Oct.13-19 - More Returns and Changes

Post-convention post

The congenial Eric G. (a co-worker of a few years) and I took a train into Philly and attended Wizard World East, following plans mentioned in the previous post. As for why I almost titled this entry "Plans are for chumps", I'll note that by the time we stepped onto the convention floor, just before noon - the event had opened at 10 - they'd already sold through at least today's allotment of pre-release Ultimates boosters. As this bade ill for the convention exclusives angle, we proceeded to walk the floor, scarfing up swag and evaluating what was there.

Before moving on I want to mention that the situation with the Galactus exclusive was irritating. On the one hand, there seemed to be plenty of them, and people were walking around with them all over the place. On the other hand, their scheme to theoretcially make things easier for the Galactus-seekers, which was to canvass the people standing in the ticket line early on, seeing which ones wanted to be able to buy a Galactus, went terribly awry, IMHO. They were quickly scarfed up, and as I checked with one of the Wizkids staffers at the event, it wouldnn't matter if I stood in a 2-hour line to get to the booth and there was a stack of Galactus boxes behind the table, and I was willing to slap down the $75 or so they were asking on the counter -- I wouldn't be able to get one.

The combination of being excluded from being able to buy something already priced so high despite my making it to the convention and their running out of boosters of the newest set well within the first two hours of the show, despite a 3-per-badge limit, has re-soured me on Wizkids. This show was their big chance to undo the PR damage from the Los Angelos debacle, and they screwed the pooch instead.

So, if nothing else, forget those plans to run some Ultimates auctions on eBay this weekend.

::Ptooh!:: They are horrible people and we will speak of them no more. (Well, not in this entry.)

The big comics guest of honor was Michael Turner, whose body of work with Aspen Entertainment and Superman/Batman and whatever else he's done is all but unknown to me, (hey, I'm a cranky, old comics fan. Todd McFarlane's still one of "those new guys" in my book) and that set the tone for the convention. (Compare this with the headliners for August's Chicago Wizard World, including guest of honor Joss Whedon, Chris Claremont, Brian Michael Bendis, Alex Ross and Gene Ha.)

I don't mean to paint it as a dismal affair, but by and large it proved to be an event where, aside from the free items (Upper Deck handed out some nice, black t-shirts promoting their Marvel collectible card game, for instance) and getting into some group activities (there was a strong gaming presence there) there wasn't much there that was "exclusive" to the event with respect to anyone with an Internet connection.

Okay, I'm exaggerating, as Wizard did schedule a series of panel rooms where various pros lectured on aspects of becoming a pro, and those were probably good. The panels closest to being of interest to me (and, of course, I'm only talking about Saturday's programming) I ended up passing on as they would be teasers/spoilers for a raft of DC/Wildstorm comics, and for the impending dis-assembly/re-assembly of the Avengers; I might have tipped in favor of the latter had Brian Bendis, the writer, had been on the panel, but he wasn't, and I didn't want to hear the pitch from Joe Quesada, publisher Dan Buckley, upcoming Thor writer Michael Avon Oeming, and senior editor Tom Brevoort.

It was a nice touch to rename one of the meetings rooms in honor of Julius Schwartz. It's especially fitting that he be commemorated in places where comics fandom are gathered, since without his contributions these events might have never evolved, or at least done so differently and later than they did.

If one wanted to wait in lines to say "hi" to Eliza Dushku (who I caught a glimpse of) or Alfred ("Doc Ock") Molina (who I didn't), there was that, too. Then there were the B- (or C- or even D-)list celebs, such as Herbert Jefferson, Jr., who was, among other things, Lt. Boomer on Battlestar Galactica (a show I was never interested in), Marc "Beastmaster" Singer, and, perhaps milking the limelight (an odd bit of imagery there) more than anyone else, Richard Le Parmentier, who played General Motti, the officer on board the Death Star in Star Wars, who had the poor judgement to insult Darth Vader's religion to his breath mask. Okay, to be fair he's had parts in Octopussy and the first Rollerball (each as someone's aide), Superman II (as a reporter), and as a lieutenant of one stripe or another in The People That Time Forgot (how cruelly apt is that title?) and Who Framed Roger Rabbit?... but the poor man hasn't landed a role since 1992's The Berlin Conspiracy, which probably no more than a dozen people not related to the cast and crew have probably seen, so it's no wonder that he'd reach back to 1977's role, especially for a comic con.

My apologies for what may be seen as unwarranted cruelty in the above references, especially to poor Mr. Le Pelletier, who is probably not only a fine human being and has at least been a part of some fun movies - which is certainly more than I can lay claim to - but as he's not a Canadian (Marc Singer is, and those Canucks seem to know their own and crow about it) no one is likely to rise to his defense.

All in all it was a pleasant time, though, if in many ways unremarkable. I had agreeable company, and that counts for a great deal.

Philadelphia, and especially the area of the Convention Center, is pleasant to visit, especially is one's coming and going by train. If you find yourself in the area, be sure to take a walk around the Reading Market Terminal, especially if you're hungry. I could mention that we decided to have lunch at a rustically-themed diner in or adjacent to the Market (a diner with a cow-themed sign), but then I'd have to mention having nicely smoked, pulled pork, and I don't want to deal with sexual innuendoes at the moment.

A comics convention, if it's to be truly enjoyed, has to become a vacation. Being able to go away to it, check into a hotel, and have the event easily accessible for the few days it's running, is important in important. More important than that, though, is having one or more people you know to go through it with -- unless you're naturally ebullient and gregarious, or on the right medication. All told, I think today's daytrip to the con went well.

While we know that these events are first and foremost marketing & sales events, I keep coming back to how these at least seemed to be more spirited and interesting back when these grew from groups of fans getting a little of that old Andy Hardy spirit and wanting to put on a show (here I go again, making movie allusions that are almost too old for my parents), rather than an expanding series of company-owned and driven affairs. I'm open to the thought that some of the perceived difference is due to changes in the comics industry, the affects of the Internet, and my own aging, but that trio doesn't cover it all. I've yet to meet someone (not on Wizard's payroll) who claims that Wizard World Chicago is an improvement over the Chicago Comicon, which is what it was called before Wizard bought it -- though they have been working to improve their performance over the years. Still, much of the prestige that event still has is owed to its earlier years and general vintage, not to mention being a much more central location. (So much would be improved if they would move it out of the dismal surroundings of the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, and into a more interesting and vital area.)

Thinking of the place, though, has sent me back to 2002, the last time I made it out there, so how about I take you back there with me while I'm at it. (Some of the internal links are inactive, and various references are out of date, but the bulk of it - as posted on an old website I haven't touched in a looooong time - is intact.)