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If you didn't get to go to San Diego Comic Con this year, I have just one thing to say:
Ha ha! I got to go and you didn't! Neener neener neener!
Whoops! Did I say that out loud? What I meant to say, before my inner-child so rudely interrupted, was that you missed an awesome Con this year. Comic Con attracts some incredible talent, and over the next few months, I'll have some reviews of titles I picked up from various artists over the weekend. Until then, I thought I'd share some impressions and observations from the Con.
Celebrities
Meeting the public is where any celebrity has the chance to shine or shirk. Several celebrity guests did an exceptional job of meeting and greeting the fans. I heard one report about Kiefer Sutherland absolutely wowing the fans during one panel by going beyond the simple request a young fan made. At the opposite end of the scale was the actor whom I'll allow to remain nameless that was charging $30 for people to take his picture with their own cameras. Funny; I never saw anyone lining up to avail themselves of the privilege. I'm sure someone must have, but I never saw it. To me, it just seemed stand-offish, particularly from someone that hasn't really had a lead role in perhaps 20 years. I realize that space at Comic Con isn't cheap, and he has to pay for it somehow, but I would think that would be easier done by winning more fans, rather than charging the few he has through the nose for a picture.
Artist Sketches
It seemed this time, as opposed to four years ago, that more artists were charging for their sketches. My guess is, the reason for this is two-fold. For one, it limits the number of sketches the artist needs to do to those folks who really want one, rather than just passersby who are collecting free sketches from whomever. There are only so many hours in the day, and most artists could sit there from opening to closing each day just cranking out free sketches, many of which would go to people who had never heard of them before. That might not be so bad, other than it increases the chance that the person who does both know and admire the artist might not get the sketch they were hoping for.
The other aspect of charging for sketches was hinted at, in a lightly serious question, when I overheard an artist asking a sketch-requester, "You're not going to sell this on eBay, are you?" Just as many celebrities and sports figures found with autographs, folks were making a lucrative business selling such memorabilia on auction sites. Get a baseball autographed for free by the big league pitcher, and sell it for fifty bucks on the internet. I can certainly understand an artist feeling a bit of resentment over someone selling their work, that they were given for free, while the artist isn't exactly rolling in the dough for all the time and effort they've invested in honing their skills.
My advice is, if you want a signed sketch from a favorite artist, contact that artist directly and inquire what they would charge for one. Send your payment directly to the artist, and support their work, rather than supporting a middleman who sees the artist as nothing more than another source of profit.
Crowds
Of all the things one might dislike about Comic Con, the crowds tend to be the most commonly mentioned. It doesn't take a very high percentage of rude people on a crowded convention floor to make it seem like EVERYONE is rude. It may seem tiring to have to repeat such courtesies as "excuse me" so often, when trying to get to a table or through a gridlock of bodies, but in such a crowded condition, I think it's more important than ever to be polite.
If you have a fear of crowds, Comic Con is NOT the place for you. If you do go, be sure to take your "chill pill" before hitting the convention, and try to not take the behavior of others seriously or personally. Your enjoyment of the Con will certainly be diminished if you're upset by the rude behavior of a small fraction of the crowds.
Costumes
Part of the fun of Comic Con is seeing the costumes people wear. This year, by far the most popular costume was of the character "Joker" from Batman. It seemed you couldn't throw a dice on the convention floor without hitting someone dressed as the Joker, and after a while it become difficult to appreciate the effort any of them put into their outfits.
Kudos to the two women dressed as "Sims" from the game of the same name. Seeing them walk by with the green jewels floating over their heads made me laugh out loud (literally), and theirs were the only costumes to do so.
On Thursday, there was a group in exceptionally good outfits as Agatha Heterodyne and the Jagers from Phil Foglio's wonderful comic, "Girl Genius". Theirs were some of the more unique and well-done costumes I saw.
Throughout the Con, I was reminded once again that some people should NOT wear spandex. It's fun to want to be a superhero, but guys, a kegger belly doesn't replace six-pack abs when you're wearing spandex, and the stretchy, clingy fabric only accentuates every saggy portion of the human body. I'm sorry, but red and blue spandex with a cape doesn't make you look like Superman. The best costumes are the ones that the person's look and build fit the image, which is why I prefer to costume up as a decrepit old wizard. I don't have a spandex body, either.
Honorable mentions to the Oompa Loompa from the old Gene Wilder version of the Chocolate Factory movie, to the Steampunk-era Ghostbusters, and to the Captain America who had the build for the costume, even if he was a bit more tanned than the traditional depiction of the superhero.
And if you didn't make it to Comic Con this year, I hope to see you there in the future. It really is something to see.
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