Caught in the Crossfire
Of course, I'll blog during the show if I can, but no promises.
Anyway, over on his truly-excellent blog, Mark Evanier has announced that he's done a new Crossfire story. I knew this months ago, of course, mostly because Mark was kind (or desperate) enough to ask me to letter it. It was cool getting to work with Mark for the first time. He's a good guy and a better friend. The story came out darn fine, and you can read more about it here.
What's New Pussycat?
If I'm going to keep doing these pieces, I want to make sure I change things up every now and then. This Catwoman illo is done in Adobe Illustrator, which allows me to do mathmatically perfectly curves. I figured that would be a nice effect for capturing Selina Kyle's sleek and sexy look.
As for the costume, like Supergirl before, this is the one I grew up with. I once told a Catwoman fan that this was the outfit I liked best, and was chided for thinking a cat burglar would wear high heels, a cape and a skirt. I'd never thought of that, and it makes sense, but I still like this outfit.
By the time you read this, I'll be on my way to Mid-Ohio-Con. Hope to see you all there!
Cuz I Can
I think I'm drawing characters from my childhood. Supergirl at one point had as many different costumes as the
I think the movie uniform from the otherwise-forgettable Supergirl movie was pretty decent. The red skirt instead of blue is a nice touch. But back in the 70's and into the 80's, the Maid of Might had a 70's style that didn't carry the taint of the bell-bottom and platform shoes look. I have no idea how the choker cape worked, and the S-shield becoming a patch was probably a mistake, aside from the obvious benefits of the V-neck blouse. She briefly had those strappy Wonder Woman shoes, but eventually switched to the classic M-top boot.
Anyway, this is how Supergirl looked when I was growing up, and I still think she looks kinda cool.
Something to be Thankful For
Love and Capes #6 is in stores now! It's pretty darn cool, if I do say so myself. And, since it's in stores, it's in the LNC Store. If your comic shop doesn't carry it, or if a throng of rabid fans have bought all of them, then you've got a way to get your Heroically Super Situation Comedy fix. And, if you've been waiting for #6 to buy the set, there are multi-issue deals in the store, too.
Doubting Thomas No More!
Some of you may remember the infamous 2004 Mid-Ohio-Con, also known as "Thom Gets Kicked in the Teeth a Lot." One of the big issues was the program books, which never arrived. (Brown, What Can We Do To You?) Fortunately, with new printers and new procedures, the program books haven't been an issue this year, they are done and they look fantastic! Right now, they are being driven in an unmarked van to Columbus by a handpicked team of Tony Isabellas. I choose to see this as a good omen of what will doubtlessly be the greatest Mid-Ohio-Con ever!
Ring Around the Rose Colored Costume
Stop a War With Love
I mentioned that I did some commissions at Wizard World Texas. One of the things that helped, I think, was doing this Wonder Woman/Wonder Girl piece as a sample. I intended to finish it up as a color piece, and I had some time at Jesse's house while watching the Cowboys game, and later on the plane. I think it turned out pretty well, all things considered. I'm thinking about doing a series of super heroine illos, maybe throwing them together in a sketchbook or something. I'll post them as I get them done.
Hey, That Sounds Familiar
JK Parkin over at Newsarama is linking to my Comic Pants interview. Promotional love like that must be noted.
More Texas Wizardry
When I go to Texas for WizardWorld, there are always three constants: That I’ll eat too much in really great restaurants hoping the extra pounds won’t make it through airport security, that I’ll have a great time with Jesse and his family and friends, and that there will be talk of this being the last year for the show.
There’s a report of such talk by Aron Head over at Newsarama. His main blog is here, and certainly worth a look. And he's got a bunch of great pictures of the show, too. Anyway, he writes:
As I rummaged through the longboxes in the last minutes of the con, a conversation occurred just to my right between a dealer and a member of the Wizard sales team. The Wizard staffer stated that they’re not sure if the con will return to Arlington - or Texas - next year.
“We’re meeting immediately after the show to discuss it,” The sales guy said.
The dealer shared with the WW staffer what every other guy had told me. He had a great sales weekend. “You guys do this again next year,” He said. “I will be here.”
From my own observation, there were fewer dealers this year but more attendees. Bigger pie, fewer dealers with which to share.
WWTX is the biggest comic show to visit Texas this year or any year prior. The other cons we get here are local, regional affairs. They’re nice, but they don’t bring the juice that Wizard does.
True, Wizard World Texas was a bit light on guests this year. For instance, Marvel’s absence was keenly felt. And there was a lot of grousing about WizKids not making the show. Still, everybody I spoke with had a great time.
I’ve got my issues with Wizard shows, as I’ve mentioned elsewhere. But, to some degree, they’re like McDonalds. You know what you’re getting, and it’s pretty consistent mediocrity. But a big show’s a big show, and given this year at Dallas, I certainly can’t complain.
Wizard has shown an impatience with shows, from their one-year attempt at Boston to their unsuccessful attempts to unseat Heroes’ Con. I’ve been surprised that they stuck with Texas.
Texas is a great location, underserved by major conventions, and with this show I think they hit a solid level from which to build. The first couple shows may have been two big. Artists’ Alley was separate from the dealers’ room, which I think hurt the artists because it stunted traffic flow. This year, just about everyone I talked to had a decent show in terms of sales and interest. Even the dealers were content, and that’s a definite bellweather.
I’d hate to see them give up on the show now that it’s hitting its stride. As for my suggestions, for what they’re worth, I’m agnostic on the Friday start. Summer shows that start before Saturday make sense, because kids are out of school and vacations seem to be freer. The week before Thanksgiving, kids are in school, and a lot of people are saving time for the day after Turkey Day. I’d like to see them work around the Cowboys schedule as much as they can, especially with the Cowboys moving to a new facility next door. I like the November playdate, because it gets me out of the colder Ohio weather into the warm Texas nights, but if they had to move that, it wouldn’t bother me too much.
Oh, and I’d like the seating arranged to have Laura Vandervoort to sit next to me. Or Erica Durance. I’m not picky.
Wizard World Dallas, Day Three
I woke up this morning with a belly still full of chicken fried steak and creamed corn. Jesse ad I toddled off to Church, and then to the last day of Wizard World Texas.
We got to my table and I’d wanted to grab a cup of coffee to start the day, but I had a problem: too many people wanted to buy stuff. Now, if you have to have problems, these are the ones to have.
First, I sold the remaining five books to the guy who thanked us for getting his girlfriend to buy a comic at all, let alone my book. She read the first and needed the rest. Someone wanted a sketch of She-Hulk. Then someone wanted Hawkgirl. Then another completion set.
That took the better part of an hour. Finally, I needed not only something to drink, but to use the facilities. “Jesse, if anyone comes up, pretend you’re me. Just sketch something in non-repro blue and I’ll fix it when I get back.”
Fortunately, Jesse didn’t have to be me, but he did have a clever drawing of the Atom so small he was only a dot coming out of a phone.
I did get to talk to more of the Comic Pants guys, who are just as funny and ebulent in person as they are on their podcast. You should really check them out here.
Things were generally slower than Saturday, but busier,
I got to meet Scott Porter from NBC’s Friday Night Lights. He’s a comic book fan and was just walking around, seeing what there was to see. And he was doing so without the security that Laura Vandervoot (Supergirl from Smallville) needed. He’s a comics fan, and Jesse, who is also a FNL fan, gave him copies of my book.
Scott said he’d hoped to read them while at his table, but was too busy because there was an internet rumor that he’d been cast as Superman in the upcoming Justice League movie. (He wasn’t, and, in fact, had been passed over as the Flash, too.) So tons of fans showed up with Superman stuff for him to sign.
I have to say, Scott was just a really nice guy. I hope he likes the books.
I didn’t take too many photos, and hadn’t had the time to mess with putting them up until today. So don’t think they’re all from today’s show.
The day then drew to a close, and we bade goodbye to our boothmates and con friends and headed back to Jesse’s house for some pizza and a TiVo-delayed Dallas Cowboys game. Shhh. Don’t tell us who won.
Back home tomorrow!