Jamal Igle on Leaving Supergirl

Jamal Igle posted about his choice to leave Supergirl. He told me this at NYCC and I understand the need to move on to new challenges. I wish Sterling Gates could've stayed as there are too many plot threads I'd like to see continued and any new writer would have his or her own ideas for stories and wouldn't be expected to continue what someone else came up with. Hopefully, the last Gates/Igle issues will finish off most of the loose threads, especially where Lucy Lane is concerned, not to mention Kara's relationship with Lana, and I hope Kara continues to live with Lana and that their relationship continues to grow.

Costumes of NY Comic Con

Here are pics of some of my favorites.

NYCC Day 3

I got to the Javits Center a bit late in the afternoon, and with the con ending at 5 pm, there wasn't much time to do a lot. I spent most of the time on line for Amanda Conner, again, this time to get a sketch as I'd brought an actual, small sketchbook with me this time. While I was waiting, Jimmy Palmiotti showed up at his table next to Amanda's and I asked him for an autograph after gushing in proper fangirl style over how I'm a big fan, which I am. And he did a drawing, too. After I got Amanda's sketch, of Catwoman, because I didn't want what most everyone else seemed to ask for (Supergirl or Power Girl), I stopped by at Jamal Igle's table to say goodbye and ask for his autograph (I'd gotten one a con or two ago, but had neglected to ask this time) and he graciously did a quickie drawing for me, too. And he called me by name without prompting, which is super cool. I don't expect him to remember that by next year, but he recalls my face, that would be great.

I forgot to mention yesterday that Amanda said she couldn't keep up with a monthly book and that's why she's off Power Girl. She'd love to do a graphic novel or mini-series with PG. Hopefully, DC will give her something along those lines soon.

Here are pics of the sketches. I don't need to identify them by artist, do I? Hint: They're in the order discussed above. ;)

Then I met up with a couple of friends and took some more pics of costumes, and then came home. Next year's con can't come soon enough! :)

NYCC Day 2

I got there a bit later today. It was absolutely gorgeous out. I don't recall seeing such a perfect blue sky like that before, so there I was, engaging in an indoor activity!

I met up with a friend who is more into toys than comics. She's very into rubber duckies and was dressed all in yellow, complete with a yellow wig, and was handing out rubber duckies, making her very popular with children of all ages.

I also met up for a while with a flickr contact -- our first face-2-face meeting -- which was nice. Later in the afternoon, I was on my own and ended up spending all my time for the day in Artists Alley. I had a lovely chat, again, with Jamal Igle (actually, we chatted a few times over the afternoon as I had to go back to tell him I was much reassured about Supergirl after my chat with Bernard Chang -- more on that in a bit). Jamal remembered my name (well, it was only since yesterday, but he must've met a lot of folks since then) which was very cool. He's so nice and accessible.

I did talk with Bernard Chang and explained my feelings about Supergirl. He had a book of uncolored pages from an upcoming Supergirl issue he drew and I must say, it looks great. He did say that if I have concerns about how he's doing, to let him know. The email link is on the site. If you like his work, show him support. He said he's signed for just a 5-issue arc, then things are up in the air re: a regular artist for the book.

Bernard Chang

I don't collect much art or autographs these days. That was a younger me, I guess. These days, I'm happy to mostly just chat with people whose work I admire. Art and autographs are like souvenirs to show you met someone. I now prefer to take pictures of them! :)

I did get to tell Ramona Fradon how much it meant to me when I was growing up to see a woman's name in the art credits and she was responsible for many hours of entertainment for me all those years ago. She was sweet and gracious.

Ramona Fradon

I also got to tell Adam Hughes (great URL!) how much I love his art and he nicely posed for a photo. I did have to ask him to smile. ;)

Adam Hughes

One autograph I did get was Cliff Chiang, mostly because I wanted to buy the lovely set of largish postcard-sized prints "Atomic Bombshells."

Cliff Chiang

Atomic Bombshells

I also had a wonderful chat with John Lustig of Last Kiss Comics, which uses old romance comic panels with new dialogue and/or captions for wonderfully satiric results. He told me he had a deal with Dark Horse to do a line of tie-in products, such as mugs and stickers (I'm working off memory here). They should be very cool. He was selling tee-shirts at his table, among other fun stuff. If you haven't seen Last Kiss Comics, do take a look.

John Lustig

Before I left, I checked to see if Amanda Conner was back at her table and she was! And there was a line! But I got on it and snapped a few pics while she did sketches for folks ahead of me, then a couple of pics with her and the toys I'd brought. She didn't remember meeting me before, but she did remember my stormtrooper when I pulled him out for her to pose with.

Amanda Conner Sketching Supergirl

Amanda with Biker Betty Boop Rubber Duck

Amanda Warmly Greets Steve, My Little Stormtrooper

I spent some time taking pictures of folks in cool costumes. I didn't pick up much today, because, well, when you hit middle-age, you start to realize you've accumulated a lot of crap, much more than you need, free or not. So, I'm a bit fussy these days re: what freebies I bring home.

I'll blog more about that later on. I'll be back at the con tomorrow to take more pics. You can view all my pics from the con on my flickr pages. They're at the end of the NYCC and Other Comics Events set.

NYCC Day 1

As a librarian, I get in for the Professional Previews, which isn't nearly enough time before the crowds are let in. I did get to have a nice, fairly long chat (15-20 min) with Jamal Igle about Supergirl and other stuff. He was super nice, always coming back to our conversation after other people stopped by to say hi to him. He was wearing a Mets shirt, so we commiserated briefly. There weren't many other folks in Artists' Alley in the morning, so I was glad he was there and is so accessible to fans.

Jamal Igle

I did get a few minutes to have a nice chat with someone at one of the publishers' booths (can't remember which one now) about the high end compilations of comic strips, plus a discussion about Modesty Blaise, so that was nice.

Things got very hectic, hot, and crowded after that. I don't do panels anymore and I don't like standing on lines (my legs don't like it for too long), so I mostly just wander the Exhibit Hall. I did meet up with a friend in the afternoon. It got impossible to move in some spots, mostly by the toy vendors. And there really wasn't much by way of new toys or toy previews. DC did have some nice statues and action figures.

But missing were the big toy displays. And I didn't see any Stormtroopers wandering around. Maybe tomorrow.

New Team for Supergirl

When I chatted with Jamal Igle in Artists' Alley this morning at NYCC, he confirmed he was leaving Supergirl, but was very tight lipped about revealing his replacement. And now, we learn there's a new creative team taking over SG. I'm not familiar with Nick Spencer, the new writer on the book, so I don't know if he'll do right by Kara, but I can't argue with Bernard Chang on art.

Photos from NY Comic Con soon.

Comic Con

Tomorrow is the start of New York Comic Con! I'll be there! Will you?

There will be photos. I don't buy comics much there as I get what I need at my local shop, which is Forbidden Planet, but I do buy toys if I find things I need. There is no want. There is just need. I've become such a toy addict!

Brief Reviews

Gotham City Sirens 16
There's an interesting story in here straining to get out. As a first chapter, this was one of the more disjointed bits of comics storytelling I've encountered. If we don't get explanations for why Zatanna felt the need to pop in on Selina while she was bathing to give her a warning that's as cryptic as could be, and therefore, unhelpful, or why Talia actually needs Oracle to learn where Selina is, especially since Talia is already on scene at the "trap" she says Selina is walking into... well, I can't wait, because nothing I can come up with makes any sense. The whole issue read like an excuse for a bunch of cameos. I hope chapter 2 is a better. A lot better, because I'm getting worried a fun book could quickly go down the tubes.

Green Arrow 4
More weirdness, with a brief visit from the Martian Manhunter. There's something so over the top about this book, but it is entertaining and intriguing, and the art is very nice to look at.

Supergirl 56
I read this last week, but forgot to post a review. Bizarros were never my favorites in the Superman books, but Gates is making me really enjoy the Supergirl version. He's really uh, fleshed out Bizarro SG as a full-fledged character and I like the Bizarro world. Much fun in this issue, with some real emotional bits.

Power Girl 16
The art is growing on me, though not nearly as expressive as Connor's version of PG. The story isn't bad, but there's something about the relationship between PG and Nicco, her techie who discovered her ID. I keep thinking this is shaping up as a lesser version of Manhunter and Dylan.

Mademoiselle Marie One-Shot
I love the character and the Bolland cover is lovely, so I picked this up today. The story was okay. Hardly must-read material, but a nice diversion. The art by Justiniano and Derenick on pencils and Mangum on inks was pleasing, but there was a bit of an annoyance, with a blonde female character reminding me, in too many panels, of Zinda, currently holding forth as one of the Birds of Prey. It was a distraction.r

Wildstorm No More

The announcements re: DC and Warners is not encouraging, with all but DC Comics moving to California and jobs being cut at DC, and now the news that Wildstorm will end in December. I shouldn't be surprised. Sooner or later, it seems that companies bought by other companies get phased out. Or they split. AOL Time Warner didn't work out, and then there's FedEx Kinko's which recently eradicated the Kinko's name to become FedEx Office. So even if DC uses many of the Wildstorm characters, presumably on their own Earth in the Multiverse, it's still the end of an imprint that was once a company that's now a casualty of a declining market for print comics.

I never read a lot of Wildstorm books. I'm mostly a Wildcats reader, having started with Wildcats 2.0, but I went and got the trades available for the earlier version and I love those characters. I'd like to think this will work out for the best, but I'm not hopeful. I fear all the changes at DC will benefit only my wallet as I end up with fewer comics I want to read. Unless I start looking at the smaller companies and non-mainstream titles. I'm not sure about that as my love for comics has been firmly grounded in the superhero variety, especially of the DCU, and I can't imagine getting into Marvel, though in the '70s, I did read a few Marvel titles.

Ah well, I guess nothing lasts forever. Hopefully, we'll know soon where things stand with DC.