Last week, I described my impending experience at Comic Con as being like wrestling an octopus. Two days after the dust has settled, and I’m still so exhausted, I just want to crawl into a cocoon for a month. Though I'm covered in metaphoric squid ink, I'd say I managed to pin enough metaphoric tentacles down for the metaphoric 1-2-3 count for a SDCC experience that was exponentially better than last year's. And I had a great time last year!
The Comic Vine Community - - Above anything else, it was a true pleasure to see more of you Comic Vine maniacs in the flesh at our Sloppy Joeys meet-up or on the convention floor. Bruce Vain, MrRPM01, Sora_thekey, C_Striker, Count_Zero, Grifter78, Icarusflies and TheMess1428 - - you’re all what make these shows so fun to attend. And, of course, there were the usual suspects - - G-Man, Babs, InferiorEgo, Red Lamp, Riezner, HDJoey and AHR, as well as Norm from Tested and Matt Rorie from Screened. Having such a tall roster of Whiskey friends and colleagues at this show reminded me of just how lucky I was to run into Comic Vine at the Long Beach Comic Con last year. == TEASER ==
Archaia All-Access - - At last, this show marked the convention debut of the HYBRID BASTARDS! hardcover (available * WINK * for order on Amazon * WINK *) and I couldn’t think of a better booth to do it at than Archaia’s. Once again, they elevated the place into something more akin to a hip bookstore. Kudos to the whole staff and all the interns for erecting it all so deftly! I hosted one of Archaia’s panels at the show and I’ll tell you it was a rush to be speaking in front of some many people; to be video-taped and - - GASP! - - live blogged about! I honestly haven’t felt this kind of adrenaline since my MMA tournaments in college.
UNIMAGINABLE at Arcana - - My next comic, UNIMAGINABLE, won’t be coming out until the very end of the year (it IS already listed on Amazon, though) so I only had some flyers to sign for people at Arcana’s booth. They’re sure to become huge collector’s items! A special thanks to the Comics on Comics crew for stopping by the booth and taping my spin on the book. And congratulations to them on another great, raucous panel with Jonathan London hosting.
Friends’ Success - - At last, I can say I’m friends with an Eisner Award winner! DJ “Kirkblade” Kirkbride is a stand-out guy and he deserves every metallic fiber in the "Best Anthology" award he won for POPGUN. Similarly, it was a pleasure to soak up in the glow my friends Dave Server and Jackson Irving were experiencing for their comic FREAKSHOW. The book got a write-up in no less than Variety last week for a big Hollywood deal with the THOR movie's screenwriter and the two were rightly celebrating. I'll also congratulate my friends at Comic Book Sunday for the absurd turn-out they got for their panel. They had a double-room and the place was absolutely packed
Somehow, I managed to get in to a few Hollywood parties. Maybe the best celebrity encounters were meeting Frank Miller, Powerman 5000 front man, Spyder One, and TNA wrestler, Samoa Joe. And doing the Comic Vine t-shirt trivia challenge was an absolute hoot. I wish we could've done more, and then...I honestly could go on forever. Understand that there’s absolutely no hyperbole in stating that Comic Con's an overwhelming experience. And I can't wait to do it all again next year.
-- Tom Pinchuk is the writer of HYBRID BASTARDS! and UNIMAGINABLE. Pre-order the HYBRID BASTARDS! hardcover now on Amazon.com.
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