Nick's First Comic Convention Experience!

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ThatNickGuy

ThatNickGuy

So, I went to the Toronto FanExpo today and had a blast. I've been depressed the last while, partly due to worries of school starting soon, but especially for getting a ticket while bicycling. This? Just put me in all sorts of good moods.

So, my swag:
-Superman t-shirt, in the style of classic Superman, like the old Fleischer cartoons.
-Another t-shirt that looks like an NBA shirt, but has a caped flying figure and "geek" on it. Hee.
-A copy of Archie Meets The Punisher, a comic that has evaded me for 15 years, when I first saw on the shelf back in High School.
-Signed copy of Jeff Lemuire's Sweet Tooth (bought directly from him)

And most importantly:

-A signed photo of Stan "The Man" Lee. I got in line just in time that it didn't take too long. It set me back $50 all together, and I barely even got to say two words to him since they were moving the line so quick...but I can now say I own a signed photo of Stan freakin' Lee.

-Got to shake the hand of Dan Didio, head publisher of DC comics
-Spoke with two great artists, Doug Manhke (artist of Blackest Night and Green Lantern), as well as Jill Thompson, who drew some issues of Neil Gaiman's Sandman, as well as a great book I just finished reading, Beasts of Burden.

So yeah, overall, I had a blast. Got to see a draw-off between two artists, Jim Valentino and another artist whose name escapes me, as they each drew a character of the audience's choosing. Valentino would have drawn my suggestion for Roger Rabbit if anyone had had reference for him to work from.

Also went to the DC Nation panel, which made me realize just how different a geek I am. I like the literary aspects of it; following creators, recognizing artists, etc. These DC fanboys? Every kind of cliche or stereotype I had heard about regarding comic fanboys was basically all in this room. It was all about this super-popular book or this character, this event, yadda yadda. Never have I felt like such a different kind of nerd until then.

I'm working at it again on Sunday, so I'll try to get some more pics. I don't know if I'll be able to get any pics of famous people, like Adam West or something, but I'll try to get some pics of some of the crazy booths. Like one booth showcasing the upcoming Aliens quadrilogy on BluRay, where they have the sleeping pods that you lay in and watch the trailer or something. Or the giant freaking Tron booth.

So yeah, totally fun time but I'm realizing that I'm a different kind of nerd than the ones here. I'm not a collector and I don't really care about the the upcoming mainstream stuff. But it's been great to meet some favourite creators of mine.
 
Telephius

Telephius

Woah Woah Woah, I have been to a comic convention before TNG?! I don't even really read comics 0.0

Glad you had a good time though, When Adam West came here I saw him but did not want to wait in the line, or shell out $20-50 dollars for a signed photo.
 
J

Jiarn

I do believe that some pictures are in order, if you did bring a camera. Though I can't imagine going to an event like that and not having at least a disposable.
 
ThatNickGuy

ThatNickGuy

Hoy, I'm exhausted.

Helped my local comic store (The Labyrinth) with their booth all day today. Recommending comics was a hoot and got several people to buy stuff they hadn't heard of before, along with recommending stuff for them to check out in the future (that we didn't have).

Then the exhausting part came, with packing it all up, loading it into the truck, driving to the store, and unloading the truck.

Hoy!

At this point, I don't even want to think about comics again for a very, very long time.

....

*looks at the small stack of new books he's bought over the weekend*

Oh hey, comics!
 
GasBandit

GasBandit

Staff member
Huh. It occurs to me, I've been to a Star Trek con, and I've been to a Video Gaming con, but I've never been to a comic convention.
 
checkeredhat

checkeredhat

GasBandit said:
Huh. It occurs to me, I've been to a Star Trek con, and I've been to a Video Gaming con, but I've never been to a comic convention.
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Well, Nick's trip there was focused on the comics cause , y'know, it's Nick. But Fan Expo is a general all around Nerd Con. It started as a comic con but slowly it absorbed several other Toronto cons, and now its a comic book/videogame/scifi/horror/anime con.
Although I guess that can be said for most other comic cons as well.

Nick, you go to the Labrynth? I've never been to the actual store, but they do a roadshow at the school once a month to sell us art books and comics.I'm pretty sure the guy there is an animation alumni from our school. He is definitely friends with a good number of Sheridan teachers and animation alumni anyway.
 
Shannow

Shannow

Staff member
Heading to NYC con on october once more. Cannot wait for that weekend of drunken foolishness. Always good times at the NYC con.
 
ThatNickGuy

ThatNickGuy

Yeah, I'd say FanExpo is more of a general nerdy con than a straight comics con. I don't think there's any con these days that doesn't also have panels and guests for sci-fi and other parts of geekery. The FanExpo, for example, might have had Stan Lee an an artist's alley for sketches, but it also had things like Michael Dorn, Leslie Neilson, Felicia Day, etc. There was a section for horror, as well.

One thing that honestly bugged me, was the biggest booths were the most corporate. Rogers, for example (Canadian cable/interet business) had this huge, useless booth and their people scattered all over, asking about our cable. I mean, cripes, ZELLERS had a goddamn booth for things, along with HMV. I could understand things like Nintendo or Microsoft, for gaming, but Rogers had no place there and was the least populated spot in the whole place.

But then, you also had the giant booth for Tron, with its statue-like displays, booth girls in blue wigs and showing off the trailer and the game. Or the Aliens booth, with the cryochamber where you laid down and watched the trailer for the upcoming Blu-Ray.

I honestly spent most of my time either among the various comic store booths or artist's alley.

But yeah, Gas? Not even the San Diego Comic Con is just a comic con, anymore. Hollywood's caught on and using it as a platform to promote all sorts of stuff, now.
 
Shannow

Shannow

Staff member
Yeah, I actually have no desire to go to san diego, and I am huge into comics. thats why I like the NYC one. its big, jsut over too big, but not insane like SDCC
 
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