In its second year, this convention once again drew a few thousand people to the convention center in Long Beach, south of Los Angeles.  Most of the booths were small to mid-range publishers, retailers, or individual artists.  In a clear sign that the economy is still hurting stores, most retailers were heavily discounting back stock of graphic novels and anthologies.

 

The panel and workshop area had a presence from major publishers, with both Marvel and DC highlighting their animation projects in special presentations.  Panels and workshops on technical aspects of writing and art drew the biggest crowds, other than the film and animation showings.  Other writers and artists, from Howard Chaykin to Jeph Loeb, spoke on panels or separately.  The panels and workshops were an unfortunate distance from the exhibit hall, roughly a three-block walk.

 

The Friends of Lulu, an organization devoted to promoting comics by and/or for women and girls, announced their annual awards at the convention.  These awards celebrate female creators and executives in the field of comics, as well as female characters of note.  This year’s awards were:

  • Leah Adezio Award for Best Kid-Friendly Work: Diana Nock, for The Intrepid Girlbot
  • Best Female Character: Ramona Flowers, from the Scott Pilgrim books of Bryan Lee O’Malley
  • Kim Yale Award for Most Talented Newcomer: Kathryn Immonen for
  • The Runaways
  • Lulu of the Year: Kate Beaton, creator of Webcomic Hark! A Vagrant
  • Woman of Distinction: Lauren Sankovitch, an editor at Marvel
  • The Female Cartoonists’ Hall of Fame award went to Alison Bechdel.

 

A panel discussion featured Scott Shaw, Buzz Dixon, a minister and others discussing the literary and artistic strengths and weaknesses of R. Crumb’s adaptation of the Book of Genesis.  The entire audience at this lively discussion was given donated hardcover copies of The Action Bible, another Biblical retelling in comics form.

 

Longtime writer Scott Lobdell announced his plans for the near future, as he takes the reins of Fathom, the Aspen flagship title, for two years.

 

In addition, Lobdell will be writing a new miniseries for Image Comics with the working title The Butler.  The premise will involve a superhero team turning bad, and how their longtime butler may hold the only hope to defeat them.  It’s planned for five issues, but may spawn sequels or prequels.