Beyond Geek Spotlight: Brandon Isaacson AKA McThor

A man in a clown costume with the words beyond geek spotlight.

Name
Brandon Isaacson aka McThor

Tell us a little about yourself
Born in Delaware in the early 80s with a few spots in between my current stop of California in the Bay Area. Growing up I loved my after school and Saturday morning cartoons. Going to the toy store was always a treat even when not getting something. I always had a very creative mind having lots of fun with friends playing pretend. We’d make up stories to get the most out of play time. That was my talent for creativity, it was story telling.

I was never good at art or anything, so that’s why it’s a surprise I’ve been able to do what I do today. I somehow have grown up as this crafter with no training and barely any knowledge on how to do any of this stuff. I was just always gifted with a great knack for problem solving. So the problem was I wanted to now craft with no knowledge, and I was going to solve it by drowning myself in all the knowledge I could get.

So in 2014 I went from buying costumes and slightly modifying them to building one from scratch. I started building Thor armor to do my McThor version which started falling apart at its first convention. Since then I have built 7 total versions of the Thor armor modified for McThor. I took skills learned there to conquer much larger builds like a full-size version of Crocubot from Rick and Morty and Armored Batman from Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns. It’s been an incredible journey so far that has created a ton of long-lasting memories and experiences. With more to come.

A man dressed as a mcdonald's clown standing in front of a mcdonald's.

Origin story
I’ve always had a love for Halloween. It has been my biggest thing to look forward to each year. I just love dressing up, and as I got older, I finally had more control of what I wanted to be. So I started to make my own costumes for Halloween with the Kool-Aid Man and the Joker being my first. I then learned I could combine my love of nerd culture and dressing up year-round with cosplay and going to comic conventions as their popularity had grown greatly.

A group of people dressed as superheroes.

Tell us about your geek persona
McThor was born of all things random. Ronald McDonald as Thor? Totally insane, but I was lovin’ it. He is the cosplay god of obesity and bringer of all-day breakfast. Just like McDonald’s I had to supersize, and that’s how a whole group of fast food Avengers was born, The McVengers.

What’s your favorite thing about doing what you do?
The reactions I get have to be one of my favorites. There are many people that don’t know what to make of this. Do they love it? Are they afraid of it? Regardless I mostly see joy from those I encounter, and them just trying to guess what I’m called.

A man standing in front of a newspaper stand.

What was your craziest experience you had doing this?
My image was used in a newspaper prop on the set of Thor: Ragnarok, and I had everyone going crazy about it. When news outlets were reporting on these set images, they even covered me which blew my mind.

What would be your elevator pitch for getting someone to try this?
If you want to have fun year-round, where you’ll meet others that share your same love for your fandom, then look no further. You get the joys of Halloween year-round by dressing up in costumes you’re passionate about.

Two people dressed up as star wars characters in a store.

How could someone else start doing this and what’s the best advice you can give them for doing it?
Anyone can start doing this. The power of the internet is a great starter. I learned most of my early skills just watching YouTube videos and scouring forums for progress pictures and how people made what they made. Networking works really well also in learning and enhancing your skill. My best advice is remember we all start somewhere. This isn’t a competition, and just do this for you and you’ll have fun. Oh, and if you think you have enough time to make something, you probably don’t.

What else do you geek out about?
I geek out a lot about space. Space exploration just fascinates me. Where we’ve been and where we will go. I can watch anything about it. It could be about Apollo, Hubble, Voyager, Cassini, or anything else out there. There’s so much unknown, so much to explore. It just captures my attention in a big way.

What was your first geek experience?
My first real geek experience came when I first went to New York Comic Con. I was always a geek, but all my geekery was playing video games and collecting old toys. Comic Con was my out in the world celebration with all, and since then there has been no looking back.

Chris hemsworth and robert downey jr at san diego comic-con.

What was your craziest geek experience?
So far my craziest experience has been meeting Chris Hemsworth on my birthday at San Diego Comic Con. My friend was able to get me into the line to meet him even though there were no spots left in it. When Chris laid his eyes on me as McThor, he just starting busting out laughing and asking what I was. All I could say was, “I’m you, just Supersized.” He even had Taika Waititi taking pictures of us for him. It was just such a mind-blowing moment.

A woman dressed as batman poses with a woman dressed as batman.

What’s your favorite comic book and/or geek centric book?
My favorite comic book is Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns. It feels like such a realistic telling of what an older Batman would be like. So gritty and dark.

If you could meet a fictional character, who would it be? And why?
Optimus Prime. I just loved him so much as a kid. Not only was he a giant transforming robot, but he displayed such honor, courage, and wisdom. I’d just love to spend time soaking some of that in while he gave me a ride.

A man squatting in front of a disney store.

If you could have one superpower, what would it be?
Flight, it’s always been flight. I wanted to be able to soar the skies and see the world from up high. I suppose that’s why I love rollercoasters and sky diving.

What is your favorite app or video game?
My favorite app would be YouTube. It’s the home to amazing content and so much randomness at times. You can get trapped going down a rabbit hole watching video after video. I use it almost as a podcast at times, just listening to it in the background as I do other things.

Instagram: @mcthor_cosplay

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