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Mike Carlin on Comic Cons past and present

Friday, July 17th, 2009

By Mike Carlin

carlini-san-diego-2006

Legions of us (us– you– >gasp< — THEM!) are packing now and will soon converge on the southern California town of San Diego… for the 40th Annual COMIC-CON INTERNATIONAL! (Next Wednesday, in fact!)

40 years! 1970 to 2009! >Whew!<

And this will be my 19th time at this show in the last 20 years… and, man, has Comic-Con become the event of the year in that time! Today this convention is regularly covered on television and in magazines and draws creators and fans of all media… a far cry from the days when folks sat in hallways with their dog-eared collection of comics at their feet… just looking to trade for something they didn’t have—or hadn’t read!

Now Hollywood and Gaming and media of every stripe make this their home-base/launching pad—reaching the folks they need to speak to directly/instantly. Some people grouse that the show isn’t about comics anymore… but this convention has been about comic art, film and science fiction from the start! And this kind of attention and respect for the form some of us work in– and all of us enjoy– IS exactly what we were looking for, wasn’t it?

me-getting-my-eisner-award-from-mr-award

And while I’ve only been to 19 cons in San Diego I have been attending conventions around the world (England, Mexico, Australia) in the years since… and actually attended my first convention when I was 11 years old in New York City. My Mom took me to one of the early
shows run by the legendary Phil Seuling in Manhattan in1969.

What I liked about that convention then is what I like about going to San Diego now: I get to meet the people who do the creative work I like. Before comic conventions you couldn’t meet Picasso… or Hitchcock… or Groucho as a fan… but now, thanks to conventions like the one next week, we can meet the people we admire and respect. We can chat… and bond… and share what we all love!

We have a place where we belong to each other… people can tell me what they like or dislike about the work I’m involved in… AND if I’m lucky I get the chance to say hey to the comic writers and artists I know and love (and hope to work with in the future)… as well as rubbing elbows with folks like the guys from MR. SHOW (not comic books—but comics)… Jane Wiedlin (hey, music ain’t comics… but it IS something I like! And DC Comics DID sport Go Go Checks for a period!) and maybe… just maybe … I will bump into Hayao Miyazaki!
>Gasp! Again!<

See you there… us and them, too!!

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This entry was posted on Friday, July 17th, 2009 at 3:55 pm and is filed under From the Editors. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

7 Responses to “Mike Carlin on Comic Cons past and present”

  1. capnbludd says on July 17th, 2009 at 4:37 pm :

    I want to know who sells that football jersey and what other styles they have besides Superman

  2. markajcook says on July 18th, 2009 at 1:13 pm :

    Hi Mike,

    I’m a fan of your work on Superman and a very vocal critic of your Green Arrow & Black Canary editing. The book is just heading in the wrong direction. (In fact, I’ve called it MANURE, GUANO & DUNG.)

    Your writer, Andrew Kreisberg, has written Ollie as a wannabe Batman and Dinah as a ditzy damsel in distress. The most appalling part of his work was in issue 18 when Ollie tazed Dinah for her protection?!? Is Ollie really that dumb? Tazing is a violent act and Ollie would never physically harm Dinah. (This act has created comparions to Hank Pym! I’m assuming that you’ve read The Longbow Hunters. Do you recall Ollie’s rage at Dinah’s torture?) Is the marriage salvageable after such an act? I’d rather see the whole incident retconned, seeing how nothing good will come from this.

    Other problems with GA/BC include long and drawn out storylines such as the search for Connor Hawke, written by Judd Winick. (BTW, Winick was fine until the relaunch.) In this storyline, loyal readers were exposed to a lackluster story that didn’t even merit an actual Ra’s Al Ghul appearance. The tragedy of Ollie & Shado’s son was pointless (and needs retconned) . Connor Hawke not only has Plastic Man’s powers, but is now ultra-violent as well?!? (Doesn’t anybody like Connor as Connor Hawke anymore? Connor aspires to be the hero Ollie is and a better man than Ollie was. And he doesn’t believe in violence. Isn’t that interesting enough?)(Retcon the silly putty powers, too.)

    All of this is giving this reader fits. Why don’t I drop GA/BC? I’ve read about the characters for years now. Why break that habit? Everyone seems to quote sales statistics these days. Here’s some numbers. Between 2004 and 2007, Green Arrow sold a consistent 31,000 copies. Sounds like fans were content, doesn’t it? With GA/BC #21, those sales have dropped to 20,807. Sales have declined for 16 consecutive issues now. Many loyal readers are dropping the book.

    I’m really hoping for some good news from San Diego, Mike. How about letting Andy Kreisberg work on Fringe and get a new and experienced writer on Green Arrow & Black Canary? A relaunch might be necessary, too. Fans need a clean break from this (and the sales boost wouldn’t hurt either).

    Thanks for your time,

    Mark AJ Cook

  3. bohemiacomicsreader says on July 18th, 2009 at 9:21 pm :

    To each his/her own, I think this is the best GA/BC’s been in a long time.

  4. savegaandbc says on July 19th, 2009 at 9:34 am :

    Then i must ask how long you have been reading , because i too want to call it down right BAD.. and I’m happy to say the sales numbers agree with me.

  5. howardporter says on July 20th, 2009 at 3:21 pm :

    And I just have to say: I love you Mike. In a very creepy, stalker-like way.

  6. markajcook says on July 20th, 2009 at 8:50 pm :

    Hi savegaandbc,

    I’ve been reading comics since I received a gift of $1.00 around Christmas 1983. My first comic was Flash 330. I followed that with Batman 368 and shortly after that was Detective Comics, which had a Green Arrow backup in it. I’m a 25 year comics veteran at the age of 35.

    It’s sad to see how bad Ollie and Dinah are being treated right now. I’m hoping for some good news soon. Like a new writer and a relaunch to regain readers.

  7. markajcook says on July 20th, 2009 at 10:33 pm :

    I probably should point out $1.00 gift was from an acquaintance of Mom’s and not the total sum of gifts.

    I just re-read my post and thought I should clarify.

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