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ORMOND BEACH OBSERVER
OrmondBeachObserver.com
THURSDAY, AUGUST 21, 2014
observed By Brian McMillan | Executive Editor
King of the Nerds
“If we are to build a better world, we must remember that the guiding principle is this — a policy of freedom for the individual is the only truly progressive policy.” Friedrich Hayek “Road to Serfdom,” 1944 Publisher / John Walsh, jwalsh@ormondbeachobserver.com Executive Editor / Brian McMillan, editor@ormondbeachobserver.com News Editor / Wayne Grant wayne@ormondbeachobserver.com Staff Writer / Emily Blackwood, emily@ormondbeachobserver.com Designer / Ximena Alfaro, ximena@palmcoastobserver.com Advertising Manager / Jaci Centofanti, jaclyn@palmcoastobserver.com Senior Account Manager / Kaitlin Kennedy, kaitlin@palmcoastobserver.com Account Manager / Sarah Hechler, sarah@ormondbeachobserver.com Classifieds / Randi Schaefer, randi@palmcoastobserver.com Account Manager / Susan Moore, susan@palmcoastobserver.com Advertising Coordinator / Chloe Perez, chloe@ormondbeachobserver.com Circulation Manager / Dave Brooks, david@horizonroad.com
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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, that it was a bit less intimidating to catch a glimpse of 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 the Dark Knight, a man who can take a while getting dressed. BRIAN This trio was among MCMILLAN 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 term, that she (Allison White) won first place in the event’s cosplay contest.
Stormtroopers
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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, an Ormond resident who was dressed as a stormtrooper called Arc Trooper Fives. He 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.
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Photos by Brian McMillan
Taylor Blasco, the man in charge, recently turned 18.
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Taylor Blasco celebrated the one-year anniversary of his Ormond comic book store.
Blake Griffin and her sister, Rylee, don’t know it, but the man behind that mask is actually Ormond Beach resident Ed Lyons, who is dressed as Arc Trooper Fives from “Star Wars Clone Wars: The Animated Series.” 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 will have none of that. He said, “I’m like, ‘I’m not from that movie.’” (Arc Trooper Fives appears in “Star Wars: The Clone Wars,” the animated series. Duh.) 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. He said the films’ creator, George Lucas, had lots of practical problems as the stormtrooper 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 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 a 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 gradu-
Ormond Beach residents Anthony Coschignano, as Scout from “Team Fortress 2”; Beth Sanders, as John Egbert from “Homestuck”; and Taylor Harreld, as Fiona the Human from “Adventure Time” ated,” 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 hosting cosplay actors. “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.
LETTERS EDITOR TO THE
+ Webster Barnaby: Why I’m running for County Council (Editor’s note: Webster Barnaby did not participate in the Observer’s Elections Guide. To help readers understand his views better, he was given 600 words as a letter to the editor, the same number of words given to his opponents in the County Council at-large seat.) Dear Editor: They say only two things in life are certain: death and taxes. We cannot do anything about death. That’s out of our hands. We can do something about taxes, which are far too high. Volusia County has earned the dubious distinction of the second highest overall tax burden among Florida’s 67 counties.
Florida has recently led the nation in foreclosure rates. People are struggling to pay their household bills. You cannot grow the tax base by squeezing taxpayers out of their homes or businesses! I seek election to the County Council with like-minded fiscal conservatives who will join me in identifying ways to lower county taxes. I know that’s just part of your overall tax burden. But we have to start somewhere. Property values are up this year. If the County Council imposes the same millage rate, you will see higher tax bills! We need to roll back the millage rate in order to hold the line on taxes. Ten years ago, Volusia County encumbered itself with a $65 million bond issue to pay for road projects. That bond
continues to siphon $4.9 million per year away from the gas tax that is meant to pay for infrastructure projects. The county still has another 10 years to finish paying the bond. We should consider using some of our $195.8 million allocated fund balance to retire the debt early. We must return to a pay as you go system to replenish our road funds. We need to send the message that Volusia is open for business. Why do we have three advertising authorities competing with one another for precious tourist dollars? Volusia should speak with one voice and market the entire county with participation of all stakeholders. I am all for the development of new
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