Mark Gruenwald's "Ash-O-Graph" in Squadron Supreme #1

I had some time to kill a little while ago, so I stopped at a comic shop and flipped through some of their dollar comics. This rarely ends well, because I always end up meticulously poring through hundreds of books and buying a few dozen that I don't really need and struggle to find the time to read, but what can I say - collecting comics is an illness.

While searching through some boxes, I found (and eventually purchased) this:

It's a copy of Marvel's Squadron Supreme #1 from 1985, signed by writer Mark Gruenwald. But upon closer inspection, we can see the sticker adhered to the book labeling it as an "ash-o-graph", and another signature from Catherine Gruenwald. So what's this about?

The Squadron Supreme is, of course, Marvel's alternate universe version of the Justice League of America, with pretty clear stand-ins for DC's popular characters like Superman (Hyperion), Batman (Nighthawk), Wonder Woman (Power Princess), the Flash (the Whizzer), Green Lantern (Doctor Spectrum) and more. After appearing in a few Avengers comics a decade earlier, the Squadron got their own 12-issue series in 1985 with Mark Gruenwald, Bob Hall and Paul Ryan at the helm.

When Gruenwald passed away in 1996, one of his final wishes was to have his ashes mixed in with a printing of the Squadron Supreme trade paperback. The issue I bought, however, was not part of the trade, and was remarked with the date 8/14/16, 20 years after he died.

So this whole mystery is interesting and a bit morbid, I suppose. The sticker placed at the bottom of the page is labeled "M.E.G. 'ASH-O-GRAPH' INK CONTAINS REAL CREMAINS", indicating that the autograph is actually a stamp, and the ink in the stamp contains actual physical remains in it.

A Google search sheds more light on the situation, and I found this site which goes into a bit more detail about Mark, his wife Cat, and his ashes. On the 20th anniversary of his passing, Cat signed some of Mark's books using the new autograph stamp at a few different locations.

One stop on the ash-o-graph tour was a local New Dimension Comics store, which explains how a copy of this book wound up at another nearby store in the Pittsburgh area, and after paying a total of one dollar for it, it now resides in my collection, absolutely one of the most unique books that I own.

DC Comics at Walmart

After years of reading and re-reading a stack of my dad's old comics, I started reading DC and Marvel titles in earnest in 1992, when I was 10 and 11 years old. One of the first new books I picked up was Spider-Man #26 (with a sweet 30th anniversary hologram cover), and the "Death of Superman" story a few months later got me hooked, apparently for good. I'm pretty sure that my mom bought me that Spider-Man issue, but regardless of how it came home with me, I know that I got it off of a spinner rack at a grocery store, where the comics were located right by the entrance and were the first things I saw walking into the store.

It wasn't until I was about 16 when I actually stepped foot into a comic book specialty store with any regularity, and I was in college the first time I signed up for a pull list. In the years since, comics have mostly disappeared from grocery stores and similar businesses, and while online sales certainly are to blame for some of that, I'd say that the industry as a whole has suffered from this lack of an initial exposure point, primarily when it comes to kids. Comic shops are great, and I'm thankful that I don't have to run out to Foodland every week in hopes that they'll have the new Fantastic Four issue in stock, but they don't always attract a lot of first-time customers. You go to a comic shop if you like comics, not if you feel ambivalent or don't really know about them.

In general, this is why I was excited when DC announced that they would begin selling four new books exclusively at Walmart. It allows potential readers - kids, specifically - an opportunity to see the books in a place they might already be. There are more Walmart stores across North America than there are comic shops, so I guess Walmart has just become the biggest comic shop chain in the world? Maybe that's a stretch, but I think it could be the biggest step forward for visibility since, well, the slew of comic book-based movies over the last 20 years.

Even better, these four comics, Superman Giant, Batman Giant, Justice League of America Giant and Teen Titans Giant, are each 100 pages long and cost $4.99. That's a much better value than the usual 20-page story for only a dollar less.

From a collectors' standpoint, just like anything new and unusual, this new program has sent a number of established fans on scavenger hunts to Walmarts across the country in search of these books. So Walmart is getting customers from both sides - comic fans will stop in to grab the new issues (and maybe buy some toilet paper while they're there), and new readers might pick up a book for the first time (while they're already there, buying toilet paper).

I generally try to avoid shopping at Walmart for a number of reasons (all of which are probably too boring for me to write about here). But when the books were released on July 1st, I made the journey to the store and tried to find them, and without too much hassle, I managed to track them down.

The books were located near the self checkout aisles, next to trading cards and other cheaper collectibles. I've love to see these placed with the other magazines by all of the lanes, but I guess this is an okay start. The books are housed in the above display, which I really like and want to own. Do you think that Walmart has, like, five of these in the back? Should I ask them to give me, a grown man in his 30s, one of their comic book displays?

The display isn't very big, and probably holds two dozen of these 100-page Giants at most. I found all four titles, though I grabbed the very last Teen Titans issue. There were more Batman issues remaining than any of the other three titles, which leads me to believe that they had more Batman issues in stock to begin with. It's probably the most popular title, right?

The image underneath the two front spaces is, I think, from Alan Moore and Curt Swan's "Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?" story. The whole thing is designed very well. I believe that, starting in August, new issues will be released during the first and third weeks of every month.

At this particular store, there were also a few collected three-packs of comics in the stands, which featured the characters from the Giant titles. This is another great offering, as it gives people a smattering of other stories with the characters from the titles they might have just read and enjoyed. And these aren't just comprised of old stock - the title dress is slightly different from the titles that were released a few years prior.

Here's the back of the three-pack bundle. It's basically just...an ad for the comics inside.

Speaking of ads, at least two of the titles have the comic shop locator service listed inside. This should easily be all four, as all of the ads in these titles are in-house and for other collections, and it should be plastered on the inside front cover, but I guess this is a start for now.

Oh, and it just so happened that Planters Cheez Balls just came back to stores on the same day. So this was a heck of a trip to Walmart! Can you believe it? Cheez Balls are back, and comic books are in general stores! Things are looking up. I hope both of these are remarkably successful.

Pictures from the 2017 New York Comic Con, part 1 (Friday, 10/6)

The Tick's tour de force continued in October of 2017. After the first six episodes landed on Amazon's streaming service in August, the team prepared for the next batch to arrive in February by setting up at the New York Comic Con, just a few miles away from where the series films most of its scenes. After being dumbfounded at how incredible the Tick setup was at Comic-Con in San Diego, I wondered if there would be any promotion at the next big show in New York. Short answer: there was.

It's hard to compare NYCC to San Diego's Comic-Con, in large part because of the space available for the two shows. SDCC sprawls out over the city, while NYCC is mostly confined to the Javits Center in Manhattan (though there were a few offsite locations and events this year, notably at the New York Public Library). The weather contributes to this; San Diego has sunny July days ripe for outdoor events, while it's tough to judge what the weather will be like in New York in October.

At any rate, The Tick had a large presence on the main show floor with one of the bigger displays of the show. Once again, Amazon stepped up with their promotion of this show. Near the row-100 area of the floor were banners and signage, an area for a lineup and...a full-size "Dangerboat" replica. Naturally, this is the first thing I did upon entering the building on Friday, my first day at the show.

The line took about 45 minutes to get through, and as I was approaching the front, I started to notice some of the people just ahead, behind the exhibit ropes. I lucked out quite a bit as I was getting in just as a number of actors and producers were arriving to get a peek at the exhibit. I managed to get a picture with Scott Speiser, "Overkill" on the show, and Barry Josephson, one of the show's executive producers! Josephson asked if I was a fan of the show. I said "yes".

Dangerboat itself looked a but unassuming on the outside (maybe that's the point), but the inside was just incredible!

Here are a couple shots of the inside, which included a lot of interactive screens. You could get an ID sticker printed, steer the boat, and grab a can of Fo-Ham.

Thanks, Dangerboat.

The Dangerboat AI could also be found on board! It followed you around and talked to you at various points. It tried to poke fun at my Steelers hat, but as we all know, that's a futile pursuit. They're going to win their seventh Super Bowl in a few weeks, just FYI.

The Overkill uniform could be found as well!

I wonder where you buy carpet that simulates ocean water.

Naturally, I grabbed a bunch of the free Tick swag on my way out, which was precipitated by the arrival of talk show host Wendy Williams (who was in full Wonder Woman gear). I then hit the convention floor, where there were a lot of great costumes to be seen, including Pickle Rick.

Ghost Riders!

I wonder what makes you decide to put a television screen on your head. Kudos to this guy in any case, and great job with the group Saga costumes.

Here's one I didn't expect to see - it's Captain Telsa from the Image Comics Descender series!

I've always enjoyed the Robotman (from Doom Patrol) design. Hey, Cliff. Oh, and Telsa makes a second, background appearance.

I wonder how Psylocke got her sword through the entrance?

And Dr. Doom got his blaster through as well. I guess Doom gets what he wants.

Check out this kid in an honest-to-goodness Sewer Urchin costume from the Tick animated series!

I think I've seen this guy as Bloodshot before, but hey, if it works, go with it. Great job.

Here's Black Panther with blurry motion action!

Yondu and Mary Poppins was a popular choice this year.

This gentleman retrofitted what looks like a snowboard with wheels to make a pretty neat Silver Surfer costume!

I'm pretty sure BoJack and Princess Caroline were actually taking a moment and not posing as their characters, but they inadvertently relaxed in the most BoJack poses ever.

Rick's gon' give it to ya.

Well, the hammer placement is a bit unfortunate, but that's still a pretty great Steel costume (Power Girl is good as well).

DC had their regular setup spot at the far end of the convention hall. This time they put their Justice League costumes on display.

On the way out for the night, I ran into DC's Scott Snyder, who was gracious enough to take a picture with me. Snyder is writing the (pretty enjoyable) DC book, "Metal", and he managed to stay on brand for this picture. Pretty savvy, guy.

That's it for Friday pictures! More to come!

Pictures from the 2013 New York Comic-Con, part 1

The 2013 New York Comic-Con was, by all accounts, bigger than ever, and I was lucky enough to receive a professional pass for the show, which now takes up four days, including an extended "preview" Thursday.  My work schedule meant that I couldn't make it for the entire show, so I drove out to eastern Pennsylvania on Friday evening and made my way into New York City on Saturday, October 12th for one of the country's largest comic and pop culture conventions.  I took a number of pictures, some of which I'll share today and a few more times in the days to come.  Let's begin!

Parking in New York City is obviously outrageous (in 2010 it was $50 per day), so I drove to Newark and took a train into Penn Station.  I wasn't the only one who decided on this route, as I was accompanied on the train by the Blues Brothers.  They looked like they knew what they were doing, so I followed them through the maze from Penn Station to street level to the convention center.

Upon arriving from underground, there was a famous landmark or two to take in.

The way to the convention center, along 34th street, was easy enough to follow because the way was lined with folks in costumes.  Even so, there were convention workers in bright orange shirts along several street corners, directing the human traffic toward their destination.

As a perk of having the professional pass, I was allowed to enter through a side entrance.  There were a handful of others entering at the same time I was, but there were no lines to speak of, and I basically walked right in.  My badge was scanned and I successfully managed to make it to NYCC without getting killed!  Very exciting.

There was lots to see upon entering, and for a while I just wandered around, looking to see what I could see.  Eventually I made my way to the artist alley section, which was a little out of the way, so I could get to the FUBAR booth.  I wanted to say hello to the guys working there, and I selfishly wanted to drop off some of the things I was carrying.  Along the way I saw this person dressed up at Ragdoll from the Secret Six.

I talked to the FUBAR guys for a while, and got a peek at Dom Vivona's personal sketchbook.  He showed me this great illustration of the Tick, reminiscent of the early Edlund work.  Very cool!

I eventually made it back to the convention floor, where I saw the First Second display.  I walked up and bought the recently released Battling Boy, which I was looking forward to, when someone asked if I was in line for the Paul Pope signing.  I had no idea what he was talking about, but I soon found out that Pope was making an appearance soon and, from where I was standing at the booth, I was accidentally around seventh in line.  I kept my impromptu spot and soon I was able to get the copy of my book signed by Pope himself.  I also landed a number of promotional items, all of which I'll show off a little bit later.  It was a lucky score for me.

I was pretty excited to see Nick Fury's flying convertible in the new SHIELD program; so far it's been a highlight from an otherwise mediocre production (pick it up, Whedon!).  Having a car at the convention was a nice touch as well.

Since I've taken in some episodes on Netflix, I've come to appreciate Bob's Burgers for what it is.  Here's some younger costumers at the show.

And here's a slightly more modest Molotov Cocktease from the Venture Bros.!

The accessories obviously make this costume.

Some '90s, cartoon-era X-Men.  What's that guy in the bottom right got going on on his iPad screen?

A few "Age of Apocalypse" X-Men!  And...Lady Deathstryke, I think?

Teams were a big focus of a lot of costumes on Saturday.  I wonder if these were groups who came together, or individuals who found each other at the con and decided to take advantage of a good thing.  This '80s era Justice League did a nice job.

And here's a group of Fantomex characters...and Vision...and...Waldo.  Okay.

Lots of cool things to see at NYCC.  I'll post more pictures soon!