�SMALLVILLE� � Anastasia Sims weaved in and out of the large crowd with a huge smile on her face, collecting vendor dues for Third Thursday. Wearing a costume similar to that of Superwoman, Sims said she preferred the mantle of �Super Mom.�



�I wanted to make sure somebody was dressed up,� she said.



Sims said the humidity was probably why so few people were in costume for the Smallville-themed festivities. Temperatures were in the upper 80s, with the humidity notable.



People wearing shirts emblazoned with their favorite superheroes, especially Superman and Batman, were more noticeable than usual.



�You have to be pretty die-hard to dress up in this heat,� said Jon Robinson, organizer of this weekend�s upcoming Smallville ComicCon.



Robinson was dressed as Superman�s biological father, Jor-El, from the most recent Superman film �Man of Steel.�



�It works better when I�m dressed as Batman,� he said. �Everybody wants a picture with Batman. It�s just fun.�



Robinson said he and his wife, Heather, make all of their costumes by hand, of which they have more than 50.



Robinson said he really felt like things were going smoothly for the first official Smallville ComicCon, adding that it�s not just for Superman aficionados.



�It�s a comic and pop-culture convention,� he said. �The city of Hutchinson has really been open arms to it. I love the hometown feel.�



Terry Manche, a Third Thursday vendor selling comic books, said business couldn�t be better.



�Comic books are for people of all ages,� he said. �The older people are buying the nostalgic comics and younger kids are buying the more flashy books.�



Manche is a regular vendor at Third Thursday. He has been selling comics for about 30 years. Some of his most popular items are Superman, Batman, X-Men and Old West titles such as �Gunsmoke.� Manche was selling comics for a dollar each.



Jaxon Allen, a 10-year-old who proudly said he was from �Smallville,� spent several minutes looking through Manche�s assortment before settling on a �Batman and Robin� comic.



�I like Batman better,� he said with a grin.



Several blocks to the north, Maren Berblinger�s luck wasn�t as good selling comics at Bookends. However, she said plenty of kids were looking at the various titles for sale, especially the Avengers, Superman and Spiderman comics. In addition to selling comics, said Berblinger, Bookends was celebrating its second anniversary.



Debbie Mullins, an art teacher at Hutchinson Middle School-7, and her students were painting faces to raise money for their Independent Art Club. The club painted more than 50 faces. The two most popular requests were the Superman and Batman symbols.



In addition to the face painting, Mullins students were finishing a mural at Johnson Music Center.



�I want to get the students involved in Hutchinson,� she said. �In the community for art. I was born and raiser here and I feel like this is just such a huge event for our town once a month and for the arts.�



In addition to the Smallville festivities, the 2014 Sculpture Walk was on formal display. Local artists� work and musicians were visible on nearly every corner of Main Street.



�There�s just so much artwork downtown,� Mullins said. �We�re really proud.�