Posted in: Bad Idea, Comics, Comics Publishers, Current News, san diego comic con | Tagged: sdcc, Valiant 2024

The Bad Idea San Diego Comic-Con Party That Paid You $300 To Attend

Despite being over a week ago, Bad Idea's San Diego Comic-Con 2023 party seems to be having lasting effects. $330 worth on eBay.

Published Wed, 02 Aug 2023 14:42:07 -0500

by Rich Johnston

Last updated Tue, 15 Aug 2023 07:11:02 -0500

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Despite being over a week ago, Bad Idea's San Diego Comic-Con 2023 party seems to be having lasting effects. When the doors were opened, the line was more than 150 people deep and were served mai tais while they waited to check-in.

Bad Idea Comics held a Tiki Party on the Friday night at San Diego Comic-Con to any and all First Customer Pin owners at the show, those who had bought the first copy of a new series at their local comic book, and were giving away a free comic book. just as they did last year.

Bad Idea displayed art from what we can only conclude is a new slate of books. We caught art from Kevin McGuire, Lewis LaRosa, Alberto Ponticelli, David Lapham, Tom Fowler, Jonathan Wayshack, KANO, Jamie Jones, and Doug Braithwaite.

The giveaway comic called Save Now (by Matt Kindt and Tomas Giorello) initially appeared to be identical to the comic that was given away at their panel earlier in the day but, as you read it, was revealed to give the reader the surreal experience of the protagonist "Saver" reliving the same moment until he gets it right. Save Now SDCC #2 (the issue given away at the party) is selling briskly on eBay up to $330.

Despite several other parties, including the Eisner Awards drawing attention elsewhere, spotted at the party were artists Tony Fleecs, Jonathan Wayshack, Dean Haspiel, reps from Diamond Comic Distributors and Lunar Distribution (including owners Christina and Cameron Merkler), Kickstarter, dozens of press outlets (including Bleeding Cool's Jimmy Leszczyski), YouTube and social media influencers, a host of Hollywood executives, a few (alleged) movie stars and staff of major publishers (including the entire staff of Massive Comics) with comic retailers and fans.

Someone claims they saw James Gunn in the shadows, but it may just have been the Russo Brothers, one standing in front of the other.

Bad Idea supplied a host of themed drinks with suspicious names. Our spies tell us the alcohol content was high, especially in the Habitat, and no one from Bad Idea was giving any clue about why one of the cocktails was named Valiant 2024. Though we had our theories…

The previous year's Menu has played out over the last year in terms of the comic books that Bad Idea has published since, Escape From Wyoming by Robert Venditti & Jorge Monlongo, The Ends by David & Maria Lapham, Peter Milligan & Juan Jose Ryp's Burning Man, Orc Island by Joshua Dysart & Alberto Ponticelli and Megalith by Matt Kindt and Lewis LaRosa.

So that means Bad Idea Comics will at some point be publishing The Destroyer, Habitat, Down Deep, Cul De Sac and… Valiant 2024?

Bad Idea Comics is a relatively new comics publisher from Dinesh Shamdasani, Atom Freeman, Joshua Johns, Karl Bollers, and Anthony Militano. A direct-to-retailer publisher, eschewing digital, variants, and trade paperbacks in favour of one-cover one-per-person comic book sales from big comic book names. and some very silly promotional ideas. It also comes from the bones of Valiant Entertainment, when they were taken over by Chinese venture capital firm based in LA, DMG. Dinesh used to be the former CEO, Chief Creative Officer and founder of Valiant Entertainment, and was pushed out by the current management. Certain Valiant fans still miss him and his attitude to actually publishing the Valiant books. Now with Valiant outsourcing the publishing of their like to Alien Books, what could Valiant 2024 mean?? Dinesh tagged Valiant Entertainment into that tweet, of course.