2012 Amazing Arizona Comic Convention Recap

This last weekend my wife and I made the trek toMesa,Arizonafor the second annual Amazing Arizona Comic Convention (AACC). Although at first we had some trepidation about taking the five hour drive to thePhoenixarea, we took the risk and made the trek…and I must say I’m very glad that we did. Just as advertised, AACC was a comic convention by the strictest definition of the term. With a focus on comic creators and vendors, the show focused heavily on the roots of the industry. If you were at the show, read on to see if you agree with my observations. If you missed the show, read on to see what you missed.

First off, the location on the outskirts ofPhoenixwas a perfect one.Mesa,AZprovides an interesting clash of art and ruralAmerica. DowntownMesahas a number of small shops and restaurants that are strewn across the downtown area which provided nice breaks from the con when we felt like a change of pace. Although the convention center and hotel were a few blocks from the downtown stores, the San Diego-like weather of the weekend made it a pleasant walk. The convention center itself is quite small, but it held this year’s show fine. That being said, it will be interesting to see what happens with location and AACC. The convention center floor was packed this year and it seems like the show could grow into a larger site already. AACC will have some major choices to make in 2013 and2014, as they continue to grow, yet fight to keep that family feel.

Although I loved the location, the highlight of AACC for me was definitely the amount, and quality, of comic creators on-hand. Over the weekend I was able to see, and converse, with my favorite writers and artists such as Brian Buccellato, Greg Capullo, Josh Fialkov, Kyle Higgins, Robert Kirkman, John Layman and Scott Lobdell. Each of them were amazingly kind and most provided free sketches or comics. Throughout the weekend I found myself constantly tweeting what great representatives they were of the comic community. The intimacy that the AACC setting provided made for an atmosphere that was conducive to conversation. Even though there were lots of comic finds, there was nothing better than the interactions I had with creators that I admire.

An interaction that sums up most of our experiences at AACC was with The Walking Dead and Invincible creator, Robert Kirkman Upon check-in to the show, we were pleasantly surprised to learn that each attendee was guaranteed an autograph from Kirkman. For those of you that have followed my past writings on San Diego Comic-Con (SDCC), you know that I am a big proponent of avoiding people like Kirkman at SDCC and instead trying to see them at smaller venues like AACC. Well, there could be no better example of this philosophy than what transpired here. Whereas a Kirkman line at SDCC takes hours (and doesn’t always guarantee an actual encounter), we waited only 15 minutes at AACC. Part of this was because of the smaller show and part of this was because the show organizers were smart to group the attendees into different intervals of time. In the end, we barely waited any time at all for him AND we got his autograph on a ton of comics (they didn’t impose any limit on the number of autographs) AND we got photos AND we had time to speak with him about his panel at the Paley Center last year. Like so many of the stars at AACC, Kirkman went the extra mile. Whether it was free comics from Fialkov and Lobdell, or free sketches from Capullo and Higgins, it felt like the talent put a great deal of effort into their interactions with the fans.

For those thinking about making the trip next year, make sure that you do understand that this is a true comic convention. I am a huge fan of all kinds of cons and can be just as happy at an autograph-centric con as a comic one, but I know that many confuse pop culture cons for comic cons and then are letdown when they find out that Adam West and William Shatner aren’t in attendance. Simply put, if you are a comic fan this is a great show for you. If you are not a comic fan, then this isn’t the place for you. As for me, I’ll be watching www.amazingarizonacomiccon.com for info on the 2013 show. If you are interested in learning more about this show or others, feel free to tweet me: @The_Con_Fluence.

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2 comments

  1. I agree with your comments and had a great time at the show as well. Looking forward to next year!

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