There’s a good chance this one slipped right past you. Another Con? A week before NY Comic Con? In one of the boroughs that actually exists (i.e. not Staten Island)?
Well, don’t let it get to you; this year’s Queens Comic Con was the very first one. It’s that new (and I’m talking it-took-place-in-one-room new). Regardless, QCC was as free of charge as it was a Con baby, which, if considered with the legitimately interesting panels and surprisingly familiar speakers, made it a solid way to pregame for NYCC.
The Panels
There were three followed by a costume contest and an auction. In all honesty, I only stood for the first two panels, because the third was about comic book collecting and grading, a hobby I ignore because it demands money I don’t have (I skipped the auction for the same reason [I actually picked up the list for the auction items, full of Silver Age comics, and immediately put it down again by act of sheer will]).
Local Creators
Panelists: Ryan Sias (author of Zoe and Robot), Jacob Chabot (creator, author, and artist of The Mighty Skullboy Army), Chris Giarrusso (creator, author, and artist of Image’s G-Man), Dave Roman (author and illustrator of Astronaut Academy) and Raina Telgemeier (author and illustrator of Smile)
Particularly interesting was Ryan Sias, who explained using watercolors to ink his work.
A collection of local artists and creators talked about how they got into comics, how they work as artists, and what materials they use to get the job done.
Chris Giarrusso and Jacob Chabot were pleasant surprises as I’d already read a bit of Skullboy Army and G-Man. A pretty solid start to a tiny Con being held for the first time in a library (I was honestly terrified when I first entered, but was really pleased when I got to this panel [the Con] myself). All parties were charming and jovial and it became evident that a lot of them already knew each other (enough to get off topic and mention Dave and Raina’s epic Christmas parties [during which they put on some of Dave’s unending stash of Christmas Holiday Specials).
The line-up here (although admittedly kid-friendly), and the mountains of swag presented after the panel ended (not a creator was shy about signing), gave me hope for QCC’s future.
The second panel more so though!
Diversity in Comics
Panelists: Ivan Velez (once writer of several Milestone titles [most notably Blood Syndicate]), Raina Telgemeier (once again), and Alex Simmons (writer for Archie Comics and creator of the Blackjack series of graphic novels)
Here, the panelists discussed the issue of diversity in comics, a particularly hot topic right now with Miles Morales and the New 52’s exploitation of women. The goal: question the gender roles, racial stereotypes, and taboos over sexual orientation, both inadvertent and intentional, that are prevalent in today’s comics industry.
He also wore a sweet ass Black Panther shirt.
Ivan Velez talked briefly about his work in Milestone comics, expressing how great it was and how it seemed the imprint would really change the face of comics (hitting on the point that Milestone featured faces of a broad range of colors [not just tan, brown, and beige]). He also talked about how uncomfortable it was to work as a homosexual Puerto Rican at Marvel, where he wrote two years of Ghost Rider. Velez expressed that the unasked question from many of his coworkers was, “Why is this homosexual Puerto Rican guy working on Ghost Rider?”
Raina Telgemeier expressed some well-found outrage at the New 52, delving into the hot topics of Catwoman and Starfire, now of Red Hood and the Outlaws. This led to the same anger expressed here on Infinite Ammo by The Gentleman Monster (in our “Crisis of Infinite Do-Overs” Round Table) at the sudden decrease in DC titles being penned by women. Raina went on to point out that manga seems to foster a more diverse group of artists and characters, which is definitely true although I found it a hard nut to swallow (because manga does a very, very large amount of objectifying women as well [which perhaps could be a panel on its own]).
Probably most prominent among the points made were Alex Simmons'; he stressed the fact that real diversity exists on a full spectrum when asked about Alex Wilder’s controversial betrayal in Marvel’s Runaways. The problem, he explained, was that creators in the field don’t represent ethnic characters organically; a minority character, for example, should be allowed to be a traitor like anyone else, not consciously safe-guarded from it (because the conscious act, unintentional as it is, still creates a racial convention).
I was a little disappointed that I didn’t get to ask the panelists how they felt about Miles Morales (the questions posed turned out to have nothing to do with the topic [a pet peeve of mine, particularly for a topic like this]). Still, the panelists spent a lot of time picking apart the New 52, Alex Simmons giving special attention to the cover of Judd Winick and Guillem March’s Catwoman #1.
In the end, it’s the vibe of the second panel—the resolve to say what largely goes unsaid at NYCC—that made QCC stand out. This wasn’t just a photo op for authors or a chance for vendors to get your money—this was a group of people who spoke to readers about topics that mattered.
And if next year features more panels like Diversity in Comics, I’ll definitely be there.
Either way, I’ll definitely keep an eye out for next years’ QCC.
