Wednesday, September 13, 2006
THE BALTIMORE COMIC-CON
A couple friends and I went to the comic book convention at the Convention Center on Sunday, while the wives took off to Ikea. I think we may have been in a challenge to see who could spend more. A comic book convention of that size is a must for any comic book fan, as there are rows upon rows of comic book dealers from every era, as well as action figures and other collectibles that appeal to the typical fan. I have always felt kind of irked when I pay fifteen bucks for the privilege of going shopping, but there are also tables where you can meet professional writers and artists as well as tables for independent comic creators whom you might not discover otherwise. There is also a token effort at a program with panel discussions by several companies and professionals.
I admit I’ve grown disillusioned with comic books in the last year or so. (Gasp! Am I growing up?) Since both of the two major comic book companies have decided that their target demographic is seventeen-year-old boys, one has decided that all of their characters have to be hyper-violent and abandoned all pretense of story-telling, and the other has decided that superheroes don’t need to act heroically at all. When Superman is shown graphically ripping a guy’s arm out of its socket and Mr. Fantastic supports McCarthyism, maybe it’s time for me to stop. I know both companies have made company-wide decisions in the past that have alienated readers, and then and now they pointed to sales figures to support their decisions, but it may be time for me to walk away. There are still good independent titles, but they’re getting fewer and harder to find these days. Oh, well. I’ve been pondering this for a while, and I probably will for a while yet.
I did find some back issues I was looking for, and made an impulse buy or two, but I did hold off on some purchases just trying to be aware of what I was spending. A friend of mine just bought a car on eBay, and he was pleased that he spent forty bucks less than last year. I told him he should tell people he bought the Batmobile. After talking to the people we wanted to, and being frustrated in our efforts to find others, we clutched our purchases under our arms and walked to the Inner Harbor for lunch.
I like Capital City Brewing Company. My wife and I consider it one of our “safety” restaurants, in that it’s never let us down. Their complimentary pretzels with horseradish dip is always appreciated, and goes great with the first round of beer as they well know. One bonus was that one of the seasonal beers they had on tap was “Fuel”. It’s mixed with coffee in the brewing process somewhere, and is so dark that it absorbs light. It also went great with the sausage sandwich I ordered. After lunch we scattered to the four winds, and I arrived home just in time to help my wife unload the six long heavy boxes out of her friend’s SUV.
A couple friends and I went to the comic book convention at the Convention Center on Sunday, while the wives took off to Ikea. I think we may have been in a challenge to see who could spend more. A comic book convention of that size is a must for any comic book fan, as there are rows upon rows of comic book dealers from every era, as well as action figures and other collectibles that appeal to the typical fan. I have always felt kind of irked when I pay fifteen bucks for the privilege of going shopping, but there are also tables where you can meet professional writers and artists as well as tables for independent comic creators whom you might not discover otherwise. There is also a token effort at a program with panel discussions by several companies and professionals.
I admit I’ve grown disillusioned with comic books in the last year or so. (Gasp! Am I growing up?) Since both of the two major comic book companies have decided that their target demographic is seventeen-year-old boys, one has decided that all of their characters have to be hyper-violent and abandoned all pretense of story-telling, and the other has decided that superheroes don’t need to act heroically at all. When Superman is shown graphically ripping a guy’s arm out of its socket and Mr. Fantastic supports McCarthyism, maybe it’s time for me to stop. I know both companies have made company-wide decisions in the past that have alienated readers, and then and now they pointed to sales figures to support their decisions, but it may be time for me to walk away. There are still good independent titles, but they’re getting fewer and harder to find these days. Oh, well. I’ve been pondering this for a while, and I probably will for a while yet.
I did find some back issues I was looking for, and made an impulse buy or two, but I did hold off on some purchases just trying to be aware of what I was spending. A friend of mine just bought a car on eBay, and he was pleased that he spent forty bucks less than last year. I told him he should tell people he bought the Batmobile. After talking to the people we wanted to, and being frustrated in our efforts to find others, we clutched our purchases under our arms and walked to the Inner Harbor for lunch.
I like Capital City Brewing Company. My wife and I consider it one of our “safety” restaurants, in that it’s never let us down. Their complimentary pretzels with horseradish dip is always appreciated, and goes great with the first round of beer as they well know. One bonus was that one of the seasonal beers they had on tap was “Fuel”. It’s mixed with coffee in the brewing process somewhere, and is so dark that it absorbs light. It also went great with the sausage sandwich I ordered. After lunch we scattered to the four winds, and I arrived home just in time to help my wife unload the six long heavy boxes out of her friend’s SUV.
# posted by Renfield @ 9:00 AM 
