How We Escaped the Joker & Took on NYC Comic-Con!

This past week was incredibly busy for us, but in the best way possible. We had our usual day-to-day work, but on top of that, we also had our team-building exercises, which really made it a memorable week. It all kicked off on Tuesday when Andrew and I flew up to our Charlotte office for the firm-wide team-building event. The idea was to bring everyone together to unwind, have fun, and connect outside of the work environment. It's always nice to mix things up and get people interacting on a more personal level.

We arranged for a food truck to come by and serve everyone from the Charlotte office. We decided on The Smashed Patty, a place known for their delicious burgers, and let me tell you, they did not disappoint! I opted for the Mexican Smashed Patty, which had jalapeños, guacamole, and the usual fixings. It was a solid choice, and I’ve already made plans to take Holly to their main location because we’re both big fans of a good smashed burger.

However, there was a bit of drama with the food truck when it arrived at the venue. It turned out the escape room didn’t have  written permission to use the back lot, and the shopping center manager wouldn’t let them stay. They had just opened and we were their first large party, so they didnt know it was needed. The property manager wouldn't give a one time exception and the food truck had to move down the street and the escape room staff shuttled the food back to us. This caused a bit of a delay, but honestly, once the food arrived, it was still hot and tasty, and everyone dug in. The small hiccup actually became a funny talking point, adding a little adventure to the day.

We recently welcomed a new attorney to our team and it was the perfect chance for him to get to know the team right off the bat. Not every new hire gets that kind of introduction, especially in a remote setup, so it was nice that he could jump into the mix and get a feel for the company culture straight away.

After the meal, the whole team headed into the escape rooms. I love escape rooms because they really get everyone working together, and they’re a great way to build team spirit. We had the option to choose from eight or nine different themed rooms, ranging from easier ones (though even those were still pretty tough!) to more difficult ones. I picked a Batman-themed room, where I had to stop the Joker from carrying out one of his evil plans. It was so much fun trying to figure out all the clues and puzzles with a group. It’s always exciting when everyone’s racing against the clock, throwing ideas around, and working together.

Some of my attorneys did another escape room, this one with a scarier theme, the seven deadly sins andmy COO tackled a submarine-themed room. Each room offered a totally different challenge, and it was cool to see how everyone approached the puzzles. Some rooms were definitely harder than others, but in the end, everyone had a blast. We got a lot of positive feedback from the team. It was a nice break from the usual work grind, and then folks knocked off early to head home after the event.

Then, on Wednesday, it was back to the usual routine for me. But after wrapping up the day, Holly and I caught a flight to New York City for Comic-Con! We had been looking forward to this trip for months. We bought tickets way in advance, so I unfortunately had to miss the Georgia team’s event. They also had a great time, though! We wanted to keep the team-building events consistent across locations, so they had The Varsity food truck come down from Atlanta. It’s always a hit, and we try to have them cater at least once a year because everyone loves their burgers and fries. The Georgia team also got to enjoy an escape room event like we did in Charlotte, which was great for keeping things on-brand across the board.

New York Comic-Con was an absolute blast. Holly and I had heard so many great things about it, and it did not disappoint. It’s a lot like Dragon Con, which we’ve been to in Atlanta, but it’s definitely different in its own way. The biggest difference is that New York Comic-Con is held in a massive convention center, rather than multiple hotels like Dragon Con. Everything is on a much larger scale, with more floor space, bigger crowds, and a lot more corporate involvement. You can tell just by walking around how big the event is, with major companies setting up huge booths.

For example, Funko and Tokidoki both had massive setups. Unfortunately, the Funko booth was sold out before we got tickets, so we didn’t get to check that out, but we did manage to get into the Tokidoki booth, which was really cool. One of the things that struck us was how different the crowd dynamic was compared to Dragon Con. Some comic book artists who barely had lines in Atlanta had massive lines here in New York. It was interesting to see the difference in popularity and demand between the two conventions.

There was a ton of comic art on display, and the vendor hall was enormous. It felt like you could get lost in there with all the fantasy and anime statues, action figures, and collectibles. We even checked out some of the new video games coming out, like the Monster Hunter section, which had people playing and competing. The booths were much bigger and more elaborate than what you’d typically see at Dragon Con, which tends to have smaller, mom-and-pop type shops.

We didn’t get a chance to see any of the big celebrities, though. A lot of them were on the main stage, which had long lines, and we just weren’t up for waiting. But there were some big names there, like Tom Hardy, who showed up to promote Venom. We missed out on a few of the premieres, but we’re looking forward to catching up on all the cool reveals and trailers when we get home.

Overall, it was an amazing experience, and New York City was so much fun to explore. We stayed until late Sunday night and flew back home. It was definitely a packed week, but we had a great time both at the North Carolina team-building event and Comic-Con but were sad to miss the Georgia team building event. Somewhere along the way, though, I managed to catch a bug, so I’ve been fighting off a cough ever since. I’ve been living on cough drops and medicine, but I’m hoping to shake it off soon.

I hope you had a good week and remember, if you’re in pain, call Shane!

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