THE SHOW EXCLUSIVES
While not as prestigious as San Diego Comic Con, the Con that started it all, New York Comic Con is certainly privy to its own exclusive show ponies.
No, not My Little Pony– That Abbey Road cover was for San Diego Comic Con and I certainly didn’t purchase it, so stop asking.
How do you get these 1:1 replicas of the Riddler Trophies from Arkham City? Easy. Break the glass. Run.
Perhaps the first thing that catches your eye upon entering the Con is the burning block of South Park, Colorado. Inside this immolated Tom’s Rhinoplasty besieged by a flying saucer was a fifteen minute in-game preview for South Park: The Stick of Truth, whose highlights included a “skip movie” button that pops up when the Bard Jimmy stutters through a sentence, the special nut-cracking move Roshambo, and Butter exclaiming “You’re my new bottom bitch!” upon winning the day.
Essentially, it’s the reason why Mario doesn’t talk in Paper Mario. Those who preordered The Stick of Truth at the Con would be rewarded with a Grand Wizard Cartman, which our Frag Dolls presenter smartly referred to as just a “Wizard Cartman.”
Because I’m talking about videogames, here’s a clever GlaDOS
Even though the Assassin’s Creed games are getting churned out at Madden-like rates (I finally got my Assassin duds in three when the announcement for Black Flag was made) I have to admit, seeing the multiplayer mode up and running on the Xbox One completely blew away my expectations. Maybe it has something to do with watching previews for a system’s graphics on a system that specifically can’t handle those graphics, but before I could start really thinking it through I participated in a Just Dance 4 demo, shaking a wiki-note and a pumpkin-like derrière to “Blurred Lines”, in a manner that would make Miley Cyrus twerk madly in envy. Or at least whatever she calls twerking. Squats aren’t just for guys.
Fittingly enough here is an Assassin-Pool…or Dead Creed.
Only way it could’ve been better was if there was a gender-bending Beetlejuice on stage with me at the time, but I’ll take what I can get.
Of course there are also comics at Comic Con, and though there were hardly any convention variant covers, there was the absolutely gorgeous reveal of the color edition of Scott Pilgrim, which I guess should have been called “colour edition.”
Favorite Ramona Flowers of the Con
Regardless, this re-release of the book abandons the tiny-page black and white manga format of the book in favor of a larger, more lively and colorful format. Even the jokes that can only work in black and white, like Ramona’s hair color constantly changing in a grey-scale production, is handled accordingly in this new edition.
Windows Phone makes this impossible to read but– “NOTE: This book is in black and white” is changed to “NOTE: This was funnier in black and white.”
In addition to this premiere color edition there’s also the evil edition, which is only sold at conventions and is identical to the color edition in every which way except for the Evil Ex on the cover and a larger price tag, ‘cause it’s evil.
Naturally I brought all of these evil editions except for Volume 3, ‘cause Envy Adams is the best.
In addition to this ONI Press re-release, New York Comic Con also featured some fantastic and inventive Indy titles that cannot be overlooked. High Fructose Zombies combines the fat kid epidemic and the best epidemic ever in a deliciously fun, four-issue hors d’oeuvre. The Circle is an ambitious take on the visual Pulp Mag from Brian Roll. FUBAR: American History Z, is somewhat self explanatory, examining the origins of the greatest country ever but with shambling undead mixed in.
Me with the lovely crew of High Fructose Zombies
For an extra five bucks I got a personalized and inked sketch of a zombified Hunter S. Thompson that I don’t think is in bad taste.
Expect reviews and interviews for this titles in due time, I assure you that in spite of their meager start there are titans within these pages.
Unfortunately, a large part of any Con is always compromise. Though there are handy show planners available and four days worth of convention to absorb, there’s always going to be some event that you stumble upon or a line that’s comprised solely of hindrophobics that will throw a spanner into the works, or a PCP riddled Grizzly into a kindergarten.
Did you know they make Daft Punk action figures now? ‘Cause they do.
My Sophie’s Choice but with exosuits was between checking out Saturday’s Walking Dead panel, extrapolating and teasing the season that starts in exactly fifteen minutes at the time I originally wrote the sentence, or meet Felicia Day, the best thing to happen to redheads since Mary Jane Watson eclipsed Gwen Stacey. Guess which choice I made.
We shared an awkward hand-shake. I had an awkward moment with Felicia Day and it was the most amazing awkward thing to ever happen to me since Billy Ray Cyrus gave me a dead-fish high-five.
Now some of you may guffaw and chortle at the idea of paying a celebrity money for their signature, and additional for a pic in certain cases, but here’s my rationale. If I were a celebrity, and someone told me to sit in a chair for like three hours so that I could meet and shake the hands of my fans, which include web admins who make sites devoted to jerking it to my work, people who dress up as me, and not even asking the to wash their hands, paying twenty bucks is but a pittance.
Cyberpunk Little Mermaid. There is no way to intro this properly.
Also, you’re technically paying for a high glossy photo, so just chill and appreciate the fact that within an eight hour window you were able to meet the girl who embodies cosplay, Ink Masters’ blood-red answer to Kat Von D — Megan Massacre, and the best goddamn sell-sword this side of Westeros.
Also, Hulkamania is as prevalent as ever. The line to meet Hulk Hogan was the longest line I saw at the Con, and mind you the line for the original Green Power Ranger, White Ranger, and white guy as the Black Ranger, Jason David Frank had a surprise visit from the guy who played Skull. Or Bird. It was impossible to tell.
Super cool article! Loved all the hilarious references 😛
Makes me wish I would’ve gone.
How dare thee judge bronies by their solemn appreciation of a themed-Monopoly board game. Speaking on behalf of all in the herd that were at the convention, I’m pretty sure other people have done worse things with their favorite products. I know this because I’ve seen this happening as such. No need to make fun of the guy who was just trying to have a good time.