Having never attended a comic convention of any significance before, I rode wide-eyed to the Pittsburgh Comicon in 2007, absorbing as much of the scenery as I could. To be fair, I was only wide-eyed during the parts of the trip where I was actually awake--working the second shift for my entire life has almost certainly saddled me with permanent sleep deficiency, and I was drowsy company for my friend and wheelman, Daron. He was gracious enough to alert me to points of interest, such as the giant steel cross of Effingham, Illinois. I could dedicate an entire column to my amazement of that cross. But I won't. I'll just remind those of faith that nearly every Holy Book of nearly every faith preaches humility, and leave it to you to decide if a 198 foot cross can be construed as "humble." And there were other sites for my uninitiated eyes to behold: a massive candle the size of a two-story building outside of Indianapolis, Indiana that marked a shopping destination for all things waxy and flammable, signs that trumpeted that I was in "Raper Country" --all for Tom Raper's RV dealership-- which in retrospect seem wholly inappropriate in light of the tragic events in Austria and Texas in recent weeks, and the fearsome "runaway truck ramps" that are completely unheard of in the flat American Midwest. Those foreboding barriers of heavy timber, rock and steel could rightly be festooned with the skulls of those poor souls who have gone before, swearing to their gods for the miserable state of their breaking systems. The words on the sign may as well have read, "Abandon all hope, ye who enter." Pittsburgh itself seemed almost magical. Emerging from the Fort Pitt Tunnel like a Colonial Viper jetting out of the launch tube of a Battlestar, the city stood in contrast to the cow-spotted pastures not 5 minutes behind our rented Corolla. And yet it belongs--of all the major cities I've been to, Pittsburgh has the most greenery by far. The road to the Pittsburgh Comicon 2007 was my Yellow Brick Road, a path to unknown adventure...and Wendy's Junior Bacon Burgers and Chili. St. Louis had been without a Wendy's for years.

 

2008 was the same highway, but a different road. Daron and I traded roles; he navigated via Mapquest printouts while I assumed the controls of my 2007 Mini Cooper, saving us both rental fees and fuel costs. In fact, we made it from the suburbs of St. Louis to the outskirts of Wheeling, West Virginia before we stopped for gas. The same spectacles sped past our windows as the miles rolled by, but instead of being wild and unexpected, the Cross, the Truck Ramps To Hell and Tom Raper's ill-conceived promotional materials were more familiar and comforting. They were proof that we were still on course and Mapquest wasn't guiding us to Parts Unknown, which wouldn't have been a bad thing either--lots of entertaining pro wrestlers hail from Parts Unknown. We stopped to enjoy our now annual pilgrimage to Wendy's in Mt. Comfort, Indiana, even though the franchise had returned to our fair city late last summer. To be frank, beyond the oversized religious icons and housewares that dot the landscape every couple of hours, there's not a whole lot to look at. Interstate 70 carries us practically to the Monroeville Radisson's doorstep, but it's a flat, relatively uninteresting ride. Things start to get hilly and rather more pretty by Columbus, Ohio, which helped to keep my eyes open as the hours creep by, but that's not to say that the landscape in Illinois, Indiana and Western Ohio is hideous. The fresh green leaves sprouting from winter's sleep are wondrous in the spring, and very much welcome after months of barren limbs. The playful purples and innocent whites of some flowering trees contrasted vividly, and my brain replayed short segments of the old PBS favorite, The Joy of Painting with Bob Ross as the we rolled on. Happy little trees delighted my view as we drew closer to our destination, the sun setting behind us in splashes of violet and orange.

 

Along the way, I rummaged through the catalog of comic characters in my head and pondered which characters meshed well with certain artists' styles. I had done my research before I left, browsing as many of the artists' websites as I could, and coming up with a list of creators I was most interested in purchasing sketches or prints from. In 2007, I was just thrilled to be there at all. I was overjoyed to meet a couple of my favorite creators, Tim Truman and Mike Grell. The latter's rendition of Oliver Queen in his "Longbow Hunter" hood adorns the first page of my sketch book. I was also quick to line up a sketch from Rags Morales, and his first illustration of Iron Fist as a professional holds a place of honor in my sketchbook as well. But there were so many fantastic talents at the Comicon, and I had spent my allotted funds before I'd met them all. This year I had planned better. I'd earmarked money for Tom Fleming and Darryl Banks as well as several outstanding independent creators I'd met the year before. Of course, even the best laid plans don't always work out as I've yet to correctly deduce exactly how much to bring and how much to get.

 

Daron had been to the Pittsburgh Comicon several times before I started making the trip, and it's through him that I met Chris and Patti from New Jersey. Daron and Chris worked together on a webcomic a few years ago and both have written for Comicsnexus.com, my former online address. Forging friendships in life makes everything else worth while. My seemingly never-ending second shift lifestyle makes meeting new people and making new friends difficult. So despite the 10 hour cross-country trek, getting four days away from work to meet fun people who share my passion for the comic book industry is the highlight of my year. Chris and Patti are my kind of people--comic nerds, sports nuts (Chris is even a wrestling fan), always ready to laugh. They're so cool I don't even begrudge their lack of pronounced Jersey accents.

 

The Pittsburgh Comicon, for those who haven't yet had the pleasure to attend, is a huge rectangular space of which the majority is occupied by creator booths. Industry professionals comprise an outer ring while independent and small press creators form rows within the ring. Several booths for guests from the world of performance entertainment are right in the middle. This years guests included Darth Vader himself, David Prowse, and Battlestar Galactica's Chief Tyrol, Aaron Douglas.

 

Most of what follows is in no particular order, but I don't mind admitting that as soon as we get into the Con on Friday morning I headed for the Drumfish Productions booth, where I found Rich Bernatovech and Jamie Fay setting up for the show. Drumfish is Rich's company and the imprint through which he published his Sentinels graphic novel series. I am a huge fan of this series. It's certainly in the superhero category, but it weaves through science fiction and mild horror/supernatural scenes, with plenty of interpersonal relationships and character development. None of these elements ever feel forced or overstay their welcome. Rich created the charters, wrote the well-crafted story, and enlisted the aid of up and coming artist Luciano Vecchio to take over the art chores. Spanning four full-length volumes and three generations of superheroes, it's not only an interesting comic but also an interesting study in the collaboration and growth of the creators. You can observe how as Rich and Luciano learn more about their craft and each other they really start to open up and have fun with the project. This year, Rich was promoting the Sentinels Anthology, a collection of short comic stories spotlighting the characters of the series. Jamie Fay provided the art for one of the stories and is collaborating with Rich on NeverMinds, the next big Drumfish offering. I got a sketch of Mary Marvel from Rich last year which still draws exclamations of cuteness from his peers, seasoned pros and novice indy artists alike. But more importantly, Rich and Jamie are just great people. We've corresponded through email since meeting last year, and I've spoken with Rich by phone. It's a shame that we only get to speak to each other in person just once a year, but I'm glad to call them my friends year-round. I can't wait for NeverMinds to see Jamie's amazing art in full sequential glory. This year, the Drumfish crew also included Andrew Charipar, the creator of Tales From The Cornerstone and one of the artists who contributed to the Sentinels Anthology. He drove 19 hours to be at the show--that's serious dedication!

 

From there, I headed straight over to Tom Fleming's booth. Tom was the cover artist for Marvel's Elektra and has produced art for various trading card sets including the World of Warcraft. But in talking to him last year, I found out he worked for the WWE back in the WWF days. As a wrestling fan going back almost 30 years, I was excited to talk to him again. In fact, Tom was responsible for the look of Papa Shango, which I personally loved despite how much the internet wrestling community trashes that character. Look for an interview I am conducting with Tom in the near future. Since last year, I have been kicking myself over not getting a sketch from him. He does a great job on everything--he even makes Firestorm's puffy sleeves look cool--but he really excels with women. I make arrangements for a Starfire sketch and chat with him about wrestling, which was a blast all its self. But when he unveiled the finished sketch, I couldn't hardly speak at all. How Tom manages to take a blank page and a few pencils and in just a few hours turn it into something that looks like a high-quality air-brushed pin-up I will never know, but boy am I glad he can do it!

 

Dominic Vivona is one of those artists that sort of drive me nuts. He is an up and coming independent creator who's graphic novel, Gunplay, is available now. But what drives me nuts about him is that he's one of those artists who seem to work so effortlessly. Last year, upon seeing some of his pages, I was impressed. I asked if he'd do a sketch for me of the Julia Carpenter Spider-Woman, my favorite version of the character. Not only did he oblidge me with a fine sketch, but it was inked with backgrounds, and all that for only one-tenth of what Adam Hughes was charging (and pretty fast for all that detail too)! So when I met him this year as he settled in behind his table, he greeted me with an enthusiastic handshake. I gave him first crack at the sketchbook this year, and since all of my sketches were heroes last year, I thought I'd balance the book a bit with some villains this time. I left my book in Dom's capable hands while Daron, Chris, Patti and I strolled around the small press booths, and as we completed a single lap I noticed that Dominic was done with my book already. He handed it back and I opened it to find an excellent Dr. Doom rendition, cape billowing behind him, his gauntlet poised to blast me out of my high tops. Like Jamie Fay, Dominic is one of those talents poised to break out soon. I plan on reviewing his Gunplay book very soon.

 

I had the pleasure of meeting Darryl Banks for the first time last year. I know some of the industry honchos read my stuff, so let me direct this next bit directly to you folks: Why is Darryl Banks not working in comics right now? The guy didn't suddenly forget how to draw. He invented the Kyle Rayner character for DC, had a lengthy and successful run on Green Lantern, and then...nothing? It doesn't make sense. But I'm probably being a bit selfish, if I'm honest about it. I have certain creators that I'm fond of and am greedy for their products. Guys like Mike Mignola, Walt Simonson, Frank Cirocco, Larry Stroman, Mike Zeck, and yes, Darryl Banks. Daron and I are both big fans, so we were happy to spend a few minutes with Darryl. He's been working as a product designer and has most recently been designing many of the upcoming Indiana Jones toys. But even though he spoke highly of his current gig, there seemed to be a sense of unfinished business lurking under the surface. I think Darryl still has tales to draw in the comic marketplace. He's got a particular fondness for Green Lantern and especially Kyle Rayner, but I'd personally love to see him on a book like Justice Society of America, Flash, or Nightwing. I had been trying to think of what to ask Darryl for in terms of a sketch since we left St. Louis. After last year's show I decided that except in certain cases (Mike Grell's Green Arrow, for example) I didn't want to get a sketch of a character from someone famous for doing that character. While talking with Darryl I notice a page in his portfolio of the Green Lantern trinity: Alan Scott, Hal Jordan, and Kyle Rayner. I have always liked Alan the best. It must be the cape; I've always had a fondness for them. And that set the wheels turning. I requested a sketch of Alan Scott with Dr. Strange, noting that they're both magic-based, have similar costumes (more natural-looking shirts and pants as opposed to spandex leotards) and similar capes. Darryl's face lit up at the suggestion and he was enthusiastic to do it. He had the same notion cross his mind not long ago, he told me. The results of our shared loved for caped magicians was absolutely amazing.

 

James Hatton could be found at his booth for In His Likeness. For a strip about God and the Devil rendered simply with large dots, it is surprisingly effective, as it's run of over 400 strips would attest to. James is a long-time contributor to the ComicsNexus site, and a swell guy. He was preparing to do a strip on a blank cover for Secret Invasion #1 where (I believe) the Devil was shown to be a Skrull. Check out his site and don't fret about the religious element--he's got members of the clergy as regular readers.

 

Also nearby was a booth for the very interesting husband and wife team of Adam Withers and Comfort Love. They are the co-creators of The Uniques, a very promising superhero comic. And the title is apropos, because the most unique thing about their book is how Adam and Comfort co-create everything. They both contribute to the writing, and they both contribute to the entire art process. It's not a matter of one of them inking over the other's pencils, they both do it all, often in the same panel! I plan to conduct an interview with them soon to learn more about their unique symbiotic style. We discovered that we shared similar tastes in comics, a shared desire for more realistic underpinnings in the superhero setting and similar disdain for the "Star Wars" Prequels. I'm sure Daron was uneasy at the thought of more people that much like me being there, but I thought it was great. Hmm...I suddenly can't help but wonder if the George Lucas who was responsible for Jar Jar Binks is a Skrull?

 

I was extremely pleased to discover Lora Innes and her webcomic, The Dreamer, before heading out to Pittsburgh. Trained both at art school and an early career in commercial art, Lora's style is clean and uncluttered. It calls to mind classic animation, more Disney than "South Park" or overly exaggerated Japanese anime. The Dreamer is a delightful mix of early American history and modern high school satire. The main character, Beatrice, is a modern high school student dealing with all the drama those four years typically heap upon young adults. But by night, she slips into a vivid dream of the American Revolution...at least it appears to be a dream! Lora has researched the Revolution extensively and it shows, but what I really appreciate is how well she mixes history, romance, and the drama and comedy of high school into a neat package that doesn't only appeal to women. I was a big fan of Marvel's Spider-man Loves Mary Jane, and The Dreamer is a worthy successor. Daron thought her art was reminiscent of Terry Moore. After receiving a Harley Quinn sketch from her, I call it awesome, and many of the pro artists I showed it to agreed. Everyone commented on the Mona Lisa-like quality of her smile. She either looks like she just thought of something mischievous or just got caught doing it, somehow making her both guilty and innocent at the same time. I'm very proud to have her sketch in my book. I hope Lora and The Dreamer stay around for a long time, because I'm a huge fan of both.

 

Near the Drumfish booth was Mike Bocianowski, the creator of Yets! A contemporary of Bloom County creator Berke Breathed, Mike's art style has some similarities and also calls to mind Walt Kelly of Pogo fame. Appropriate for all ages, Mike's characters range from dragons to Guinea Pigs and are rendered with such personality that they don't need an abundance of word balloons to get the point across. I wish more traditional superhero comics bothered to put for the effort of using facial expressions and posture to convey thoughts and emotions instead of being just relying on dialogue. I get asked fairly often what I would comics I would recommend for children. I'd suggest Mike's Yets! without reservation, and dare say that the adults will enjoy it too.

 

I had the good fortune of interviewing Scott Wegener recently (it will be up soon if not already) so meeting him in person was a pleasure. Scott is the co-creator and artist of Atom Robo, the Red5 Comics title that has turned into quite a hit over the last year. I didn't have the opportunity to talk with him at length, since his booth was near the entrance to the Expo Hall and was constantly busy, but he was a good guy--as was co-creator and writer Brian Clevinger. Scott told me that they're in it for the long haul, and from what I've seen and heard of Atomic Robo, they should be around for a long time indeed. I can't wait to get the trade! Scott happily obliged me with sketch of his Atomic Robo character dressed as a Ghostbuster!

 

I have always wanted to read Kabuki, David Mack's epic, but have never been able to track down all the issues of any one arc real easily. I hope to get my hands on the trade paperback versions soon. But I enjoyed his work on Daredevil, especially the Echo character he created during Brian Bendis' run. I was glad to finally meet David and spend a few minutes chatting about his work. I love how in this industry folks find the smallest little bit of minutiae and run with it. It proves that you can't overlook anything in a comic. In one of his Kabuki issues there's a character reading a book called The Shy Creatures. David went a step further and actually produced that book as a children's book! It's in some ways styled a bit after Dr. Seuss, but that's certainly not a bad thing, but it's very much in line with David's phenomenal design sense. I may even give it a read myself--the Dr. Seuss classics are still my favorites, and if The Shy Creatures is even slightly in that vein it will be enjoyable, even at my age.

 

Marc Wolfe quickly became one of my favorite artists last year when he volunteered--pretty much demanded, actually--to color the Hellboy sketch he did for me. He's very easy to deal with, does excellent work and doesn't charge a ton. He did a Harley Quinn sketch for Daron that reminds me of Alan Hughes in some ways. Marc is working with Lucasfilm on a project in Japan this summer. I don't know how much of that he can talk about yet, so I'll leave it at that. But I have recently seen pictures on the Web of Darth Vader and Stormtrooper helmets done in a samurai style, and if Marc's doing similar work along those lines, I think the Japanese "Star Wars" fans are going to be extremely pleased. I know I am very happy with the Electro sketch he did for me this year. I wanted more villains in my collection, and his version of Maxwell Dillon has that perfect supervillain smirk.

 

Billy Tucci was already a favorite of mine for Shi, and had a fantastic albeit all-too-brief run on Marvel's Heroes For Hire. He's a very friendly and engaging fellow, and when I caught him late in the day for a sketch I could tell he was a little tired but he didn't turn me away. I suggested my favorite supervillain, The Rhino (I can't explain why so don't ask), for a sketch, but after a couple of broad strokes on the page Billy looked up and asked, "You want a good villain? How about a Nazi?" To be honest, I wasn't exactly sure where he was going with the idea, but I was intrigued enough to see. Billy was fast--probably even faster than Dominic--but he did it all with markers, no pencils at all! The sketch is actually of a Nazi Zombie, with the title of "The Boys of Company Z" below it, the 'Z' is oversized in red ink with a bit of bloodsplatter effect around it. Billy is working on a Sgt. Rock series for DC due to hit stores this fall, and has developed a style for it that calls to remind the legendary Joe Kubert. I think I see a little of that in my Zombie, and I'm quite pleased to have it.

 

Rich and Jamie are a great resource for discovering new independent talents. Rich was showing some of his new sketches and one in particular caught my eye. "That's David Quiles--you should check him out, he's amazing!" Rich said. So I did, and he was right! David works in heavy black watercolor, highlighting his pieces with white accents at the end. It's very dark, moody stuff but perfect for the right character. I watched David work on a Storm piece for Jamie, and quickly got on his list. In surprisingly short time, I was greeted with a wonderful painting of Grendel Prime. David was excited to tackle a character he had not tried before, which is something I really like to do. Some artists prefer to draw what they're familiar with, but others, like Darryl and David (and Rags last year), seem to get excited for a challenge and their excitement really comes through in their work. I look forward to seeing (and buying) more of David's art in the future.

 

Dan O'Connor was at the Pittsburgh Comicon for the first time. Dan is probably best known for his work on the KONG: King of Skull Island series from AAM/Markosia. His pages are gorgeous, and you can clearly see a love of the classics in his style. If you like Darwyn Cooke, give Dan O'Connor a try. I look forward to seeing more of his work. I was pleased to get a print of one of his original characters, a mischievous-looking girl leaning against a hovering personal transport in front of a beautiful sci-fi setting. I can't remember the specifics of that character, but I know if I saw a book on the new release rack with that image on the cover I'd buy it in a heartbeat.

 

I'm typcially not one for horror. I like suspense, but nothing gruesome. But I might change my tune after seeing Stuart Sayger's fantastic work. In addition to working on DC's collectible card game, Stuart is the artist of the Lego-inspired Bionicle Ignition and his own supernatural comic, Shiver In The Dark. His art is an interesting mix of dark colors and atmospheric highlights with some of the loveliest female forms you can imagine. His faces in particular are captivating. He's so good I may have to rethink my stance on horror comics. Stuart is definitely a creator to be on the look out for.

 

Michael Oeming was at the show as well. I was familiar with him as the artist of Powers and the former writer of Thor and Omega Flight at Marvel as well as his own Hammer of the Gods series. What I didn't know was that he is a very close friend of Taki Soma, an excellent artist in her own right and the creator of the webcomic You'll Never Die. I am eager to interview Taki about her comic, and hope to do so soon. On the other hand, I was a bit apprehensive about talking to Mike, since I've spent much of the last year at my previous online address taking shots at Bendis. I was worried that perhaps Bendis had said, "Mike, if you ever meet this Ritter jerk at a con somewhere, pummel him mercilessly about the head and shoulders with any heavy object you can find. In fact, keep this definitive edition of Torso with you at all times, just in case. I had it nickel-plated for maximum impact. " But Mike was very easy to talk to, pleasant and eager to discuss his Image book Mice Templar. He was joined by Bryan J. L. Glass, the author of Mice Templar and the novel Quixote, which Mike provided illustrations for. Bryan and Mike led a question-and-answer session about Mice Templar, which provided a few laughs and a lot of insight. If you're already a fan of Mike's work on Powers, or just like personification applied to animals such as you'd find in Watership Down or The Secret of NIMH, give Mice Templar a serious look. I think Mike's style really shines on this title, which he does concurrently with Powers. How the man has time to illustrate to comics, do the convention circuit and spend time with his friends like Taki and Bryan, I can't even imagine. Bryan filled me in on a few of the technical difficulties they experienced in the first few issues--things that most people wouldn't even notice but were not exactly as the creators envisioned. My goal for the next couple of weeks is to read and review Quixote, Bryan's darker-themed take on the legendary Don Quixote tale, and when the Mice Templar trade comes out in the fall, I hope to interview both Bryan and Mike about the journey their title has taken to that point and where it goes from there.

 

As I said before, a trip like this isn't just about getting sketches or signatures. It's about friendship and finding comradery through the love of comics. The biggest highlight of the trip, for me, was the dinner on Saturday night. Chris and Patti are diehard hockey fans and their New York Rangers were in Pittsburgh to take on the hometown Penguins. While they headed for the game Friday evening, Daron and I were standing outside the hotel, trying to figure out what we wanted for dinner. Rich walked out and asked if we'd like to join his group at the Mexican restaurant across the street. Shortly thereafter, Daron and I were eating chips and salsa with Rich, Jamie, Andrew, Adam, Comfort, and Bryan Glass. With a group that big it was hard to follow all of the many conversations going on at once, but seated as I was next to Bryan and being a writer myself, I spent the next couple of hours engaged in conversation about his early trials and tribulations in the industry, all the while getting more excited about reading his novel and absorbing his sage wisdom. Bryan was a gracious dinner companion and very generous with his answers to the questions Daron, Comfort and I bombarded him with through out the meal. Afterwards, in our room, I felt bad for Chris and Patti. Not only did they miss out out an amazing evening with some of the most approachable people at the show, but their Rangers blew a three goal lead and lost the game.

 

As much as fun as the Pittsburgh Comicon is every year, attendance seemed a little lower this time. Some of this could be attributed to the recession (everyone but the President knows we're in one), or the road construction in Pittsburgh which closed a major highway that leads right to the show. But there was also some speculation in hushed tones regarding the Michael George case. It's a matter of public record, and as this article is about the Comicon and not his case I won't get into it here. Let me instead suggest that the Comicon isn't about Michael and to a large degree not even about the George family on the whole. It's about the fans. It's about being a destination for comic book lovers like Chris, Daron, Patti and myself. It's about being a place where novice talents can network with industry veterans and everyone can get reinvigorated. I know there are times when I muddle through my third or fourth consecutive mediocre issue and wonder why I keep buying comics. Then I go to Pittsburgh and talk to Darryl Banks and Mike Oeming and David Mack and Bryan Glass and Billy Tucci, meet people like Lora and Taki, Adam and Comfort, Rich and Jamie, and even spend a solid half hour talking wrestling with Tom Fleming, and I remember why I do it. It's because that much imagination in one place is infectious. I've been kicking around ideas for comics and novels for years, but it's after talking with people that are excited and passionate about what they do that I really get motivated to do it too. Does the George family make a little money off the show? Sure, and why shouldn't they? They do all the hard work, along with their excellent and dedicated volunteers. Think what you will about Michael, that's your right. But if you work in the industry or support it by buying the products that come from it, you're doing yourself a disservice by letting the case effect your attendance. The show raised over $25,000 for various charities this year through auctions and raffles and the generosity of some truly amazing people. Any comic creator who has had second thoughts about attending the Comicon should consider that. The charitable donations raised, the good will and comradery between creators and consumers alike and the joy conventions like this bring to so many people should not be overlooked.

 

And to the general comic convention-going folks out there, I can tell you with absolute honesty that you will be hard-pressed to find a more relaxed and laid back atmosphere at a major show. San Diego, New York, Chicago--good luck getting more than 60 seconds to chat with your favorite creator. At Pittsburgh, nobody hurries you along. There are no cattle lines. Heck, you could show up dressed as the Man-Eating Cow from The Tick and they still wouldn't put you in a cattle line. It is that interaction, that one-on-one with the guy or gal who creates your favorite comics, that really makes the Pittsburgh Comicon stand out. And the positive public relations that generates is almost incalculable. This is the way comic conventions should be done. The creators who attend certainly seem to enjoy themselves. The fans at the show absolutely enjoy themselves. And to set the record straight, the show isn't going away. They've booked the Expo Mart for several years in advance. So if you're one of those who took a pass this year, whatever your reason, be there next year and enjoy yourself.

 

After all, that's what comics are all about.