Link: http://www.thecomicsshow.co.uk

I was gutted not to see Birmingham International Comic Show (BICS) on the con calendar this year, it was the second con I ever went to and anyone that saw my pre-Bristol Expo post, will know that I get ridiculously sentimental about this kind of deal. We knew that the convention was going to be replaced by a smaller more intimate creator driven event but until now we didn't know who was going to be there. This press release should clear that all up with some impressive and surprising creators already attached:

Birmingham Comic Con Goes Prehistoric for 2011 27th August

Watch out for sexy cave girls and cave boys in Birmingham City Centre this summer as the Holiday Inn on Queensway plays host to some of the biggest names in comics including Mark Millar (Kick Ass, Wanted), Chris Sprouse, (Tom Strong) Dave Gibbons, (Watchmen) Sean Phillips (Criminal, Incognito) and the legendary Alan Davis, who’s list of creative credits rivals the length of a brontosaurus!

Read more »

Link: http://www.fantasyevents.org/bristolcomicexpo/

Although Cardiff is my hometown and we now have our very own comic convention, I have to admit that a substantial part of my heart will always belong to Bristol International Comic Expo. It was the first 'proper' comic convention I ever went to (only crappy comic book markets before Bristol), where The Sidekickcast did our first interview with creators and hosted our first ever panel, not to mention all the friends we've made whilst there. This year we're probably only going to be able to make it for the Saturday (14th May) so I thought I'd give you a quick rundown of the things we'll be going to see, what we think looks good and where you can find us during the day...that one is pretty easy actually, we'll be at the bar.

Read more »

Link: http://www.bleedingcool.com/2010/02/03/get-ready-for-watchmen-2/

I'm going to come straight out saying I think this is a bad idea. Bleeding cool have the whole story so please check there for more detail but the short version is now that Paul Levitz is stepping down, Dan DiDio wants to produce prequel, sequel and ongoing comic books using the Watchmen characters, of course opening the door for a sequel/prequel movie.

Read more »

In brightest day, in blackest night,
No evil shall escape my sight
Let those who worship evil's might,
Beware my power... Green Lantern's light!

Okay I have to come clean here I've never really been a huge Green Lantern fan. I've got the t-shirt, a couple of the books and I've enjoyed the
various animated incarnations in shows like Justice League and New Frontier but other than that I've been distinctly un-green. That all changed last week when I started to tuck into The Sinestro Corps War hardbacks loaned to me @ Bristol Expo by Sidekickcast listener, forum user and all around good guy Mr Cola AKA Gareth. The idea is we recommend books to our listeners and in return they offer their own recommendations in return, it's a nice system you've always got a Sidekick watching your back. Now that I've finished the books I am a total convert, Geoff Johns, Dave Gibbons and Peter Tomasi have crafted a fine story that even a noob like me can follow and enjoy. There were parts of the story I didn't fully appreciate due to my Lantern virginity but all that has done is fuelled my desire to find out all I can concerning anything Green and Lantern-shaped. I thought I'd share a couple of videos I found.

My first find was this most excellent fan-made trailer for a Green Lantern movie starring Nathan Fillion as Hal Jordan. It's rather impressive in not only how good this trailer looks but the shear number of films this guy has used to craft it, my hat is tipped Mr Jaron Pitts. It's a real shame that Captain Tight-Pants himself Nathan Fillion has already been considered and rejected as the choice for Hal Jordan in the real upcoming due to his age but at least he got a kick out of this trailer as he commented on Twitter last week.

Read more »

Booking my tickets to the Bristol Expo all those months ago was a big step for me, I was moving from behind the protective curtain of podcasting and blogging about comics to actually getting involved. I was filled with a mixed bag of emotions, anxiety about meeting and talking to people live and direct but tinged with just the right amount of excitement at the prospect of a weekend of celebrating all that comics have to offer. In short I loved it.

Having never been to a con before the only experience I can compare it to is attending a music festival, a group of like minded but diverse people flocking to one place to revel in their chosen art form with a chance to interact with each other and the 'rock stars' that produce the 'drug' they crave so much. Of course there are differences, for starters there are no tents, we're much more civilised all littering the various hotels in and around Bristol. There are certainly less women climbing onto their boyfriend's shoulders in order to get a better view and possibly flash the lead singer. The most important difference though is the people; everyone that I saw from the DC executive editor to podcast kings to first time fanboys were approachable, warm and fun.

The first panel Dan and I went to was the DC Nation panel hosted by Dan Didio; Executive Editor of DC comics and Bob Wayne; Vice President of Direct Sales at DC Comics. The idea behind the DC Nation panel is a chance to have a open and frank dialogue between publisher and fan, they found out what we're liking and would like to see in the future and we get to bitch and moan; it's brilliant. Dan Didio is a fantastic host and speaker, he had everyone in the room hanging off his every word, almost always working straight off the top of his head reacting and thinking very much on his feet. When he did have any gaps in his knowledge he was ably backed up by the also hugely entertaining Bob Wayne who was able to throw out facts and figures just as easily as he passed up amusing set-ups to Didio. They started off asking about Battle for the Cowl, very interested into how it has been perceived. They then then moved onto the upcoming Blackest Night event, stressing that it and Sinestro Corps War were never really meant to be events that's just how it turned out.

Didio confirmed that All Star Batman and Robin by Frank Miller and Jim Lee was back in production but wouldn't be released until they had a few in the can so as to address any hold up in consistent release dates. An interesting question was asked about the decision to run Batman R.I.P whilst The Dark Knight was in cinemas and did they think maybe a more accessible stroyline would've served them better. Didio was quite honest about this, he felt that they were the core concept and they cannot wait around for anyone elsein other media to make their material vital, they had to drive and expand the business based on the work they do. I totally bought into most of what Didio had to say, he seems to have a real passion for the industry and was mostly concerned with producing the very best comics he can.

Read more »