Archive for April, 2012
4 items.
Apr06
I’m sorry that this comic is so late. In fact, this comic is ridiculously late, it could almost qualify as NEXT week’s comic. I couldn’t stomach that thought, so I tried my hardest to publish it by today.
A big part of the reason why this week’s comic was late is thanks to Emerald City Comicon. (Well, actually, the real reason it’s late is because I don’t work with a buffer. But I’m going to blame Emerald City Comicon anyway.)
Due to flights leaving from Seattle being both ridiculously scheduled (11:15 pm, REALLY?) and ridiculously overpriced ($650, REALLY?!) I opted to stay in town an extra day and take a cheaper flight that wouldn’t bankrupt me. I still got home pretty late Monday night and pretty much went straight to bed that evening.
Tuesday I spent catching up on life-stuff (hugging my kids, or whatever) and by Wednesday I was battling a full-blown case of Con Crud. I was able to draw and ink the comic on Wednesday, though and spent Thursday night coloring and shading. Remind me again how I managed to do this three times a week? Oh, yeah. NEVER SLEEPING.
Although my recovery has been difficult, the show in Seattle last weekend was AMAZING. By far the busiest con I’ve ever been to and the crowds were FANTASTIC. For whatever reason, I was innundated with requests to do sketches. I did over 40 when – usually – I do maybe 10 to 15. I’m going to upload all of them to the Theater Hopper Facebook page soon. Follow me on Twitter for notification (SYNERGY!)
Doing all those sketches actually gave me a good idea. In addition to the 4×6 sketch I currently sell for $5.00, I’m going to start offering a more highly-detailed 8×10 sketch for $10.00. I’m going to bust those out at C2E2 next week, but if you’re interested, you can place an order in the store today!
But I’m getting ahead of myself. The show was great and I met a lot of really cool people. Several fans came up to me and told me they were sorry to hear that I was ending Theater Hopper. But all of them said the same thing – that I was ending it the right way and “thank you” for all the free entertainment over the years.
That made me feel really good. It made me feel like I had friends in Seattle – and you have no idea how valuable that was to me while I spent the weekend away from my family.
That’s not to say that I was completely ALONE all weekend. I ended up sharing a booth with Gordon McAlpin from Multiplex and Angela Melick from Wasted Talent. I really want to thank them for letting me crash their table. It was a fantastic opportunity and I’m glad it all worked out.
The booth space was a little tight, though. I know Angela and I bumped elbows a couple of times. If she’s reading this, I just wanted to let her know I wasn’t trying to crowd her out. Thanks for putting up with me. I hope all is well.
I also had the opportunity to hang out with some webcomic folks during the evenings. Randy Milholland from Something Positive, Jeph Jacques from Questionable Content, Alina Pete and Layne Myhre from Weregeek, James and Rebecca Hicks from Little Vampires, David Willis from Shortpacked Ryan Sohmer and Lar deSouza from Least I Could Do and Joel Watson from Hijinks Ensue.
I’m seriously humbled that I get to talk to these people at all. Often I feel like I’m at the “Kids Table” of webcomics. Kind of obnoxious enough to pay attention to but not serious enough to be part of the conversation. The analogy is kind of appropriate considering I was actually invited to dinner by Ryan Sohmer on Saturday night – which I need to thank him for. It was very thoughtful and he was very welcoming.
I also have to give a special shout-out to Joel Watson who let me crash in his hotel room on Sunday night after the convention to help me save a few bucks. He also had some fantastic tips that helped me out on the convention floor – even if he was being kind of a bossy boots about it!
I tease Joel because I’m insecure. But also because he is a bossy boots. He’ll have the last laugh, though because I plan on using his Proven Money Making Techniques
That’s the funny thing about ECCC this year. I actually picked up a lot of really good ideas that I’m going to be able to turn around and execute quickly at another convention. Typically I go to one – MAYBE TWO – conventions a year. Any insights I glean are usually lost by the next time I make an appearance.
This time I actually WROTE DOWN ideas to take with me to the next convention – a whole strategy document. I even managed to execute one of those idea this week. I created a business card to hand out to people who check out my Spoiler shirt.
In retrospect, this was a completely obvious thing to do. Over the course of a weekend, I would say no less than 250 people probably stop to look at my Spoiler shirts. I place them very prominently on my table and use them to attract people so I can tell them about my comic.
People either say “I gotta have that” and graciously buy a shirt or they say “That’s really funny, man” and go about their business. Either way, I was being STRAIGHT UP STUPID by not giving them something to take home with them to remind them about the shirt. So now the business card exists to say “Hey, remember that shirt you liked? There’s actually a pretty cool comic associated with it!”
Like I said, it’s completely obvious and long, LONG overdue. It’s especially egregious considering people at the convention would ASK me if I had a business card. I never did because I could never really figure out what to put on it. Contact information alone just didn’t seem… clever enough. I’m glad it only took me 10 years to figure it out. Just in time for me to end my comic! My business acumen, you see, is (how do you say it?)… not strong.
Speaking of my Spoiler shirt, by the way, we got a pretty cool shout out over at AV Club in an article called “Favorite Pop Culture Apparel.” We’re mentioned right at the top. Tasha Robinson, wherever you are, thank you! Also thanks to Ryan Estrada for sharing the link with me!
Last thing I’ll mention (again) is C2E2. I’ll be at table O2 in Artist Alley. Here’s a link to a map in case you want to find me later. I’m in the back of the hall, kind of by the Food Court. Be sure to visit me, okay, because I’m going to be lonely. My good friends with the Digital Pimp crew secured a booth this year up in the front of the hall next to the Marvel Comics monolith. That’s what I get for making arrangements at the last minute!
I’ll be selling books, shirts, buttons and sketches and I fully intend to leave as much of it on the floor as possible. If you’re at all anxious about not being able to pick up some Theater Hopper merch, I would strongly encourage you to do it this week. I’m not sure what my inventory will look like after next week and I don’t plan on restocking these items any time soon!
Next week’s comic should hopefully be a little… less late. Thanks to everyone for their patience and understanding. See you again in a couple of days!
[ 5 Comments ]
Things have come to a head between Jimmy and Charlie. What happens next? CLIFFHANGER!
Don’t worry. This will actually get resolved quick than you think. Originally, this comic was supposed to be double-sized. But then I realized it really didn’t have to be. So, instead, I broke it in two and am going to finish it up this week so it’s in the queue and ready to go for Monday. BUFFER!
I really wanted to post two comics this week as a way to make up for last week’s extraordinarily late comic. But I figured it would be more prudent to post next week’s comic on-time instead. Send all complaints to the management.
I suppose it might be more realistic if Jimmy were taken aback by Charlie’s recent admissions. To be told that your betrothed really didn’t want to marry you out of fear for commitment would probably give most people pause. So I hope you don’t find it poor writing the Jimmy is just kind of bulldozing past that revelation. I have a deadline to keep, you know.
Truthfully, I was more interested in establishing a romantic tone with this comic than anything else. Jimmy possesses certainty. He’s served his penance and wants to move on. Does he have enough certainty for both himself and Charlie? You’ll have to wait until next week to find out!
FULL DISCLOSURE: I was listening to The Corin Tucker Band’s “It’s Always Summer” on an infinite repeat as I was working on this comic last night. Call me crazy, but I think that song is sexy as hell. Don’t believe me? LISTEN TO IT!
Incidentally, if you feel the same way I do and want to own this song for yourself, I’ve included a helpful link. Seriously. You should buy it. It’s a great album.
QUICK HITS
Don’t forget that I will be at C2E2 this weekend, April 13 – 15 at McCormick Place in Chicago. You can find me in Artist Alley, table O2. It would be really cool if you would come and visit me. I don’t know any of the other people at the tables around me and I’m afraid I’m going to be lonely! Also, I’m going to be selling books, shirts, buttons and sketches and I REALLY need to make a profit on this show!
Speaking of which, if you’re thinking about purchasing any Theater Hopper merch, I strongly encourage you to place an order now. I’m planning on selling as much as possible this weekend and I’m not planning on reordering any of my inventory. Now is the time, people!
That’s all I have for now. Thanks for checking things out. If you could use those handy little buttons below the blog to share today’s comic among your social networks. I would appreciate it! Cheers!
[ 6 Comments ]
So, there you have it. The end of Act One. If it helps you at all, today’s comic is a call back to the end of Charlie and Jimmy’s first arc back in 2009. So there you go.
I know that this comic is grossly overdue and I am sorry. I don’t really have an excuse other than exhaustion caught up with me after getting back from C2E2. I had to get my house back in order, spend time with my kids and wife and there just wasn’t time for anything else last week.
Of course, like a dummy, I had to go ahead and make this comic double-sized. Like I didn’t have enough on my plate.
I’ve never worked with a buffer and that has usually been to my detriment. However, it’s only bitten me on the rear end a couple of times. This was one of those times. I feel bad enough about it, but what’s done is done. Time to move on.
A quick recap: From April 13 – 15, I was exhibiting at C2E2 in Chicago and had a great time. Oddly, it was probably one of the most profitable shows I’ve ever been to. Which, of course, is great. I had a lot of people come up to me just like they did at Emerald City Comic Con and tell me that they were sorry to hear the comic was ending. I was really touched.
Most amazingly, at one point while drawing sketches, I had a line of people waiting to talk to me. THAT DOES NOT HAPPEN, folks. Sometimes I’ll be talking to one person and there will be another person off to the side looking at my Spoiler t-shirt. But a line? People who came to see me and then waited? That was a first. It actually made me wonder if I should be ending the comic at all!
But, alas. The comic is ending and this is the end cap of all the dramatic stuff.
I took a little bit of criticism for the comic a couple of weeks ago for heaping on the melodrama. Bad melodrama.
Hey, I get it. Some of you want jokes about Cabin in the Woods. Me, too. But those aren’t the comics I’m making right now. I have to wrap this up the way I feel is best. And, yeah, maybe drama isn’t my strong suit. But it’s something I wanted to try before I closed up shop. Charlie and Jimmy specifically were characters whose involvement I felt should be resolved before moving forward.
That said, you’ll be pleased to know that there will be plenty of Avengers action starting next week. And, as I’m sure you know, Iron Man is in the Avengers. And where Iron Man goes, CARDBOARD IRON MAN is sure to follow.
I consider it kind of serendipitous that there would be an opportunity for another Cardboard Iron Man story arc in the last year of the comic. Although I somewhat bemoan the fact that Theater Hopper won’t be here for Iron Man 3.
BUT LET’S FOCUS ON THE POSITIVES, SHALL WE? Next week. Avengers. Cardboard Iron Man. JOKES. Everyone wins. Something to look forward to.
Incidentally, there was an experience that I had at C2E2 that I kind of left out of my (brief) recap. That was intentional because I plan to specifically reference it in the comic this week.
To (hopefully) make it up to you, I’m going to do another comic this week detailing my experience. Keep and eye on the site. It’ll be worth it.
That’s it for now. Thanks for your patience and I’ll see you soon!
[ 11 Comments ]
As you may have noticed, I’ve advanced the timeline of the story by four months. If you remember, it was January when this whole thing started. People were wearing coats! Time to bring everything up to speed.
What happened in those missing 4 months? Not much. Jimmy and Charlie went on a few dates. Tom and Cami caught up on Mad Men using Netflix streaming. I think Truman found a bone, or something? Trust me, you didn’t miss much.
I knew I had to advance the timeline to accommodate the inevitable comics I’ll be doing about The Avengers. But there was an ancillary experience I had at C2E2 in Chicago a couple of weeks ago that inspired today’s comic and, well… here’s the story.
So, after driving all morning, I pulled into the McCormick Center pretty much right as the doors were opening to the public at 1:00 PM. That made load-in a little stressful, but I got set up fairly quickly.
After getting settled, meeting a few fans and drawing a few sketches, word started getting back to me that no other than Shia LaBeouf was at the convention!
This isn’t a huge deal. Celebrities come to conventions all the time. He was probably speaking on a panel or something, right?
WRONG. He’s was in Artist Alley. Apparently he was there to promote a comic that he had worked on.
Everyone I talked to about Shia’s appearance that afternoon had the same initial reaction that I did. “Bullsh*t!” So I scoured Twitter for confirmation and specifics.
It didn’t take long before people confirmed that Shia was in attendance. Several people had tweeted photos they had taken with him. An opportunity had presented itself. I had to go meet him. But where WAS he?
Eventually I learned that he was in Artist Alley, table O22.
For some perspective, I was at table O2.
You know that scene from When A Stranger Calls when the police office tells the babysitter “The calls are coming from inside the house!” Yeah. It felt like that.
So I knew it was now or never. I had to get a picture with the guy. Readers of this comic know my feelings about Shia LaBeouf, if I punk out now, I’d never live it down. So I start walking down the aisle.
As I approach the end of the aisle, I see a huge line near the tables. I immediately assume it was for Shia, but quickly realize that George Pérez was at the table right next to him doing commissioned sketches and the line was for him.
And if you don’t know who George Pérez is, then I strongly recommend you read more comics.
Anyway, no one was in line to see Shia, so I walked right up to him to say hello.
“Hi, there,” I said. “I don’t mean to bother you, but I was wondering if I could get a quick picture with you?”
LaBeouf was more than gracious. “Sure!” he said. As I leaned back over the table to get in the shot with him, he put out his hand and said “Bring it in here,” to go for the bro shake. And that’s why I look a little more awkward than usual in this photo…
I know it’s a little blurry and I know that Shia’s face is obscured a little bit by his hat a little bit, but that’s him.
It was over pretty quickly. I thanked him for his time, shook his hand and told him to have a good show. In retrospect, I probably should have bought one of his books, but I seriously didn’t have a game plan before walking up to the guy. I knew if I thought about it for too long, I’d lose my nerve. So I swooped in there to get my photo trophy and swooped out.
Back at my table, panic started to settle in a little bit because I realized that my banner was promoting some mild anti-Shia sentiment on it…
I wouldn’t have thought twice about it except that he was in the SAME ROW that I was. What if he walked by it and saw it? What if he approached me about it and commented on it. He’s punched people for less, you know!
I tweeted my concerns about the banner and several of my follower suggested that I take it down to him and have him sign it.
While I can’t deny that would have been unbelievably cool, I couldn’t envision a scenario where I could approach the guy and NOT come off like a complete jerk.
“Excuse me, Mr. LaBeouf? Yeah, I just got my picture taken with you – No, I didn’t buy one of your comics – and I’m exhibiting just up the aisle from you a little way. I was wondering if you would sign my banner? Y’see, my comic is about movies and I regularly make comics about how much I think you suck. Oh! You drew a penis on my main character’s forehead! Ha, ha, ha! Delightful! Thank you very much for your time, Mr. LaBeouf.”
So, no. I didn’t get Shia LaBeouf to sign my banner. I thought it best to let sleeping dogs lie.
For the rest of the weekend, people kept talking to me about Shia LaBeouf. Often I would take out my phone and show them the picture I took with him. Incidentally, I heard from someone who was standing in line to speak with him a story about another con-goer that asked him to draw a sketch of Megan Fox naked. LaBeouf gave him a dirty look and slapped together a quick stick figure before telling him to take off. I actually thought that was kind of cool.
I guess he was only there on Friday and didn’t come back Saturday or Sunday. But, honestly, could you expect him to?
So… what do we do with this experience?
I’ve taken lots of shots at LaBeouf over the years. Mostly it was for fun. After I decided Jared didn’t hate Ben Affleck anymore, the comic needed a new straw man and LaBeouf was an easy target.
Did I ever truly hate LaBeouf? No, I can’t say that I ever gave him that much thought. But a lot of other people really seemed to hate him and I felt like I kind of taped into that. But – and here’s what everyone gets wrong – it’s not how I really felt about the guy. I took my moderate dislike of him as an actor and amplified it for the sake of the comic. After that, it became it’s own thing. Was it exploitative? Sure. Do I regret it? Well, yeah. I do.
It’s easy to forget that these actors are people. We build them up and we tear them down. We do it because it’s fun. I’m guilty of it and I’ve also been victim to it. It’s just how things are.
But I have to give LaBeouf credit for showing up to promote his comic on Artist Alley the way he did. He didn’t use his celebrity to pull strings or get preferential treatment. He met with fans, put in the time and promoted his book just like anyone else. I can’t fault him for that.
Are his comics any good? Critical consensus says “No.” But I don’t think that accounts for much. Have you ever been to an Artist Alley at a large comic book convention? It’s just like anything else. You’ll see some amazing stuff and you’ll see some real crap. Shia’s comics maybe aren’t my cuppa tea, but I’ve seen worse. MUCH worse. And those guys NEVER get reviewed. So let’s keep it in perspective.
As for Theater Hopper… well you saw how that played out in the comic.
Everything about this last arc is about evolving the characters – even if it’s only by a fraction – so that when it’s all said and done, you know that everyone is “okay.”
It didn’t seem fair to me to advance Charlie and Jimmy’s relationship or put Tom and Cami on the path to parenthood without giving Jared the opportunity to grow a little as well.
Even if “Movie Jumpers” looks totally lame.
Anyway, that’s where we are today and that’s my Shia LaBeouf story. I seriously can’t believe I’m leaving comics behind. Because I sure as hell wouldn’t have a story like that to tell without ’em.
Keep checking the site. I’ve got Avengers comics comic up soon…
…and the return of CARDBOARD IRON MAN.
[ 9 Comments ]
