Emerald City ComiCon, Day Two

Day Two of the Emerald City ComiCon. I arrived at the Washington State Convention and Trade Center just in time for the doors to the convention space to open at 10am.

I brought some comics with me to have them signed by their creators, so I spent most of the first two hours doing that. Some of the lines for signings were incredibly long, so I didn't get every comic signed that I wanted. I did get Birds of Prey #98 signed by writer Gail Simone (I also asked her for some advice to an aspiring writer like myself, and she was generous with her time in giving some), Superman #656 signed by writer Kurt Busiek, Manifest Eternity #4 signed by artist Dustin Nguyen, and New X-Men #139 (with Jean Grey in her Dark Phoenix costume on the cover) signed by artist Phil Jimenez.

I didn't have anything by writer Andy Mangels handy (you try digging through 6,000 poorly indexed comics to find something), but he had some of his work for sale, so I purchased Nightmares on Elm Street #1 (from way back in 1991 -- oh, and yay, Freddy!) and he signed it. He also threw in a signed poster for a related miniseries for free because I'm a fellow member of the GLA mailing list (associated with the Gay League website for GLBT comics fans). Mangels said he thought I might be someone from the list. Do I look visibly queer or something? Why, yes, I do. Heh. Jimenez is another GLA list member, so I also introduced myself to him as a list member when he signed the New X-Men comic.

From Noon to 1pm, I was at the "Sunday Conversation" panel moderated by DC Comics' senior vice president/executive editor Dan DiDio. The rest of the panel consisted of Busiek, writer Bill Willingham, and senior story editor Ian Sattler.

It was more of a give and take between fans and creators, with DiDio asking questions of the fans and then letting us have our say. I raised my hand when he asked how many of us had stopped reading comics for awhile and then returned to reading them. He called on me to explain why. I said the first time was in the 1990s when grim and gritty was the rule of the day, and the second time was last year due to 'big event' fatigue. I said I was coming back again this time because of the upcoming Final Crisis miniseries, which earned me a thank you from Sattler.

1pm to 2pm was spent at a Q&A session for actor/writer/geek extraordinaire Wil Wheaton. He's a great speaker with many funny anecdotes to share, as well as some serious ones about growing up as a bullied geek and dealing with fans who were nasty because they hated his character on Star Trek: The Next Generation. He had some great words of advice for a teenaged girl asking about how to survive high school when you're bullied for being different. After the session, he pulled her aside and spoke to her some more. He seems like a genuinely nice guy, as well as a mega-nerd.

Then I went to lunch. I had a hot dog and lemonade at the little deli on the convention floor. Then I wandered around the exhibition area some more. I bought a Buffy action figure complete with the magical scythe she acquired at the end of the final season. So two action figures was the sum total of my purchases this year. Some other items I had my eyes on were just too expensive to justify buying, like a Dark Phoenix action figure for $60.

But now it means my desk has even more protection. If you get past the Jawa and Hal Jordan (only the greatest Green Lantern ever), now you also have to deal with a Slayer and a genocidal pepper pot. Beware!

After lunch, I caught the tail end of writer J. Michael Straczynski's Q&A session. I finished off the day at a panel about self-publishing that included writer Phil Foglio. Very informative. Then I said goodbye to the con until next year.

I had a great time and I'm definitely looking forward to going again next year. It was worthwhile, even with my arthritic left ankle acting up after all the walking I did.

Emerald City ComiCon, Day One

Day One of the Emerald City ComiCon was fun. I arrived at the Washington State Convention and Trade Center by 9:30am, exchanged my ticket for a badge, and waited in line until the doors to the convention space opened at 10am.

I spent most of the first hour looking at the merchandise on display from various exhibitors and making mental notes about where I might return later or tomorrow to actually buy things. The only thing I bought today was this. It's going on top of the PC with the Hal Jordan action figure and the Jawa plushie.

From 11am to Noon, I attended a panel called "The Legal Side of Creating Comic Books". The panelists were two attorneys from Washington Lawyers for the Arts who discussed copyrights, trademarks, and related issues. It was just a basic overview, but informative.

From Noon to 1pm, I was at the "What It Takes to Make It in Comics" panel put on by writer Christian Beranek and another writer whose name I didn't catch. Lots of good suggestions about finding artists to work with, submitting to publishers, and making it as a comic book writer.

At 1pm, I stepped out of the convention space for lunch. There's a Subway on the same floor, so I went there for a foot long tuna sub and a bottle of Coke. After waiting in the long line, getting the food, and then eating it, most of an hour was used up.

Then I attended the "Mondo Marvel" discussion from 2pm to 3pm with a panel consisting of editor Jen Grünwald, writer Ed Brubaker, writer Robert Kirkman, artist Skottie Young, and writer/artist Jeff Parker. Lots of info about upcoming Marvel Comics projects. It was also the funniest panel of the day. The panelists were a laugh riot.

From 3pm to 4pm, it was the "Spotlight with Jamie Bamber" (aka Apollo on Battlestar Galactica). He's even cuter in person, plus I got to hear his normal charming English accent instead of the North American accent he uses on the show. He's an engaging speaker with a good sense of humor. He also said and quickly retracted a potential spoiler about who the final Cylon may be.

I walked around the exhibition floor a little more, looking at more things I might want to buy tomorrow. I got a big smile from a lovely woman in a Power Girl costume after she noticed I was admiring her. There were cute geek women all over the place, so I was happy.

I finished off the day between 5pm and 6pm at the Costume Contest. The judges were three characters from the Who Wants to Be a Superhero? reality show, including The Defuser. Lots of great costumes, including the aforementioned Power Girl, a couple dressed up as Gambit and Rogue, a convincing Robin, some amazing looking Borg, and an Ian McKellen lookalike as Magneto. The contest ran late, so I left before the winner was announced.

I'm looking forward to Day Two.

Judging by all the squeeing on my friends list, even from some notoriously hard to please people, Iron Man is good entertainment. I'll find out for myself on Tuesday, but all the reviews I've read have me feeling optimistic.

New Dark Knight Trailer -- does this look good or what?

The Top 100 Comic Book Runs Master List -- I concur with the Top 6.

The Emerald City ComiCon is next weekend. I'm looking forward to it. There are nearly a dozen panels I want to attend over both days. "What It Takes to Make It in Comics" is the one I have the most interest in.