribute to the deceased Edward Mulhare (Captain Gregg on the aforementioned series).

Unfortunately a policy was made about five years ago that now slash and mature vids are screened late at night the first time around. I wasn’t about to stay up ‘til two in the morning for them and since I’d heard they would be screened at 9 the next night, I went to bed a little after midnight.

It’s a curious policy. Slash vids don’t have anything explicit in them at all since TV shows don’t show their leads as gay, except for shows like Queer As Folk on Showtime. We don’t even see kisses, yet het vids can show lots of skin and be hot ‘n’ heavy and are shown earlier in the evening. I believe I’d heard that the policy was instituted due to a kid wandering in the video room years ago and seeing a slash vid and someone got upset. Who knows? It just tends to irk me."

"I went down to see the slash videos showing at 9:00. They started out with last year’s that included an incredibly beautiful Lord of the Rings. There was also an excellent Bodie/Doyle. This year’s slash vids concentrated on Lord of the Rings again and was long and beautiful. Also a stunning Horatio/Archie vid from Horatio Hornblower that got me a little misty. There was a Supernatural video here, too, the concept of which doesn’t bother me in the least. J There was a Sentinel vid and Magnificent Seven offerings and all were very well done. There was a video of a British cop show that I didn’t recognize but the pairing was cute, and then an absolutely adorable Hiro/Ando vid from Heroes! So I’d say we had small quantity this year but excellent quality."

Vid Show Playlist & Awards

GEN VIDS IN COMPETITION - BY CREATOR

APOCALYPSE WEST:

• Opening Credits [credits]
• Sing Sing Sing -- multi -- SI-M (Third Place: Song Interpretation -- Multi Fandom)
• Get Over Yourself -- Witchblade -- SI-S
• The Joker -- Battlestar Galactica (new) -- SI-S
• Only Love -- The Mummy (movies) -- SI-S
• Addicted to Love -- Ten Things I Hate About You -- SI-S
• Children of Eve -- Stargate SG-1 -- SI-S
• Just Can't Wait to be King -- Star Wars (movies) -- SI-S
• One Last Breath -- Buffy the Vampire Slayer -- SI-S
• Nobody's Side -- Moulin Rouge -- SI-S
• Confrontation (Jekyll & Hyde) -- Farscape -- SI-S
• Time in a Bottle -- Stargate SG-1 -- SI-S
• Lonesome Day -- Justice League Unlimited -- SI-S
• Crucify -- Witchblade -- SI-S
• What You Feel -- Phantom of the Opera (recent film) -- SI-S
• End Credits -- multi-fandom -- [credits]

CHRIS & CHRISTINA:

• Gimme Dat Ding -- Futurama -- (Second Place: Most Humorous)
• I Love This Bar -- multi-fandom -- SI-M (Second Place: Song Interpretation -- Multi Fandom)
• Blinded by Science -- NCIS -- SI-S (Second Place: Song Interpretation -- Single Fandom)
• Rock This Town -- Doctor Who (new) -- SI-S

ILLUMINATI INK:

• Demon's Desiring -- Supernatural -- SI-S
• My Son John -- Supernatural -- SI-S

KRISTA'S VIDS:

• When You Say Nothing At All -- Ghost and Mrs. Muir -- SI-S
• I've Grown Accustomed to His Face -- multi-fandom/Edward Mulhare -- SI-M
• If We Make It Through December -- Star Wars (movies) -- SI-S
• Release -- House -- SI-S

MORGAN DAWN:

• God Says Nothing Back -- Supernatural -- SI-S
• The Journey -- Lord of the Rings -- SI-S
• Hotel California -- Supernatural -- SI-S

SiDiC MUSIC VIDEOS:

• Credits -- [credits]
• The Amazing Race MediaWestCon 26 Edition -- original -- original
• Into the Dark/If You Could -- multi-fandom -- SI-M (annual tribute video)

SPACE PONIES:

• Opening Credits -- [credits]
• All Jacked Up -- Stargate SG-1 -- SI-S
• Addams Family Theme -- Supernatural -- Humorous
• Can't Live it Down -- Flyboys -- SI-S
• Fight the Good Fight -- Heroes -- SI-S
• Backwards -- multi-fandom -- SI-M (Winner: Song Interpretation -- Multi Fandom)
• Enter Sandman -- Supernatural -- SI-S
• Stand -- Dark Angel -- SI-S
• Winner Best Video Box

SPIRIT GUIDE PRODUCTIONS:

• How Far -- Sentinel -- SI-S
• Unwell -- Sentinel -- SI-S

STAMPEDE PRODUCTIONS:

• Opening Credits -- [credits] --(Wild, Wild West pastiche)
• The Riddle -- Supernatural -- SI-S
• Theme from Pokemon -- Heroes -- SI-S (Third Place: Song Interpretation -- Single Fandom)
• Bad Day -- Supernatural -- SI-S
• The Hamster Dance -- multi-fandom -- (Winner Most Humorous)
• Closing Credits -- [credits]

VID WEASELS:

• Credits -- [credits]
• Angry [Heroes] Polka -- Heroes -- (Third Place: Most Humorous)
• Sleep Now in the Fire -- Prison Break -- SI-S
• Anxiety -- Stargate Atlantis -- SI-S
• Wherever You Will Go -- Star Trek Enterprise -- SI-S
• I Will Be Your Ain True Love -- Battlestar Galactica (new) -- SI-S
• Let the Bodies Hit the Floor -- Stargate Atlantis -- SI-S
• King of Birds -- Prison Break -- SI-S
• Best Vid Flyer

WINTER:

• I Hear the Call -- Supernatural -- SI-S
• Untitled -- Supernatural -- SI-S
• All I See -- Supernatural -- SI-S
• Innocent -- Supernatural -- SI-S

WOLFPUP:

• Shot -- Supernatural -- SI-S
• Stuck in the Middle -- SI-S
• Prelude 12-21 -- Supernatural -- SI-S (Winner: Song Interpretation -- Single Fandom)
• Never Meant to Fail -- Supernatural -- SI-S

SLASH VIDS IN COMPETITION

P.R. ZED:

• Cosy Prisons -- Professionals -- SI-S
• Television, Television -- Life on Mars -- SI-S

SPIRIT GUIDE PRODUCTIONS:

• Three Time Loser -- Sentinel -- SI-S

VID WEASELS:

• Take a Giant Step -- Heroes -- SI-S (Second Place: Song Interpretation -- Single Fandom)
• My Immortal -- Horatio Hornblower -- SI-S (Third Place: Song Interpretation -- Single Fandom)
• Don't Lay Down -- Supernatural -- SI-S
• Lost in the Darkness/You Raise Me Up -- Lord of the Rings -- SI-S (Winner Song Interpretation -- Single Fandom)

Additional source: 2007 Vid Show Winners

Programming

Events

• Art Auction
• Blood Drive
• Dead Dog Panel
• Fan Q's
• Masquerade
• Plays

Fan Fiction

• Bad Boy Edge: Why is Han Solo so much more interesting than Luke? Or is he? Who are the other bad boys, and why do we like them? (/)
• Beta Reader: What is their job? Can they go too far?
• Captain Jack Sparrow of the USS Enterprise: A discussion of alternative universes and crossovers in fanfic.
• Characters Across Time: Who could have met who? Did Kirk and Spock ever run into James West and Artimus Gordon? etc. (/)
• Consequences—The Rest of the Story: Are just desserts needed for closure?, I.e. did Jack Webb have a good thing going?
• Creative Writing or Alien Takeover: What happens when your favorite character is no longer recognizable in fanfiction?
• Crossovers: Are your ideas too good for just a single fandom?
• Doctor, Techhead, Soldier, Spy: A discussion of differential objects of lust amongst slash fans (/)
• Ellipses, commas, point of view, tense, and all that jazz. Why can fanfic get away with not being polished?
• Fanfic: Does speling reely mater? How to kill a good story with sloppy technique.
• Fanfic: is it better than the source?
• How much historical accuracy do you want in your fanfic? Or, Why are UNCLE agents using laptops in fanfic set in 1966?
• Hurt/Comfort: Why do we love this fanfic genre?,
• Magnificent 7 Fanflc: After years of fanfic, is it the original characters we love or the characters created by the authors?
• Magnificent 7 Fanflc: Aus and crossovers with the ultimate Archetypal group?
• Magnificent 7 Fanfic: The greatest stories ever written? Or have they been? Plot bunnies we'd like to see as stories.
• Plagiarism and unauthorized archival/publishing: Does it really happen all that much any more, and what can we do about it if it does?
• Popslash: We still love them, even if they've moved on - come squee with us! (/)
• Posted Unfinished Fanfic: Fanfic posted on the net, then unfinished for years. Should someone else be allowed to complete it?
• Rape Stories: Squick or Squeal? (aka Guilty Pleasure or Shoddy Treatment of Your Favorites.) Why would we do that to those adorable faces? (/)
• Sentinel Fandom: Greatest Stories Never Written ? Or If they have been, where to find them, E52, Univ 1, Mon, 11:00am-12:00pm.
• Starsky & Hutch: Making it Write: Stories where eps are 'fixed.' Which eps would you want to fix?
• Supernatural: How to make the guy's stay guys and still write in all the hurt/comfort we want.
• Supernatural: The eight things that make it the perfect fan show and how we can work those eight things into Supernatural fanfic.
• The Editor is Your Friend or, We're Really Trying to Keep You from Looking Like An Idiot Here.
• Vampires: in TV, film and books.
• When canon totally screws with your fandom, and/or your pairing. How do you write around it? (/)
• Why do fan writers want to resurrect the dead? Once a major character has died, why bring him/her back?
• Writing: How do you jumpstart a stalled story?, G25, Univ 2, Mon, 11:00am-12:00pm
• Naruto: General discussion.
• Read any good mysteries lately? Share your finds and favorites. Authors: Discuss new ones you've found.
• Star Wars: Mara vs. Leia ~ Why do there seem to be fewer Leia fans, and is Mara really that much "kewl"- er?
• Sunshine by Robin McKinley: Is the relationship between Raven and Constantine the new vampiric fashion? Should it be?
• The Queen's Darkness - Destined to be King, or Die for Love? Gen Character discussion from Laurell K. Hamilton's "Merry Gentry".
• World's Finest: Superman and Batman: The light and the dark - how does this pairing work so well together? (/)

Miscellaneous

• Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab: Come chat, discuss Beth's gorgeous oils, and sniff some imps (feel free to bring yours along, too).
• Clinical Hypnosis: Questions, Answers, General Discussion (open discussion, led by Nancy Hillman).
• Costuming on the Cheap/Dressing Up Your Fandom and Taking it Out—Doing comfortable costumes for little or nothing.
• Duct tape, paper clips & shoe-strings- MacGyverisms in real life. Have you seen them? Have you made them? Do they work?
• Martial Arts: Share what we're learning,.
• Swords vs. Light-sabers: A Comparison of Techniques.
• The Change From Analog to Digital TV or It's February 17, 2009, Why doesn't my TV work? This would include why the change, how digital TV works, & more...
• The Sims 2 and Fandom: Recreating your fandom in the Sims.

Television

• Alias Smith & Jones: what did you like about the DVD set? What would you like to see in the next one?
• Alien Nation: What are Matt and Cathy up to now? Will their "mixed marriage" continue to work?
• Amazing Race: general discussion.
• Anime and Manga Swap meet: Extra DVDs? Didn't care for the manga? Want to try something new? Let's trade!
• Anime: What are you watching now?
• Battlestar Galactica: The mystery of the five Cylons,.
• Blood Ties: Lifetimes's jnew vampire series.
• Bones: General discussion of season 2.
• Bones: How long can and should the UST between Brennan and Booth last?
• Boston Legal: Alan & Denny—slash or just BFFs? (/)
• Britcoms: General discussion - come and chat with other fans.
• British Cop Shows: Love Life On Mars? Wonder who Tony Hill is? Seen Spooks? Think Ray Doyle is adorable? If you like American cop shows, you'll love British ones.
• Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel: General discussion of Joss Whedon's vampire universe.
• Court TV: Are you hooked? A general discussion of the network's programming.
• CSI (Vegas): How did the show fare without William Petersen for a few episodes? Is it time for a change?
• CSI Miami: Horatio Caine - CSI, Lieutenant, Vigilante - has he stepped over the line?
• CSI Miami: Is falling in love with Horatio an automatic death sentence? (adult/slash).
• CSI Miami: Season 5 overview - has the show jumped the shark? 1:00-2:00pm
• Default Channels. What default channels do you most often watch when there's nothing else on? Or is that the WeatherChannel running in the background?
• Doctor Who/Torchwood/ Sarah Jane Adventures -- "I used to have so much mercy" Morality in the Whoni-verse: Does the Doctor always make the moral choice?.
• Doctor Who: Christopher Eccleston vs. David Tennant - Who's your Doctor?
• Doctor Who: Classic Doctors in a New Who World - the continuing audio adventures.
• Doctor Who: Has Russell T. Davies done the original proud?
• Dresden Files: Discuss the book vs. the series pros & cons.
• Dresden Files: General discussion.
• Enterprise vs. Quantum Leap: Time Travel.
• Eureka: General discussion.
• Farscape: General discussion.
• Firefly /Serenity: General discussion.
• Full Metal Alchemist: Manga vs Anime a discussion.
• Heroes: Save the Cheerleader, Save the Show - What would you want your superpower to be?
• Heroes: The best new SF show on TV? General discussion of season one.
• Heroes: Will it be able to escape the "Lost" effect?
• House MD: General discussion of the latest season.
• House MD: House's Personality changes: has he gotten meaner this season?
• If I Had a Million Ducets: How can programming on the SciFi Channel get better?
• Jericho: Just what the heck is going on?
• Kindred, The Embraced: Does anyone still remember?
• Law & Order SVU: We wish to welcome you to Munch/Fin land: celebrating the other partnership on SVU (/)
• Law & Order: General discussion of the three shows.
• Lost: The tribe vs. the mythology. Do we have the time and need to delve more deeply into the lives of the original regulars?
• Made in Canada: Favorite TV programs from North of the Border (including Slings &Arrows, Little Mosque on the Prairie, Corner Gas, etc.).
• Magnificent 7: 10th season: How many horses have fallen under Buck's spell and are Nathan and Raine sharing a bedroll or did she move in with Inez? (/)
• Magnificent 7: Favorite characters and pairings (/)
• Magnificent 7: General discussion.
• Magnificent 7: Girlie Men: When we like our men to act like women or using gender stereotypes as sexual archetypes. (/)
• Magnificent 7: Skunks and Funks: hygiene and health in the Old West or just how many critters are living on Vin Tanner's coat (or JD Dunne's hair). (/) .
• Magnificent 7: The Trilogy Productions Mag 7 Series "Bibles"; discussion of the character descriptions & proposed storylines that Trilogy gave it's writers for the show.
• Man from UNCLE: General discussion.
• NCIS: Did this season's "secrets" keep you coming back?
• NCIS: Discuss the series, especially Ziva as a new character - better than Kate or do we miss Kate.
• Nip/Tuck: Could Christian and Sean stay faithful to each other in a long-term relationship? (/)
• Nip/Tuck: Sean and Christian in L.A. What now?
• Nip/Tuck: Slash fans' reactions to Season Four and beyond. (/)
• Numb3rs: General discussion.
• Numb3rs: Who is your slash pair, and how do you deal with girlfriends, family ties, and other obstacles? (/)
• Obscure Shows: Shows we loved but think no one else did.
• Old Time Radio: Broadcasts We Loved ... and still do,.
• Paul Haggis shows: A celebration of the work of this producer/writer/director.
• Prison Break: a general discussion of the show and the fandom.
• Psych: Who saysa show abouta fake psychic can't be fun? General discussion.
• Quantum Leap slash: PWP or novel? (/)
• Quantum Leap: Is the fandom reviving?
• Real Ghostbusters: What does the future hold for our favorite ghostbusters?
• Relative merits ofManfrom UNCLE\s. GetSmart.
• Sarah Jane Adventures: "This could be a little more sonic": is the sonic lipstick misogynistor a great prop? What about the other changes in Sarah Jane's character from classic to new Who?
• Sentinel and Numb3rs: How do our two lovable consultants, Blair and Charlie, compare/differ?
• Sentinel: General discussion.
• Sentinel: Panel to discuss your favorite fan fiction; what they did to your guys and what made it so special. Bring URLs with you (/)
• Sentinel: Slash free-for-all: what's hot, what's not, and anything else you didn't get to talk about in another slash panel this year. (/)
• Sentinel: Why the fandom is still going strong after 10 plus years. Jim and Blair, of course! (/)
• Smallville: How did the last season pan out with all the new characters?
• Smallville: The future, best future fanfics and best future scenarios to get Lex and Clark back together (/)
• Star Trek: Open discussion of the franchise; the movies - where is it headed?
• Stargate Atlantis: Generaldiscussionofseasons 1-3;the good, the bad and the ugly.
• Stargate Atlantis: I can't believe they killed [spoilers for Sunday]. What were they thinking? Discuss pros and cons and attend a wake.
• Stargate Atlantis: John and Rodney's relationship on the show - general discussion.
• Stargate Atlantis: Panel to wax poetic over the wonder that is McShep (/)
• Stargate Atlantis: Rodney McKay - arrogant and loud - why is he so fascinating?
• Stargate Atlantis: Season 4 spoiler discussion.
• Stargate Atlantis: Slashing the men of Atlantis (/)
• Stargate Atlantis: Whump ~ Sheppard's continuing hurt/comfort adventures on the show and in fanfic.
• Stargate Atlantis: Zelenka, Lome, Chuck the nameless technician - let's discuss the supporting personnel!
• Stargate SG-1: Episode 200: What wasn't included in the script for WormholeX-treme and should have been used.
• Stargate SG-1: Sam and Jack? Where is their behind-the-scenes relationship on the show?
• Stargate SG-1: What was the final nail in the coffin - the writing, cast changes or network greed?
• Starsky & Hutch: A slash discussion. (/)
• Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip: Is Sorkin's walkin' and talkin' too clever for words?
• Supernatural: Dean and Sam: The Family Dynamic.
• Supernatural: Dean Winchester. A character study.
• Supernatural: general discussion of the series.
• Supernatural: It's a lot more than just scary ghost stories.
• Supernatural: Kripke's CheckList- From fandom to canon. What did Kripke intuit and include that were on your Fanon List? What would you like to see on next year's Check List?
• Supernatural: Moral Issues in the Supernatural Universe.
• Teen Titans: is that all they wrote?
• Torchwood: Doctor Who's "adult" offspring or something more - a review of Season 1 & a Season 2 discussion.
• Torchwood: Doctor Who's Jack vs. Torchwood's Jack: Love or loathe the changes in character? What would you want to see in his future?
• Torchwood: general discussion.
• Torchwood: what's in store for us next season?
• Wild, Wild West: general discussion/discussion of the DVD sets.

Fandom

• Duran Duran: Join us again to discuss the year in Durandom. Talk music, fandom, concerts and the year ahead.
• Easy Access to TPTB in the internet age: Is it helping or hurting our shows?
• Fandom drama: How to survive when fandom politics chew you up and spit you out.
• Fandom Knitting: Where to find patterns for Hogwarts, Doctor Who, and more.
• Is there a place for new fans in old fandoms?
• Jimmy Buffet/Trop Rock Parrotheads: Another fannish subculture.
• Late to the Party: What resources are available to people who didn't jump on a show's bandwagon when it was new?
• Man from UNCLE: Introducing Newbies to an Older Fandom - Where do they get started, etc.?
• Mars and Planetary Exploration: General Discussion.
• NASA: Future Plans with Regard to the Moon and Mars.
• Over 40 and still in fandom: Is it time to get a life?
• Pimp Your Fandom: What show would you like to introduce newbies to and what episode(s) would you use to get them sucked in?
• Pluto Demoted: Justified, or Not?
• Political Fandom: From Kerry Edwards to CSPAN Addiction.
• TPTB Online: How does communication between fans and producers affect the fan community?

Film

• 300: It was supposed to be a "boys" movie, so how come so many women went to see "300" over and over again?
• DaVinci Code: Where did the film fail?
• Galaxy Quest: Never give up, never surrender - are you waiting for the next season of GQ: The Next Generation?
• Harry Potter & the Order of the Phoenix:: What material from the novel MUST they include, and will Alan Rickman finally get some screen time?,
• Pirates of the Caribbean II -- Dead Man's Chest: What did you like, or not like, about the sequel.
• Pirates of the Caribbean: Discuss the final film & the series as a whole characters plot etc.
• Star Wars: The future of the fandom/will the OT fall by the wayside?
• Xena: Feature filming, the letter-writing campaign and film discussion.

Games

• CSI Murder Mystery (2 hours)
• Whose Line Is It Anyway? (2 hrs)

Literature

• Andre Norton: General discussion of her work.
• Anne McCaffrey: The Pern series.
• Christine Feehan: discussion of her Dark series.
• Comics in Popular Culture: how important is this art form in American and world culture?
• Doc Savage: General Discussion.
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: our last chance to predict the outcome of the series.
• Harry Potter: Mythology and how it will play into book 7.
• Harry Potter: So who is going to die this time?
• Naruto: General discussion.
• Read any good mysteries lately? Share your finds and favorites.
• Romance Authors: Discuss new ones you've found.
• Star Wars: Mara vs. Leia ~ Why do there seem to be fewer Leia fans, and is Mara really that much "kewl"- er?.
• Sunshine by Robin McKinley: Is the relationship between Raven and Constantine the new vampiric fashion? Should it be?
• The Queen's Darkness - Destined to be King, or Die for Love? Gen Character discussion from Laurell K. Hamilton's "Merry Gentry" Series.
• World's Finest: Superman and Batman: The light and the dark - how does this pairing work so well together? (/)

Web/Video/Role Playing

• LiveJournal: Too insular or community-building?,
• Livejournal: Are they becoming the place to post fanfic?
• Vidding: A general discussion o f tips, techniques, and technology.
• Vidding: Vidding in the Age of Computers and YouTube: does the ready availability of source, tools, and an audience help or hurt the vidding community?
• LiveJournal: Tips, Tricks, & Etiquette.
• Websites vs. zines: Is the gap closing?

Workshops

• Advanced Writer's Seminar.
• Beading - Basics and Beyond: Learn to string a necklace or bracelet, or learn more advanced bead-weaving.
• Care and Feeding of Your Elderly VCR: Basic VCR cleaning and maintenance (2 hours).
• Combat for Film and Stage (2 hrs).
• Fighting for Film and Screen (2 hrs).
• How To Tell a Better Story (Beginning writers) (2 hrs).
• Knit/Stitch 'n' bitch. Bring your sewing, your knitting, your portable crafts and spend an hour (or two?) with other crafters sharing and sewing.
• Making Songvids on Computers Workshop: How to rip music that you can use, that's in the right format, capture moving images that are clear, put it all together, port it for viewing on either TV or computers.
• Taking "Talking Story" to ink on the page/dots on the 'net: In two hours we can whip something together. Trust me, I'm the editor.
• Workshop on creating a music video (2 hrs).

Acknowledgments

From the program book:

Co-chairs (and your hosts) Lori Chapek-Carleton and Gordon Carleton would like to thank the following staffers and assistants for their hard work: Elyse Dickenson and Dawn McLevy (Programming/Party Suite/Flyers), Jeanne Sullivan (GoFers, Con Suite), Keith Grunenwald and Seth Cutts (Security), Jan Gosnell (Fanzine Reading Room, Fan Fund), Karen M. Klinck, Jesse McClain, and Vivian Sheffield (Art Show & Auction), Jan Keeler (Fan Quality Awards), Andre Lieven (Masquerade), Debra & Anna Barber (Dealers), Robyn Deike (Main Video Room), Sheryl Adsit (Fannish Videos). Kim Dyer and Linda Pfonner (Blood Drive), Margaret Basta (Orphan 'Zines), Carl Tielking (Local Lansing Liaison), the Art Show auctioneers, runners, and auction staff, and all the GoFers without whom there could be no convention. Thank you all for your time and effort, especially to those who work not just during this weekend, but throughout the year!

Thanks to Alem for running the Door Decoration Competition.

Thanks to the producers of The Dork of the Rings.

Thanks also to Jeff Walker for the movie trailers and studio promotion freebies.

Convention Reports

(I say Trek only because there are now officially eight robrilliam fandoms out there, and they were all well represented at Mediawest, yes, all fandoms were WELL REPRESENTED but one, and that one is this one, sad to say.) The single pitiful little Trek panel was entitled "On the Future of Star Trek", and I was a co-host or co-facilitator or something. At any rate, I got to sit up front and drink water from a glass.

So how did the "The Future of Star Trek" panel go? You inquire, I know you do. It was okay. There's no future for "Star Trek" if the panel is any indication, but, other than that, it was okay.

The first thing that happened was SO FAN-ny!!! A bunch of folks started ragging (rather gently) Berman, Braga, and "Enterprise". This caused one woman to stand up and intensely announce she was walking out of our little lame-ass "Enterprise"-dogging panel, and then she walked out. I made all these little "But I love `Enterprise'" noises, but no dice: out she went.

And then it got a little more contentious.

I would say there were between 25 and 30 people there, and the majority wanted to talk about the new alleged "Trek Movie" and casting and profits and stuff. (But I didn't want to. I don't think "Trek's" future is in movies; I don't even think the future of movies is in movies.) Anyways, the crowd was torn over loving Matt Damon and Adrian Brody as Kirk and Spock and not loving them. All I have to say is I saw it coming. The night Adrian Brody won his Oscar? I had flashed to F. Murray Abraham, and I immediately knew that, at some time in his future, Adrian Brody would play an alien on "Star Trek". (But you know who would make a great Spock! This is such an irresistible game! Sacha Baron Cohen's got my vote! YES! A great and groovilioius sexytime Spock! He could do it! People would rise from their graves to see THAT "Star Trek"!)

And that was pretty much the panel, which was ultimately not very future-y at all.

But here are my post-panel thoughts: Thought A): Islahope and Liz Ellington were there with me, and we all three got off in a corner and decided if "Star Trek" had had a real future, it should have been "Firefly". Thought B): "Star Trek" is a mirror of society, isn't it? But it's mostly a mirror of the person watching it, and a lot of people at the panel (myself included) were pissed off because nobody saw the same thing in the mirror as they did. Or he/she did. Or whatever. Thought C): The next night I went to a party for fans who are Democrats. (Can I still say that kind of thing on ASCEM? Back in my day, ASCEM was a stinkin commie rat hidey-hole and we were happy with it. One never knows how things are going to turn out, though.) That was a great party! Muy compatibility galore! YOU should have been there!!!! I fell into conversation with a young woman, and we talked about becoming fans of this and that. She said that one reason she had become a fan (she was into "Star Wars") was because of the very disturbing political trend America was taking, but it was little easier to become a fan than to go to Canada. That comment got me to studying things over, and you know what I think: I think "Star Trek" is a reflection of fat times. TOS and TNG (and they're the only Treks that matter in terms of broad cultural interaction) came to us in fat times, when it seemed as if we were headed towards a good future. The Federation is a big, fine, all-inclusive, hand-clappin, social-workin entity with room for all! But that's not our future anymore, if we can even be said to have a future. So, yup, "Star Trek" is a mirror of society, and, until we get our future back, "Star Trek" won't have a future, is my call and I'm sticking to it. Thought D) Hey, guess what! Word on the rialto is that there's going to be a KiSCon 2008 in Los Angeles. KiSCON 2001 saved my life, so maybe there's a widdle teeny future, after all. But I'm sure we'll all hear more about that later.

I will always go to spend time with my friends and to enjoy face to face discussions in the panels. It's the only time of the year I get to see some of my friends face to face. But I miss the number of people, the fun of the art auction, and just the overall con atmosphere that has been diminished, at least for me, for the past couple of years. I hate that the whole con is beginning to feel a bit like one big dead dog party.

• bradygirl-12's Media*West Con 27 Report: Day One, ^{Archived version} and Media*West Con 27 Report: Day Two, ^{Archived version} and Media*West Con 27 Report: Day Three, ^{Archived version} and Media*West Con 27 Report: Day Four, ^{Archived version} and Media*West Con 27 Report: Day Five, ^{Archived version} (dated May 28-31, 2007)
• lizvogel's 'Post-con blithering', dated June 1, 2007
• khylara's Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4 dated May 29, 2007
• nightowl'd report on Supernatural at Media West Con and list of Supernatural zine sold at MediaWest*Con dated May 29-30, 2007
• cannellfan's Back from MediaWest*Con 27, dated May 31, 2007
• Wraithfodder's MediaWest*Con 27 - a short report with pictures, dated May 30, 2007
• sunbeam's Mediawest Report: Trek only dated June 20, 2007
• MistoKitt's MWC 27 Con Report, or, I Have the IQ of a Kumquat!
• Jean Lorrah's MediaWest Con Report dated May 2007
• Several Unlimited's May 2007 newsletter MediaWest 27 Con review
• renka54's Had A Marvelous Time At Mediawest convention report, dated June 5, 2007

Photo Albums

• AuntieC's 2007 Mediawest Flickr Album, ^{Archived version}
• {{{title}}}, ^{Archived version}
• AuntieC's 2007 Mediawest "Whose Line Is It Anyway Panel" Flickr Album, ^{Archived version}
• ShellyS 2007-2009 Mediawest Flick Album, ^{Archived version}