Red (Santa Hat) Alert! Hallmark is Hosting Its Very First Christmas Con

Hold on to your Folgers Coffee cans! Hallmark is getting its very own con.

Hallmark has announced it will be hosting its very first Christmas Con in New Jersey this coming November. Try to contain yourselves!

The 3-day holiday extravaganza will have it all: Insanely-elaborate Christmas decor, an ugly sweater contest, a Christmas market, live musical performances, and of course, all your favorite Hallmark stars will be there. The event coincides with the 10th anniversary of the iconic Countdown to Christmas, which kicks off in just a few weeks.

The convention will take place November 8-10 in Edison, New Jersey, and tickets are on sale now. According to Hallmark, the convention center will be expertly decorated to make you feel like you’ve stepped directly onto a holiday movie set. Shop your way through the Christmas Market stocked with homemade gifts, decor, and treats (all made by local artists and bakers), then head over to have your photo taken with Santa.

One may think this writer is perhaps being a bit facetious but have no doubt, this is a genuinely exciting announcement. Hallmark’s Christmas juggernaut might be the source of ridicule for many, but I have long enjoyed the plain American simplicity of a Hallmark Christmas movie. You always know what you’re going to get. There’s always a happy ending and you’ll never be assaulted with any of the modern nonsense that Hollywood feels compelled to lecture you about in their movies.

You know you’re going to have a pretty woman, a handsome man, some non-offensive, chaste, romantic banter, and a precocious kid or two. There will be a contest of some sort, a hurdle to overcome together, and someone will have a change of heart. Hallmark makes an effort to rarely even include pop culture references in their films. That way the movies don’t ever really feel dated. They are evergreen. You’re not going to be jarred by a Chris Hemsworth reference when you’re watching Hallmark Channel in 2036.

Even the cheesiest elements are part of the charm. The blatant Folgers placements (center square on my Hallmark Christmas bingo card!), the cardboard cut-out best friend who has nothing better to do than worry about the protagonist’s love life, the cookies, the green trees covered in sudsy bubbles masquerading as snow…all of it adds up to something unique and enjoyable.

Hallmark’s Christmas schedule has been so successful that other studios are beginning to offer their own “cheesy” Christmas movies. Oprah’s OWN channel will release three of their own this year and Netflix started last season with their versions as well.  However, no one can really duplicate the cheesy, innocent charm of Hallmark Christmas.

There is absolutely no cynicism in a Hallmark Christmas movie. Not a drop. That is a skill and it takes a certain corporate culture to pull it off. Hallmark is in firm and full understanding of their brand and their audience. Christmas Con seems like a genius idea and I can’t wait until they come to California.

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