It’s Day Two of the marvelous convention known as Emerald City Comic Con, and I am feeling a little like Dorothy here in Seattle. Does no one honk in this city? How many coffee joints can you fit in one block? And what’s with the plaid?
It’s easy to see why ECCC is a favorite among comics creators. Many, like New York based writer Ron Marz (Shinku, Witchblade) go out of their way to attend this one. With its easy vibe, it’s a nice contrast to the keyed up energy at New York and San Diego Comic Con. It’s a convention where companies like Oni, Dark Horse and Image have a bigger presence than DC and Marvel. There were no insane lines for the panels I attended. And it’s easy enough to chat with popular award winning creators like Scott Snyder (Batman, American Vampire), and Jim McCann and Janet Lee (Return of the Dapper Men, Lost Vegas)
This has probably been the most family friendly con I’ve attended, and stark evidence againstthe notion that women don’t attend conventions. Women were EVERYWHERE and in full force. One the second floor I saw plenty of moms and daughters ooh-ing over the Lego collection of StarWars, Minecraft and other brick creations. The Lego section was truly impressive – something for other cons to consider.
ECCC’s popularity has its downside. The convention has doubled in size and shows some growing pains like many other conventions. Saturday and Sunday tickets were sold out, so if you didn’t plan ahead you were out of luck. Registration was a little dicey – confusion reignedwhen I asked volunteers where to pick up my Pro pass. Artist Alley was cleaved into two separate chunks, causing additional confusion. But enough complaining, it’s enough like Oz here that I’m going to enjoy every minute of it.
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