Thoughts on C2E2

Besides the occasional AnimeCentral convention, this past weekend's C2E2 is the first time in years I've been to a convention as a consumer, rather than as someone with a table trying to hawk my wares.

Firstly, it's fantastic to actually be IN Chicago, rather than one of the outlying suburbs. This is great for all of the out-of-towners that always want to see Chicago-proper, but wind up elsewhere (typically Rosemont, for Wizard). Additionally, the McCormick Place is an ideal location, not only for it's skyline views, but for possessing a view at all. Several of the people I spoke to commented on how nice it was to have windows and natural light instead of simply four walls.

The other comment I heard frequently was less-than-expected foot-traffic. I was only able to make it to the convention on Saturday, which is typically the busiest day of any convention. Crowds were light, which was great for moving around and seeing everything, but not so much for the many companies and individuals trying to recoup expenses. I understand the economy is still a major factor, but I'll be interested to see if Reed makes any changes for next year, in an effort to increase attendance.

Immediately upon entering the hall, it was clear this was a much classier convention than Wizard. It's not quite the extreme (or excess) that San Diego is, but it's a level we haven't seen in Chicago since the pre-Wizard days of Chicago Comicon. One layout decision I found striking was how the carpeted area of the floor ended just before Artist Alley. Are they trying to tell us something?

My favorite booth, by far, was the Archaia set-up. Tons of books, creators signing, chairs to sit down in, and books to sample before you buy. Combine that with they Buy-One-Get-One Free Sale, and I walked away with some new hardcovers. Kudos, gentlemen. Oni had a presence, which I'm always glad to see. Top Shelf was there too, but looked somewhat cramped in their space. DC had lots to look at, but really only the Ratchet and Clank toys caught my eye. Marvel was largely wasted space - the stage was mainly used as a poster dump, and the outer edges tried to sell you on some flavor of digital comics. There were signing areas, but the lines wrapped around the booth, only increasing the amount of space Marvel took up.

I'm slightly torn on the decision to include a separate section for Webcomics. While it likely means those walking through are more open to webcomics than others (unless they're just trying to get to the Batmobile, DeLorean, or Iron Man auction pieces), it also means those uninterested in webcomics could safely ignore the entire area, potentially meaning even less people walking by during an already crowd-starved convention.

Artist Alley was packed full of great artists. A higher quality of Artist than Wizard's average, and the lack of porn stars was very welcome. I saw and met people I'd never seen at a Chicago convention before, which both surprised and pleased me to no end. I tend to do my retailer shopping on Friday's and Sunday's at conventions. Friday's for smaller crowds and Sunday's for the best deals. Since I was only at C2E2 the one day, I didn't spend much time browsing the retail section... though I did have a run-in with a fully-painted Pandora woman, asking if I played Magic. When I told her, "No" she replied "bummer" sped off in the opposite direction.

Shout-out to the random dude that asked for my autograph while I was eating lunch - create a character! Get in VOID! And say, "hi" to Mamoru for me.

Assuming they keep the Webcomics section around, I look forward to returning next year and setting up shop there.

A Long Way to Go

I was talking with Gabe a few months back about a comic I was writing. I must have seemed serious about this whole writing thing, because he says to me, "I'm going to WonderCon to pitch some stuff to Image, is there anything you want me to pitch for you?" I was surprised by at least three different things in that question, two of which I'll be completely ignoring.

Let me begin by stating that if someone asks if you want to pitch something to Image, the answer is "yes." So naturally, I told him, "no."

I have a laundry list of excuses I can use - long hours at work, wedding plans, VOID, prior obligations, but the real reason is I'm just not that confident in myself yet to attempt something on that scale.

By my watch, I'm a couple of years behind my friends that are now getting paying gigs from major publishers. That's fine - they've spent years honing their craft in various ways and are now ready to venture forth in the realm of big publishing houses, and all that that entails.

I, on the other hand, has spent the better part of a decade honing my web programming skills. Not that I'm complaining, I thoroughly enjoy what I do, and wouldn't change a bit of it. But, I only just decided last year to begin taking writing more seriously, and have since enrolled myself in a whole series of projects to get myself up to speed with my contemporaries as quickly as possible.

I've got at least two Zuda entries in me, and a handful of VOID comics in the pipeline. VOID, I'll be doing for love of the characters and site in general; a limited test bed for experimenting and learning, just like I've always pitched it to others. Win or lose, I'll probably stop with just the two Zuda entries. I secretly hope I don't win, but would obviously love it if I did... it's complicated. After that, I'll re-address my situation and see what comes next.

On Twitter I recently claimed 2010 will be a Year of Writing (hopefully, my first of many). I wish I could tell you about everything I have going on, but I'll keep my mouth shut and let the comics do the talking for me.

What's My Age Again?

I've been slowly approaching 30 for awhile now.

My sister likes to bring it to my attention as often as possible, since she's a few years older than I am and she likes to torment me like that. Siblings - gotta love 'em.

I generally don't look forward to my birthdays, because for a long time they were uneventful or not happy occasions. Not true anymore, since Jyoti tends to go over the top with things like scavenger hunts and stunt plane piloting.

Still, 30 is one of those Big Ones everyone always talks about, warning young people of impending doom. What's odd though, is that I haven't actually felt my age for quite some time. There's signs of aging like that I've put on a few unwanted pounds, I now experience hangovers after a night of drinking, and that my body now aches and cracks in places it didn't before. But other than that, I still think of myself as about 24. Maybe it's because most of my friends are younger than me, that I feel this way, but I don't care enough about the answer to dwell on it for too long.

In fact, in many ways, I feel like I'm only just getting started. I'm getting married in a few short months, which will be followed by a whirlwind tour of Europe, I've got a few short comics scripts under my belt, one in the pipeline, three more being written, a new edition of VOID currently under construction, and a brand-new Pulpo I'm just dying to announce. I still only sleep ~6 hours per night, in a vain attempt to fit it all in, which I never do, but I'll keep trying. There's far too much I want to accomplish in life to start slowing down now.

Here's to forever statying young at heart, never acting one's age!

First Stain

Reading Orc Stain was a surreal experience for me. Having known James Stokoe for over eight years now, I've seen him grow into an artistic powerhouse. But in my mind, I have a hard time reconsiling the man that spent a night in a hotel bathtub drawing comics with the one that now possesses his own monthly series from Image Comics. Like I said, it's a bit surreal, but I couldn't be happier or prouder.

With my personal anecdote out of the way, I need to address one more thing before I finally get into the book itself. The last time I bought a single issue of any comic was Casanova, during the first series (the notes from Fraction at the back were too good to miss). I've been a trades-only man for years now, and going back into singles has been rough for me, especially given that I used to comsume James' work as complete. Even in his webcomics days, he'd release new pages on a much more frequent basis than once per month. Not to mention his two complete Wonton Soups that were released as OGNs.

Finally getting around to Orc Stain itself...
The opening pages, are simply madness strewn across the page. Orcs as far as the eye can see, engaged in ever-lasting war. The Orktzar emerges, makes a profound impression on all, and quickly exits. Weeks after reading the issue, the scene still stands out vividly in my mind. Things change abruptly, however, as our main character One Eye is introduced and goes to work cracking an ingeniously designed safe. He seems to be in a bit of a rut, and in a species where everyone only looks out for themselves, One Eye's lone companion isn't any help. It's a fantastic first issue that sets the stage wonderfully, and with Stokoe at the helm, anything is possible.

Carry on, my crazy brother.

Cable 22, and the Hope (ha HA!) of a Better One

Not much new in comics, except for Cable 22, but man, I can't wait for this series to be over. Two years of Bishop chasing Cable and Hope through time, everyone spouting off the same crap about killing/protecting month-after-month. The highlight of the entire series is the X-Force crossover, everything else has been pretty lame.

Since early on in this series, I've thought Cable would ultimately die at the end of it. He was an old man to begin with, and has aged another 18 years on top of that throughout the series. My secondary prediction is that once Cable's dead, he'll be replaced within the Marvel Universe by an younger/alternate version of himself.

I know it's popular to make fun of 90s comics, but I was a fan at the time; as were many others, even if they don't want to admit it now. I've always had a soft-spot for ol' Nate, the time-travelling badass trying to prevent his horrific future from happening. It's the sort of thing that hits all the right notes for me - science, time travel, the future, mercenaries, doing the right thing at all costs... throw in a hot chick (he used to have Domino), and I'm all set.

After all this time protecting Hope, Cable's not the same man he used to be. Recently, she's been protecting or saving him as often or more than he is her. He certainly could be re-integrated back into Marvel continuity in his current state, but I can't imagine in what capacity. Besides, comics are a medium where anytime characters stray too far from their roots, they get 'reimagined.' Ordinarily, I'd be all for moving on, keeping the continuity, and not resetting a character, but Cable's the new Wolverine in terms of screwed-up history. A reboot should help him out of the current mess and hopefully he's given to a writer that understands him well enough to see that through.

Back to the comic at-hand - why am I still reading it if it's bad? Sometimes even terrible movies pique the audience's interest enough that you want to know how it ends. With only a few issues left, I'm mostly curious if I'm right.

Side note: I've never really given a damn about Bishop (though he did make my team in X-Men Legends), but hopefully he'll get a reboot after this storyline as well, since he's essentially been destroyed as a character.

P.S.: I'll be sure to post something comics related that I actually enjoy soon. I'm working my way through Rocketo (hat tip to Elio), but haven't formulated my thoughts on that one yet.

Projects and 2010

I typically have a pretty difficult time following through on projects. I'm easily distracted and tend have multiple things going on at all time, jumping between them frequently. I sometimes wonder if I have ADD... or am just lazy, choosing to switch to something new whenever things get difficult. On the up side, switching DOES tend to help, as the temporary distance typically grants a new perspective.

My hope is to be more productive in 2010, so I'm trying to give myself a To Do List in order to keep me on track. Here's some of what I'm up to:

Secret Comics Project I
- My part finished in April, waiting on other(s) to finish their part. Very nearly done at this point, which means I should get back to scripting Part II of this very soon.

Secret Comics Project II
- 2.5 pages left to script. Already missed my self-imposed deadline of "End of 2009" because work became too overbearing. I need to find time to dedicate to finishing this and getting it off to the artist/editors.

Secret non-Comics Project
- Very long process, have a healthy start and no deadline. Anyone that knows me probably figures I'm working on this already, but I haven't made it well known. Actually encompasses many smaller projects, which I may break-out for my own clarity and time-management.

Return Missing Images to VOID
- Slowly chipping away at this. Highly time consuming due to the slow nature of the process. In need of large block of time I can dedicate to this.

Finish VOID Facebook App
- I put a lot of work into this over the weekend, blowing past old blockades, but ran head-long into new impasses. This comes down to research and educating myself more on the Facebook platform before continuing... meaning time and brainpower are needed.

Work on Doombox website
- Mostly wanting on others at this point, but there's a few things I can do to prepare.

Write Toolio comic
- A few weeks back there was talk on Twitter in which I basically volunteered to write a Toolio comic, possibly on-going weekly comic. Thankfully, I have an idea, but need to discuss with Galvo before potentially doing something to his character he doesn't like.

I'd also like to get into the next Pulpo, which hasn't been announced yet, but I think will really excite people.

TV in the New Year

I tend not to watch too much TV, but it seems this year I've been watching more than usual. It was actually Jyoti that pointed it out to me a few weeks ago, and ever since then I've been thinking about what can be cut.

With January mere hours away, and the return of shows now looming on the horizon, I thought I'd give a quick run-down of some shows and make some decisions on what stays and what goes from the DVR list.

V - Everyone I talk to has seen the first episode and that's it. The previews made it look great, and I certainly like to watch some of the actors, but the show just isn't living up to hype and not going anywhere either.

FlashForward - I'd like to like this show. It's got a good cast, the premise is pretty interesting, and it's even playing well with the pre-conceived notions of destiny, fate, determinism... and yet, I just don't care. This was the first show we stopped watching, and I'm not even curious.

House - Still excellent. My staple show, so long as Fox stops moving it around to accommodate Idol.

Heroes - I watch it, but I've never really been a fan of the show. Sylar's by far the most interesting character, Matt and Claire do nothing but whine about wanting to be normal, Peter and Hiro have both been gimped, Bennett doesn't know what the hell he's doing, and Mohinder never should have been given powers... bad move. Hey Claire, you want to be normal? Don't join a fucking circus! Idiot.

Fringe - I've never quite known how I feel about this show. It's interesting, but I'm not sure if it's actually good. I don't know.

Lost - Definitely looking forward to it, hope it's a satisfying ending, and I'll miss it when it's gone.

Leverage - So far, Season 2 hasn't been as good as Season 1. It's still good, just not AS good. I hope it improves. Still good, still funny, but it could be better.

Burn Notice - Awesome show, must watch.

Human Target - Looks interesting, hope it doesn't suck.

What's everyone else watching?

While all of TV has been taking their Winter nap, we've been watching Dexter and Farscape. Now THAT's good stuff. DVDs TO THE RESCUE!