Greetings CHU! We took another trip to Wondercon in Anaheim, CA from March 28th-30th. This show’s size and accessibility helps me kick off the season without my old man legs falling apart. It’s not hard to get an affordable hotel within walking distance of the convention center. Plus Downtown Disney across the street for entertainment and food.
Wondercon may still be recovering from COVID, there is very little Hollywood presence and major publishers are still playing hard to get. But who cares if you are here for comics and collectibles, there is plenty to see for a 3-day show! Todd McFarlane and Jim Lee were in attendance for panels and signings. Easily the hottest book on the floor was Spawn #361 with a Brett Booth Wraparound over. Only 650 signed and unsigned copies were allocated between Friday and Saturday creating lines longer than my “to-read” pile.
The UCC Distributing booth brought an exclusive Mcfarlane Toys L.A. Dodgers Shohei Ohtani World Series Champion Mcfarlane Figure. I don’t follow baseball but there were periodic lines and strong sales for it, even some heat in the aftermarket.
The Absolute titles were well stocked and holding their value. Plus, Batman Hush 2 was a hot item especially with Jim Lee there. Love seeing the hype train that DC has drummed up in the last several months.
Gashapan prints money! Bandai’s entire booth was a Japanese mystery capsule wonderland. Selling small figures and not exactly cheap, coming in between $4 and $10 each. Part of the appeal is the experience of browsing the floor and choosing your pop culture machine to gamble on. Many machines were going empty by Sunday so I can see why this has taken over their space vs selling standard figures.
I came along this vibrant Fallout-like booth. I figured it was a video game when walking up to it, but it’s actually an upcoming graphic novel called Modville. Created by Jesse Negron and backed by Ridley Scott. I think just about everything Ridley Scott touches is gold, so I may need to check this out.
Funko is still wildly popular and brought their sibling brands: Loungefly and Mondo. Mondo has some seriously bombastic figures:
While Funko had a large floor space, Thrilljoy, founded by former Funko CEO Brian Mariotti, was making some waves. They hosted a large panel with a giveaway to create some pandemonium. Plus an offsite where you could pick up their latest exclusives and merch. I’ve seen Brian in action before, he is a fantastic promoter with a knack for building excitement within the collectible community. Maybe Thrilljoy will be a throwback to the heydays of Funko? These early figures may be worth investing into.
Sean Murphy did the program cover with his take on Zorro. His White Knight books were a fresh take on the Batman universe, especially the cars and Batmobiles. The panel covered his career in comics. It was mentioned that Tokyo Ghost is optioned. This doesn’t mean a production is imminent but good signs for the IP. He also announced a new White Knight series. This will be a continuation of the series where Batman is around 60 and Superman is a young man, making it hard for them to get along.
Excited for this one…movie adaption of the 2015 video game Until Dawn. I loved the game, it was cinematic horror goodness, so I was happy to hear this was an extension of the game and not necessarily a remake. The basic concept is they are stuck in a time loop and every day they come back to a different genre of horror; slasher, body horror, etc. Expect it to be high on blood splatters and practical effects.
Got a commission from James Harris who is making his convention debut in the US. He lives in Japan and teaches art there. I wanted to extend my Bat Family collection and asked him for a Joker who looks off-the-rails crazy. Beyond happy with the outcome!!
Hoping to hit a few more cons this year even though the economy is about as shaky as Diamond’s delivery schedule. It will be another year of change, but I am hoping for a successful year for our friends, vendors, artists, and creators who rely on the events for their income stream.
