According to Wiggle

NYCC 2011 » it’s gettting better and better

gosh, what to write about ? well, first off it was one long weekend. i had me a fancy 4-day pass and from Thursday to Sunday, i ran around the show trying to take in as much as i could shooting pictures, collecting tidbits of information of upcoming projects + events, acquiring: freebies, artwork, t-shirts, toys and naturally, comics. i had such a great time this year despite being so sore right now!

i gotta say that Comics Alliance did a fantastic job covering the NYCC show in it’s entirety. there was just SO much to see and do this year, i couldn’t possibly do a better job than they have already. so for any news coverage concerning comic announcements (and there was a LOT of news), go check those guys out.

one of the few things i can say about the show is that their event planners are improving on a year to year basis. aside from the convention center being a slightly double-booked by SATCON on thursday and friday, they really DID take notes from last year’s show to make this year’s better. (for those in attendance on friday, the reason why we queued outside the convention center was because they were still cleaning up the SATCON event that took place earlier in the week). it was nice to see that the Anime Artist Alley + the Cultyard were both relocated to different areas to receive an upgrade in space that was highly deserved. 

NYCC 2010 was the first year that they integrated the NYAF (New York Anime Festival) with the main Comic Convention and it was tucked away in the littlest corner. it wasn’t until very late Sunday that i was able to find it and quickly snake through the aisles. for 2011, they gave the NYAF Artist Alley the top floor space which in the past, have been the Tabletop Gaming and Autograph booth areas. aside from (again) being secluded from the rest of the show floor, it’s actually one of the nicer spaces of the convention center with it’s high ceilings and better ventilation. a great upgrade from the stuffy basement level culdesacs better suited for panels and screenings. but we anime fans are vigilant, no matter where you put us, we will find it and have a good time regardless, but thanks for the love this year. ^_^;

last year was also the debut of the Cultyard and it was a huge success. the handful of people keen to the ‘Underground Pop Culture Scene’ of Custom Vinyl Figures and Original Characters flocked to them, while regular con-goers stumbled into the booths as they snaked the aisles. just the same, i think that the Cultyard offered so much diversity to the showroom floor that it made a good case to return for 2011. i feel as if the space for the Cultyard rose at least 50% and i’m happy for them.

i liked how Artist Alley was sectioned off by hallways again and that the Writers had their own booths as well. i think if they decide to do this again next year, they should change it to the “Creators Corner” or something, to be aptly named.

oh the Adventure Time love. it’s a close race but i’m pretty sure that there were more Finns, Fionas & Princess Bubblegums than there were Marios & Luigis. currently, Adv.Time is my favorite cartoon (right next to Batman: the Brave and the Bold) because of the simple but wacky antics that remind me of my childhood. we need more whimsy in our lives to keep us young at heart and Adventure Time with Finn and Jake sure does help in that department.

there was a reason why this year’s show was sold out: the quality was raised by a significant amount—the showroom floor was arranged a little better, the panels were informative + fun, the guests were abundant and really, the atmosphere was a lot brighter. there are some people that don’t believe in the New York show because it’s never going to be as gigantic as San Diego, but we’re getting there. Rome wasn’t built in a day…each year this show gets bigger and better but hopefully, this New York show will stick to it’s Comic Convention roots and ultimately, it’ll be a better show for it.

overall this was a great upgrade from last year. i splurged on some new t-shirts, a few books (Flashpoint + Batgirl + Red Robin issues, Batgirl + Red Robin + R.E.B.E.L.S. + Fables trades), and got a good handful of art commissions in my sketchbook. on top of that, i grabbed a good deal of business cards from the Anime Artist Alley in hopes to make some new friendships and maybe even collaborative partners. one can hope. -J.A