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A week ago today I made the journey to Manhattan from Upstate NY to attend the New York Comic Con, and for my first big con I had one hell of a time! Sure there was a lot of standing in lines and getting too close to fan boys that didn’t bathe. But on the flip side, I met some really cool people, fans and Professionals alike, and for that I’m grateful I went. If you’re just now joining us for the NYCC recaps, then check out the previous installments and everything else NYCC right here!

Now in the final few hours of NYCC, there were still a few things that needed to get done and I was getting hungry again. While taking care of the hunger beast I was invited to sit at a table with a few fans I had run into several times while walking the floor. During our snack break I ended up having one of the best conversations about comics I’ve had in a while. Topics ranged from having too many useless tie-ins for the big events, race/ethnicity in comics, getting younger kids reading the books, anime, and the inevitable “who can beat who” scenarios that eventually creep up between fans of the medium. We finished our conversations and had to split up because they were attending various panels and I was going to spend the rest of my time on the con floor. While I made my way across the floor, I recognized a Cosplayer Spotlight alum as Optimus Prime aka Peter Kokis was drawing quite the crowd in mere seconds. I spoke to him very briefly as I didn’t want to keep the kids and adults waiting that were in awe of his costume and were clamoring for pics. I realized that the pictures we have in his interview don’t do the costume justice when you get to see it up close. Not at all.

As I was making my way through the still huge crowd around the Marvel vs. Capcom 3 gaming area, I realized that this was my chance to pick up a of Cla$$war Hardcover! So I made my way to the Com.X booth to claim my prize and meet some of the people responsible for adding some great books to my collection. Ben and the guys were just great and I even walked away with a Blue Spear poster and a sampler! I wanted to get Cla$$war signed, but timing just didn’t permit it and things were busy. Ah well, maybe next time.

My next objective was actually a request for our own Decapitated Dan. He’s a big Locke & Key fan, and asked if I would be able to grab anything from the title and see if I could get a signature from Gabe Rodriguez. IDW had been a madhouse for most of the day, but this seemed like as good a time as any to jump in and make something happen. However, when I get to the booth I can’t find ONE Locke & Key book, and when I asked the cashier she pointed to where they should be and I let her know that section was empty. Having sold out in that section, I was pointed to another area the books were supposed to be, but again, nothing. This really couldn’t be happening to me, could it?

My luck did change pretty soon though, when a guy behind the counter went on the hunt and found me a copy of the Locke & Key Hardcover a little bit later. With the hard part done, I asked if Gabe was still around because I didn’t see him sitting at any of the signing stations and was beginning to worry I’d missed my shot. Well, he went and looked for Gabe, and just like that I had the book and Gabe was not only signing it, but he personalized it for Dan as well. The guy who helped wasn’t a volunteer or event staff, but a Professional (he wore the badge) and I wish I could remember his name, but hell, thanks again!

I ended up grabbing a few more odds and ends, but didn’t want to have to carry too much back on the train with me, so I ended up refusing some free swag and even gave some stuff away. Yeah, I’m cool like that! I checked in with a few of the people I had met and let them know I’d be in touch. Then it was over for this guy here. My day started at 4 am and was winding down about 15 hours later. So me and what seemed like an army of superheroes, video game icons, and anime characters made our way down the New York City streets and turned heads and stopped traffic well into the night.

For those that don’t know, ticket sales for Saturday had to be cut off because so many had been sold and the place was basically wall to wall packed. So yeah, the lines were long as hell, it was hot, and B.O. was an issue, but you know what? I had a great time and would do it all over again, just not by myself the next time! For every pro that I saw or met that was a bit of an ass, there were four or five more that were the total opposite and put smiles on a fan’s face. So I’m already planning my strategy for next year’s con, and hopefully I’ll see you there! Stick a fork in me. I’m done!

Peace!

For the pics I’d like to give credit to Asjad, Grizz, Grady, Michael, and Leroy.

‘Till next year!

Infinite Speech
infinitespeech@comicattack.net