Part and parcel of a convention is the programs – panel discussions, lectures, question and answer sessions and other various presentations people sit though. This is true for business conferences as much as it is for comic cons.

That held true at Fantastic Con, the three-day event at the Crowne Plaza and the Ramada off College Avenue, near Mitchell Airport.

On Saturday, there were a number of panels to choose from, including "Geeks gone Mom," "Intro to Cosplay" and even "Geek Speedating." That’s the beautiful part for an event like this as a gathering of a place where many people have deep relationships with different topics.

Want to collect "Star Wars" figures? There’s a panel for you. Want to hear from Caity Lotz from "Arrow" or Chad Rock from "The Flash" in a Q&A section? That can happen too. 

For the first year of the city’s first comic con, there were a number of programs and panels through the weekend that may or may not be worth checking out … depending on the interest level.

For Dave Duca and Jon Hughett, "The Cannon of Dr. Who" program they led covered some of the changes through the BBC’s "Dr. Who," a program around for 50 years.

"It is the only show to give you permission to travel at the speed of imagination," said Duca, who traveled down from Oconto to attend the con.

"Through this you meet so unique people, it is so wonderful."

Duca is known for building Daleks, one of the monsters that keeps appearing in the long-standing sci-fi production of an alien and the human companions who travel through time and space.

The crudest description of a Dalek is a domed head on a strange-shaped trash can with a plunger sticking out. But the wonderful Dalek that Duca had on display was beautiful with the fabrication of bumpers and parts made out of light-weight components so he can ride inside.

"At the last convention I was at, we had 651 people sit inside," he said. "The best part is when the children are there. They are my boss. When the children are around our Daleks, it is so much fun."

Because he can open up the alien species which is one of the most terrifying and loved monsters in Dr. Who’s world, I think it dispels the unknown and unsure feeling the children have. Duca will show the kids how to adjust the moving parts, and can see the happiness in their smile as they sit inside.

Hughett, who is with Milwaukee Makerspace met Duca through his love of building and fabrication. At the program, Hughett explained how people can come together and share their knowledge with each other to help build things. I’m guessing he found the same sort of open people inside this niche group of "Dr. Who" fans who share the knowledge on how to build Daleks.

Actor John Barrowman, who maintains a home in Brookfield, led a highly-anticipated question and answer program on this second day of the con. The talk ranged on stories about his family, his recent awarding of an MBE by the British Royal Family’s Princess Anne and playing roles in "Dr. Who," "Torchwood," and "Arrow."

In the more-than-an-hour-long session, he graciously answered as many questions as he could in front of a crowd of around 300. One thing he’s on board with is making Milwaukee a known destination for his peers who go out on the convention circuit.

"Let’s make this one of the biggest cons in the country," he said.