Posted in: Comics | Tagged: Comics, entertainment. comic con, jesse james, rob liefeld, robert kirkman, scott snyder

Are There Just Too Many Comic Conventions Now?

Jesse James of Jesse James Comics of Arizona writes,

The Convention season officially kicked off two weeks ago. Image Expo and Albuquerque Comic Con started the season off very strong with lots of hype backed up with lots of Variants and Cos-players. Comic book conventions used to be niche events with limited appeal to the masses.  They have become so ubiquitous that this past weekend Arizona State University (ASU) hosted a convention on campus.

However, with all that said, there are just too many conventions. It can only get worse as the year progresses. The last 3 years I have gone to over 140+ conventions. This year, it looks like I will be breaking all my traveling records by mid season. I find myself booked for three different cons during certain weekends. That averages a con a weekend day.

In this business, there is a group you see at every con. That group has dropped by almost 50% over the last three years. We see creators spread out with creative teams on a book on opposite sides of the states. Some fans are not very happy that they are not getting the full package. Only 3 years ago, fans would expect to see a writer and artist sitting together. On top of this, publishers trying to have a presence at multiple conventions are stretched thin with burnt out or lackluster team members on their front lines.

I find it very hard to find anybody in the circle that is happy about the XYZ con that someone put together because "they wanted to do a convention".  Their main guests are now lined with cos-play headliners and not top line creators or publishers.  In fact, last year, we had conventions that the owners never showed up to or split hours before the con was suppose to happen.  There were two cons that ended up with less than 100 fans showing up.

Fans are now being asked to pay more to attend a convention leaving them almost empty handed by time they get in to the convention.  Others line up for 3 hours or more just to get an autograph because that convention really only could afford one A+ guest.

Don't get me wrong. There are some awesome conventions out there that are going to get it right every year.  I'm not worried about NYCC, SDCC, Emerald, Phoenix, Baltimore, or any of the Amazing cons. I know I can go to them every day and have a blast.  It's with the over 75+ conventions on top of that this year that I have a moment of pause.

Some might say I have carried the variant flag for 4 years now and just got my ass handed to me and beat down on a weekly basis for it. I have never backed down from variants being very important to the comic book scene and definitely the convention scene.  You won't see me back down this year.  However, the expansion of cons is now creating too many variants and the fans just can't be expecting to continue to dish out so much money for a cover at every con.  Publishers should also look at what they are producing and making sure that it is a viable product that will shed some value financially or as a keepsake. I don't think putting Deadpool on a cover of Black Widow merits any value to the Deadpool fans. Their money is best spent somewhere else.

Conventions need to set some rules for cos-players. They are a huge part of the business now, but creators shouldn't be on a waiting list because the convention has sold 15 tables to cos-players before filling the creators list. I love cos-players! Many are my very close friends. I think they do just fine walking around and getting pictures taken with fans rather than behind tables trying to sell pictures of themselves dressed up as comic book characters. There are a handful that deserve to have tables because they represent the cosplay community very well. It also excludes the philanthropic groups who I feel should have a corner for themselves 501st and etc.

Overall, I'm very excited this year to go to as many conventions as I can fit into my schedule.  Why? I want to see my friends. I just can't do that at one convention a quarter anymore.

To the veteran cons: own your weekend; get the guest you know you should have; and don't just think one A+ creator will do the job for you. To the new convention: don't over promise and under deliver your first year; stay within your budgets; and make sure your headliner is a comic creator.  To the publishers: you don't need a variant at every convention and present a great product that your fans can afford

In the end, it's going to be up to the fans on decide if there are too many conventions or if they are willing to attend more then 1 to 2 cons a year.  Though I'm sure I will being attending some XYZ cons this year,  I'm hoping just one can make me say "I can't wait to come back to XYZ con in 2015".

P.S. As I'm writing this I have come across a ad for the Super Cosplay Championship at London Super Comic con in March.   The Comic Gods are now testing us.

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