(Left to right) Courtney Ervin, Blake Foster and Tayla Cole appear at Tyler Comic Con 2023.

Bill Necessary is a mellow hospice chaplain by day but by night, he’s either Christopher Reeves’ Superman or Adam West’s Batman. Maybe a character from Star Trek. Or maybe Boris Karloff’s monster of Frankenstein.

Whatever he is, you will likely find him at any given comic convention, most recently the Tyler Comic Con.

“I love it because I’m living my childhood,” Necessary said. “I know a lot of people who are very shy but at a con they become their characters, their heroes, their idols and it’s just awesome.”

Held at the Cascades in Tyler over the weekend, the annual comic con invited “geeks” from all over to unleash their passions.

“It’s just an opportunity for all of us to express our loves,” Necessary said. “You know, Jesus said the geek shall inherit the earth… something like that.”

From a variety of vendors, patrons had the opportunity to shop items ranging from clothing, art pieces, jewelry, accessories and more.

The event also featured a costume contest, gaming room hosted by UT Tyler, and different panels of voice actors such as Peter Kelamis and Linda Young of Dragon Ball Z, Cosplayer Madison Murrah, WWE wrestler Vaitanoa Lloyd Anoa’i and much more.

“It’s just fun,” Necessary said. “I’ve been looking forward to this all week.”

Whether you were recognizable and adorable Pikachu or the fearsome Shredder, there was a place for you at Tyler Comic Con.

“This is the one thing that I’ve done where there’s no politics in such a polarized culture,” Necessary said. “You’ve got Scooby and the Gang wandering around and I’m dressed as my No. 1 hero — Superman — because I believe in truth, justice and the American Way. It’s just great fun.”

For showrunner Brett Mitchell, the art of Tyler Comic Con is bringing joy and a safe space for people to be themselves.

“We try to bring in celebrity guests and various people, artists and vendors of the geeky or nerdy type so that other geeky and nerdy people have somewhere to go and see things and be excited about,” Mitchell said. “Basically, instead of a football game and people dressing up in jerseys, we have a comic con. People dress up as their favorite video game character or comic book character or TV, or movie or whatever sci-fi horror characters are really popular.”

Tyler Comic Con has been drawing people in since 2013, but organizers had a new element this year.

“We have a musical guest playing video game music,” Mitchell said. “We’ve never had a musical guest here before and it’s really exciting to have them.”

As an artist himself, Mitchell displays and sells his art at the comic convention.

“I also do 20 or 25 other conventions, either comic book or horror sci-fi anime or art shows,” Mitchell said. “Actually, every once in a while, I get into an art gallery or art museum. I have a wide variety of work… I try to have something for everybody.”

For vendor Larry Cline, comic conventions are not only a great way to sell inventory but to observe people dressed up.

“It’s great being able to meet all the people and watching and seeing everybody dress up in their cosplay,” he said. “It’s really remarkable. I love coming to these things.”

Based out of Austin, Cline sells Funko Pop Dolls, small figurines renowned for their exaggerated features, including giant bobbleheads and oversized eyes. They are often of popular characters from a wide range of leading franchises and genres, including DC Comics, Marvel, and Disney, alongside pop culture idols in various styles, poses and outfits.

“Nobody’s in a bad mood at a comic con,” Cline said. “It’s great seeing kids smiling and in their outfits and just being themselves.”