Boston Comic Con 2014: Day One

Ryan Smythe ’15 / Emertainment Monthly Staff Writer
It’s a little disconcerting to walk into Boston Comic Con, only to be welcomed by Newbury Comics at the door. Yes, this is the exact event their customers like to attend and yes, their stand is in the most prominent spot, but isn’t their store just down the street and a T ride away? Maybe it’s a different experience for those coming from out of town, but for Boston natives, it acts just like a second set of doors, another thing to brush by.
Hiding just behind the crudely drawn grinning face are rows upon rows of people, some representing stores, some representing themselves, just as nervous or excited as any actor before the curtain goes up. The press and VIPs get an extra hour before the crowds rush in, and it was in those 60 minutes that those of us milling about the floor got a sneak peek at just what goes on before that rush. Volunteers run about, bringing last minute paper towels to mop up a heartbreaking coffee spill before it reaches any of the merchandise, or directions to make sure that everyone’s table is the way it was promised ahead of time.
Most of those tables are all set up, ready for hours with each comic and action figure in just the right place. The veteran vendors shout across the aisles at friends both old and new, sometimes with a joke and other times with a bit of friendly advice. Last minute jitters are worked out or masked with a little bit more caffeine brought by a daring worker precariously balancing twelve cups on only two arms.
The majority of stalls up in the front are comic and games sellers, with Marvel and DC unsurprisingly taking up a lot of the space, followed closely by Magic: The Gathering and classic video games. The comic sellers are especially hyped following the monstrously successful release of Guardians of the Galaxy, placing their Rocket Raccoon and Groot memorabilia in eye-catching locations.
One vendor in particular, Cards, Comics, and Collectibles, based out of Baltimore, MD showed off its wares on a massive wall mounted with comics both from this past week and those out of print before a lot of grandfathers were born. Founder Marc Nathan, along with his nine-person crew, work their booth with an efficiency learned from six Boston Comic Con appearances, as well as running the Baltimore Comic Con each year. The only thing more impressive than their veteran status at the Con is that collection of comics on display. Among the hundreds if not thousands of books is the very first comic ever published, Famous Funnies. A book reprint of newspaper comics, Nathan quickly goes into comic historian mode, detailing just how the very industry this entire convention is based on started.
It’s with people like Nathan that the line between vendor and artist blurs. He may not create the same images that the authors and artists of his displays do, but his knowledge and passion make the entire world of comics that much more accessible. And as he catalogs the accomplishments and puts them on those immaculate displays, the creators of the beautiful pages sit mere feet away. Names like Ramón Pérez, artist of such works as Jim Henson’s Tale of Sand and The Amazing Spider-Man: Learning to Crawl and Anthony Del Col, one of the creators/writers of Kill Shakespeare sit right next to each other bantering back and forth.
Del Col stands ready with a quick word and a high five to the passers by, reveling in the fact that so many people read and enjoy his work. Pérez, engrossed in sketching Peter Parker wielding a camera, lets his jovial neighbor do most of the talking. When he gets talking however, his stories of working with Dan Slott on “Learning to Crawl” get him excited enough to put down his pen and devote his focus to talking about the new Spidey villain he co-created with Slott, Clash. Along with their new creation, the duo had the daunting task of clarifying a lot of the gaps in the origin story of the webhead. To do so, Pérez took original panels created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko and expanded them. “I gave the readers a look at what was happening just off panel,” he said.
It’s not just big names populating the tables at Boston Comic Con, however. Smaller groups like Greenbrier Games, a tabletop games publisher, got their start with a lot of hope and even more talent. Since the successful Kickstarter for their game Zpocalypse completed in 2011, they have moved on to become a publisher for several other tabletop games, as well as various expansion packs for their own. Other vendors/artists like Liz Siegel of Tofusquirrel got their start in equally successful, albeit more roundabout way. While struggling to break into the art world, Siegel worked at Blockbuster and in her job interview “required that I be allowed to draw at work.” It was during one of these drawing sessions in the store that a coworker saw her art, and asked Siegel to design a poster for her band. Ever since that first poster, more and more people have approached her to design, including Pabst Blue Ribbon, Outer Limits Hot Sauce, and DC Comics.
It’s not just the vendors that make Boston Comic Con such a surreal experience. The people who come through the doors as paying attendees fill in the gaps left in the aisles between the tables. In one corner, two Batmen compare costumes, feeling each other’s ears and commenting on the strength of their chest plates. Over in another section, Thor yells Finding Nemo quotes at his friends. Children run around in between and around the legs of these more grown up cosplayers, sometimes staying around their families so the Bob’s Burgers group costume keeps its impact, and other times not worrying about staying as a unit, relying on their combination of Thor helmet and Bane mask to keep them safe.
It’s sights like these that show off the true beauty of comic cons. They’re a place for people of all ages and fandoms to congregate, and share their love for the incredible fantasies that many of them work so hard to create. The level of respect for what are essentially complete strangers quickly morphs into appreciation for people to geek out with, and more often than not continues into genuine love for the community each of the attendees help to maintain. It’s a beautiful collection of creativity and wonder, and with two days left to go, has a ways to go until it’s over.