October 22, 2015 by Billy Henehan

Mom at the Con

Written by Sarvenaz Tash. You can follow Sarvenaz on Twitter at @SarvenazTash. Photos by Graig Kreindler.

This is my fifth year attending New York Comic Con…but my first one attending it as a parent. This was monumental for two reasons. 1) It was the longest amount of time my husband and I have spent away from our 11-week-old son. (This means my babysitter/sister got to liberally and appropriately use the poop emoji as we texted back and forth: always a win). But more importantly 2) we now had a pint-sized excuse to go shopping at the con!

Our first purchase was the thing we both knew we wanted…if I have to be honest, even before he was born. What little boy or girl doesn’t need a plush Link to cuddle up to while dreaming of their own 8-bit adventures?

Next, it was time to fulfill the Harry Potter contingent and these Pop! Vinyl figures fit the bill. Naturally if I was going to get him a starter kit, I needed the power trio in all their glory.

I was also hoping to pick up the brand new illustrated Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone but, alas, was unable to find a copy at NYCC. We were also a little disappointed at the dearth of clever/geeky onesies (take note for next year, vendors! Nerdy parents need appropriately nerdy clothing options for their little ones too.)

On a logistical note, we were actually hoping to take our little one to the con on Thursday for a couple of hours but he wasn’t feeling well. (We even had a Daenerys and Drogon costume on hand for just such a scenario, dagnabit…). Looking around the Javits with a parental eye, I think using a baby carrier would actually have been okay for him but a stroller might have been too difficult to maneuver (on the other hand, there are brave folks in super elaborate costumes that are way bigger than me + stroller and I realize it definitely is possible. I just like to be as unencumbered as possible when roaming the crowds at Javits).

My other goal at this year’s con was to visit the Simon & Schuster booth where they were giving out these exclusive Geek’s Guide to Unrequited Love postcards.

What is The Geek’s Guide to Unrequited Love you ask? Why it’s my upcoming YA novel (coming out on 6/14/16) pitched as Pretty in Pink goes to comic con…and it, in fact, takes place at NYCC! (What can I say? I am very inspired by the creativity and passion that I’ve seen there year after year).

And as a bonus, my amazing friend Dave cosplayed as the main character of my book.

Yup, that is true friendship.

So I will now leave you with the description of the book. I already can’t wait for next year’s NYCC when the book will be out and hopefully at the show because I’ll let you in on a secret: it’s my favorite thing I’ve ever written!

Peter Parker and Gwen Stacy…
Archie and Veronica…
Althena and Noth…
…Graham and Roxy?

Graham met his best friend, Roxana, when he moved into her neighborhood eight years ago, and she asked him which Hogwarts house he’d be sorted into. Graham has been in love with her ever since.

But now they’re sixteen, still neighbors, still best friends. And Graham and Roxy share more than ever–moving on from their Harry Potter obsession to a serious love of comic books.

When Graham learns that the creator of their favorite comic, The Althena Chronicles, is making a rare appearance at this year’s New York Comic Con, he knows he must score tickets. And the event inspires Graham to come up with the perfect plan to tell Roxy how he really feels about her. He’s got three days to woo his best friend at the coolest, kookiest con full of superheroes and supervillains. But no one at a comic book convention is who they appear to be…even Roxy. And Graham is starting to realize fictional love stories are way less complicated than real-life ones.

And if that interests you, I’m happy to announce that the book just became available for pre-order!

<br />

October 16, 2015 by Billy Henehan

Diving in the Deep End of Cosplay

Photographs by Graig Kreindler and David Henehan and @dirkmanning. Written by Billy Henehan

My journey into cosplay has been a slow one. My first cosplay was as the 11^th Doctor. Tweed sports jacket, dress shirt, bowtie, suspenders and skinny jeans? No problem. That’s practically what I wear to work on Fridays. This was my regular cosplay for a few conventions. Fans know what you’re doing, but to anyone on the subway, you look like an average 20 or 30 something Brooklynite. How normal does the 11th Doctor outfit look? I interviewed Mike Tyson at NYCC 2014 in it and nobody batted an eye on how I was dressed, except for the one publicist who said I always dress snappy for interviews.

This year though, I wanted more. I wanted to dress up every day of NYCC and I wanted my cosplay to be more than my usual office wear paired with a sonic screwdriver. So I plotted and planned and ordered maybe one too many spandex outfits.

Here’s a big tip for anyone planning to cosplay to NYCC (or any big convention) next year: order far in advance. The companies that specialize in cosplay get hit hard during convention season, and what might be a 3 week turnaround time for them during the winter becomes a 12-16 week wait when SDCC and NYCC are nearing. I found this out the hard way. I ordered a very high quality Spider-Man suit from The RPC Studio. I was psyched for it to arrive. Sadly, NYCC has come and gone and my suit is still being processed. Bummer, I know. But I don’t blame RPC. I should have ordered sooner and not at the edge of their delivery window.

Marty McFly was my Day 1 cosplay for NYCC. This had many benefits: no mask, plenty of pockets, and Pepsi was giving out the very, very limited edition bottle of Pepsi Perfect from Back to the Future 2 to fans dressed as Marty. When I heard this, I was tempted to abandon my other cosplay plans and dress as Marty every day. Okay, not really a big step from the 11^th Doctor. Dressing as Marty McFly gets you zero second looks on the subway.

Dr. McNinja was my Day 2 cosplay. Dr. McNinja is very easy to put together: black pants, lab coat, ninja mask, prop sword – your whole outfit is one reasonably priced Amazon order. I really thought this outfit would get a lot of love. Clearly I have overestimated the size of Dr. McNinja fandom. The people who did recognize my outfit really loved it; one guy gave me a high-five, but I’m guessing more people though, “I don’t know, anime something.” The amazing thing is, when I stopped by Joe Prado’s table in Artist Alley, he immediately said, “What’s up, Billy?” I WAS IN A FULL NINJA MASK. How did he know? “You have very distinct eyes.” Why, thank you, Joe Prado!

It was on the weekend that I went for the deep dive. Thursday and Friday were the training wheel days. Pants with pockets. Outfits that easily helped me blend in with a few minor changes. Not so on Saturday and Sunday. I went double-Deadpool Saturday and Sunday. I really wanted a Deadpool costume, but Deadpool might be the most overplayed cosplay at conventions, so I decided to dress as Deadpool, but not the standard, Rob Liefeld designed outfit. On Saturday, I dressed as Zenpool, Deadpool’s AXIS-shifted peaceful persona. I even took a picture with Zenpool co-creator Gerry Duggan! He seemed psyched that people were dressing as Zenpool.

On Sunday, I wore what ended up being my most popular outfit of the weekend: Green Lantern Deadpool. A LOT of people stopped to take my picture, I think mainly because the Ryan Reynolds line in the trailer for the upcoming Deadpool movie where Deadpool requests that the costume just not be green, an obvious dig at the Green Lantern movie Reynolds starred in. I had that line thrown at me A LOT on Sunday.

It’s funny, this was a total last minute costume and I wasn’t even sure how good the quality would be. I ordered it from a dirt cheap seller somewhere in Asia on eBay. I just needed something to replace the Spider-Man costume that didn’t look like it was arriving on time. The Green Lantern Deadpool people were great. They rushed my order at no charge and I had my costume the Monday before NYCC. I think I ordered it 10 days earlier. The quality was great. The Green Lantern logo is actually sewn on, it’s not a dye sub. And the price couldn’t be beat. The green boots that I ordered off Amazon were the most expensive part of the costume. The major downside of this costume though was having no pockets. I was constantly worried that someone was going to take my wallet and phone from my backpack. Next year, I need to invest in green Deadpool belt.

UPDATE (December 2015): The Spider-Man costume finally arrived and it is AWESOME. The RPC Studio gets my highest possible recommendation! I can’t wait to wear it at SE: NYC 2016!

October 12, 2015 by Billy Henehan

NYCC 2015 Cosplay Gallery

Photographs by David Henehan and Graig Kreindler

November 11, 2014 by Billy Henehan

Tuesday Night Comics Podcast Episode 45 – Now With 100% More Alli!

Dave is on vacation this week for his honeymoon (Congrats Dave and Sarah!), and regular Nick is on vacation in the Pacific Northwest, but fear not! Billy has enlisted Dave’s groomsman and huge comics fan Alli to cohost this week’s episode of the Tuesday Night Comics podcast!

Billy and Alli talk about DC’s upcoming Convergence crossover (while also allotting some time to cover Bloodlines #BloodlinesNeverForget).

The guys also preview comics coming out Wednesday, 11/12/14, including Scott Snyder’s Batman #36 and Wytches #2 and Cameron Stewart and Babs Tarr’s Batgirl #36. And if you love cosplay, this is the episode for you. Alli also talks cosplay, going over some projects his girlfriend Kim and he have made recently. To see some of the designs that Billy and Alli talk about, be sure to follow Kim Bishop Cosplay on Facebook.

Alli is great, and I can’t wait to have him back on the podcast! I think you’ll love this episode! Give it a listen! #SmellsLikeBloodlines

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS

October 15, 2014 by Billy Henehan

NYCC 14 Cosplay Gallery

Photos by David Henehan, Graig Kreindler and Billy Henehan

There was so much excellent cosplay at New York Comic Con this year! People really went all out. Not only were there some truly excellent costumes this year, but I feel that more people dressed up this year than in previous years. Please enjoy our NYCC cosplay gallery. Who are your favorites?

October 7, 2014 by Billy Henehan

NYCC 2014 Saturday Panel Guide

11:00 AM – 11:45 AM – CollegeHumor and Dorkly Present “How to Get Paid For Being a Nerd” – 1A24

Even if you’re not interested in starting your own fansite, this should be fun.

11:30 AM – 12:30 PM – The League Screening and Q&A – Empire Stage 1-E

The League is one of the funniest shows on TV. You don’t have to like sports to like it. The League is about fantasy football about as much as It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia is about Philadelphia. The whole cast will be on hand to discuss season 6.

12:45 PM – 1:45 PM – MARVEL Cup O’ Joe – Empire Stage 1-E

Joe Quesada really stacked the deck at his panel. Brian Michael Bendis, Kelly Sue DeConnick, Dan Slott and Gerry Duggan. If you’re a Marvel reader, you’re probably reading a book written by at least one of these writers.

1:00 PM – 1:45 PM – Nerdist Comics Panel – 1A24

Ben Blacker is joined by the writers of three of my favorite projects of the past year: G. Willow Wilson (Ms. Marvel), Heath Corson (Batman: Assault on Arkham) and Greg Pak (Code Monkey Save The World). This would be a hard panel for me to miss. See you there!

2:00 PM – 2:45 PM – CBLDF: Tales from the Code – True Stories of Censorship – 1A18

The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund does great work, defending the first amendment rights of comic book creators and retailers. Speakers Denny O’Neill and Paul Levitz both have long careers going back decades at DC Comics. I’ve seen Denny O’Neill speak before. He’s very outspoken. I expect this panel to be both educational and entertaining.

3:00 PM – 3:45 PM – #YesAllGeeks: Let’s Talk About Harassment in Fandom – 1A21

Sadly, the reports of harassment at conventions have gone up over the last few years, leading New York Comic Con to adopt an official harassment policy last year. Like the CBLDF panel, I expect this panel to be very educational. Unfortunately, I think the con-goers that most need to attend this panel will probably be too busy harassing someone in a Phoenix costume on the show floor to attend this panel, but hopefully that’s not the case. Go to this panel. It may change your worldview regarding what’s acceptable at a convention.

3:00 PM – 3:45 PM – So They Say You Shouldn’t Cosplay – 1A18

I hate it when I hear people say someone is too black/white/fat/skinny/tall/short/female/male to cosplay as the character they want to cosplay. A friend of mine wanted to cosplay as Iron Fist a couple of years ago, but was told by his friends that because he’s black, he should cosplay as Luke Cage instead. No, he should cosplay as whomever he damn well feels like cosplaying! It’s unfortunate that this panel is directly conflicting with the #YesAllGeeks panel, because I think going to both of these panels would be more beneficial than going to just one of them. The topics they’re both covering seem like a good fit for overlapping. This should have followed #YesAllGeeks, not had to go against it.

5:00 PM – 7:30 PM [adult swim] Panel Block – 1A10

Like yesterday’s [adult swim] panel block, this one will not have the room cleared between panels. Today, you’ll be able to see the stars of Black Dynamite (5:00 PM – 5:45 PM), The Heart, She Holler (5:50 PM – 6:35 PM), and Mike Tyson Mysteries (6:45 PM – 7:30 PM). Mike Tyson will be there. Yes, you read that right. Mike Tyson will be there. Guard your ears!

5:15 PM – 6:15 PM – Marvel’s Daredevil, Exclusively on Netflix – Main Stage 1-D

This is the first public appearance of the cast of Marvel’s Daredevil series, which is coming to Netflix next year. I’m really hoping that they have some footage to show us!

7:15 PM – 10:00 PM – NYCC Charity Art Auction – 1A18

I went to the NYCC Charity Art Auction and was blown away by the artwork they had available. Sketches, original art pages, original art covers (!!). Mike Negin does a tremendous job collecting donations from artists, and he’s runs a fast and smooth auction too. I walked away with a Spider-Man painting by Franco and a page of original art from Hulk by Ed McGuinness. Follow Mike’s Twitter feed and you can get a sneak peek at what going to be up for auction. All the money raised goes to the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. As it says on the NYCC site: Have fun. Get art. Save lives.

This Harley Quinn sketch by Sara Pichelli is just one of the many pieces of awesome artwork available at the NYCC Charity Auction.

8:15 PM – 10:00 PM – ReedPop’s Fandom Film Festival – 1A14

It’s the end of the busiest day of NYCC. Maybe you just want to sit down and relax. In that case, head here for the inaugural ReedPop Fandom Film Festival.

8:15 PM – 9:15 PM – Doctor Who Fan Screening with BBC America – Empire Stage 1-E

See the new episode of Doctor Who, Mummy on the Orient Express, before it airs on BBC America! Sadly, neither Jenna Coleman nor Peter Capaldi will be here for this panel.

September 19, 2014 by Billy Henehan

SE: NYC Cosplay Gallery

Photos by David Henehan & Graig Kreindler. Captions by David Henehan.

I was surprised by the number of cosplayers at Special Edition: NYC. There just didn’t seem to be that many compared to New York Comic Con. I wonder if it’s that people felt limited in what they could cosplay as at a convention that billed itself as geared specifically to comic books, and not one as all-encompassing as NYCC. That said, those who did cosplay at SE:NYC really brought it!

This Silent Bob is a staple of the NY cosplay scene. I feel like I see him at every convention.

Catwoman vs. Harley

Gozer! I’ve never seen anyone cosplay Gozer before. This costume rocks!

Nightcrawler and Azazel! This might be the best Nightcrawler I’ve ever seen (and the only pirate Azazel).

Leatherface was following us around, and we said, “What’s that noise?” It was the hum of his chainsaw. We jumped when we turned around.

This Ultron’s eyes and mouth light up!

The Queen of Hearts

Gambit and…um? Whenever I don’t know, I always guess “anime.”

Ragdoll from Secret Six!

Avenger Captain Marvel and Young Avenger Miss America

You can’t quite see it in this photo, but Spidey’s backpack is made to look like it’s made of webs. Follow these two on Instagram: @kittenanddragon and @skywalkersgambit. Their cosplay photos are consistently great!

Star of my favorite new Marvel comic, Ms. Marvel!

September 11, 2014 by Billy Henehan

Brooklyn Defender Launch Party!

Photos by Graig Kreindler. Written by David Henehan.

Last night, New York Comic Con had their Brooklyn Defender Launch Party at Brooklyn Brewery in Williamsburg. For the past three years, Brooklyn Brewery has produced a limited edition beer in honor of New York Comic Con, the Brooklyn Defender.

The recipe of the beer changes each year. Every year so far it’s been a different variation on an IPA, but Brooklyn Brewery founder and brewmaster Garrett Oliver said during his speech last night that it’s not guaranteed to always be an IPA.

Besides the recipe changing every year, so does the design of the Brook Defender’s superhero persona the artist who designs it. The first Brooklyn Defender was designed by Tony Millionaire. Last year’s was designed by current Wonder Woman artist Cliff Chiang. This year’s Brooklyn Defender was designed by Rocketgirl’s Amy Reeder.

Amy Reeder was at the event last night. She gave out free copies of Rocket Girl #1 and signed them as well. Besides the comic, everyone in attendance received a Brooklyn Defender pint glass, sticker and t-shirt, all designed by Reeder. And the NYCC crew raffled off a bunch of NYCC passes.

Oh, and did I mention that the event was totally free to get into and was open bar all night! That’s right, free Brooklyn Brewery beer all night, and not just the Defender. Anything on tap was yours for the asking, including the delicious and deadly Brooklyn Blast!

The one thing that did surprise me about last night’s event was the lack of cosplayers. There was one very awesome Rocketeer, and that was it. I was shocked.

If you missed out on Brookyn Defender Launch Party in the past three years, make sure you attend next year! Last night was a lot of fun, especially considering that no one dressed as Batman puked on anyone (It’s happened there before…)

November 7, 2013 by Billy Henehan

My 2nd New York Comic-Con

This year, I had the pleasure of attending my second NY Comic-Con. My first one, in 2011, was a dizzying, eye-opening experience of costumes, nerd love, and getting faked out by the promise of cupcakes. In 2012 I, sadly, was attending a wedding instead of witnessing the marriage of geekdom and even deeper niche geekdom. But this year, I was back and so was a beautifully renovated Javits Center.

I love traveling to the Javits via subway. Looking around in my car, I was wearing my 10^th Doctor t-shirt and looked like the only one heading to this thing. But then as I got out on 7^th Ave and walked west, I was slowly joined by more and more throngs clearly heading exactly where I was. How did I know? The capes gave it away, mostly. Also the inordinate amount of spandex.

And then, a block away. I witnessed this:

Why, yes, that is Boba Fett on an accordion. And he was playing the theme song from Zelda.

Anyway, the Javits was a big buzz of excitement, art, merch, and—my favorite part—creative costumes. As someone who throws a yearly themed birthday party, you know I have an appreciation for costumes—most especially the homemade ones.

Like this girl who came dressed as a character from Oregon Trail:

Or this homemade Dalek:

In fact there were a lot of Doctor Who related costumes this year, which I appreciated. Though, I thought, a dearth of Harry Potter costumes. Something I think I must remedy next year. (Luckily, I have thrown a Harry Potter themed party before so I am prepared.)

And speaking of Doctor Who, I was pretty thrilled that I had an opportunity to see John “Captain Jack” Barrowman—especially since I missed him at the convention I accidentally happened upon in Dusseldorf, Germany this year whilst on my honeymoon. (True story: you can read about it here).

The line to get his autograph and a photo with him were c-razy long. I mean, I have a photo of it, but I’m not sure how much you can surmise from it since I am a) short and b) not wearing a costume to compensate for that. (Another note to self for next year. Perhaps I can go as Madame Maxime.)

But trust me, it was long. And, also, we had missed the photo portion, which made me sad since JB was wearing his suspenders and giving out hugs. He looks like a good hugger.

Luckily, we just managed to eke into the Q&A session with him. It was standing room only but we got to stand pretty close to the front. If you’ve ever wondered what John Barrowman is like in person, think Captain Jack—but not toned down for television. And I include the sometimes X-rated Torchwood in this scenario. In other words: charming, hilariously inappropriate, and raunchy as all get-out. Oh, and very purty, of course.

JB answered questions ranging from the practical jokes the Torchwood cast played on each other (involved nudity) to whether he likes Thai food (also, surprisingly, involved some nudity. And diarrhea). It was a really fun hour, punctuated by his husband Scott “swishing” out on stage in a Superman costume (“Superman doesn’t swish!” John protested), and John planting one on him. Who doesn’t want a bit of romance inserted into their Comic-Con, I ask you?

My Comic-Con experience ended at the art auction. I’ve actually never been to an auction before at all, so it was fun to sit there with a paddle and see people get razzed over some really beautiful art. The fact that all proceeds went to charity made it that much sweeter.

And what does one do after a rejuvenating celebration of stories and arts and people’s unbridled passion for the above? Channel it into karaoke, of course. So, really, you might say that my Comic-Con experience ended with a rousing duet of “Beauty and the Beast.” There may have also been a Grease 2 song in there…but I’ll never spill which one.

Written by Sarvenaz Tash. Check out her debut novel, The Mapmaker and the Ghost. Photos by Graig Kreindler.