Old School Comic Show Recap

It is officially con season and a couple of weekends ago I went to the 'Old School Comic Show' in Concord New Hamphire. Run by Little Giant Comics, the show is just what I needed to kick off the season. 

This was a pure comic book show. The guests were all comic creators. The exhibitors were all comic book vendors. It was like a hit of pure joy right into my veins. And being just under 2 hours away from home, it was an easy trip. 

The show sort of lived up to its name to. Most of the guests were sort of 'old school' creators, as you'll see after the break. 

There wasn't a lot of Supergirl-specific stuff I was aiming for at this con. But I was looking to meet some new creators as well as see some I had met before again. And given the guest list, there wasn't a commission I was aiming for either. All that meant was I was able to be more easy-going at the con, not rushing to a specific table. I was able to walk the floor, shop, and have a great time. 

Trust me, I am going to put this on the 'must go' list for next year.

On to some of the specifics.

Back Issue Box: Action Comics #339

The latest Superman crossover event 'Queen Brainiac' is right around the corner. The seeds have been planted by Joshua Williamson in his Superman book. And with Jason Aaron's 3-part Bizarro arc mercifully over, the arc will be in the Action Comics book too.

With Brainiac on my mind and (of course) the theme of this site being Supergirl, I thought I'd head into the back issue box and find a Brainiac/Supergirl battle I hadn't covered yet!

Action Comics #339 sports a nifty dual cover with Supergirl getting as much of the spotlight as Superman. Our hero is there on the left, trapped in a Kryptonite cage by Brainiac! Great cover by Curt Swan and George Klein. And you may have noticed the scrawl across the cover. Yes, that is a scan of my copy of the issue, signed by the legendary Jim Shooter.

This was Shooter's first work for DC, back when he was just a teen! You will see that Shooter actually does a wonderful job on Supergirl, showing her resilience, her intelligence, her strength, and her humility. So settle in for a fun story with a true battle between Brainiac and Supergirl, a wonky Silver Age solution and fabulous ending!

On to the book!

Back Issue Box: Action Comics #345

One thing that I try to do with my back issue reviews is find some older Supergirl story which resonates with the current storylines.

Currently, Supergirl is in outer space. Event Leviathan has a quasi-villain attempting to take over the world with a new world order. And the real world is a quagmire of divided states of outrageous politics.

With all those things in mind, I thought I would review Action Comics #345, a pure Silver Age story in that within a tight 12 pages we have an enormous story.  We learn of a new Earth, learn its politics, sees Linda Danvers elected President, Supergirl put on trial, a fascist uprising, Supergirl saving a solar system, and then ultimate political redemption!

Whew!

Welcome to the Silver Age indeed!

And perhaps nothing hammers that home more than the cover, which highlights the Superman story, in which his secret identity is revealed on the real world prank show Candid Camera, hosted by Allen Funt.

Amazing.

"The Exile of Steel" was written by Jim Shooter with art by Jim Mooney. 

And the story itself starts out with a bang. Supergirl, standing before a rather young looking judge, is found guilty and exiled.

We learn in the text that this is another Earth. So it seems in the Silver Age, the threat of exile loomed over Supergirl on any Earth.

On to the details.

Back Issue Review: Action Comics #340

Just this week on the Supergirl show, Agent Jensen was turned into the Parasite to vex our hero Kara and the DEO.

Now most people, myself included, jump to Rudy Jones as being the Parasite. So when someone named Jensen was introduced on the show way back in the premiere, I didn't think to much of it.

Then Supergirl fan extraordinaire @kara_querl that the original Parasite, from Action Comics #340 was named Raymond Jensen. Supergirl staff writer Eric Carrasco confirmed this had been planned since the first episode.

Feeling myself like a bad fan for not remembering this on my own, especially given that I actually own the issue in my collection, I decided that a back issue review was warranted. So get ready to read about the first appearance of the Parasite!

Rhode Island Comic Con

This Sunday, I'll be heading to Rhode Island Comic Con, the last convention of my con 'season'. This is a huge con with celebrities and comic creators which has grown over the years to now fill the RI Convention Center and the floor of the nearby Providence Civic Center.

I have been heading to this con since the beginning and have grabbed some great commissions and signatures in the past (including Stan Lee!). This year I'll only be there for one day and so I doubt I'll luck my way into a commission. That means that the main goal is signatures. It is a shame because there are some huge favorites of mine that are going to be there, artists I haven't seen at other cons. But, c'est la vie!

Probably the biggest name for me that is going to be at the convention is Chris Bachalo, an artist whose work I have loved forever. For me, he is always going to be the main artist of the Pete Milligan Shade, The Changing Man book from the 1990's. I loved that book!

Bachalo has also done runs on other books in my collection that I love - Death, X-Men, New X-Men, etc. If I could get a Bachalo sketch I would be absolutely thrilled. But I can't imagine it happening. Instead I had to pare down a big stack of books to a manageable size for signatures.

But look who else I'm hoping to meet.