Comic-Con 2011
When I told people outside of my circle of friends that I was going to Comic-Con I got a few different responses. This is typically what I heard.
Reactions:
What’s that?
Oh wow… you’re a nerd. Tiffeny, you like that stuff or is he making you go?
Oh that’s fun!
I like the last reaction. It was a blast. There were tons of celebrities there and so many things to do! Another reaction I got from my non-nerdy friends was “what is Comic-Con exactly?”
Comic-Con 101 (if you already know, skip this*)
- Comic-Con started of as a convention for comic book publishers and fans.
- There are booths full of comics with writers and artists who give autographs giving fans a chance to meet the creators behind their favorite heroes.
- It has evolved into something much larger (especially San Diego). A lot of comic fans complain that the San Diego Con is way too commercial since they include much more than just comics.
- The San Diego Con has booths on the first floor where free comics, buttons, shirts and other random goodies are handed out. The booths range from video games, TV shows, movies, anime, Legos and comics! Upstairs is where all the panels are. Yes. Panels.*
SO! Let me tell you about this year’s experience. I volunteered this year so we wouldn’t have to pay.
Comic-Con Volunteering 101
- You do an assignment for 3 hours then you’re free to roam!
- Sometimes they just let you go in without having to do anything
2 of the 3 days they just let me and Tiff go in. They said, “we have enough people already. Let me sign you guys out and you can go have fun.” Pretty sweet huh?
Our first day at Comic-Con Tiffeny won a PS3!!! There we were…lugging a PS3 downtown San Diego!
Day two I high fived Dwight Howard twice!
How did that happen?! Let me tell you the story! We were at the Kick Buttowski panel. I do not watch this show but we were there to see the Robert Kirkman panel (the creator and writer of Walking Dead). There is a stategy to going to panels.
Comic-Con Panel 101
- Panel lines are ridiculously long
- If you go to a panel you can stay in that room all day. So we went to Kick Buttowski to ensure we had seats for the panel we actually wanted to go to.
- Panel Examples: 2009 there was a panel for Iron Man 2 that included Robert Downey Jr., Samuel Jackson, Scarlett, and a few others. They talk and their project and then the fans get to rush to the mic for a Q&A session. Panels are cool!
So we’re sitting there watching the voices of Kick Buttowski talk about upcoming shows on Disney XD (they’re coming up with a Tron show that looks amazing) and hear them talk about their own show. They then go on about how Dwight Howard does a voice and never has time to show up for their events because he’s so busy.
Then out of nowhere the lights cut off and music is blasting. Then the doors swing open. Then Dwight freaking Howard busts through the doors and runs through the crowds handing out high fives like an ice cream man at an elementary school! The panel was so legit after that because Dwight is hilarious and many little kids asked him questions about becoming a Laker during the Q&A session.
To be honest, the high five I got from Dwight sucked. So I hollered at him before he left the room and got a real high five on my camera!
After that panel my lovely wife scored us front row seats to watch Robert Kirkman. During his panel he asked “Hey I’ve got this special hard cover of the new comic series I’ve started called the Infinite. Who wants this?” Everyone raised there hand but my wife got it. Because she rocks. She also got him to sign it afterwards.
To wrap things up, I got to talk to and got autographs from several artists and writers you guys probably don’t care about but here’s the list anyway:
Robert Kirkman (Walking Dead, Invincible)
Mark Waid (Irredeemable, Incorruptible)
Nick Spencer (Morning Glories)
Ian Brill (Darkwing Duck)
Joe Benitez (Lady Mechanika)
Jason Martsen (Step by Step, Full House, Boy Meets World and tons of cartoon voices…IMDB him)
(Yes that is Aku from Samuri Jack on his shirt)
As amazing things happened over the weekend I texted my friends! The reactions I got were pretty interesting as well.
Reactions:
Bastard.
Jerk.
I hate you.
Embrace your nerdiness and don’t miss out!
The Dark Side of a Super Man.
Since it’s comic book week for me, I will write a post of my new comic book obsession named
IRREDEEMABLE
I can’t express how great of a series this is. It was released in 2009 and has already received an Eisner award nomination. Mark Waid has truly written an impressive world where not all heroes are perfect boy scouts but rather human-like who can feel pressure, overwhelmed and even rage like all of us. What if a man as powerful like Superman with all of his powers suddenly snapped from pressure turning into the world’s greatest SUPER-VILLAIN.
Irredeemable Synopsis:
The series has not gone very far since there is only about 23 issues released but I will give the simplest synopsis for the series. The Plutonian was the world’s greatest Super Hero. He could fly, see through walls, super strength and all the powers anyone could imagine. He was loved by the people and was there for anyone in desperate need. He was the “all-American boy scout” like Superman of DC comics is. However one day, he goes on a mass genocidal spree and panic ensues. He hunts down his original Super-Hero friends eliminating one after the other as they try to understand what went wrong.
I can’t go any further but I highly recommend this series to any reader. Mark Waid has really outdone himself and has shown us what a realistic Superman would be like
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I’ve always disliked Superman for his goody-two shoe nature, but this Super Man is definitely my idol ;P
Irredeemable || Bellatrix & James
“Unacceptable,” Bellatrix muttered, her hands threading through her hair as she paced back and forth in her dormitory, robes swishing behind her with each sharp turn on her combat booted heels.
Sirius was her biggest regret. He had potential. He had so much promise. And he threw it away. “Stupid fool,” she breathed, forcing herself to stop her pacing, closing her eyes as she attempted to focus on the piece of information she had overheard on her way back from classes that afternoon.
Dorcas Meadowes.
She had barely known who the bird was the night before, but the Hufflepuff’s impertinence had given Bellatrix every reason to be aware of her presence.
She was sure Meadowes would have preferred anonymity to animosity, but it was far too late for that. Luring her already far gone cousin further from his family, drawing him into the company of even more blood traitors, was a step too far. But Bellatrix could deal with the Badger later. Family first, after all.
When she had heard of a dispute over charmed Slytherin banners, she hadn’t thought twice about it. House pride was the last thing on her mind. But the more she considered it, the more decidedly Sirius-like it sounded. She wasted no time in ensuring her wand was firmly in place her waistband and sweeping out of the dormitory and Common Room, not breaking her swift stride until she finally exited the Dungeons and reached the Great Hall.
Wrong blood traitor, she mused silently, eyes nonetheless narrowed as she took in the sight of a grinning James Potter brandishing his wand foolishly, proudly, more feminine embellishments being added to the banners. “You know,” she remarked coldly after several more silent moments of by-standing, “there’s such a thing as wasting magic, Potter. I don’t know what you think childish acts such as this are achieving, but I promise you it’s nothing lucrative.”
Mark Waid's new free webcomic series, Insufferable.
thrillbent.comWhat happens when you’re a crimefighter and your sidekick grows up to be an arrogant, ungrateful douchebag? What on Earth could draw the two of you back together again?
With Mark Waid being very vocal on his support of Digital Comics, he has bought out his own, free, webcomic. I am not sure if just the first issue is free or not, but either or, the dude gets superheroes. And somehow manages to make the most tried and true staple of comics, fresh and enjoyable. From the title and description, this sounds like it could maybe be a 3rd installment in the Incorruptible/Irredeemable universe?
