Mel’s New York Comic Con Wrap Up

WHAT UP CHU? AND WHEW WHAT A WEEKEND! I Had a legendary time at New York Comic Con. There was so much to see and do, I think that it is impossible for anyone to experience all that it has to offer in 4 days.

This was my 1st time attending the NYCC as part of the press (once again, thank you TONY). Comicsheatingup.net has a crazy buzz in the comic world. A couple of people recognized the comicsheatingup shirt I wore and stopped me just to say hello, and that they enjoy reading the articles I write. Even some of the dealers knew my stuff from Big Gems Small press. Cosplay was not as good as it was last year but there were a few amazing cosplayers. The one that stood out most was the Faceless Joker. There was another amazing Joker in artist alley, easily one of the best I had ever seen. He posed for pictures with a cosplay Batgirl and almost recreated the infamous Batgirl 41 variant. On a side note, and I do understand cosplay doesn’t equal consent, but if you’re going to be a part of NYCC cosplay and dress up, please be nice when someone asks you to take a picture, there is no reason to become rude or behave ignorantly.

Some highlights:

Getting a chance to hang out and shoot the breeze with Matthew Rosenberg (We Can Never Go Home), Vita A. Wong (Our Work Fills the Pews), and the always laid back, coolest name in the industry, Rex Banner was a very great moment. They were very laid back and down to earth people and I appreciate the tips I received from Vita Wong and Rosenberg for writing comics (more on that later.) Also had a chance to talk with Matt Pizzolo and the amazing artist Amancay Nahuelpan (he does some of the best
sketches I’ve seen, check out the ones he did for my buddy Midtown Martin.) Matt was very open about the future of Black Mask and I can say it’s very bright, I’m very excited for the up and coming slate of books. The Black Mask crew were great all around and they were nice enough to sign my shirt. My goal is to get all the members of Black Mask to sign this one shirt. Speaking of Midtown Martin he was also the winner of The We Can Never Go Home raffle, where he was the winner of the SDCC Variant.

Hanging out with the guys from Creature Entertainment. John Ulloa, Jose Navarro, and Jose Varese are a blast to hang out with. But if you hang out with John make sure your liver is working. John would not let me leave the beer tap. These guys work hard and play hard and I’m excited to see what greatness they will bring in 2016. I also want to thank them for showing us around on the day before the Con.

Tony introduced me to Tim Daniel of Enormous. What a true class act he is. He shared stories about his time in the business, the one story of how he met the artist for Enormous Mehdi Cheggour is pretty cool. He also gave me tips on writing that made a ton of sense. So Mr. Daniel if your reading Thanks again. The Enormous Newspaper looks fantastic and has a limited run of 40…yea 40.

The Stranger Comics Staff are great, Sabastian A Jones could sell snow to an Eskimo, the way he pitches the book Untamed is legendary and must be heard by all. Artist Amanda Woods, she was a ton of fun to hang out with, it was her that made me realize that the creators of books are regular everyday people with extraordinary talent. I wish her all the best over at Marvel. Niobe will be one of the hottest books this year mark my words. You guys should be tracking down single issue copies for Untamed #1 which has the 1st appearance of Niobe. They also had a NYCC variant of Niobe limited to 200 copies that sold out quickly.

451 Comics made a huge splash at NYCC, you could tell this studio has major money behind them, they had one of the more elaborate booths at the con and they were just giving tons and tons of books away, not just throw away books, but they were very well drawn and high quality paper. I spec’d on them a couple of months back with Self Storage and Six. Six was actually all gone by the time I went back for more. Expect huge things from them in the coming months, like THE WARRIORS TRADE PAPER BACK, as well as reviews for the tons of books that they were given out.

Hidden Gems:

Tart from Kevin Joseph and Kechal Comics a new indie comic starring a time-traveling, demon-hunting, girl next door. Its Buffy meets Doctor Who meets Sandman. Beautifully drawn book

Underwars, by Kechal Comics, placed in men’s tightie whitie underwear on a whim by the scientist who captures him, Baxter the monkey does the only logical thing possible – he instantly develops consciousness and the ability to speak. Because… SCIENCE!!! Excited by his discovery, the scientist decides to see if other animals react as well as Baxter. Gaining intelligence, rational thought and an innate understanding of justice and fairness. Let’s just say further experiments do not go as well. Join Baxter as he navigates a world he’s just starting to understand, a world full of fearful humans, zany animals and one seriously deranged bunny rabbit.

Big City Comics – written by Jeffery Kaufman (one of my favorite comic writers,his fluid pace keeps his books interesting and fresh) Tesla & Hyde: Scary Fails – After surviving the plague, Edward Hyde (formerly Eduard Hyden) gets Nikola Tesla break out of the hospital as they try to escape troll-like assassins and “keepers” (some more assassins) after them. It will be interesting to see where this story goes. There is a sort of Benjamin Button thing going on here, where Tesla gets younger and time goes by. Hyde himself has been around 80 years.

Creature Entertainment will be bringing us Forgive me Father by John Ulloa. “Forgive Me Father” is a crime novella that tells the story of three different characters bound by a singular fate. What happens when the shepherd loses his flock? When Father Pedro’s faith in his God and church is lost after the violent death of a young friend, he finds himself alone with a despair and anger that can barely be contained. He dreams of finding solace in the arms of a runaway girl. Is she his angel of redemption or a fantasy he’s made-up? Will helping her break the chains of her past be a path to true salvation… or damnation? I had a chance to read this. Extremely well written, action is fasted paced and consistent with the story, you will not be disappointed.

NYCC was a blast, I made so many connections and learned a lot about the comic world can’t wait for next year’s con.

In closing, I would like to make a couple of shout outs: SUPER THANKS TO Eddie and his staff at Comicsxposure for everything he did for us during the 4 days of the con, Mike and Diane from Royal Collectables. Thanks for the hook up, Alex from 215ink keep the great books coming, Underground Comics these guys are a riot, Jeff Kaufman of Big City comics, nice to have met you in the flesh, can’t wait for your up and coming work. Midtown Martin you lucky son of a gun. Mike Jeter yet another person I learned from, teaching me about CGC and how grading goes. Super shout out to Beau who made the trip from Arizona, I was very happy to show him around the Big Apple, and finally another big shout to Tony for all that he has done, and to you the readers of CHU, let’s make 2016 an even bigger CHU turn out.