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Multiversity Goes to ECCC: The Wrap Up

By | March 17th, 2010
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As our readers know, this past weekend Brandon and I went to Emerald City ComiCon and had an absolutely fantastic time there. We met a ton of great creators, found some burgeoning stars, and managed to walk the length of a full marathon all over a period of two days at the Washington State Convention Center in Seattle.

Not only do we have some great interviews coming directly out of the Con, but we also have some exciting opportunities coming up because of it. Thanks to everyone we met that was great at the Con. That list includes, but is not limited to: Brian Michael Bendis, John Layman, Kieron Gillen, Mike and Laura Allred, Jamie Rich, Joelle Jones, Ben McCool, Jim Demonakos, Tim Sale, Len Wein, Kurt Busiek, Mark Waid, Pia Guerra, Emonic, Timothy Green II, Geoff Johns, Patrick Gleason, Doug Mahnke, Pete Tomasi, Dustin Nguyen, Jill Thompson, Emi Lenox, Natalie Nourigat, Matthew Grigsby, and a whole lot more.

Instead of talking about the panels and any announcements that may have come out of it, we wanted to talk about the people who made the Con so great. See after the jump for the First Annual Multiversity Comics ECCC Awards.

Con MVP: John Layman

Out of everyone there, Layman was the most friendly and consistently willing to be cool to anyone who came near him. He was open to participating in our ridiculous writer art-off (with Kieron Gillen), he was friendly enough to stop and talk to us again randomly away from his booth, and he was just all around an awesome guy.

Best Interview: Brian Michael Bendis

While we had a number of very nice interviews (Mike Allred was awesome as well), Bendis was without a doubt the most fantastic and gracious of all interviews. Even though he is one of the biggest names in the business, he’s also one of the nicest and easiest to talk to. He’s just a man who loves writing comics.

Best Comedian: Kieron Gillen

The Phonogram and SWORD creator was definitely the funniest person we came across, as nearly everything he did found us rolling with laughter. Whether it was his “emo Blanka” illustrations, his enthusiasm for sweets at panels, or just his thoughts on frequent collaborator Jamie McKelvie, he always managed to make us laugh.

Best Curator: Ian Sattler

Ian Sattler somehow became Brandon and I’s runaway favorite at the DC Nation panel. We nicknamed him Guididio because he reminded us of an Italian Dan Didio and the nickname really stuck, but really, the guy was a champ on the panel, ably deflecting bad questions and answering nearly everything in an oddly charming and personable way. The guy was an absolute champ.

Most Fun Company: Marvel

Whether it was shredding during the Kirby Krackle concert, fake shredding during Wil Wheaton Rock Band, or just being some of the most approachable and fun creators around, Marvel outdistanced everyone. Nearly every writer/artist we spoke to from The House of Ideas was very cool, and their Mondo Marvel panel was a hilarious romp with a great turnout from their stable of writers.

Least Fun Company: DC

Even though Guididio was a champ, for the most part their DC Nation panel was a drab and occasionally boring one. A lot of their creators (not going to name names) were less than friendly, and they were also the most frequent to not leave a note saying that they will be gone for a significant period of time. Throw in the fact that my single worst interaction at the con was a rather esteemed creator from their stable, and all in all we did not have a great time dealing with the Distinguished Competition.

Best Exclusive (Brandon Edition): Tim Sale’s “Colors of Marvel”

Continued below

The first thing we did on Saturday was go to the Hero Initiative booth and get signed up for a “Colors of Marvel” sketch from Tim Sale. That allowed us to go to a special event at 10 pm that night and get Sale himself to make an original piece of art for us from his Marvel “colors” books. Brandon was the envy of the whole event, as his Captain America was beyond awesome. My Spidey was satisfying, but I found myself looking at Brandon’s creation with envious eyes.

Best Exclusive (David Edition): Monsters & Dames

This art book that is sold for charity collects a ton of artists original illustrations under the theme of women and the monsters they deal with. This book was beautifully crafted and featured external covers by Jo Chen and Angus Oblong, and I quickly turned it into my “Comic Book Yearbook” as I liked to say.

Best Accessory: Press Pass

The Press Pass set up, even though mine was not there waiting for me, was incredible. Get into the con early…wait for nothing…pretty much unlimited access. It was like those old American Express commercials – don’t leave home without it. I know I won’t going forward. Thanks to the ECCC staff for being so quick on the feet in fixing the lack of Press Pass for me. Much appreciated.

Best Writer Turned Artist: Geoff Johns

While we were waiting in line at the Green Lantern table, there was this dude who had a dolly and TONS of books to get signed. Brandon and I were at first dejected by this as we’d already been waiting for quite some time, but our dejection rapidly turned into elation as Geoff Johns illustrated an original Joker for Brandon and original The Thing for me as we waited. This was a completely unnecessary event, but something we really appreciated from one of the top guys in the industry.

Sneaky MVP: The aforementioned dolly man

Seriously, this guy gets props. His obsession with getting his whole collection signed really worked out for us in terms of getting Johns sketches.

Saddest Creator: James Robinson

I swear to god, this guy was under fire all weekend for the conclusion of JLA: Cry for Justice. He was getting so slammed during panels that he appeared to be in a daze during most of the DC Nation panel. He was so unfortunately miscast as a monstrous creator that Brandon didn’t even want to introduce us as Multiversity writers for fear that Robinson may actually see Brandon’s review. It was pretty rough.

Longest Line: Team Green Lantern

Both days, this line was remarkably epic. I mean, if you were in the back you often had a couple hour wait ahead of you. It was a tough spot who really wanted to get their Brightest Day on.

Most Unfortunate Moment/Best Table Ever!: Being the person that told Emi Lenox that she wasn’t in Monsters & Dames

While Brandon and I were waiting in the epic GL line, I went off to go talk to the trio of Portland creators Emi Lenox, Natalie Nourigat and Matthew Grigsby. I wanted to get some mini-comics from Lenox and Nourigat as well as the illustration Nourigat put together for me. When I did that, I was the person who unfortunately let Lenox know that her submission to Monsters & Dames didn’t make the cut. It made me feel terrible. Still, it was great meeting the trio…they’re pretty damn awesome. Can’t wait to see more from them.

Note: I realize highlighting someone for the unfortunate circumstances I met them under was probably less than ideal. So I also wanted to highlight the table itself of Lenox, Nourigat and Grigsby for being absolutely awesome. While I only talked with them on the first day, they were totally rad and I was bummed I was out of money or I would have bought everything on their table. Serious talent there.

Take that Emi!

Favorite Sketch: Natalie Nourigat’s “Ghost of DJ Roomba”

Nourigat often warms up her drawing days with illustrations from the TV show Parks and Recreation. When I noticed this, I had to ask her about it given that I love the show. Eventually I told her I’d stop by and I’d be the guy asking for a “Ghost of DJ Roomba” sketch. To my surprise it was already prepped and almost ready when I stopped by, as she wanted to work on shading it. It turned out wonderfully, and even with a Lou Martin sketch from Doug Mahnke, The Thing from Geoff Johns, and an Ampersand from Pia Guerra, this was still my favorite from the trip.


David Harper

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