- April 18, 2024
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It’s the most iconic profile shot in the world: the angular nose in the black mask, the grizzled scowl, the spiked ears of the Batman. I have to admit, though, it was a bit less intimidating to find this particular Batman as I was pulling out of a parking lot and noticed him as he was changing his pants in the cramped front seat of a Toyota Corolla. Two women, who by comparison were dressed unheroically, possibly his wife and mother, leaned against the car outside, waiting patiently for him, apparently used to dealing with Batman, a man who can take a while getting dressed.
This group was among more than 300 people who, on Aug. 16, attended the party celebrating the one-year anniversary of Nerdtropolis, a comic books store at 1459 N. U.S. 1, Suite 8A.
In addition to a few Batmen, you also had lots of characters I had never heard of: Alois Trancy, John Egbert, Fiona the Human. One character was completely made up, Candy, but her pink eyes and animatronic mouth made the costume so "realistic," for lack of a better word, that she, Allison White, won first place in the event's cosplay contest.
Stormtroopers
The best costumes that I saw, however, were the stormtroopers. I’ve always been a big fan of “Star Wars,” so I couldn’t resist capturing a few shots of local kids interacting with these members of the 501st Legion, a group of volunteers who spend hundreds and even thousands of dollars on the costumes, and then come to cosplay events or charities to show them off.
“We do it for the love of ‘Star Wars,’” said Ed Lyons, who was dressed as a stormtrooper called Arc Trooper Fives. Lyons, an Ormond Beach resident, said one of the highlights of his day was when a 3-year-old held his hand for a photo and didn’t seem to want to let go.
The most common line that fans say to Lyons is a classic from Obi-wan Kenobi in Episode IV: “These aren’t the droids you’re looking for.” But Lyons, whose character appears in “Star Wars: The Clone Wars,” the animated series, will have none of that. He said, “I’m like, ‘I’m not from that movie.’”
However, Jon Jeffers, who was visiting from Jacksonville, was dressed as an Episode IV stormtrooper. He said his outfit is similar in construction to those used in the 1977 film. That means it’s plastic and can break easily if he’s not careful. And the films’ creator, George Lucas, had lots of practical problems as the stunt men dove and knelt and crashed into things. If you pause the movie and look carefully, Jeffers said, you can see white duct tape covering cracks in helmets and armor plates.
The man of the hour
But the real reason I wanted to visit Nerdtropolis that day was not just because of the costumes and the comic books. Last year, the Ormond Beach Observer ran a story about Taylor Blasco, the owner, and I wanted to meet him in person. He’s not your typical businessman: He just recently turned 18.
But, my attempt to meet him in person was thwarted by the mob of customers — not a bad problem to have, if you’re the owner. Instead, I chatted with his father, James Blasco, and his brother, James Jr. When the shop opened again on Monday, I finally got Taylor on the phone.
He said he saved up his own money from working at Winn Dixie, and also got a loan from his parents and family friends, to open Nerdtropolis. He works every day at the cash register and then also does his research at night. He has no other employees, but his father and brother lend a hand to give him a break.
In the meantime, there’s the little problem of school.
“I haven’t actually graduated,” Taylor said. “I’m not in high school. I was attending Virtual School for a short amount of time, but with the business and everything, it got so time-consuming, and the workload was too much.”
He does plan to finish high school in one way or another and possibly go to college in film or computers.
In the meantime, he’s having too much fun being the king of the nerds and entertaining cosplay actors in his store.
“I like to think that cosplayers are the most passionate about the nerd community,” he said. “They love to show it off. They’re the loud and proud ones.”
Whether it’s interacting with people at conventions or talking about the latest twists and turns of the superhero world with kids and adults alike — some successful professionals stop in weekly — he has embraced this marvelous universe.
“It’s a great community,” he said. “They’re some of the nicest people in the world.”
For more, call 265-1790.
