Wednesday, July 20, 2005

Comic Con!

This'll be an off-the-cuff, what-I-remember, stream-of-consciousness type of thing, okay? It'll also probably be really long and possibly very boring! Okay!

WEDNESDAY

-I drive down with Emory, Leslie, and Ethan H (I'm using last initials for Ethan so as to not confuse him with Ethan E when he shows up later in our story.) We hit some traffic and it takes FOREVER. Also, someone gently rear-ends us.

-We get to the hotel then drive over to the shuttle stop so we can get to preview night. When we get to the convention center, I have to wait in line with Paul for a million years to get his spare professional pass. I'll be spending the weekend as "Frank Smith," since that's the name Paul put in. Frank couldn't come. Booo!

-We only get a little bit of time in Preview Night, but it seems really crowded. The giant Optimus Prime is awesome all over. Emory buys about 200 dollars worth of bootleg DVDs, including the complete runs of the animated Tick, Freakazoid!, and Sam and Max. They're the greatest things ever.

-After Preview Night it's dinner, Freakazoid, sleep.

THURSDAY

-We get up early (the only day we manage to), meet Mike and Paul at the Con and find that the floor doesn't open for another half-hour. We stand around and see an awesome General Greivous costume.

-Since there are several panels this weekend that we consider "research" for our project, we head to an early panel about copyright law. It's actually kind of interesting. We manage to avoid every other law panel for the rest of the Con.

-After that, Paul, Emory, and I go to the Spotlight on Eric Powell panel, he being the writer/artist of The Goon, which is one delightful-ass comic, and the panel is hosted by Thomas Lennon and Ben Garant of The State and Reno 911!. Before the panel starts, a volunteer places name tage in front of all the mikes, including two extra for "Vin Diesel" and "Rob Schneider". Then Lennon and Garant announce that they're going to be writing the Goon movie, and that Diesel and Schneider will be in it and are on their way. Everyone's really excited, but Eric Powell just looks sad. As Lennon and Garant talk more about it, their plans sound less and less in-line with the Goon comic ("We're going to cast Chris Tucker as their fast-talking bartender friend"), and they keep calling Eric Powell "Rick", and Eric Powell just looks miserable, and finally he gets up and seems to be leaving the panel, but at the last minute he reaches behind the table, whips out a wooden chair, and SMASHES IT OVER THOMAS LENNON'S HEAD. Then Lennon and Garant run of the panel in a panic. It's awesome. It certainly enlivens the panel, since Eric Powell seems incapable of answering a question with more than one sentence. We leave soon after the theatrics.

-I spend most of the rest of the day on the Con floor, looking at stuff I want to buy but won't have the money for until Friday (the magic of direct deposit!).

-I get Eric Powell to sign my first Goon trade at the Dark Horse booth. The Goon goes on to win two big Eisners the very next night (Best Continuing Series and Best Humor Publication). This sets off the trend that if you were up for an Eisner, and you signed something of mine, you won an Eisner.

-I try to get Jim Rugg's signature (co-writer and artist of Street Angel), on my Street Angel trade, but he's choked off from human contact by the massive line to get Jhonen Vasquez's signature. Kids love the Vasquez. When the line's dispersed enough, Rugg signs my book and puts a little Street Angel sketch on the inside. He's really nice and I tell him I really love his book.

-Leslie, Emory, Ethan H and I grab some food, then Leslie, Ethan, and I head back out to party-hop with Asa, Jesse, Mike, Paul, Liz, Laurel, and Peter. We wander around a bit, but ultimately end up at the CBLDF Mirror Mask party. We're so late we don't even have to pay to get in. Sweet. Jesse and Asa are there when we arrive, and Jesse's already drunk on like half a Jack Daniel's. I spot writer Peter David, and we all try to get Liz to open-mouth kiss him. She doesn't. Quin shows up, filming his Comic Con documentary, and we all devise a reality series called "Secret Situations" that will get us all laid. Then Leslie and Ethan are tired and want to go so I have to go with them. Apparently the other kids went to a bar and Laurel and Liz were hit on by little Jeffy from The Family Circus. No lie.

More later.

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