Tag Archives: event

Around the Tubes

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Comics are out tomorrow! Yay!  So, what’s everyone getting?  While you decide, here’s the news you might have missed.

Around the Blogs:

Kotaku – He Asked About Misogyny in Street Fighter, and the Game’s Caretakers Didn’t Dodge – If only those in the comic industry could have answered the question so well.

Underwire – Unemployed Man Is the Unofficial Superhero of Occupy Wall Street – I’ve read the comic and it’s perfect for the movement.

Con Coverage:

Comicvine – Long Beach Comic Con 2011 Cosplay Gallery

Comicvine – LBCC ’11: Marv Wolfman Reacts to Scott Lobdell’s STARFIRE

Around the Tubes Reviews:

CBR – Scalped #53

CBR – The Ultimates #3

Kids Day set for Austin Comic Con, Sunday, Nov. 13

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Official Press Release

Costumes, Adventures, Readings, Wow! Wow! Wubbzy® Highlight Kid’s Day At Wizard World Austin Comic Con on Sunday, November 13

Popular Nickelodeon® Character, Kids Adventure Passport Quest, Kids Costume Contest, ‘My Favorite Giant’ Reading Just a Few of the All-Day Activities at Wizard World Digital Booth

NEW YORK and AUSTIN, Texas, October 31, 2011 – It’s an all-day kid’s extravaganza as Wizard World Austin Comic Con presents “Kid’s Day” on Sunday, November 13, at the Austin Convention Center.  Kid-friendly activities include meeting (and taking pictures with) characters like the lovable “Wow! Wow! Wubbzy!® from the Nickelodeon® series, Austin’s own superhero Jarret “The Defuser” Crippen and others, plus free face painting, balloon art, the impossibly cute Kids Costume Contest and special readings of “My Favorite Giant” by author Peter Mayhew, well-known for having portrayed “Chewbacca” in STAR WARS, and the new Border-Pups book “CrashBat” by comic book creator William “Brimstone” Kucmierowski.

Kids can stop by the Wizard World Digital Booth and pick up a free Wizard World Kids Adventure Passport, to complete activities all over Austin Comic Con and get a prize at the end of their journey.  Parents can look for the “Kid-Friendly” button on activities, vendors, booths and sessions throughout the convention floor.

Tweens and teens ages 11-17 can learn how to “Draw a Comic Character” at a one-of-a kind workshop with graphic novel artists and writing team Andy & Veronica Fish.

Crippen, winner of Stan Leeʼs “Who Wants to be a Superhero?” competition series on SyFy, will be hosting Kidʼs Day and helping youngsters get in on all of the fun.

For more information, parents and kids can visit www.wizardworldkids.com.  The site will be updated closer to the event date as more information becomes available about specific workshops and programs.

Austin Comic Con is the ninth and final stop on Wizard World’s 2011 North American tour.  Hours are Friday, November 11, 4 – 7 p.m.; Saturday, November 12, 10 a.m. – 7 p.m.; and Sunday, November 13, 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.  Tickets are available in advance online at http://www.wizardworldcomiccon.com/austin.html at a savings over tickets purchased at the door.  Advance adult single-day tickets are priced at $25 ($35 on site); weekend all-session tickets are $45 ($55 on site), and tickets are free for children age 10 and under when accompanied by a paid adult (limit two children per adult).  VIP packages with special entry and exclusive items are also available on a limited basis.

Austin Comic Con brings together thousands of fans of all ages and dozens of celebrities and industry professionals to celebrate the best in pop-fi, pop culture, movies, graphic novels, comics, toys, video gaming, television, sci-fi, gaming, original art, collectibles, contests and more.  Some of the top celebrity guests at Austin Comic Con include Hayden Panettiere, Adam Baldwin, James Marsters, Juliet Landau, Charisma Carpenter and four of the five original kids from the classic movie WILLY WONKA  & THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY.

About Wizard World:
Wizard World produces Comic Cons and pop culture conventions across North America that celebrate graphic novels, comic books, movies, TV shows, gaming, technology, toys and social networking. The events often feature celebrities from movies and TV, artists and writers, and events such as premieres, gaming tournaments, panels, and costume contests. Wizard World also produces Wizard World Digital, an online publication covering new and upcoming products and talents in the pop culture world, and is distributed on a weekly basis to online and iPad users worldwide.

The full event schedule can be found at www.wizardworld.com.

***** SAVE THE 2011/12 DATES *****
November 11-13 – Austin Comic Con
January 28-29, 2012 – New Orleans Comic Con
April 14-15, 2012 – Toronto Comic Con
June 1-3, 2012 – Philadelphia Comic Con
August 9-12, 2012 – Chicago Comic Con
Fall 2012 – Mid-Ohio Comic Con
TBD, 2012 – Big Apple Comic Con

Wizard World Sets 2012 Mid-Ohio Dates

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Official Press Release

Wizard World Announces 2012 Mid-Ohio Comic Con Dates, September 29-30 At Greater Columbus Convention Center

Hugely Successful Event Last Weekend Continues Run Of Conventions In October

NEW YORK and COLUMBUS, Ohio, October 28, 2011 – Wizard World Inc. (WIZD. PK) today announced that the Mid-Ohio Comic Con will return to the Greater Columbus Convention Center in 2012, following the event last weekend that drew thousands of fans and earned praise from attendees, celebrity guests, artists, vendors and sponsors.  Next year’s show is set for September 29-30 at ‘Battelle Hall,’ the venue that drew raves in Wizard World’s first event in Columbus last week.

The Wizard World Mid-Ohio Comic Con continued a trend of highly successful shows throughout the pop culture convention industry in 2011.  It was the eighth stop on Wizard World’s tour, with Austin Comic Con (Nov. 11-13) completing this year’s circuit.

“We would like to thank the city of Columbus and the entire region for embracing the Wizard World Mid-Ohio Comic Con and are very excited to be immediately announcing our return in 2012,” said John Macaluso, Wizard World Board of Directors.  “We are pleased that adding the ‘Wizard touch’ so greatly enhanced this long-running event, and it is very gratifying that the feedback has been so overwhelmingly positive on all fronts.”

Macaluso also sees Wizard World as contributing greatly to the landscape of comic and pop culture shows.

“October was a very exciting month for Comic Cons across the country” he added.  “We’d like to congratulate New York Comic Con for a great show, and we recognize that that the huge pop culture fan base can accommodate a wide variety of shows in many North American venues.  Wizard World seeks to be an even bigger player as we continue to grow and to give our attendees the best possible experience.”

The 2011 Wizard World Mid-Ohio Comic Con (Oct. 22-23) featured stars James Marsters, Billy Dee Williams, Adam West, Burt Ward, Claudia Christian and Walter Koenig among dozens of celebrities and industry professionals celebrating the best in pop-fi, pop culture, movies, graphic novels, comics, toys, video gaming, television, sci-fi, gaming, original art, collectibles, contests and more.

Guests for the 2012 event will be announced at a later date.

About Wizard World:
Wizard World produces Comic Cons and pop culture conventions across North America that celebrate graphic novels, comic books, movies, TV shows, gaming, technology, toys and social networking. The events often feature celebrities from movies and TV, artists and writers, and events such as premieres, gaming tournaments, panels, and costume contests. Wizard World also produces Wizard World Digital, an online publication covering new and upcoming products and talents in the pop culture world, and is distributed on a weekly basis to online and iPad users worldwide.

The full event schedule can be found at www.wizardworld.com.

***** SAVE THE 2011/12 DATES *****
November 11-13 – Austin Comic Con
January 28-29, 2012 – New Orleans Comic Con
April 14-15, 2012 – Toronto Comic Con
June 1-3, 2012 – Philadelphia Comic Con
August 9-12, 2012 – Chicago Comic Con
September 29-30, 2012 – Mid-Ohio Comic Con
TBD, 2012 – Big Apple Comic Con

Aspen Comics Long Beach Comic Con 2011 Guests and Exclusives

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Official Press Release

Aspen is excited to attend the Long Beach Comic Con 2011 this weekend on October  29th and 30th, and will be bringing an all new exclusive comic book and print for the show. Aspen creators Frank Mastromauro, Vince Hernandez, Mark Roslan, Joe Benitez, Oliver Nome, David Wohl, Beth Sotelo, Scott Lobdell, J.T. Krul, David Schwartz and more creators will be on hand to meet and greet with fans at the Aspen Comics Booth #101 all weekend long.

The publisher will have an exclusive Charismagic #3 Long Beach Comic Con 2011 variant cover by Khary Randolph and Emilio Lopez, limited to only 500 copies. Charismagic is Aspen’s all-new magical action-adventure series created and written by Vince Hernandez with character designs and illustrations by Khary Randolph and Emilio Lopez.

Fans who missed their chance to score the latest convention exclusives at the New York Comic Con and San Diego Comic Con can also look forward to limited quantities of exclusive variants such as the new supernatural action-adventure Dead Man’s Run by Greg Pak and Tony Parker in association with legendary producer Gale Anne Hurd’s Valhalla Entertainment, Haunted City by Chap Taylor, Peter Johnson and Michael Ryan, and Broken Pieces by creator and writer Mark Roslan with Micah Kaneshiro, as well as popular covers from this past summer’s Executive Assistant crossover, “The Hit List Agenda.”

Aspen will also be releasing a brand new signature Fathom print by Michael Turner featuring popular heroine Aspen Matthews, limited to only 50 editions, in addition to many of their latest popular-selling prints featuring hot titles such as Fathom, Soulfire, Lady Mechanika, Executive Assistant: Iris and more.

Aspen will be hosting an official Aspen Comics Panel from 3:00-3:45pm in Room 103A featuring Frank Mastromauro, Vince Hernandez, Mark Roslan, Joe Benitez, David Schwartz, Beth Sotelo, David Wohl, Scott Lobdell, JT Krul, Oliver Nome as they will be previewing upcoming titles, revealing never-before-seen artwork, and answering fan’s questions directly. All fans in attendance will receive a free gift courtesy of Aspen Comics.

For more information on the Long Beach Comic please check www.longbeachcomiccon.com and for more information on Aspen Comics please check www.aspencomics.com and www.aspenstore.com

Facebook.com/aspencomics.com

Twitter.com/aspencomics.com

Around the Tubes

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The weekend is so close.  Here’s some news for you to waste the day with while you pretend to work.

Around the Blogs:

Religioscope – Islam: comic book and animated series seeks to create peaceful pop culture heroes in Muslim world – Some more coverage of The 99.

Con Coverage:

MTV Geek – We’re No Angels: Leading Ladies of Science Fiction and Fantasy at NYCC

MTV Geek – Joe Simon, The Co-Creator Of Captain America, Speaks At NYCC

CBLDF – Mid-Ohio Comic Con Delivers Much Needed Support for CBLDF

Around the Tubes Reviews:

The Seattle Times – Crime Does Not Pay

Saffron Walden Reporter – Ultimate X: Origins

IGN – Comic Book Reviews for 10/26/11

Wizard World Toronto Comic Con To Move to MTCC in 2012

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Official Press Release

Wizard World Moves 2012 Toronto Comic Con to Metro Toronto Convention Centre, To April 14-15

Early Guest Confirmations Include Paul McGillion of ‘Stargate: Atlantis,’ Guest of Honor Mike Deodato Jr., Eisner Hall Of Famer Marv Wolfman

NEW YORK and TORONTO, October 26, 2011 – Coming off extremely successful events in its first two annual Toronto shows, Wizard World Inc. (WIZD. PK) today announced a venue change for the 2012 Wizard World Toronto Comic Con, part of North America’s largest pop-culture tour.  The event will be held April 14-15, 2012, at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre (MTCC) in downtown Toronto.

Among the guests that have already committed to the event are actor Paul McGillion (“Stargate: Atlantis,” “Star Trek”), Eisner Award Hall of Fame writer Marv Wolfman (“DCU Online,” “Crisis on Infinite Earths”), and artists Mike Deodato Jr. (“Amazing Spider-Man,” “Wonder Woman”), John McCrea (“Hitman,” “Transmetropolitan”) and Barry Kitson (“Uncanny X-Force,” “FF”).  Additional celebrities and creators will be announced at a later date.

“Wizard World Toronto Comic Con has grown tremendously in its first two years, making this move to the Metro Toronto Convention Center a natural,” said John Macaluso, Wizard World Board of Directors.  “The support from Toronto and across Canada for this event has continued to increase, and this will allow us to accommodate even more fans, vendors, celebrities, artists and sponsors next April in a state-of-the-art venue in a great downtown location.”

Toronto Comic Con is scheduled as the second stop on Wizard World’s 2012 North American tour.  Hours are Saturday, April 14, 10 a.m. – 7 p.m.; and Sunday, April 15, 11 a.m. – 6 p.m.  Tickets are available in advance online at http://www.wizardworldcomiccon.com/toronto.html at a savings over tickets purchased at the door.  Advance adult single-day tickets are priced at $25 ($38 on site); two-day tickets are $40 ($55 on site), and tickets are free for children age 10 and under when accompanied by a paid adult (limit two children per adult).  VIP packages with special entry and exclusive items are also available on a limited basis.

About MTCC
The Metro Toronto Convention Centre (http://www.mtccc.com) is Canada’s #1 convention and trade show facility.  It is located in the heart of downtown Toronto, within walking distance of almost 13,000 hotel rooms, shopping, restaurants and Toronto sites.

About Wizard World:
Wizard World produces Comic Cons and pop culture conventions across North America that celebrate graphic novels, comic books, movies, TV shows, gaming, technology, toys and social networking. The events often feature celebrities from movies and TV, artists and writers, and events such as premieres, gaming tournaments, panels, and costume contests. Wizard World also produces Wizard World Digital, an online publication covering new and upcoming products and talents in the pop culture world, and is distributed on a weekly basis to online and iPad users worldwide.

The full event schedule can be found at www.wizardworld.com.

***** SAVE THE 2011/12 DATES *****
November 11-13 – Austin Comic Con
January 28-29, 2012 – New Orleans Comic Con
April 14-15, 2012 – Toronto Comic Con
June 1-3, 2012 – Philadelphia Comic Con
August 9-12, 2012 – Chicago Comic Con
Fall 2012 – Mid-Ohio Comic Con
TBD, 2012 – Big Apple Comic Con

Long Beach Comic-Con 2011 IDW Event Schedule!

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Official Press Release

LONG BEACH COMIC-CON 2011 IDW EVENT SCHEDULE!

BOOTH #201

[Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1 Cover]Saturday Oct. 29th

12:00 – 2:00 Kevin Eastman – Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
*Ask about the convention exclusive Ultimate TMNT Hardcover!

2:00 – 3:00 IDW: The Big Panel! – Darwyn Cooke & Scott Dunbier celebrate the release of Parker: The Martini Edition, and reveal a top secret new image!
Room 103A

2:00 – 3:00 Thom Zahler – Love & Capes

2:00 – 3:00 Chris Ryall – Zombies vs Robots
*Ask about the convention exclusive Zombies vs Robots Hardcover!

3:30 – 5:30 Darwyn Cooke – Richard Stark’s Parker[Martini Edition Image]
*Ask about the convention exclusive Parker: The Martini Edition!

6:00 – 7:00 Steve Niles & Bernie Wrightson – Monstrous Book of Steve Niles & Bernie Wrightson, Frankenstein: Alive, Alive
*Ask about the convention exclusive Monstrous Book of Steve Niles & Bernie Wrightson!

Sunday Oct. 30th

[Monstrous Collection Cover]11:00 – 12:00 Ben Wagner – Baja

12:00 – 1:00 Steve Niles & Bernie Wrightson – Monstrous Book of Steve Niles & Bernie Wrightson, Frankenstein: Alive, Alive
*Ask about the convention exclusive Monstrous Book of Steve Niles & Bernie Wrightson!

1:00 – 3:00 Darwyn Cooke – Richard Stark’s Parker
*Ask about the convention exclusive Parker: The Martini Edition!

3:00 – 4:00 Livio Ramondelli – TRANSFORMERS

Around the Tubes

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It’s new comic book day and there looks to be quite a few solid ones being released today.  What’s everyone getting?  While you wait for your local comic book shop to open, here’s the news you might have missed.

Around the Blogs:

Daily News & Analysis – Comic books have to keep pace with the times: Aalok Joshi – A short article but interesting insight into the Indian comic book scene.

Robot 6 – Check DC wrote in 1938 for rights to Superman goes up for auction – A neat bit of history.  I have no idea what this’ll go for.

Ahram Online – US publisher to issue Egyptian graphic novel banned under Mubarak – Great to see this comic being released.

Kotaku – Batman: Arkham City Shipped 4.6 Million Copies in Its First Week – That’s an impressive number.  I’m going to go out on a limb and say a good chunk of that has sold too.

Kotaku – Is Harley Quinn Arkham City’s Most Subversive Character? – Kind of makes me want to play the game more and more appreciative of the character in comic books too.

Con Coverage:

Graphic Novel Reporter – After NYCC: Lance Fensterman Talks About the Con

MTV Geek – Womanthology at NYCC: If You Don’t See the Comic You Want, Make Your Own

MTV Geek – Hasbro’s David Vonner Discusses 3 Marvel-ous Lines at NYCC

Around the Tubes Reviews:

Bleeding Cool – The Incredible Hulk #1

MTV Geek – Wolverine & the X-Men #1

IGN – Wolverine and the X-Men #1

Around the Tubes

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It’s the day before new comic book day, what’s every getting?  While you deliberate, here’s the news you might have missed.

Around the Blogs:

Nerdage – OU professor writes business graphic novels – With this, maybe I’d of paid more attention in class?

Techcrunch – With Wikileaks Embargo, Payment Institutions Choose The Devil They Don’t Know – For those who call for the prosecution of comic book pirates, you’d do well to read this article.

Ahram Online – New wave of comic books flourishes in Egypt – Great to see the art and story telling form taking off in the liberated country.

Kotaku – Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3’s Changes, Through the Eyes of a Pro – Another comic book video game tie-in is on the horizon, find out the changes in this one.

Con Coverage:

CBR – NYCC: Vertigo Gets Scary

CBR – NYCC: Robert Kirkman Spotlight

CBR – EXCLUSIVE: Kapow! Con Returns For Year Two

The Beat – Retailer files complaint against Wizard AND posts dramatic video on YouTube

MTV Geek – From Batman To “The Fixer” – Frank Miller Talks “Holy Terror” And His Respect For Batman

Around the Tubes Reviews:

IGN – The Incredible Hulk #1

CBR – Supergirl #2

Entertainment Weekly – Comic Book Reviews: Latest issues of ‘Batman’ and ‘Uncanny X-Men’; the outstanding graphic novel ‘Daybreak’

NYCC 11 – Be Your Own Publisher: Making Comics with Kickstarter Panel

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Kickstarter Panel at New York Comic ConI’ve been a bit fascinated with Kickstarter.  The idea of skipping the publisher and the editors and allowing comic book creators to make their case to the fans as to whether something should be published is very democratic.  It’s now no longer the projections and balance sheet that matter, it’s really up to the fans as to whether a project sees the light of day.  The website is a platform for creative funding.  With that being said, I looked forward to the Kickstarter panel at this year’s New York Comic Con and so were others judging by the packed room.

The panel was moderated by Cindy Au, the Community Director at Kickstarter, with special guests Jeremy Bastian (Cursed Pirate Girl), Jimmy Palmiotti (Jonah Hex, Deadpool, Painkiller Jane, Queen Crab), Renae De Liz (The Last Unicorn, Womanthology), and Joey Esposito (Footprints, comics editor at IGN).  There was a second person from Womanthology, but I didn’t catch her name.

Kickstarter is pretty impressive in the stats department.  We’ve been keeping tabs on our own for comic book projects successfully funded through the site, but Au shared some interesting ones for the site as a whole:

  • 1 million backers with 150,000 being repeat givers.
  • Over $100 million has been pledged and they average $2 million a wekk
  • Over 13,000 projects have been funded
  • $4,500 is the average goal of a successful project with $6,100 being the average raised for a successful project
  • The average successful project has 85 backers
  • There’s a 30% tipping point, if you get to that part in your goal, you’ll succeed 90% of the time
  • $25 is the most common giving amount, $70 is the average pledge
  • 5-7 is the ideal number of tiers

Palmiotti gave the bluntest and most honest opinions of the bunch, laying it out there and not pulling punches.  He funded Queen Crab through Kickstarter because he didn’t think a traditional publisher would dig it as it’s a bit out there.  He was inspired by what others had done with the site and his wanting to do something non-mainstream made him try his own hand at it.  He learned a lot from the process, including to make sure to add postage for overseas gifts (one of the numerous humorous hints that were thrown out there).  But Palmiotti admitted it was work and a commitment to get the gifts out to the project backers and using social media to promote it.

That sentiment of it being a job was echoed by the Womanthology team.  They thought it’d be a side project, but it quickly spiraled through the support driven by social media such as Twitter.  That tool is how they initially recruited the folks who participated in the woman driven anthology.  But, Kickstarter allowed them to take the money out of the equation, something a publisher is focused on.  And this virtual convention website had the contributors and givers driving the funding of this project.  But the team learned that this wasn’t something they could do in their free time and turned into a full time job, with lots of time and thought being focused towards their successful project.

Everyone on the panel looked at the site as community building and even if your project isn’t funded, you get the names and contact information for the people who supported your project.  Palmiotti joked that it was a great way to find out which family members didn’t care about what you do.

The site is the ultimate democritization of the publishing process relying on supporters to spread the word on the project.  No public relations team here.  Word of mouth, social media, it was key for all of those on the panel.  It also allows everyone to see what has an audience by having the fans spread the word and show their support with their own money.

Palmiotti stressed this referring to his supporters as a virtual army to get the word out.  It’s the ultimate community that’s driving one of the most successful and prolific publishers out there, a website, where anyone can get a project funded if they make their case.

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