15 must-see events at Fan Expo Canada 2017 in Toronto

Fan Expo Canada 2017 lands in Toronto this week with a ton on offer for our city's finest sci-fi fans, nerds, and self-proclaimed geeks. Running from August 31 to September 3, this year's convention has everything from celebrity appearances to fishnet dance parties to a Dr. Who escape room. 

Here are my picks for must-see events at this year's Fan Expo in Toronto.

Experience the Rocky Horror Picture Show

Rocky Horror rules this year's Fan Expo with events happening every day of the conference. There's a "Time Warp" dance lesson Thursday at 8:30 p.m., a Tim Curry meet and greet Friday at 3:30 p.m., a live shadowcast performance at on Friday at 8 p.m., and a Q&A with the cast from the original movie lined up at 4 p.m. on Sunday. 

Get to know Game of Thrones

The latest season might have just wrapped up, but what's going to happen for the final episodes in 2019? "Game of Thrones: What to expect in season 8" is a discussion panel hosted by the Because Geek YouTube channel team Friday at 12:30 p.m.

Shake hands with a shark wrangler

Ok, so he's known for way more than his role in Jaws, but in Fan Expo terms, Richard Dreyfus is our shark hero. Close Encounters of the Third Kind, American Graffiti, and Stand By Me also make him someone worth lining up for Friday at 5:30 p.m.

Get weird at the Fan Expo Parties

Intersperse your fantasy adventures with parties happening throughout the weekend, including the big kickoff bash hosted by Cosplay star LeeAnna Vamp and her pals on Thursday, the Retro Glam After Party, and the Fan Expo closing party on Sunday. Grab your tickets to these parties ASAP as they usually sell out early

See the biggest Spider-Man costume gathering of the year

Saturday at 2 p.m. there will be an epic meet up for all Spider-Man characters, villains, love interests, and the supporting cast. Head to the balcony area above the entrance to the south building and watch out for webs. 

Rock out to some Nerd Noise

This is the only comic convention afterparty celebrating nerdy musical talent across multiple genres. This year the party spans two nights (Friday and Saturday), the second one happening inside Toronto's giant new games complex.

Spook the cast of Stranger Things

Finn Wolfhard, Gaten Matarazzo, and Caleb McLaughlin will all peek out from the woods for meet and greet sessions on Saturday at 12:30 p.m. Catch them before season two happens and they become untouchable. 

Go sci-fi speed dating

Fan Expo is hosting speed dating sessions from the folks at Sci-Fi speed dating all day, every day of the weekend. There are sessions for both straight and queer daters, and aliens and monsters are also welcome to sign up on the spot. 

Meet your favourite cartoon character

This year's voice actor appearances are very exciting as they include the humans behind characters like Brain from Pinky and the Brain (Friday 11:30 a.m.) ,  Jessica Rabbit (Friday at 1), a slew of anime guests as well as the voices of Disney's original Beauty and the Beast (Sunday 11:30 a.m.). 

Hug a Harry Potter character

Jason Isaacs, a.k.a. Lucius Malfoy's dad in the Harry Potter movies will doing meet and greet sessions on at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday. Feel free to give dirty looks, but no hexes please. 

Celebrate 20 years of Buffy

Buffy the Vampire Slayer is indeed 20 years old, and two cast members are here to help celebrate its vampiric legacy. Angel and Ruper Giles will shed a light on their roles in the iconic series with two separate Q&A sessions (Friday at 5:30 and Sunday at 2:30, respectively)

Robotically hug c-3PO

It's true, Anthony Daniels, the original voice of the shiny robot with a heart of gold in pretty much all of the Star Wars films and spinoffs is in the house on Sunday at 12:30 p.m to sign things, take photos and show you he's human after all. 

Enter gamers paradise

Gamers get ready, you won't want to leave the venue with all these options. There is a retro coin-op video game arcade, a role playing game tournament, card and board game tournaments, a D&D league meet up, miniatures battles and a seriously impressive board game library - all yours for the playing. 

See ghosts

Ghosted is a new sci-fi show coming to Citytv this fall and one of the show's stars, Craig Robinson (of Mr. Robot and Hot Tub Time Machine fame) will be on hand Friday at 2 p.m. to introduce the Canadian premiere of the first episode. 

Doctor Who everything

The kitschy sci-fi show that's captured people's hearts for decades is peppered all over Fan Expo this year with a Doctor Who escape room all day Friday, and a special event on Saturday at 6 p.m. with the current cast. There will also be appearances by the one and only Catherine Tate (Sunday at 2 p.m.), and Billie Piper (Friday at noon).

by Phil Villeneuve via blogTO