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With Further Ado #254: Unpacking HeroesCon – Part 2

With Further Ado #254: Unpacking HeroesCon – Part 2

Posted on by Ed Catto

I’m still grinning ear-to-ear after that fabulous time at Charlotte’s HeroesCon. Shelton Drum and his team sure put on a great show. Here are a few more highlights.

Back Issue Magazine’s 20th Anniversary & Michael Eury

Michael Eury is a fantastic individual. I’ve been devouring his professional writing ever since he was doing the text pages in DC Comics. As the story goes, he was a fan who always wanted to be a comics professional, inspired by Julie Schwartz and his title of editor.

Michael worked hard to become an editor at DC Comics and Dark Horse. For the past 20 years, he’s been creating pop culture books, and currently for TwoMorrows Publishing, he is editor-in-chief of two magazines – RetroFan and Back Issue Magazine. Continue reading “With Further Ado #254: Unpacking HeroesCon – Part 2” →

With Further Ado #253: Now, That’s How You Throw a Comic Convention

With Further Ado #253: Now, That’s How You Throw a Comic Convention

Posted on by Ed Catto

I can’t believe it’s taken me so long to get down to HeroesCon in Charlotte, NC. At Bonfire Agency, I used to do a fair amount of work with comic shop retailers and attended a lot of comic conventions.  Shelton Drum’s comic shop, Heroes Aren’t Hard to Find (great name, right?) in Charlotte was always regarded as best in class and the convention he runs, HeroesCon, was always very well regarded.

Last year, I finally made it to his shop, and this year, I finally made it to his amazing convention.

HeroesCon 2023

There was an electric-but-easygoing buzz in the air. HeroesCon was full of so much excitement and optimism but with none of the crowded drama that all too often accompanies big conventions.   My family and I got our badges and made our way to the convention floor in record time. It seemed like all the workers were smiling and happy at each and every step.

This show brands itself as America’s Favorite Comic Convention, and I think they are right.  The focus at HeroesCon is on the comics themselves, less so movies, gaming and all the other amazing fandoms that typically find a place under the large tent of Pop Culture.  The exhibition floor was full of so many comic book dealers, comic book publishers (A Wave Blue World and AHOY Comics) and a ton of brilliant comic creators.

A few of my highlights included: Continue reading “With Further Ado #253: Now, That’s How You Throw a Comic Convention” →

Rapid Con Review: HeroesCon 2023 Edition

Rapid Con Review: HeroesCon 2023 Edition

Posted on by Bob Harrison

Heroes Convention, shortened to HeroesCon, and affectionately alluded to as simply “Heroes”, was put on this past weekend at the Charlotte Convention Center in Charlotte, NC. The show was a rousing success, as usual, thanks to the fine stewardship of the convention by Shelton Drum of Heroes Aren’t Hard to Find and the amazing talents of Karla Southern.

This show puts the “comic” back in Comic Con. There was a tremendous group of comic book creator talent on the show floor from all different levels of the industry. Also, there were back issue comic vendors as far as the eye could see. Some folks dealt in high end collectable editions while others had boxes upon boxes of $1 comics. The variety of the wares they were hawking served to have something for everyone.

One of the interesting parts about this year’s show was that there was a bit more to browse and shop for things other than comic books or comic book art. I really don’t know how they did it, but somehow they were able to fit in even more creators and still have so many comic dealers and yet add vendors of hand-made crafts, props, toys, and other geeky items.

Auctions and more Auctions..

A view of the Grand Ballroom at the Westin Charlotte as the auction was about to start.

One of the signature things of HeroesCon is the art auctions. There are several auctions throughout the weekend, but the Saturday night event was the jewel of the show. It was a fun and exciting atmosphere as one of kind pieces were up for bids. All the while, everyone was waiting for that one piece by Brian Stelfreeze that had everyone buzzing.

Great Panel Programming

Rich Fowlks, Michael Eury, and Ed Catto discussing The Team-Up Companion

The programming at HeroesCon this year was very interesting. We took in three discussion panels over the weekend. Two of them were related to TwoMorrows publications, including one hosted by PCS’s own Ed Catto. For the third one, we had a chance to sit in the room while Mike Grell educated listeners about the origins and behind the scenes stories of Jon Sable, Freelance.

Andy Kunka, Mike Grell, and Jeff Messer at the Jon Sable panel.

The panels that we didn’t go to also looked incredibly interesting and we heard great things particularly about the Comics Aloud! panel hosted by David Petersen of Mouse Guard fame that featured dramatic readings by comic creators of excerpt of stories with the characters they’ve written and drawn. It was a terrific lineup of diverse and interesting programing to break up the days and give your feet a rest.

Cosplay Too…

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the amazing cosplay that we saw at the show. While other shows may have more quantity and more elaborate cosplay contingents, Heroes had a great mix of enthusiastic people enjoying letting their geek flag fly. You can check out some of the cosplayers that we ran across below.

  • Storm Trooper Cosplay @ HeroesCon 2023
  • Apocalypse Cosplay @ HeroesCon 2023
  • Star Wars Cosplay @ HeroesCon 2023
  • Supergirl Cosplay @ HeroesCon 2023
  • Hope Summers Cosplay @ HeroesCon 2023
  • Optimus Prime Cosplay @ HeroesCon 2023
  • Illyana & Kitty Cosplay @ HeroesCon 2023
  • Dr. Mid-Nite & Dr. Fate Cosplay @ HeroesCon 2023

Hey, Don’t Forget It is June..

The fact that this convention takes place smack dab in the middle of June creates a magical trifecta of real world celebrations that make this a great place to spend a weekend. Father’s Day typically falls on Sunday of HeroesCon as it did this year, which makes it a great place to pick up that last minute gift for a nerdy Dad. Juneteenth weekend was also the same weekend of the Con, and that made taking Monday off  to recuperate an easier decision.

It is also Pride Month and there was a ton of things (books, toys, prints, other chachkas) that were available for anyone interested in that kind of merch. On Saturday, the publisher A Wave Blue World organized a group signing to celebrate the new retail printing of The Color of Always and the GLAAD Award winning Young Men in Love. From our experience, this felt like a very inclusive show.

Final Thoughts

We had a fantastic time at this show and are looking forward to going back next year. If you are fan of Comic Books, Comic Book Creators, or people who love Comic Books, this is the place to be.

With Further Ado #249: Collab or Team-Up?

With Further Ado #249: Collab or Team-Up?

Posted on by Ed Catto

Collabs. All the cool kids in the business world, from tech start-up founders to crafter brewers, know all about “collabs”. (It took me a while to realize it’s short for “collaborations”.) These collabs are all about two companies (or individuals) partnering for a project, in order that they create something unique and memorable. Something that probably wouldn’t happen if each party had just worked on their own.

But comic people and geek culture know what these collabs really are.

They are Team-Ups!

I think my first “Team-Up” was issue #70 of The Brave and the Bold. This was the January 1967 issue; so, it was on sale during the height of the Batman ‘66 craze. There was one problem: it didn’t look like a pleasant collaboration to me. Two heroes, Batman and Hawkman (who was new to me back then) were beating the stuffing out of one another. In the background, a crashed Batmobile was still smoking. This was presumably the result of the Caped Crusader’s and the Winged Wonder’s fight. These two crimefighters were even pulling at each other’s masks, which must have been in direct conflict with some unwritten superhero code. Continue reading “With Further Ado #249: Collab or Team-Up?” →

With Further Ado #203: Shelton Drum and an Incredible Achievement

With Further Ado #203: Shelton Drum and an Incredible Achievement

Posted on by Ed Catto

We’ve got to pause our multi-part conversation with Greg Hildebrandt – I’ll be back with more next week – to celebrate an incredible achievement. Shelton Drum, the owner of Charlotte’s Heroes Aren’t Hard to Find comic shop is celebrating his astounding 40th year running a truly outstanding comic con: Heroes Convention!

This amazing show bills itself as “America’s Favorite Convention”, and you know what? I don’t think that’s hyperbole. Shelton is a comics guy’s comic guy. He knows this industry and still loves it all. He’s created an amazing show that celebrates the medium and has found a way to still stay focused on comics.

Running a show for 40 years is nothing short of incredible. Fans and pros recognize this, as does longtime convention promoter Teddy Hanes. (He’s certainly no slouch in running great comic conventions over the long haul.) Teddy calls Shelton’s efforts, “The Gold Standard for Comic Book Convention Promoters to try and get close to his achievements.”

I was in Charlotte this past weekend and briefly caught up with Shelton in his wonderful store. As the convention was just one week away, he was hip-deep in managing and preparing for the show – it’s June 24 – 26th. (Next year Heroes Con will shift back on its usual Father’s Day Weekend calendar slot). Continue reading “With Further Ado #203: Shelton Drum and an Incredible Achievement” →