C2E2 Post-Report

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A weekend of human density, popular culture, digital, print, and toy entertainment came to a close on Sunday April 15th with the McCormick Place north building lights dimming at 5pm to signal it’s time to get out, but the love and excitement of what was in this massive building continues every day in the fans, and companies that buy and create the entertainment that has become mainstream like a blur.

Q101′s presence & table shocked, and excited a lot of people at the convention. The fans and support poured in non-stop through the entire weekend, with supporters normal, and super-hero alike. We traversed the show floor and beyond, reaching every man, woman, child, and cape we saw to remind them that Q101 is as strong as ever.

The Incredible Hulk, as you can see here, couldn’t contain his excitement when he saw the Q101 table.

The Q101 puppet kept showing up in the darndest places! Like here

And here

And here.

The response, support, and feeling of camaraderie during the convention was amazing, and we thank all the fans that came out to see us, and also enjoyed the convention!

Q101 also got into the John Barrowman (Doctor Who, Torchwood) Q & A, and he delighted the crowd, leaving everyone in stitches with his frank and honest answers, stories, and singing.

And no Q101 appearance would be complete without our mascot, the endearing Mr. Bananas who came to say hi to the kids!

Q101 was the perfect description of divide & conquer, we had the convention covered on all fronts, with more than enough to go around! Q101 is popular culture, Q101 is Chicago’s Alternative, WE ARE Q101!!

 All photos care of Nina Andorf

ninaa37@gmail.com

 

 

Q101 @ C2E2, Day One

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Certainly one of Q101′s most arduous adventures into the wild, is the Chicago Comic and Entertainment Expo (C2E2). It’s quite a task to work one of these conventions, but Q101 balanced it all with a steady hand!

Q101 found itself in Artist Alley, but look! We had a corner, which means more space. We did what we’re good at, and that’s make a crowd. We talked about Q101, talked with our fans about Jamboree, sold merch, and had an overall great time! Just like this kid, one of our excited interns:

Once we sent up out table, the traffic just kept coming! It was non-stop until around 3pm:

Today was the first of three days, and the fans came out in droves! Here’s to a great day one, and 2 more to come! And tomorrow, be sure to wear your Q101 shirt with pride, and if we see it, you may get some “treats”!!

All photos care of Nina Andorf

ninaa37@gmail.com

Q101 + C2E2 = Win.

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Yes, you’re reading this right. Q101 will be at C2E2, this weekend April 13th – 15th at the McCormick Place North building in downtown Chicago! We will have our own corner of the world, in Artist’s Alley, booth #O11. We will be wandering the convention floor, selling shirts, handing out goodies, spreading the goodwill and cheer of Chicago’s Alternative! Q101 will be there the ENTIRE duration of the convention. There will be magic! Excitement! Tomfoolery! And maybe this guy:

Did you miss out on our text contest this week to win weekend passes? Never fear friends, be sure to wear your Q101 shirt when you’re in line Friday morning. You may be able to save your money *wink, wink*.

We will have raffles, smiling people, a photographer, and a presence like no other, by the one and only Q101!

 

DC Reboots Elsewhere.. Their Site

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DC Comics, which is a part of Warner Brothers Entertainment, made huge waves last year, with their announcement that they were “rebooting” the entire DC universe, and there was a lot of trepidation as to whether it was going to be successful, but the men that run the show like Jim Lee, Dan DiDio, and Geoff Johns were adamant and positive about the reboot, allowing continuities to streamline, and let titles stand out on their own. This was a huge deal in the comic universe, and a potentially great opportunity for people who either lost their way in the universe, or newbies who were interested in getting on the bus.

The reboot was more successful than DC’s creative imagined, with some of the new #1 titles getting 2,3,4,and 5 reprints. It was a huge success, and the formula that they used in the 1980′s with “Crisis On Infinite Earths” worked again.

Another reboot has come across to DC. Their website, DC Comics has been completely re-done, and their logo has been streamlined to something drastically different. Long gone is the star circle “bullet” that we remember, and now, we see this:

DC is making some giant leaps, and big changes. Stay tuned for more.

 

Marvel Line Goes “First Day Digital” In March

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Digital comics have been as lucrative as the paper issue business model the last few years, with the convenience of staying home, and taking 60 seconds out of your day to buy, and download the books that you love straight to your computer, Android phone, iPad, or iPhone. Saving space for those that have a 200 square foot Manhattan apartment, or a “green” conscious personality, digital comic downloads, just like digital novels or newspapers have been a smack in the face to print media as a whole. Comics however, are going strong on both ends. Diamond Distribution, the “go to” company for national distribution to comic stores, showed numbers last year that people were buying paper books from the brick-and-mortar stores will continue to do so, with some in the mix that will buy both.

Part of the focus of the DC’s “New 52”, also known as re-launch for their continuity, had a large focus on same day digital with their new series, with great success. Marvel’s “Ultimate” line, which is set apart from the Marvel universe continuity is a more contemporary universe, featuring real places, and people, and more of a connection to today’s reader, have been same day digital since early 2011, and their first experiment with the same day digital was with Invincible Iron Man Annual #1 in June of 2010.

Archie Comics was the initial leader in the digital comics market, going same day digital for their entire line in January of 2011, making a real mark by offering them for a dollar less than their print counterparts. If Marvel wants to really take a step forward, that’s the first thing they need to do once their full line goes to the web.

Keep a watch out toward mid-March to start seeing download options for your favorite Marvel characters, or series.

 

Comicbookjockey is a guy with too many opinions, and too little time. He’s crass and articulate, always has on headphones, talks about nerdy stuff, and cleaning up after himself. Too see and hear more:

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New York Comic Robbery Fail, Justice Served.

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There’s some crappy people out there, and it’s unfortunate when greed overrides your common sense, or overall decency to your fellow-man.

Medina, New York – July 5th, 2010: 77-year-old Homer Marciniak awoke in the middle of the night to a robber in his house. The robber wasn’t there for jewelry, cash, or sexy underwear to smell. He was there for comic books. Juan C. Javier, 18, beat the 77-year-old Marciniak when he awoke to find Javier in his home. Marciniak only suffered some cuts and bruises, but died later in the day from a heart attack.

Police said that Javier is one of a group of seven people who were hired by Rico J. Vendetti to rob Marciniak of his collection. The other members of this group hired to steal the comic collection are awaiting trial, or have been sentenced for various charges. 8 people total, including Javier and Vendetti were charged in Orleans County court, New York state. The indictment was later dismissed against four because the case was turned over to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, which charged all four with murder under federal law.

Javier pled guilty this last fall to attempted second-degree burglary, and was sentenced on January 9th to seven years in a New York state prison, with five years of post-release supervision and was fined $5,000 by the judge presiding over the case.

 

Joe Simon, One Half Of Captain America’s Creation, Dies at 98

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Joe Simon was born Hymie Simon on October 11th, 1913 in New York, and became the co-creator of Captain America, along with another golden age icon, Jack Kirby. His career in art started when he was the art director for his high school newspaper, progressing afterwards to be an editorial cartoonist all over the state of New York, finally landing in New York City in the later part of the 1930’s.

His first comic industry creation was the superhero called “The Fiery Mask” that was published by Marvel Comics’ predecessor, Timely Comics. Soon after, Simon and Kirby crossed paths, and first collaborated together on “Blue Bolt” #2. Following that, in 1941, they created the iconic Marvel character, Captain America, Featuring their character’s heroic debut in “Captain America Comics” #1, where the cover depicted Captain America hitting Adolf Hitler in the face with quite a swing on Cap’s part.

Joe Simon and Jack Kirby’s works were recognized, and known for being dynamic and ingenious, which helped the industry begin to take advantage of comic books and their larger pages, forsaking the small newspaper comics, with numerous different strips jammed onto each page. However, they had to put their careers on the back burner for the service to their country during World War II.

Returning from the war working on titles in the late 40’s/early 50’s, they struggled to become publishers themselves, but never succeeded, being kept down by those that already had the money an means to print and publish. Tired of not getting what was felt to be their due, Joe Simon went after Marvel Comics in court to get his rights for the character he helped create, Captain America. The case was settled out of court in 1969, but Simon went after his character again in 1999, but eventually losing the battle as a result of the 1969 deal.

Simon stayed with his craft for many years, in positions such as editor in chief for his father in law’s comics company, to working for DC Comics.

The story of Joe Simon and Jack Kirby fighting for the rights to the character they created almost parallels that of Jerry Siegel, and Joe Shuster, the creators of Superman. Artist/writer/creator owned property was unheard of back then, and had no precedent to favor them, so a lot of the golden agers got a raw deal. However, the fights that Joe Simon and these men started paved the way for the comic industry to make sweeping changes in how things are done, with things like creator-owned property, and making money on public appearances, and signings. Joe Simon toured conventions with his son in the early 90’s with books that he wrote about his life in comics, and was seen as recent as comic cons in 2006, taking pictures with fans, and people dressed up as Captain America. Joe Simon lived to almost 100 years old, and in that time, he may not have won rights to the character he helped create, but he got to see the results of the groundwork him and his peers laid.

DC Comics ‘New 52′ Sells Out, Nerds Take To The Streets

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It’s a red, and blue, and black, and yellow, and green letter day for DC Comics, with the announcement from Diamond Comic Distributors that the “New 52” has sold the F out. There are some that have sold above, and beyond, to the excessive, and unexpected, and some that are getting there. This was a historic re-launch for the company, parented by Warner Bros., and for all intensive purposes, it can be considered beyond simply successful. Let’s look at the numbers that we know so far:

Justice League #1, by Jim Lee and Geoff Johns, has by far blown anything out on the market so far this year, with an unbelievable 200,000 plus copies sold. A 4th print has already been filled for Justice #1. There haven’t been sales like this since for DC since Death of Superman.

And Justice League isn’t the only series that blew expectations out of the water; also, Action Comics #1, and Batgirl #1 are already on their 3rd prints, while a few more join Justice #1 in the 200,000 plus copies sold class, not surprising some:

Batman #1, and Action Comics #1 have hit 200,000 copies sold in the U.S., and there’s no sign yet of slowing down, as subscriptions for further issues into the series are still high. That’s not all, there’s more news. The following issues that are part of the “New 52” launch have hit the 100,000 copies sold, according to Diamond:

-         Aquaman #1 by Geoff Johns, and Ivan Reis

-         Action Comics #1 by Grant Morrison and Rags Morales

-         Batgirl #1 by Gail Simone and Ardian Siaf

-         Batman #1 by Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo

-         Batman and Robin #1 by Peter Tomasi and Patrick Gleason

-         Batman: The Dark Knight by Paul Jenkins and David Finch

-         Detective Comics #1 by Tony Daniel

-         The Flash #1 by Francis Manapul

-         Green Lantern #1 by Geoff Johns and Doug Mahnke

-         Justice League #1 by Jim Lee and Geoff Johns

-         Superman #1 by George Perez and Jesus Merino

This had been huge for DC. The creators themselves didn’t even expect this kind of reaction, so now the next step is to see if they can keep an audience that large engrossed, and entertained with their endeavor.

 

By Q101.com Blogga “Comicbookjockey“, a guy with too many opinions, and too little time. He’s crass and articulate, and enjoys hot sauce, talking about nerdy stuff, and cleaning up after himself. Too see and hear more: The Twitters, The Website,The Blog, The Email

 

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