Comic-Con 2023: San Diego Saga
I wasn’t expecting to attend Comic-Con this year. The time away from it as a result of the pandemic had broken me of the habit of going and I was content to let it remain that way. Unless the convention offered me a compelling enough reason to attend.
Which it did — something observant and long-time readers have likely already figured out what that reason is. Even if that was my main reason for going, there were other quality panels going on the day I attended. It was all enough to remind me what I liked about attending Comic-Con in years past.
Intro to TV Writing: From First Draft to Getting Started:
This was a panel featuring TV writers from various genre shows talking about the ins and outs of the business. They were also part of the current writer’s strike which everyone (rightfully) applauded when it was mentioned. However, if you were hoping that I’d have some insights to relay from this panel, you’re going to be disappointed. I kept half an ear tuned towards it as I was busy checking other stuff (like the results of the Eisner Awards that were announced last night) on my phone. So why did I attend this panel in the first place? Because right after it was…
Kodansha: Makoto Yukimura & Vinland Saga:
Yukimra was making his first North American appearance ever at this panel. That it was highly likely this could be his only North American appearance was enough for me to make the effort to attend Comic-Con this year. It’s worth noting that when the previous panel ended, only about half the room got up to leave. Which turned out not to be enough as there were repeated entreaties by the staff for people to move over or raise their hands if they were next to an empty seat. I didn’t get a look at the line outside of the panel, but it’s a safe bet that not everyone who wanted to see the mangaka at this con was able to.
As for the man himself, Yukimura was a gracious, friendly presence on stage and was visibly appreciative of the fan love the audience showered him with. The panel started off with Q&A from the panelists and we got a lot of interesting tidbits from their questions. For example: Yukimura wasn’t into vikings when he started the series. He wanted to do a story about war and violence, and the Nordic setting was one of the only ones that suited that purpose and hadn’t been done to death in manga. He’s also made his own Viking swag – cloak, shield, crossbow (which was very weak, something he stressed to the audience) – and he identifies with Bug Eyes the most out of any of the characters in the series. Yukimura also has three sons, all born during the time he’s been working on “Vinland Saga” and his second child wants to be a mangaka as well. While he didn’t go into detail about where the series is headed he did say that there’s a historical incident that will deeply impact the story. To the point where he said that he was having trouble trying to figure out how to turn it into something hopeful.
Then the audience Q&A started and we got some good questions from everyone there. The mangaka was asked about whether he had any plans to revisit characters from previous arcs and he said that there weren’t any specific plans. However, he did say that after fans in Istanbul were disappointed that the story skipped over Thorfinn and co.’s adventures in the city that he might go back to it. This is just me speaking, but that sounds like it’d make for a great setup for a “Vinland Saga” anime film after they’re done with (the hopefully upcoming) Season 3.
Yukimura was also asked if he had a family crest, which he did and drew it for the audience. He exclaimed “I have samurai blood!” after drawing it. The origin of the phrase “You have no enemies,” was also brought up and the mangaka said that it originated out of his fear of public speaking. It was a way to remind himself that everyone in the audience meant him no ill will. When asked which character was the hardest to write for, he responded by saying EVERYONE was – women in particular because he’s a dude.
The audience Q&A ended on a poignant note as one fan asked him about his friendship with Kentaro Miura, the creator of “Berserk” who passed away two years ago. Yukimura acknowledged his devastation at the man’s death, particularly since they were planning on meeting up for dinner around the time of his passing. He summed up the mangaka’s influence by stating that he learned what one man can do in their lifetime from him.
It’s also worth noting that Kodansha didn’t have a company presence at the exhibit hall this year. What they did have was a small booth dedicated to “Vinland Saga” itself, showing off key scenes from the manga as well as the upcoming Deluxe Edition of the manga – three-in-one editions with false leather binding similar to what Dark Horse has done with their hardcover editions of “Berserk.” Yukimura was also doing signings for lucky attendees as well.
If I was just attending that panel, I would’ve called it a successful Comic-Con. Fortunately there’s always plenty of other interesting panels to attend on any given day.
Alex de Campi: Spotlight:
De Campi is a comics writer that I’ve followed for years who has worked on a variety of indie titles like “Mayday,” “Smoke + Ashes,” “Grindhouse,” and “No Mercy.” She and artist Erica Henderson also collaborated on the hit OGN “Dracula Motherfucker!” which name-dropped a few times during the panel, because it’s so much fun to say. We got the story of where that title came from as a friend of hers, artist Chris Cooper, asked his followers on Twitter what fictional character they would name their vagina after. De Campi’s response was, of course, “Dracula Motherfucker!” and Cooper responded by saying, “There a story in there somewhere,” and the rest is history.
Most of the panel had the writer talking about upcoming projects, which included her next collaboration with Henderson, “Parasocial.” There’s also “Bad Karma” which is about a group of veterans turned mercenaries who are all broken in some way. When a man is jailed as a result of a job they pulled, they make the decision to break him out. It’s a neat setup, and it should be out later this year. She’s also got a middle-grade raccoon-crime project with “No Mercy” artist Carla Speed McNeil in the offing as well. We also got to hear about the comics that have most excited her recently, and they included: “Do A Powerbomb!,” “It’s Lonely at the Center of the Earth,” “Prism Stalker,” and anything that Dave Chislom does regarding Jazz. De Campi also plugged another panel she was moderating later that day, and that seemed like a fun time, so…
Writing Across Games, TV, Film & Comics:
Joining De Campi for this panel were TV, film, and comic writer Marc Bernardin, former head of Epic Games Cliff Bleszinski, and film director Duncan Jones. They were all here to offer their thoughts on what it was like to write for different mediums and the difficulties they encountered when transitioning between them. Bleszinski cited how daunting it can be to choose the right font for a scene while Bernardin talked about the time he ruined everyone’s night by putting the words “Exterior Woods – Night” in a script for “Castle Rock” that had them filming in the dead of night during a northeastern winter.
They also talked about the comics that inspired them with Jones mentioning “The Trigon Empire,” Bernardin cited “Savage Sword of Conan” and “The Sandman,” and Bleszinski showed his good taste by singling out “Preacher.” De Campi also talked about how Vertigo and 2000AD comics made her want to pursue this as a career, while also noting that the writer she most wants to write like is “Monster” and “20th Century Boys” mangaka Naoki Urasawa. It was also nice to learn that Bleszinski came prepared for “Scrapper,” the comic he’s co-writing with De Campi with plenty of sketches and notes. Bernardin also mentioned that he’d like a chance to adapt his old series “Genius,” about a gangbanger with an incredible tactical mind who declares her neighborhood’s independence from the country. He (rightly) believes that its themes regarding race and militarization of the police would be more relevant today.
Transformers & G.I. Joe in the Energon Universe:
Not only did Robert Kirkman wind up with the licenses to produce “Transformers” and “G.I. Joe” comics, he surprise-launched the shared universe they’d be a part of with his and Lorenzo De Felici’s new series “Void Rivals.” As he told the audience, he thought it’d just be the coolest thing if he came out with a new series and then *BAM* a Transformer shows up in the middle of it. Which is exactly what happened – look for the “Void Rivals” version of Jetfire sometime in 2024. (I’m kidding. I think.)
While Kirkman is a fun presence regardless of whatever panel he’s on, I decided to check this out because it was also going to feature “Murder Falcon” and “Do A Powerbomb!” creator Daniel Warren Johnson, who will be writing and illustrating the “Transformers” series and therefore making it the first one I’ll be reading in a very, very, very long time. There was an uncolored, unlettered, slightly redacted version of the first issue passed out at the panel. While it was really disappointing that it was unlettered, Warren’s art was strong here even without Mike Spicer’s colors.
Editor Sean Mackiewicz was also on the panel along with “Duke” and “Cobra Commander” writer Joshua Williamson. While the writer didn’t say anything that would make me want to see what he’s doing on either title, he did respond to an audience question about how the members of G.I. Joe could kill a Transformer by saying, “You’re going to find out!” To which Johnson responded by going *SQUISH* in regards to how the Transformers would deal with the Joes. Kirkman also said that they don’t have the licenses for any other Hasbro properties, though he did promise/threaten to write a Candyland hallucination sequence into “Void Rivals” at some point. A more definite promise was that all of the titles mentioned here would cross over at some point, but they wanted to get their own stories set up first.
My day was a wrap after that and I met up with Steve and his girlfriend Tracy for dinner. It was a good day overall and a welcome reminder of what Comic-Con has to offer beyond all of the sights and sales on the show floor. While I don’t have definite plans to do the whole four-day experience next year, I can at least say that it’s something I’m definitely considering now.