There wasn't enough happening to fill three days for the 2017 one. Stan Lee was added last minute because WW screwed the pooch again with lack of advertising and ticket sales were presumably dismal, especially after Charlie Sheen dropped out. So many unhappy Stan Lee package buyers who spent big bucks because that was the "only" way to guarantee a Stan signature or picture, only to have them opened to general public early on in the show. The only benefit was a shorter line for the VIP buyers.
The number of vendors was down to less than half of what I've seen at the other two previous Des Moines conventions. I can't remember one, not one, comic book vendor in the entire place. There were comic book shops represented in the artist's alley area, but they weren't allowed to sell. If I were in the market for fidget spinners, though, it would've been heaven. Many of the vendors said they were contacted by WW last-minute in an effort to fill the place. What WW doesn't understand is people in smaller cities like Des Moines WILL spend a lot of money at their shows if they do it right and not treat it like an afterthought.
Sorry to be a Debbie Downer about this particular event, but I look forward to this "hometown" show and it's gotten progressively worse each year. I thought they were going to take a hiatus after the dropoff they experienced Year 2; you know, in an effort to make us long for what we were missing.