A Return To The BenCave

Hello once again with a hearty "it has been a minute" to ComicBookMovie Readers/Followers. It has been a frantic start to the New Year for yours truly and the energy is only going to ramp up. This week: Royal Rumble; Next week: Super Bowl; Week after that: Adam WarRock show in Brooklyn... Even as I look forward, I have to reflect back to this past Saturday.

I made the trek from Queens into Harlem for the 2nd Annual Black Comic Book Festival at the Schomberg Center for Research in Black Culture not really expecting what I ended up finding. Oh I expected to run into creators and do some networking for AfroNerd's ComicShoppe show. I also expected to have a totally mindblowing time with some of the most imaginative talents of the "underground". But what also got me was the sheer amount of people that attended and the gender breakdown.

Last year, AfroNerd and I heard about the convention too late but from friends, I got the sense that a modest amount of people attended. This year, I was in awe of how many people was in this event. There had to be easily a couple of thousand people to patronage the event, even if it was for a little while. The turnout by folks of all races shocked me and makes me think that this convention may be on track for bigger and better things.

As far as gender; I will say that this was the first convention that I attended that had an almost 50/50 ratio of men to women. Matter of fact, the panel I attended on Saturday, , I can easily say was 60/40 female to male with a couple of teachers/supervisors bringing in their students/wards in for even more knowledge. I often wondered where the black female presence was? This gathering was a great indication that I shouldn't have worried. The Black Female Fan is out there & getting her people hooked on books too!

Fun Notes

Finally rectified my mistake from NY Comic-Con and got the chance to converse with Number 13 creator David Walker for a few minutes. Matter of fact, he was one of the professionals that hosted the panel I mentioned earlier. I cannot recommend his Super Justice Force novel enough. Just when I started getting jaded with all the funny stuff happening with the "regular superhero" universes, Walker comes along and gives me the tale of Darius Logan. He warned us on the show months back that when we read this, we'd be hooked and stab his eyes! Mr. Walker was right. I can't wait now for the 2nd installment to be released...... David Walker just Astro City'd me with this. I mean, I just got emotional over a character named Kid Spectacular for gosh sakes.

Much props to Kia Barbee and her Evolve Web Series. Take a sixteen year old foolish/naive black teenager, add a generational legacy of powers, and give her an adversarial relationship with her mother trying to train her. Then stir.... The short episode series I believe is on YouTube, and I think has universal appeal as all teens at some point of time, feel totally alienated to all around them.

It was an extreme pleasure meeting the Craft Family for the first time. Jerry Craft and his two sons, Jaylen and Aren, have crafted (sorry couldn't resist the pun..) a good book about bullying called The Offenders. Take some of the bullies in school and give them powers but in using the powers, they take on the qualities and looks of those they tormented. This is definitely a book for fans of Ranma 1/2 and acts like a very human PSA to a very troubling subject for all kids. Papa Craft, you should be quite proud and here's hoping for more success for your brood.

Got a chance to hang out at the N. Steven Harris' table for Watson and Holmes and spoke to him and Brandon Perlow of their publisher, New Paradigm Studios. Very enlightening and once again, I got opinions/viewpoints about some hot button topics for different directions that we normally wouldn't have candid access to. An urban take on the Sherlock Holmes mythos, you have heard us praise the book on the ComicShoppe, so now you have no excuses. Go get it!

I can never get tired of watching the Black Panther Animated Series... Screw you BET!

Next time, I'm going to catch all the vendors that I missed to get more swag....lol

Link-Blog

-Brian Cronin has thrown out a request.....

http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2014/01/16/accepting-submissions-for-a-month-of-african-american-comics/

So there you go folks. If you know a black creator whose work could use the spotlight, send them this link. I know from this past weekend that there are a lot of "underground" talent that needs a little publicity....

-Remember last time how I was all happy about Michael Douglas being a part of the Ant-Man movie as Hank Pym? Well Andrew Wheeler of Comics Alliance has a dissenting opinion...

http://comicsalliance.com/ant-man-movie-michael-douglas-paul-rudd-casting-opinion/

You know what? His point of view is valid but I stand by what I said here and on the ComicShoppe: Paul Rudd playing Scott Lang, a family man who is only trying to do something right by his kid, is an unknown entity in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Written well, this could be a breath of fresh air....

Taking advantage of the turmoil over at DC, ABC and Disney announces....

http://comicsalliance.com/sif-jamie-alexander-agents-of-shield/

OK Warner Bros? Your turn to trump this one. Arrow better remain awesome for the rest of the year or you'll totally be obscured by Marvel's trump job....

-Got a chance to watch Justice League War last night and in the morning I saw this....

http://comicsalliance.com/batman-and-son-animated-movie-trailer-video/

Then in breaking news, DC released this All-Ages Animated JLA Adventures to Target Stores this past Tuesday:

http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=50459

I stated it before and I'll keep saying it here: why can these morons produce good to great animated efforts and totally screw up their live action plans?

-Meanwhile on the Marvel Animation side of the fence, this seems to be the follow up to Iron Man: Rise of the Technovore....

http://comicsalliance.com/avengers-confidential-black-widow-punisher-trailer-video/

Black Widow co-starring with the Punisher? Other Avengers sprinkled in? Marvel stepping their game up on the animated movie front. Can a full blown Avengers movie be right behind?

-Tore my heart OUT!

http://spinoff.comicbookresources.com/2014/01/20/sleepy-hollows-nicole-beharie-teases-sacrifices-mad-hunt-of-season-finale/

Not the finale per-say. The fact that I am going to have to wait all the way until next Fall for new episodes! Everyone in a fight for their lives. A HUGE betrayal. One of our heroes trapped in hell. LITERALLY. Now these were some great cliffhangers....

-Speaking of the Marvel Movie Machine....

http://spinoff.comicbookresources.com/2014/01/20/mark-ruffalo-holds-out-hope-for-hulk-solo-movie-one-with-a-message/

Mark Ruffalo proved in Avengers that he had the chops to be Banner. Phase 3 should have a Hulk movie along with Doctor Strange, Black Widow/SHIELD, and a teen hero movie in the New Warriors, Runaways, Young Avengers type vein...

-Gone too soon? Definitely

http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=50419

And the common denominator of these books is I collected most of them. I'm a black cat to comic book titles....

-Speaking in that vein....

http://comicsalliance.com/teen-titans-30-last-issue-canceled/

No Legion. No Titans. No Dial H. No Static. No Mister Terrific. Wow. All I am left with is Earth 2 that I collect monthly. DC wants me to leave honestly. Not to take this lying down, its writer Scott Lobdell had a few parting words for some haters...

http://robot6.comicbookresources.com/2014/01/quote-of-the-day-i-cant-find-it-in-my-heart-to-apologize/

You know what? He's 100% correct! I have hated on the nu52 version but the way some people PERSONALLY attacked Mr. Lobdell for just doing his job..? He is perfectly in his rights to shoot back. Which leads me to Sonia Harris' blog this week....

http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2014/01/22/committed-the-wrong-kind-of-nerd/

Everything we do. Everything we obsess over. Everything we react to. Reflects on all of us as a whole. The world typecasts us and puts all of us in a single box. So why must we tolerate these chauvinists/racists/bad personalities in our areas of fandom? Our geekdom has many different facets as Ms. Harris has pointed out, so why can't we all just enjoy our interests without viciously hating on others?

-I need a little happiness after that negative spell.....

http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2014/01/17/the-line-it-is-drawn-173-marvel-comics-meets-star-wars/

Thank you much The Line it is Drawn crew and the Deadpool/Boba Fett team up will now be fanfic'd across the internet....

-I will leave this Link-Blog with some facts brought to us by David Brothers:

http://4thletter.net/2014/01/what-are-you-saying-really/

Any who disagree with this just remember, Denzel was lights out in Remember The Titans and wasn't even considered for an award. He goes dark in Training Day and Hollywood is falling over itself to honor him.

Yeah... I'm half-exhausted....Thanks for reading comic book fans! Until Next Time, Keep Fantasizing!)