Popular Post Brenmark Posted March 27, 2018 Popular Post Share Posted March 27, 2018 (edited) Wow! After reading Robotman’s excellent con report (Hi Bob) with full blown pictures of wall after wall of comics and dealers, I wasn’t sure I would have anything left to say about this years WonderCon, but there was plenty to see, and this year was no different. During setup I went to see if Sergio Aragones was in artist alley. Frankly, when I bought the last issue of Mad, I wasn’t sure if the “Final Issue” caption on the cover was a joke or the real thing. For several weeks I didn’t see anything about it on the CGC boards and didn’t google any further. Indeed, Sergio informed me that #550 was the last one as there will be a whole crew of new and some old “usual gang of insufficiently_thoughtful_persons” relocating to Los Angeles with new editor Bill Morrison. There will be a complete rebooting back to number one, and my Mad run (with only a few missing from the ‘70s) will come to a close. 550 issues. What a history! Not quite as long as some (Action 1,000 is around the corner), but 550 issues are still impressive. They are truly a history of this country from the 50s to present day. I have met many of the original crew over the years but regret not meeting Bill Gaines before he passed. Sergio reminded me that he was the youngest of the original New York crew at 80 years young. I should hope to look so good at that age, and I’m only about 12 years away . Al Jaffee just turned 97. Now that’s a goal to aim for. I saw a lot of Mads for sale at good prices and even bought a few upgrades. Will the new reboot be successful? I hope so, but only time will tell. The convention got off to a roaring start on Friday, and I was able to walk around for a few hours without the crowds to get the lay of the land and meet with old friends. Since my hiatus from San Diego, this show is my main convention for the year so I was eager to get caught up on comic and original art news. The GA/SA comic booths were conveniently located in one area, but the original art booths were scattered all over with some up by artist alley, some in the middle, and others around the GA/SA comics. Bedrock was not able to make it, but there were plenty of the usual suspects: High Grade Comics, Graham Crackers Comics, Terrys, Amazing Adventures, Dale Roberts , Koops, Harley, Marc of House of Comics etc. Gator was walking around checking out the wares but did not have a booth, and our very own Robotman was seen box diving to his heart’s content. In the comic art booths were Saul, Bechara, Scout Eder, Cool Lines, and other art scattered to and fro in different booths and artist alley. Marc from House of Comics John from Topedo Comics Sal and Jimmy Speaking of artist alley, Saturday I went specifically to find Kelley Jones and found him in the last row. I brought two pages I bought years ago from inker Tony Zuniga from a Deadman story in Action Comics Weekly. It was a real pleasure meeting him for the first time, but unfortunately I didn't get a picture as I had forgotten my camera. When I saw that he was listed to attend, I wanted Kelley’s signature as he is one of my all time favorite artists. He was excited to see his old pages as he credited those stories in Action Comics Weekly with giving him tremendous exposure in the comic world. I missed seeing Marv Wolfman as well. Maybe next year. Detail Meanwhile, outside the building, Cos players were out in force with some pretty incredible costumes. It seems that this year was fairy godmother or princess themed with plenty of Harley Quinns for good measure. Noticeably absent were the scores of zombies I use to see. There were lots of families with kids in tow who were ecstatic at being able to meet Sponge Bob, Superman, Wonder Woman, Wolverine, Captain America,and Mermaids. Being a recent grandfather myself, I understand the excitement of the guy in front of me with his baby getting their picture on the cover of an Action 1,000. They will have a memory that will last a lifetime. It was good to see Jerry VanDerStelt and his family again with some of his art from Lord of the Rings. He does the most amazing paintings, and my pictures cannot do them justice because of the overhead lighting. Jerry Vanderstelt and family Other incredible artists I always enjoy seeing are Heather Theuer and Gary Montalbano plus a whole host of new faces. You turn the corner at Artist Alley, and there is new art everywhere. Not to mention booth after booth of jewelry, make-up , costumes, precious stones, endless variety of prints, plants, backpacks, movie stars (Nichelle Nichols) and countless furry animals. The convention is getting close to filling up the entire space, and I expect that to happen within a few years as this year’s convention was certainly bigger than last years. Some of Heather Theuer's art Although there was a fair amount of great comic artwork and fine art, I just didn’t see anything that jumped out and said, “Take me home.” Just being there among all that cosmic goodness was good enough for me. The DC booth was incredible with great giveaways. Century Guild Scott Eder Pasqual watercolors That's all folks. See you next year. Edited March 27, 2018 by Brenmark STORMSHADOW_80, Sqeggs, sacentaur and 3 others 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ltpink2002 Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 3 minutes ago, Brenmark said: Classic image by Privat Livemont. Just perfect! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robot Man Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 Wow, outstanding report Mark. Wish we had more time to chat but I was running around buying like a drunken sailor. Couldn't ask for a better report. Captures the whole show so much better than mine. I tend to focus on what I go for and kind of bypass the other stuff. You got it all down. FoggyNelson 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brenmark Posted March 27, 2018 Author Share Posted March 27, 2018 Thanks for the kind words Bob , and your report was excellent for all the great comic wall shots that I didn't get. I didn't realize until I got home that I barely took any actual comic pictures at all, and you nailed it. See you at Jimmy's show in August. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mmehdy Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 good report, great con Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
badback83 Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 Thanks for the report! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lhcomics Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 Awesome report. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny545 Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 Thank you for this, excellent! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
707comics Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 Thanks for sharing, wish I could have made it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sacentaur Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 I'm not much for the cosplayers, but there was a kid there as Miguel (from Coco) striking the pose (with the de la Cruz guitar) and he was just great. Wish I would have made it over to the Mouse Guard booth, missed it. Terrific report Mark, thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
n2wdw Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 Great report, thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
STORMSHADOW_80 Posted March 28, 2018 Share Posted March 28, 2018 Thanks for the report. I had a blast at the show this year! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...