WWE: A Guide In Progress
That's Wizard World East, the annual comics convention held in Philadephia. This year it'll be June 15-17. While guests are still being added to the list and the programming is yet to be set, I thought it a good exercise to at least try to think through the event a little. To try to spare myself the minor regrets of "I should've done" this or that. If it ends up helping anyone else, all the better.
(Please note that this is a working draft, posted now with the idea that people who come by it, especially if they turn out to be fans of one or more of the people set to attend the convention, will point out potentially helpful information for the possible benefit of all. It's at that dangerous stage where if I don't post it I'm in danger of letting it sit with the other drafts. I'll link back to it whenever a significant update's made. Getting more potentially helpful info in place about the guests and adding some images will be where most of my attention goes in finishing this piece.)
I've blogged (tediously, I see in retrospect) about the past couple of these conventions. Here's the 2006 one. That one will likely be of greatest interest inasmuch that I have a few shots taken at the convention in the entry. The 2005 convention was presented in two parts, here and here. Before that was the 2004 convention. Hmm... we seem to be moving a little later in the calendar as we go from year to year; late may to the start of June and now the middle of June. I'll try to do better once I'm going over this year's in a few weeks.
Back to the near future, let's start with a short list of essentials and sensible suggestions:
It's a large, indoor marketplace, a mart, including a wide array of mostly booth-style restaurants. The shot above is just a small portion.
It used to be a Monday-Saturday affair only, closed Sundays, but it now has Sunday hours 9-4. Unless they hire outsiders to man it on Sunday the Amish merchants won't be there on Sunday, but, as mentioned, there's a wide array of other food there. That this is open Sunday is another substantial reason why going in Sunday is more likely this year than before; it's a nice spot to get away from the con floor for a while, and given that the con doesn't open until 11 on Sunday it could be a good place to get breakfast and plan the final day of the con.
Speaking of hours, this year the convention will run noon to 6pm Friday, 10 am to 6 pm Saturday and 11 am to 5 pm Sunday. I don't know why they decided to open two hours later on Friday this year, but they have. That's going to leave Friday terribly compressed.
Now, people go to one of these conventions for an array of reasons.
Before we shifted so much to the Internet, all of these were items that a convention could best provide. While it still can fulfill all of these, four and six -- buying stuff and getting advance info/questions answered -- can be done much more quickly, thoroughly and probably economically online than is likely at a convention. There'll be some cases where the face to face element might yield a better deal or a more precise answer, but in general these can be handled better without leaving home.
The others, though, remain best-suited to a convention.
Some eschew most of the social elements, including exposure to such a mass of fans, but oddly enough for someone who doesn't care for parties, I'm not one of those. I've had decades of practice selectively tuning out people, and there's very much a feeling of anonymity in the crowd; especially a crowd peppered with people who have a thread or more of exhibitionism in them.
Programming for the event is as yet unformed, so that element will have to be included closer to the event.
The guest list is still forming. Along with the growing list of actual comics industry pros there's a growing list of other celebrities from various eras of television and video. Possibly the hottest one (take that as you will) in the mix is Hayden Panettiere, Claire Bennett/Petrelli from Heroes. Considering that list includes King Kong Bundy, Lou Ferrigno, Dirk Benedict, Burt Ward, and Noel Niell among others, she and two of tv's Ghost Hunters may be the only ones with actual television jobs at the moment. So, fans will get to meet the cheerleader, but will they save their dignity? We'll see past the middle of June.
Getting back to the list of comics pros, they'll be the final element in this WWE primer. I want to hit them alphabetically here on the basis that you may be in the same boat I am -- some of these people mean next to nothing to me upon being presented with their names. In my case it's likely that some are too new (by my lights), work on titles I don't read, who may be wild Fan Favorites whose work I wouldn't pay a dime for... or quite possibly all of the above.
To be fair, though, some may do fine work, perhaps work I've even enjoyed. When it comes to comics I've never been a behind-the-scenes type guy. For me, it's all about the characters. Focusing on creative teams is like focusing on the puppeteer, reminding me that I'm watching puppets. So... it's not my first impulse.
Still, this means that aside from those I would consider major names in the business, I've gone through conventions with the vague sense that I've heard this or that name before, but couldn't recall specific instances or even if I liked what I'd seen. So... this part is either a little advance study or a cheat sheet. I'll update this alphabetical list up until close to the convention, noting at the top of the entry when I've last updated it.
I'm going to start with the micro-notes/credits the con's website gives them, hyperlink their names to either a Wiki article or the next best thing, and add some extra credits or notes as I feel will be helpful to me. At this stage it's going to be verrrrry thin; I'm just setting this up today.
This is my blog, and so my list, so I trust you'll forgive me my occasional fan comment. I'll be happy to consider any potentially useful information on each -- just leave a comment or send me an email -- and update each entry accordingly if it strikes me as worth it, giving credit where due.
But now... the list:
Matt "Batt" Banning. Inker. JLA #8, Mystery In Space.
Brian Michael Bendis. "Writer" New Avengers, Mighty Avengers, Ultimate Spider-Man. He's the Guest of Honor at the con. I think I just threw up a little...
Joe Benitez. Artist. Top Cow and Detective Comics.
Jim Calafiore. Artist. DC's Countdown. A list of his specific work is found here.
J. Scott Campbell. Artist. Spider-Man. Co-creator of Gen 13 and Danger Girl.
Tommy Castillo. Artist.
Elvin Clintron. Penciler/Painter. Omega One.
Amanda Conner. Artist. Supergirl.
Mike Dolce. Writer/creator. The SIRE.
Franchesco. Artist. She Dragon.
Greg Horn. Cover artist for Marvel, most recently covers for Ms. Marvel and She Hulk. Digital painting specialist, he uses live models.
Carmine Infantino. Artist. Currently retired. Co-creator of the Silver Age Flash. Former editorial director of DC comics , designing covers for the company line starting in 1967. Inducted into the Comic Book Hall of Fame in 2000.
Jeffrey Kaufman. Writer/Creator. Ant.
Andy Kubert. Artist. Batman. Currently exclusive to DC, he'd worked on many Marvel titles including X-Men, Captain America, Thor, Ghost Rider and Marvel 1602.
Michael Laico. Dark Phoenix Studio.
Dan Leister. Artist. SIRE.
David Mack. Artist/writer. Kabuki. Writer - Daredevil: End of Days, The Shy Creatures.
Angel Medina. Artist. Sensational Spider-Man.
Alex Maleev. Artist. Daredevil: End of Days.
Nelson. Action Comics, Marvel Comics Presents.
Dustin Nguyen. Artist. Superman/Batman.
Michael Avon Oeming. Powers, Omega Flight, Cross Bronx.
Jimmy Palmiotti. Writer. Countown, Jonah Hex.
Khoi Pham. Penciler. X-Factor #17.
Joe Quesada. EIC Marvel Comics.
Humberto Ramos. Artist. X-Men.
Kenneth Rocafort. Artist. Madame Mirage.
Darick Robertson. Artist. The Boys, 52. Artist and co-creator of Transmetropolitan.
Walt Simonson. Artist/Writer. Creator of Beta Ray Bill.
J. David Spurlock. Author, Artist & Publisher. Space Cowboy creator.
Peter Steigerwald. Primarily a colorist. Soulfire, Fathom, Kiani, Ultimate Wolverine.
Jim Steranko. Writer/Artist. In comics he's primarily associated with Marvel's Captain America and Nick Fury. Inducted into the Comic Book Hall of Fame in 2006.
Billy Tucci. Artist. Heroes For Hire. Creator of Shi.
Michael Turner. Artist. Ultimate Wolverine. Aspen Comics founder.
Marv Wolfman. Writer: Crisis On Infinite Earths, Nightwing, Daredevil, Thor, Fantastic Four, and Amazing Spider-Man writer at various times in the 1970s. Co-creator of New Teen Titans. Among the characters he's created are Nightwing, Starfire, Tim Drake, Hannibal King, Black Cat, Blade and Jericho. Wolfman was also Marvel Comics Editor In Chief 1975-1976.
That's Wizard World East, the annual comics convention held in Philadephia. This year it'll be June 15-17. While guests are still being added to the list and the programming is yet to be set, I thought it a good exercise to at least try to think through the event a little. To try to spare myself the minor regrets of "I should've done" this or that. If it ends up helping anyone else, all the better.
(Please note that this is a working draft, posted now with the idea that people who come by it, especially if they turn out to be fans of one or more of the people set to attend the convention, will point out potentially helpful information for the possible benefit of all. It's at that dangerous stage where if I don't post it I'm in danger of letting it sit with the other drafts. I'll link back to it whenever a significant update's made. Getting more potentially helpful info in place about the guests and adding some images will be where most of my attention goes in finishing this piece.)
I've blogged (tediously, I see in retrospect) about the past couple of these conventions. Here's the 2006 one. That one will likely be of greatest interest inasmuch that I have a few shots taken at the convention in the entry. The 2005 convention was presented in two parts, here and here. Before that was the 2004 convention. Hmm... we seem to be moving a little later in the calendar as we go from year to year; late may to the start of June and now the middle of June. I'll try to do better once I'm going over this year's in a few weeks.
Back to the near future, let's start with a short list of essentials and sensible suggestions:
Comfortable shoes (there's going to be a great deal of walking around)On that last point, WWE has a tremendous asset in the Reading Terminal Market.
Backpack (Even if you don't buy much of anything there'll likely be something, even if it's mostly free promotional items, and you'll appreciate having a way to carry them that won't involve your hands.)
Comfortable clothes (It's no fashion show. Go for comfort. Maybe put a different shirt in your pack in case the one you're wearing gets sweated up, or if the AC in the convention hall is cooler than you like.)
Camera (Preferably a digital. There'll be some people and items there you'll likely want to take pics of.)
Back-up batteries for camera (You don't want to have to go out searching for batteries. If you're using a camera that has film, then an extra roll of film would be a good move. And don't forget to feed Dino before you go.)
A bottle of water or something else to drink (You'll get thirsty while you're at the con, and, believe me, you don't want to be at the mercy of the vendors in the convention hall.)
It's a large, indoor marketplace, a mart, including a wide array of mostly booth-style restaurants. The shot above is just a small portion.It used to be a Monday-Saturday affair only, closed Sundays, but it now has Sunday hours 9-4. Unless they hire outsiders to man it on Sunday the Amish merchants won't be there on Sunday, but, as mentioned, there's a wide array of other food there. That this is open Sunday is another substantial reason why going in Sunday is more likely this year than before; it's a nice spot to get away from the con floor for a while, and given that the con doesn't open until 11 on Sunday it could be a good place to get breakfast and plan the final day of the con.
Speaking of hours, this year the convention will run noon to 6pm Friday, 10 am to 6 pm Saturday and 11 am to 5 pm Sunday. I don't know why they decided to open two hours later on Friday this year, but they have. That's going to leave Friday terribly compressed.
Now, people go to one of these conventions for an array of reasons.
1. To meet creators and other fans in person.That's a fair nine.
2. To get autographs
3. To get original sketches
4. To buy stuff, including back issues, replicas, etc.
5. To get free (usually promotional) items
6. To attend panels for advance information, ask questions and/or get a better perspective on the people behind the comics.
7. To play in games, including special tournaments.
8. To play demos/test drive new games. (card, tabletop and electronic)
9. To meet and see the work of current unknowns in Artist's Alley.
Before we shifted so much to the Internet, all of these were items that a convention could best provide. While it still can fulfill all of these, four and six -- buying stuff and getting advance info/questions answered -- can be done much more quickly, thoroughly and probably economically online than is likely at a convention. There'll be some cases where the face to face element might yield a better deal or a more precise answer, but in general these can be handled better without leaving home.
The others, though, remain best-suited to a convention.
Some eschew most of the social elements, including exposure to such a mass of fans, but oddly enough for someone who doesn't care for parties, I'm not one of those. I've had decades of practice selectively tuning out people, and there's very much a feeling of anonymity in the crowd; especially a crowd peppered with people who have a thread or more of exhibitionism in them.
Programming for the event is as yet unformed, so that element will have to be included closer to the event.
The guest list is still forming. Along with the growing list of actual comics industry pros there's a growing list of other celebrities from various eras of television and video. Possibly the hottest one (take that as you will) in the mix is Hayden Panettiere, Claire Bennett/Petrelli from Heroes. Considering that list includes King Kong Bundy, Lou Ferrigno, Dirk Benedict, Burt Ward, and Noel Niell among others, she and two of tv's Ghost Hunters may be the only ones with actual television jobs at the moment. So, fans will get to meet the cheerleader, but will they save their dignity? We'll see past the middle of June.
Getting back to the list of comics pros, they'll be the final element in this WWE primer. I want to hit them alphabetically here on the basis that you may be in the same boat I am -- some of these people mean next to nothing to me upon being presented with their names. In my case it's likely that some are too new (by my lights), work on titles I don't read, who may be wild Fan Favorites whose work I wouldn't pay a dime for... or quite possibly all of the above.
To be fair, though, some may do fine work, perhaps work I've even enjoyed. When it comes to comics I've never been a behind-the-scenes type guy. For me, it's all about the characters. Focusing on creative teams is like focusing on the puppeteer, reminding me that I'm watching puppets. So... it's not my first impulse.
Still, this means that aside from those I would consider major names in the business, I've gone through conventions with the vague sense that I've heard this or that name before, but couldn't recall specific instances or even if I liked what I'd seen. So... this part is either a little advance study or a cheat sheet. I'll update this alphabetical list up until close to the convention, noting at the top of the entry when I've last updated it.
I'm going to start with the micro-notes/credits the con's website gives them, hyperlink their names to either a Wiki article or the next best thing, and add some extra credits or notes as I feel will be helpful to me. At this stage it's going to be verrrrry thin; I'm just setting this up today.
This is my blog, and so my list, so I trust you'll forgive me my occasional fan comment. I'll be happy to consider any potentially useful information on each -- just leave a comment or send me an email -- and update each entry accordingly if it strikes me as worth it, giving credit where due.
But now... the list:
Matt "Batt" Banning. Inker. JLA #8, Mystery In Space.
Brian Michael Bendis. "Writer" New Avengers, Mighty Avengers, Ultimate Spider-Man. He's the Guest of Honor at the con. I think I just threw up a little...
Joe Benitez. Artist. Top Cow and Detective Comics.
Jim Calafiore. Artist. DC's Countdown. A list of his specific work is found here.
J. Scott Campbell. Artist. Spider-Man. Co-creator of Gen 13 and Danger Girl.
Tommy Castillo. Artist.
Elvin Clintron. Penciler/Painter. Omega One.
Amanda Conner. Artist. Supergirl.
Mike Dolce. Writer/creator. The SIRE.
Franchesco. Artist. She Dragon.
Greg Horn. Cover artist for Marvel, most recently covers for Ms. Marvel and She Hulk. Digital painting specialist, he uses live models.
Carmine Infantino. Artist. Currently retired. Co-creator of the Silver Age Flash. Former editorial director of DC comics , designing covers for the company line starting in 1967. Inducted into the Comic Book Hall of Fame in 2000.
Jeffrey Kaufman. Writer/Creator. Ant.
Andy Kubert. Artist. Batman. Currently exclusive to DC, he'd worked on many Marvel titles including X-Men, Captain America, Thor, Ghost Rider and Marvel 1602.
Michael Laico. Dark Phoenix Studio.
Dan Leister. Artist. SIRE.
David Mack. Artist/writer. Kabuki. Writer - Daredevil: End of Days, The Shy Creatures.
Angel Medina. Artist. Sensational Spider-Man.
Alex Maleev. Artist. Daredevil: End of Days.
Nelson. Action Comics, Marvel Comics Presents.
Dustin Nguyen. Artist. Superman/Batman.
Michael Avon Oeming. Powers, Omega Flight, Cross Bronx.
Jimmy Palmiotti. Writer. Countown, Jonah Hex.
Khoi Pham. Penciler. X-Factor #17.
Joe Quesada. EIC Marvel Comics.
Humberto Ramos. Artist. X-Men.
Kenneth Rocafort. Artist. Madame Mirage.
Darick Robertson. Artist. The Boys, 52. Artist and co-creator of Transmetropolitan.
Walt Simonson. Artist/Writer. Creator of Beta Ray Bill.
J. David Spurlock. Author, Artist & Publisher. Space Cowboy creator.
Peter Steigerwald. Primarily a colorist. Soulfire, Fathom, Kiani, Ultimate Wolverine.
Jim Steranko. Writer/Artist. In comics he's primarily associated with Marvel's Captain America and Nick Fury. Inducted into the Comic Book Hall of Fame in 2006.
Billy Tucci. Artist. Heroes For Hire. Creator of Shi.
Michael Turner. Artist. Ultimate Wolverine. Aspen Comics founder.
Marv Wolfman. Writer: Crisis On Infinite Earths, Nightwing, Daredevil, Thor, Fantastic Four, and Amazing Spider-Man writer at various times in the 1970s. Co-creator of New Teen Titans. Among the characters he's created are Nightwing, Starfire, Tim Drake, Hannibal King, Black Cat, Blade and Jericho. Wolfman was also Marvel Comics Editor In Chief 1975-1976.
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