Another New York Comic Con has come and gone.
Usually in these past wrap ups, I’ve been quick to point out what Reed Exhibitions did wrong. But I got to admit, they have finally got it together, for the most part.
One of the better things Reed did ,was to have a RFID reader in the badges. This made it harder for non-badge holders to sneak in.
But the main problem with NYCC this year had to be the sense of apathy from the larger exhibitors. It’s like they didn’t even want to be there, and some weren’t.
I understand that the toy manufactures don’t bring their “A” game because NYCC falls smack dab in between SDCC and Toy Fair. Those are bigger draws for them. I get it. But the big 2 comic companies and Hollywood? They treated NYCC like it was SDCC’s red headed stepchild.
What do I mean? Well let me break it down:
- DC Comics – They didn’t have a booth. They had a presence. Whatever the heck that means. They had panels and an autograph area. But no real booth. I spoke to one employee that told me he didn’t understand why he was even there since there was no booth.
- Disney – THOR: THE DARK WORLD opens next month on November 8th and they are starting a media tour to support the film. You’d think that NYCC would be an obvious choice for a stop. But nothing. And I mean nothing. No panels. No cast. Nothing. This is their main audience RIGHT HERE. I seriously can’t believe there wasn’t anything. And don’t even get me started on the Marvel Television Panel.
- CW – The CW brought several shows except ARROW. So you go to a comic convention and don’t bring anything for a show based on the comic book character Green Arrow. Does that make sense to anyone? I’m lost here on that one.
- Marvel – Marvel did have a booth, but it was a lot smaller than it was in past years. And since it was smaller, it was more crowded. The crowds are usually nuts around the Marvel booth, but now being smaller, you couldn’t even move around. You could say it’s not really Marvel’s fault, but they’re owned by Disney, and Disney has money.
- NBC/Universal – This one is my personal favorite. What did they bring? Something that science fiction or geek related? No. They brought the Steve Wilko Show. Let that sink in. What the heck does that have to with a comic convention? Seriously. That’s all you bring? Why bother showing up?
So while the “big” names dropped the ball big time, it gave others room to shine brightly. Dark Horse, Image, BOOM!, all just had great booths and some awesome talent for autographs. And I got interview the Comic Book Men, Justice League: War, Outlander, and others.
As always, the main thing I really look forward to with NYCC is seeing old friends I only get to see at NYCC. It’s nice to see them and just chat.
One of the things about the panels I noticed this year is there were a lot of panels for the start-ups. Everything the self publisher needs to know to get their comic up and running. I liked that.
One of the major things that just annoy me are the cosplayers. Now I have nothing personal against them. And I think it’s cool that they have the guts to put on a costume and just walk around in public. But they so stop the flow of “traffic”. People stopping them anywhere to take a picture. God forbid these people move out of the damn way so some of us get to where we need to. I swear to God next year I’m either bringing a cattle prod with me, or I’m gonna start playing “grab ass”.
Being press, I got a lot of invitations for round-table interviews. They are really cool to go to. Second best thing to a one on one. So I RSVP to them and wait to hear where exactly they’ll be held. Then the day before I find out they can’t accommodate me. Translation: I got bumped for a larger outlet. Why the heck invite me in the first freaking place? Just damn frustrating.
Overall it was great to attend NYCC again. And I look forward to next year.
Hopefully the big names will get their s**t together.
Newsdesk