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What Did You Miss Most About Not Having Comic Cons?

What Did You Miss Most About Not Having Comic Cons?

Posted on by Bob Harrison

Now that we have a full slate of convention season set for 2022, we polled some of the creators who made it out to Fan Expo Philadelphia about how they are feeling. The question being asked of each participant was, “What did you find that you missed the most about being at conventions during the time that we didn’t have the opportunity to attend these events?”

The people that we spoke to were in general excited and happy to be at the show, and that includes creator guests, vendors, and paying customers. The answer to the poll question typically fell into one of two basic categories.

The Fans

Yeah. People. This community is built around comic shops and comic cons.

Mike Hawthorne

The first sentiment involved missing the fan interaction that they enjoy at shows. Missing the chance to talk to fans and checking out the cool costumes that people wear to cosplay at the shows were two themes that were part of those answers.

The feedback that fans give creators is a significant plus for the pros who are working the shows. Often the solitude of creating comic books on their own, takes an emotional toll, and interacting with consumers of their product puts the amount of creative time spent on their craft in perspective.

Chris Campana – Artist

I missed interactions with the people. I know that I wouldn’t be able to do this gig, full-time, without the relationships I made with the people at the show. That’s everything. They sustained me through the pandemic. They supported me even though they were struggling themselves. So, I missed most the give and take at the table, whether people buy something or not. That was the biggest thing. Just seeing everyone.

Kami Garcia – Writer

So, I think what I miss most is actually meeting the readers and the fans in person. It’s totally different. Even when you’re on either a virtual event or you’re interacting with people on Twitter and Instagram, it’s not the same. I love seeing like meeting the readers and hearing the stories about why they love the comics, or which book they got hooked on. Also, I like seeing my creator friends in person.

Stephanie Phillips – Writer

Continue reading “What Did You Miss Most About Not Having Comic Cons?” →

Preview Review for the Week of 11/13/2019: Vampironica: New Blood #1

Preview Review for the Week of 11/13/2019: Vampironica: New Blood #1

Posted on by Bob Harrison

Welcome to the latest installment of Preview Reviews.  This is where we give advanced glimpses at some of the comics that will be coming out this Wednesday.

A reminder for you. Here at Pop Culture Squad, we are decidedly Anti-Spoiler.  We feel that ruining someone’s experience with something for the sake of getting a scoop or clicks is the wrong thing to do. Therefore, we have decided to publish this column, as necessary, with mostly spoiler-free reviews of upcoming issues.  Hopefully, the information that we share with you will increase your excitement for these books.

This week we feature a new book from Archie Comics. It is Vampironica: New Blood #1 by Frank Tieri & Michael Moreci and Audrey Mok with Matt Herms and Jack Morelli. This book will be featured in our New Number Ones column for December. You might want to see what else we are looking forward to there.

You can find Vampironica at your LCS on December 4, 2019.

Vampironica: New Blood #1
Archie Comics
Written by Frank Tieri & Michael Moreci
Art by Audrey Mok
Colors by Matt Herms
Letters by Jack Morelli
Cover Art by Mok

Original Solicitation:

BRAND NEW SERIES! Riverdale’s own bombshell bloodsucker is back! Following the events of the Jughead the Hunger vs. Vampironica crossover, Veronica returns to her own universe, still a vampire. She’s not the same, and she knows it. And now she needs answers. But she may not be ready for what she’s about to discover!

PCS Review:

This is an excellent introduction to this series. Having never read anything in the Archie Horror world, this story was easily accessible to me. It does not explain everything that came before, but give just enough to let the reader know where the protagonist has been and the challenges she faces.

The pace and dialogue through the narrative is brisk and relatable. Tieri and Moreci do an excellent job in this first issue of presenting characters with depth and a conflict that is interesting. There are plenty of plot lines that are organically uncovered that give the story several paths to travel.

Audrey Mok’s line art is beautiful. She grabs the reader’s eye and leads it on an exciting journey through this book. Her panel designs and camera positioning are perfect for the pacing of the narrative. The style feels like it is just the right amount of rough edge to make it feel like a horror book, but still a Veronica Hodge story.

Matt Herms’ colors are sublime. The overall color theme is important to the feel of the book. His work is well thought out and expertly implemented. The lettering job by Jack Morelli should not be overlooked. The word art is truly excellent, but managing the amount of dialogue and the bubble placement is impressive.

Overall, we highly recommend this comic. It is a fun and exciting book with engaging characters and beautiful artwork.

Spotlight Interview with Sandy King, Publisher of Storm King Comics

Spotlight Interview with Sandy King, Publisher of Storm King Comics

Posted on by Bob Harrison

Happy Halloween!!!

We are bringing you a special treat on this spookiest of days. Earlier this year, at Keystone Comic Con in Philadelphia, we were able to sit down and talk with Sandy King, the publisher of Storm King Comics.

If you are not familiar with Storm King Comics, you should be. Sandy and her husband John Carpenter are cultivating a wonderful stable of comic titles and stories for fans of horror and science fiction comics.

Recently the fifth edition of Tales for a HalloweeNight anthology was released, and you can probably still find it in your Local Comic Shop. It features stories created by such comic luminaries as Frank Tieri, Steve Niles, Andy Price, Amanda Diebert, Cat Staggs, Gus Vazquez, Bill Sienkiewicz and much more.

This upstart comic company is consistently producing high quality storytelling as evidenced by the recent mini-series Tales of Science Fiction: Surviving Nuclear Attack by Joe Harris and Cat Staggs.

We felt today would be the perfect day to bring you the interview that we did with Sandy King in which we talk about her vision for her company and comics in general. Continue reading “Spotlight Interview with Sandy King, Publisher of Storm King Comics” →