Last weekend the Toronto ComiCon was held at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre and I must say what a refreshing change from the last con I participated in. The crowds were good, especially on Sunday, when admission was free, and the fans themselves were great. The Book of Methuselah received a lot of positive response, as well as my new upcoming project M.H.A. I didn’t pick up a whole lot of material myself but what I did grab has me excited to read. First was Mirror Mind by Tory Woollcott, an autobiographic relating her experience growing up dyslexic and the second was The Nobody by rising comic star Jeff Lemire. I enjoyed his Essex County Trilogy, and having just finished this last creation I can say it was a good re-imagining of The Invisible Man in a small town setting. I really think Jeff has a talent for setting up page layouts that naturally draw the reader through the story and convey the emotions of his characters. I also got a few books signed, notably a trio of Savage Sword of Conan’s drawn by Ernie Chan. Growing up that magazine was a particular favorite. Shawn Robertson used to bring them to elementary school where, hiding from teachers who would no doubt have confiscated them if they knew the contents within, we would poor over the pages of the sullen barbarian, howling with wide eyed glee as Conan mercilessly smote his enemies, bedded the scantly clad maiden, seeking fleeting riches, the open road and the glory of battle. Great stuff for young minds already enamored with the fantasy genre.
Saturday night my table mate, Shane Heron, and I attend the Joe Shuster Awards for Canadian comic creators. I’d have to say that Ty Templeton stole the show with his witty remarks on the nature of comics and the personalities of their creators. You can actually catch the awards and many of the cons panel discussions on the Joe Shuster Awards website.
When Monday rolled round I felt exhausted, a post convention let down I guess. Maybe it’s realizing how busy the next few month’s will be preparing issue #4 before Fan Expo. Good times ahead.

Myself and Shane at the table.

Antony Del Col at the Kill Shakespeare booth.

Andy B. doing a con sketch.