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Are you just now taking a look at this week’s New York Comic Con recaps? Well, for the entire week we’ve been taking a stroll around the con floor and sharing in the misadventures of Comic Attack journalist Infinite Speech. Be sure to check out parts 1, 2, 3, and 4 so you can catch up!

During NYCC you can get so caught up in the visual spectacle and celebrity of the place that you forget to actually enjoy the people that you come in contact with. So I took some time out to just actually meet with some of the good people of the con and geek out for a bit. From random fans to the men and women that were running the various booths, there wasn’t one person who wasn’t ready to chat it up or have a few good laughs throughout the day. I also figured this would be a good chance for me to try to score some artwork and pick out a few hardcovers for my collection. Plus I would do anything to drown out the sounds of Michael Jackson’s Beat It and Billie Jean which had been blasting all day from the new video game coming out.

Since I was already next to the Archaia display, I figured now was as good a time as any to pick up a copy of the Mouse Guard vol 1 hardcover and see what all the hype was about. Plus David Peterson was signing and I’d be a fool to pass that up, right? I guess I had that “new guy” look on my face, because one of the fans immediately asked if I was new to Mouse Guard. After hearing my answer he quickly dove into telling me how much I’m going to enjoy the series, and then a few more fans jumped in to back up his statement and share why they like the series. Guess I really had been missing out on something good, huh? When I finally made it to Peterson he assured me I’d like the book as well, and after he signed it he even whipped up a mouse sketch! My great experience over at Archaia wasn’t over just yet, as I also spotted Okko: The Cycle of Water which I had planned on starting a while back. Does it get better? It sure as hell does! Okko: The Cycle of Earth was also on the shelf, and the good folks at Archaia had a buy 1 get 1 deal going on! So I was able to scoop up all of those books at a great price, and a big thanks to Mel who didn’t hold it against me that I know Andy!

Now anyone who knows me understands that I’m a big fan of  several Top Cow titles, and it’s rare that I’d get a chance to see three of my favorite artists at one time. So after getting a water bottle from some random fan (thank you again whoever you are!), I made my way over. Immediately I see the Jell-O lovin’ Chrissy working her butt off to make sure things are goin’ smooth, and Magdalena taking pics with fans. Chrissy has been a big help to us, so it was great finally getting to meet her in person. Though I am sorry I didn’t bring any Jell-O for her to snack on. As I looked around their table I saw a particular sketch and made up my mind as to where I was getting my art from.  Artifacts artist Michael Broussard was sitting front and center along with Nelson Blake II and Afua Richardson (Pilot Season: Genius). Now if Rocafort and Sejic would have been in the place, it would have been a wrap and I would have left completely broke!

Now I tried to play it cool and not geek out too much, but me not having my sketch pad kind of put a wrinkle in my plan. So I’m thankful Nelson was cool enough to let Michael use a sheet out of his, and I was on my way to getting my sketch. While that was being taken care of I talked with Afua and Nelson, and I’m hoping that whatever came out of my mouth was coherent because I actually can’t remember a damn thing I said! If I sounded weird or anything, Afua and Nelson were kind enough not to let me know. Soon after, Michael was done with my sketch and damn did it look good! Ron “Insufferable” Marz showed up, and even though he was busy/tired he took some time to sign my copy of Artifacts alongside Michael.

After finishing up at Top Cow, navigating the con floor just seemed a bit easier. I was on cloud 9 and the geek in me was completely satisfied as that was one of the coolest moments of the entire con for me. So it was time to hit up other publishers and see what I would walk away with. Some I had heard of and others were brand new to me, but it was cool getting to know some of the men and women who are putting these books out. I swung by GG Studio who have been putting out some beautiful work recently, and according to Decapitated Dan they’ve all been worth the read as well. So on his word I picked up the first two issues of The One and colorist Alessia Norera was on hand to sign them for me. I so wished that at that time I spoke Italian so I could tell her how great the books looked. Hopefully the smile on my face said enough…and now that I think about it, I hope I didn’t come off as “the creepy fan.”

Waiting in line was even a bit more enjoyable, because at this time a lot of fans were taking a break or at panels so things moved a bit faster. I even got to break into a rendition of  I’m on a Boat with a group of fans (look for the reunion performance next year!) while waiting in one line. We even had a good laugh at the two guys arguing that there was anime at the Comic Convention and comics at the Anime Convention. Though they were quickly ignored as Sue Storm and Loki walked by and distracted us from that nonsense conversation.

Another great meeting was with the creator of the webcomic Supa Cool Man as I bumped into him while checking out the Predator clan and the huge line for Adrien Brody. I’ve read his strip for a while and up until then we had only exchanged a message or two on FB, so it was a great and unexpected meeting as he was there enjoying the day like every other fan. He gave me a few tips to make the rest of my day a little easier, and then we went our separate ways.

I hadn’t taken two steps when that familiar smell punched me in the nose, and it was that smelly guy from earlier and it was at this time I wished my sense of smell was completely gone. While running my mouth earlier I hadn’t noticed that between Adrien Brody and the Predator clan a HUGE crowd had formed around us and I was pushed up against him. As a part of my soul began to die, not even Robocop could help me. Not that he would since he was busy taking pictures with the crowd as well. Finally there was an opening and I took it to the dismay of a few people’s feet, but I felt that it was a necessary move. There was no way I was going to finish my last couple of hours at the con smelling like THAT guy!

Well, I’ve got two more stops to make and a lot more fans to meet up with, so check back in tomorrow’s NYCC recap to see if I was able to help out my buddy Decapitated Dan!

Darkness sketch from Michael Broussard!

Okko vol 1  Hardcover

Okko Vol 2 Hardcover

Signed Litho from Nelson Blake II

Artifacts #1 Signed by Broussard & Ron “Insufferable” Marz

Infinite Speech
infinitespeech@comicattack.net