It's possible you missed it last year, but New York Comic-Con has a secondary convention, starting last year in early Summer, called Special Edition. Touted as the comics-only convention for New York (and greater) fans, initial response was mixed. It was announced late, but the guest lineup was strong. It fell on Father's Day weekend, but the tickets weren't expensive. It seemed like people were optimistic about the first iteration of the event. Unfortunately, attendance wasn't exactly what you'd call great. Saturday was acceptable according to a number of exhibitors I talked to but Sunday was completely dead, maybe 200-300 attendees over the full day. I saw many exhibitors pack up early to beat the traffic home - not a heartening sight. I wasn't sure if they'd continue the event, but hey - with ReedPop's bankroll, why not?
[Editor's note: The release this week of March Book Two by Rep. John Lewis, Andrew Aydin and Nate Powell has already made headlines with its story of the fight for civil rights in the 60s, and the covers to both volumes have become iconic in their own right. The message of the courage to fight for equality for all in the face of violent opposition is as relevant and needed today as it was 50 years ago. But powerful images to cover powerful times don't always spring up fully formed. Here Powell and Top Shelf designer Chris Ross with an in-depth breakdown of how they created these covers and combined imagery to capture both history and ideals.]
NATE: March was originally a single, massive volume, so the initial front and back covers were intended to house the entire narrative: the front introduced the basic visual theme of opposition, with two elements facing off against each other, though a contingent of riot-ready white supremacist police were prominently featured across the bottom. After some discussion with Chris Ross, Andrew Aydin, and Congressman Lewis, we all agreed that we should shift some of that focus to the folks on the front lines, and away from Jim Crow police forces. Around that time, we decided to release the saga as a trilogy, so Chris and I jumped in to further develop the oppositional themes, but playing with different angles and approaches to the cover’s division.
The annual GLAAD media awards, recognizing " fair, accurate and inclusive representations of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community and the issues that affect their lives" in the media came out yesterday, and five comics were nominated.
Yesterday's announcement of Milestone 2.0 was broken in the Washington Post, but principles Reggie Hudlin and Denys Cowan did more extensive interviews talking about what they have planned in a few places. Talking with Albert Ching at CBR they noted "We're Not in the Nostalgia Business", which is a pretty good platform to build from. While the details are still sketchy, they confirmed that they have some projects in the works with DC, among other publishers, although there was a long legal tangle to unravel.
This Star Wars thing has legs! Following on the million selling Star Wars #1, Darth Vader #1, the next Marvel foray into the land of the Force, has already topped 300,00 pre-orders, Comicbook.com reports. The issue is by Kieron Gillen and drawn by Salvador Larroca, and follows what happens after Vader goes spinning into space at the end of A New Hope...but BEFORE anyone brought him his shuttle. The next new marvel Book is Princess Leia #1 and that better top 100k, kids.
At NYCC Retailer Day, Marvel's new Editor in Chief Steve Wacker spent more than half an hour telling store owners what they can expect from the new Marvel
