Welcome to Nerdville, South County’s First Comic-Con

Tony Nuñez of Santa Cruz’s Good Times started out writing about Nerdville, the city of Watsonville’s first comic book, LARP and gamer gathering. Then he worked around to the subject of juvenile violence in South County. What’s the connection? To begin with, Nuñez talks with Watsonville councilmember Francisco “Paco” Estrada, who is a nerd himself. He’s seen posing with, if not a world-class, certainly a county-class collection of superhero action figures. The councilman wanted a safe place for beleaguered kids. Gang-related killings have occurred from wealthy Aptos to working-class Watsonville, he tells Good Times. 

Large, mainstream nerd conventions such as San Diego’s Comic-Con can be fun but costly. Nerdville, by contrast, was supported by community groups: a nonprofit gathering of creators and fans, with entrance fees waived for Pajaro Valley Unified School District students with IDs. “I don’t want kids to feel like they can’t have things like this in their town,” says Estrada.

Read more: Why Nerdville, Watsonville’s First Comic-Con Event, Matters at Good Times