#wondercon here we come

[mandaloriandragontrainer]

do you actually think both season 6 and 7 will come out this year?

i heard some speculation and folks talking about that on here but im going to be honest, im skeptical. like its April, we dont even have a season 6 release date yet, and they're saying TWO seasons in eight months? idk...

super excited though regardless!

what do you think?

Season 6 for sure! But I’m a lot more doubtful about season 7 – because of Netflix, not Wonderstorm.

So someone who was at WonderCon reported hearing Aaron Ehasz tell the people in front of them that s6 was initially supposed to release in November 2023, until Netflix for whatever reason changed the plans. The same person also reported that he said both s6 and s7 will come out this year.

If true, this means s6 was ready to go a mere 4 months after s5 came out. Because of that, I wouldn’t be surprised if at this point, s7 is close to complete.

But for whatever reason, Netflix still hasn’t decided on a date (beyond “2024”) — despite s6 reportedly having been ready for months. Which makes me think that even if s7 is complete before the end of 2024, Netflix will change the dates around again for reasons I do not comprehend.

It’s sad. They were so eager to make TDP their “Avatar,” only to completely stop promoting it and treat it like an afterthought. We’re very lucky that they signed the 4-season contract.

[nalyra-dreaming]

When do you think we will get promotion?

Hmmm, so going by the quasi-leaks, rumors and speculation wrt WonderCon and the Emmy-eligibility the air date should be in April, right?

WonderCon is at the end of March. If they just finished now filming they need a few months for editing, music etc, and then the episodes will be made available to press to kick it all off.

During that time they will give us smaller snippets if they're clever, I think the teaser trailer and the "Amuse Bouche" we got should be reason to hope here^^.

If I remember correctly the special effects and final editing was not done yet when some of the episodes were given out to press - they literally did those "on the fly". I'm just mentioning that because I do not think we will get a full trailer pre WonderCon - but definitely at WonderCon.

AMC paid real cash to be able to fill the void the strikes have left behind... they won't be so stupid as to waste that.

So.

I think there will be smaller things, maybe a few other little scenes as treats in-between, some interviews, some podcasts, etc, but the real promotional kick-off will be at the end of February / in March.

March has the additional advantage that Sam will be done with filming the third season of the Newsreader if news are to be trusted, and if SDCC is anything to go by AMC will definitely send their cast to a con to properly lift the new season. Again, there won't be that many other new shows out, and we saw what they set up at SDCC... I think they'll go big. (I would in their stead) They have a huge advantage there. Since covid is errrr ... "over" there won't be that many restrictions on interviews and actual show appearances anymore either, though I do hope they will all be provided digitally once more.

So yeah, I expect news and smaller stuff from approx. New Years on, little things about The Newsreader, too, and then in March (latest) ... it takes off.

And hopefully lots of podcasts and fun stuff in-between!! (New Jacob podcast episode coming up, whoop, whoop!!!!)

[davidmariottecomics]

Shelf Space/WonderCon

Hello! 

Great news: Apparently my lost blog is not so lost! I thought I deleted most of this, but the site did save it, but was just giving me trouble over the weekend. So, let's talk about that viral set of photos that was going around last week of the graphic novels bookcase vs. the manga bookcases at a Barnes & Noble. 

There are a lot of bad takes off of the original thread and in the retweets, but there are a few folks who went out of their way to try to contextualize what's actually happening on those shelves.  Here's a thread from Morgan Perry (currently over at Skybound, formerly at Boom and a former comics retailer) that provides a quick rundown of the state of manga and non-manga comics in the book market at large and specifically how that relates to Barnes & Noble. I really recommend giving it a quick read because I'll refer back to it. 

I don't want to just retread what she's talking about here, so first let's establish some basics, and then we'll talk about shelf space and how it is or isn't indicative of the heath of an industry and what lessons should be learned from manga in the book market. 

Manga is Just Another Word for Comics

Okay, starting with the most basic part of all this. Manga is quite literally another word for comics. Manga specifically refers to comics from Japan or in the style of comics from Japan, but that's it. It's almost like that rectangle/square thing: not all comics are manga, but all manga are comics. And just like it'd be kind of weird to pit rectangles against squares, it's weird to pit one type of comics against another--especially when the primary basis for that is country of origin. 

But neither you nor I are naive enough to think that there's not some separation between manga and non-manga comics. Generally speaking, most manga that would be in an American bookstore is black & white and printed in a smaller size and on cheaper paper than the books in that graphic novels section. Manga is also sometimes distributed in a magazine format and, yes, as a style of comic coming from a common point of origin, often does include thematic and stylistic similarities. None of that should be taken as a given for something to be a manga, nor should it be taken as a given that other comics don't sometimes also meet these characteristics. 

To the actual discussion at hand, probably the most noteworthy distinction you can make is that sometimes, manga is broken out onto a different sales chart. But, depending on what sales charts you're looking at, so are middle grade & young adult comics and, sometimes, so are "superhero" comics. 

Understanding the "Manga" Section, Part 1: Numbers

Standard is set, so let's talk about what's actually pictured and what we can actually get out of it. From the initial posting, one of the most common refrains was that given the shelf-space "graphic novels" had given how much manga had, manga has "won" and non-manga comics are "dying" and blah-blah-blah. Obviously, it's overstated and oversimplified. There are a lot of ways to measure the health of an industry and a single set of pictures isn't. 

One way you can look at it is of course sales. $$$. People care about money. And when you look at it that way, yes, you can see that manga is really succeeding right now. I'm looking at the ICV2 pulled overall comics sales from NPD Bookscan, and in an average month, if you're looking at overall top 20 comics, yes, the list is going to be *mostly* manga with one or two other comics on it. It's also true that in 2022, manga sales grew 9% which is part of their overall growth in the book market that we've seen for the past 3 years. What is also true is that adult graphic novels grew 4.6% and YA graphic novels grew 20% (and kids & middle grade graphic novels actually fell slightly--the only book market comics to have fallen in 2022). And, like manga, you can see that overall book market comic sales across categories have been growing over the past few years. 

I've defined it before (and now might be a good time for a refresher), but when we're talking about the "book market" we're talking about data that includes almost no comic shops. NPD Bookscan looks at data for bookstores--both chain and independent--and stores that carry many things including books, like Target, Walmart, and Amazon. Some stuff that Bookscan doesn't include? Well, besides comic shops, it doesn't factor in numbers for things like ebooks, libraries and schools, and Scholastic Book Fairs. So, even with these impressive numbers and growth, which should be regarded for what it is, there's a lot of data that just isn't included here. 

Let's check in with Publisher's Weekly, who in that article about comic sales growth took the time to ask direct comics market retailers about the performance of manga in their non-book-market stores. Interestingly, one retailer mentioned manga is a solid category in their store, and makes about 30% of their graphic novel sales. 

That speaks to how well manga is doing in the direct market, and how much it is growing there (though like the photos we're talking about, a single shop is extremely anecdotal and should not be the basis of a larger trend). If we take it at face value, though, we can expect that for this comic shop, the ratio's pretty much reversed from the book store. You can expect about 70% of graphic novels sales to be non-manga. And that's not even getting into single issues or trading cards or Funko Pops or whatever else it is that the store sells in a year. 

It's also interesting that a different retailer mentions that in the DM, the most valuable manga were the current hits, and having a larger variety meant having more shelf-warmers. Only the big names were moving.  

Now, because there are some bigger picture numbers we can look at, let's go back to ICV2. For their quarterly market share charts, in Q4 of 2022, the top manga publisher was still below the 6 top American comics publishers in terms of actual dollars. Comic shops are investing more money in non-manga publishers overall, presumably because they're seeing some return there. 

Understanding the "Manga" Section, Part 2: Buyers & Shelf Space

Getting back to Morgan's thread, she mentions that in 2019, after Barnes & Noble was acquired, the chain moved away from overall buyers to store-specific buyers to better match their local markets. I think another interesting set of photos are these ones from a B&N in Brooklyn. Similar to the first set of photos, they have a massive manga section and a smaller, but not non-existent selection of other comics/comic-related books. Steve Flack, who posted them, does something that is totally missing in the other set of photos though--he took pictures of the Kids/Middle Grade and Young Adult comics sections, which unlike manga and "adult" comics, are kept in their age-specific sections rather than with the general comics. 

I bring up the point of matching local markets because there are a BUNCH of comic shops in Brooklyn that may not be catering as highly to the manga crowd, but that have other kinds of comics on lock. Or, for a different example, I've had conversations with my co-workers about when we hit up the "comics" section at our local Targets. Again, it's kind of spread-out with Kids/MG/YA comics being mixed in with other kids books and a smaller selection of "adult" comics. Near me--and yes, I do live in a city with a lot of comic shops--mostly manga. For some of my coworkers? Almost no manga. It depends on your market. 

Looking specifically at the two pictures that started this whole thing, one of the things that really struck me was the comic selection. Obviously, it can be hard to really know what you're looking at on crowded shelves in a Twitter picture or whatever, but I know a lot of those books by sight. First of all, let me say, that section is arranged in a genuinely strange way. It is constantly alternating between being shelved by title and by publisher. Like, that first shelf is almost entirely by title, except the Boom Dune books are under B and that might be a Dark Horse section before the DC shelf, then it switches back to by title for most of the next shelf until it hits Marvel and then for some reason the Walking Dead is just there, and then it goes back to by title? Odd shelving. 

But, and this is the part that's actually meaningful, a lot of the books on those shelves actually meet the criteria that people were asking for in the comments and retweets when making a divide between comics and manga. A lot of these are single volume OGNs (Black Hole, Jerusalem, Jack Kirby, My Favorite Thing is Monsters, etc). A lot of these are complete runs (Watchmen, Infinity War, Sweet Tooth, From Hell, etc). A lot of clearly marked and large starts of runs (Walking Dead, Monstress, Paper Girls, Saga, etc). A selection of things that people might be more likely to buy at a Barnes & Noble rather than a comic shop and/or that are meant to be omnibus style entry points. Is it a limited selection, sure, they only have so much room and a lot of their physical space is being taken up by bigger, heavier, and more expensive books.

I know this is not the only/best way to consider these things, but those 3 Walking Dead Compendiums, when they sell, are kicking off as much cash as like 15 manga (BIG NOTE: That's a bit of a guesstimate because I don't actually know what sort of discount B&N is buying at and how much they're making, but that's my rough estimate). But, yeah, if we say that's about right, it's those 3 books and that Sweet Tooth compendium ultimately kicking off the same amount of money as all the Chainsaw Man they have taking up half a shelf? 

If they're selling through their manga faster than their other comics, absolutely, it makes more sense to take the space necessary to have a larger section because, sure, if they can sell all that CSM before those big compendium books, they need the room for it. And, to what we were talking about earlier, and what Morgan was talking about in her thread, the manga is largely being sold at a lower price than the other comics because of the smaller size and the paper stock and being B&W and, crucially, because it's cheaper to do a translation of foreign material than to make something new. They cost less for the store and if they're in a boom, like is happening now--see the previous numbers about manga's year-over-year rise--and are selling through faster, sure, why not make space for the thing you can do at high volume to make the same amount of money? 

The "Lessons" of Manga

A temptation that I very much understand from just looking at the pictures and seeing how big the manga section is compared to other comics is to say "well, why aren't you learning what makes manga so appealing?" I get it. And people all have their own thoughts on what makes manga appealing. A few folks have actually problematic hot takes like manga is good because it isn't woke or political or gay or whatever (which... is both incredibly frustrating and maybe one of the dumbest things I've ever heard). 

But once you've thrown those out, a lot of the common refrains come to general ideas about what American comics should be learning. 

Probably the biggest point of contention and most repeated refrain is the classic (that I've written about before and kinda revisited here) issue of jumping on points. If you don't want another detour, the short and sweet version is some people think that all the reboots and relaunches and Vol. 1s for similarly named series and 90 years of continuity have made American comics too confusing to read because you don't know "where to start".

Now, I'd contend that's also something manga can have a problem with (looking at you, Gundam, Evangelion, and Re:Zero) and that, of course, it's a very Big 2 (Marvel & DC) centric view. Again, I've covered this all before and don't to waste too much time getting into it, but to the points I've said before: 1. the reboots are direct responses to these pleas in trying to simplify things (and then dealing with backlash of people who don't like the simplicity/the natural problems of shared universes) 2. it's actually a good thing if different people have different recommendations--that's actually no different than like any other book and might actually help you find the thing you are actually interested in. 3. you don't have to read superhero comics to get into American/non-manga comics. There is so much variety and so many cool people who are there to guide you. 

There are other, more specific concerns which vary in their validity--from the people saying there aren't enough new characters to become easily attached to, which leaves me kinda scratching my head; to the people saying it's easier to follow the story across mediums, which... has its benefits and downfalls--I certainly like watching faithful adaptations sometimes, but I also really like seeing how the fundamentals of storytelling work in different formats; to the people saying manga generally have a single creator across the series life which makes things more straightforward. That last one is particularly interesting given how bad burnout is for many mangaka and how often assistants and other contributors are overlooked and missing the difference in the corporate nature of something like a Big 2 comic (or licensed title, which it's a good time to remember, Big 2 comics often practically are) to an original title, but if you aren't as well versed in this stuff, I totally get why it'd look that way. 

But let's say these are all right and our takeaways are that we'd like comics that are closer to manga format--be that size or use of B&W or limited color or release schedule or style or whatever--where there are clear jumping on points that have a strong creator-identity across the whole run and that feature new or easily-digestible versions of existing characters and that may match any other media interpretations of the works and... this is what's happening in the middle-grade and YA markets. Not exclusively, you can definitely find some of these things in the "adult" comic and graphic novel market, but a lot of what I'm describing is already in that bookstore--it's just in the comics for young people. And you know where the other comics like that are happening? Here. Online. Webtoon and Tapas and whatever. And, going back to those February 2022 sales charts--when you look at the "Author" chart as opposed to superhero or manga--that's over half webcomics to print. Like, you know the best way to get into whatever DC character now? Either their Webtoons or the comics formerly known as DC Ink/DC Zoom! Or if you like manga for slice-of-life stories, good news, that's online and in those markets too and is growing in the adult print market! 

I'm not going to say there aren't things that we can learn from manga. Of course! Manga excites a lot of current creators and--while it might not always be obvious--excites a lot of folks working at comic companies. What I am saying is that those lessons are in progress and we don't always see the results if we don't know what we're looking for. But what's been good for manga has been good for comics overall and the two should be looked at as two parts of a whole rather than at odds in your local bookstore. 

Stray Thoughts That Didn't Quite Fit

A few other points I don't want to leave unsaid but wasn't quite making into what we've talked about so far. 

1. Not that I think many people are clamoring for this, but it isn't like the Big 2 (and various other publishers) haven't tried their hand at original American manga and/or "manga-ified" versions of their characters, often to controversy or a lack of success. Again, this isn't to say there hasn't been good influence of manga on American and international comics and comic artists, just that purely taking the characters and putting them in "manga" often doesn't work. 

2. It's hard to enter manga publishing. Almost conversely to my earlier point about how foreign licensing can be cheap, it is hard for a publisher that isn't doing manga to enter the marketplace because it is a large investment in a new category and one that has some very dominant players. 

3. Finances and shelf-space really shouldn't be the only way of measuring the health of an industry (and, just to have it said... I think posting about a company's stock prices to an employee just trying to say that the medium is in a good place is a real weird move, as is accusing him of gaslighting about how well comics are doing). It should also be about people in the companies and freelancers making living wages and having good lives and being happy with their work and about readers being happy and enriched by the work and whatever. But that's unfortunately a bigger, different conversation than the one posed here. 

I'm sure I could say more, but if you're still reading, you probably want to get to the good stuff, right? 

What I enjoyed this week: Blank Check (Podcast), Honkai Impact (Video game), Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo (Anime), The Circle (Trash TV), Wall of Chefs/Wall of Bakers (TV shows), Who Wants to Marry a Billionaire, Vol. 3 (18+ Manga), putting the finishing touches on Becca's revised website (more below), sleep. Sweet sweet sleep. 

New Releases this week (3/22/2023): Godzilla: Best of King Ghidorah (Editor)

Announcements:

WonderCon 2023! I'll be at WonderCon. This weekend! In just a couple of days! I won't be updating my blog because I'll be there! Right now, my schedule is still pretty open, so if you'll be around and want to meet up, please drop me a line. I will not be at any particular booth, so the earlier we can figure things out, the better!

The new popculturepunk.com is here! New galleries! New commission info (and Becca's open for comms)! A major new shop update including lots of leftovers from AZCAF and WaifuExpo! Digital comics! And more! Also, Becca's streaming Wednesday (3/22) at 7 p.m. PST on Twitch if you wanna come hang out! 

Pic of the Week: I dunno. This is a nice picture of me and Tian holding hands. 

[abrand4weirdos]

OMG, YA'LL WEIRDOS, WE GOT A TABLE IN THE ARTIST ALLEY AT WONDERCON 2023 FIND US IN THE ARTIST ALLEY TABLE E-41 We have never exhibited at WonderCon before and I am super excited. I have some new single panel comic poster prints I am premiering at the show! Come by and say hello! ------------------- Join us March 24-26, 2023 at the Anaheim Convention Center for WonderCon, one of the country's best comics and popular arts conventions! Get your tix here: https://comic-con.org/wca #wondercon #wondercon2023 https://www.instagram.com/p/CqAHQhMujNd/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[horatorastudios]

I’m going to be at AA E-54! CAPS will be at #2280! Posted @withregram • @jt_otero Here we go!!! I can't express how excited I am to get this group of creators together! Coming off the heels of some monumental recognition awards in the film industry, you don't want to miss this one! SUNDAY March 26 2023 2:30 - 3:30 - Room 300C Asian Representation in Comics and Media: A candid discussion with creators in the industry about the progression of Asian representation and where it stands today. Christie Shinn (creator, HoraTora Studios, president of CAPS) Bernard Chang (artist/designer, DC Monkey Prince, NYTimes bestselling illustrator) Gene Luen Yang (artist/writer, DC/Marvel, Monkey Prince, Shang-Chi, American Born Chinese) Jessica Chen (editor, DC Comics, Monkey Prince, various Bat-family Books) They will discuss what inspired them growing up and what they hope to see going forward. #wondercon #wondercon2023 #anaheim #comicon #comicpanel #representationmatters #asianrepresentation #asianamerican #comics #dc #indiecomics #artists #creatives (at Anaheim Convention Center) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cpxek5_LAsT/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[agl03]

Hi. I was wondering if you know when the Wondercon tickets are going to go on sale, and if you have any advice for flights/hotels/anything else related? Thank you!

Hi Anon!

Ohhh this is so up my alley.

@jewishfitz and I were trying to remember last week and we both agreed it was possibly sometime in December last year.  Maybe.   I just kept my eye on the Wondercon Page and grabbed a 3 day Pass when they went on sale.  It’s a couple weeks later this year so that could push when they put the passes on sale back too.   You can go in now and get your account all set up though and save a little time.

The huge disclaimer to go in here is there is NO GUARANTEE that AOS is going to be there.  My family decided to take the gamble as we feel like last season its going to be a great point for them to kick off the promo again.  We know full went they might not go and that chances are super slim on getting the whole cast.   That being said we’re going to have great time no matter what and are okay with whatever surprises await.  

Flights:

The Anaheim area has many airports that service it so my personal and professional recommendation is to avoid flying into LAX if at all possible.  Its crowded, busy, takes 60-90 minutes to get to the convention center, and transportation is double if not triple from the other area airports.  However for sometimes LAX is the cheapest option.  

My preferred Disney/Wondercon Airport is SNA Orange County. Its only a 20 minute or so cab ride and you can grab a flat rate cab, you just have to ask for it.  As a mom traveling with kids this airport is much more manageable and for us worth the extra money in many cases to fly in and out of.

Another alternative, especially if you are flying Southwest, is Long Beach.  Just know this is a small airport, like parts of it are outside small.  But sometimes you can score an awesome rate and the flat rate is around $55 each way and its a 20-30 minute ride.  

The Con starts on Friday but I do suggest coming in on Thursday so you are all ready to go.  If you need to pick up your badges or need to get your kids passes you can do so at this point.   If you want to visit Disney like us we are coming in on Wednesday.  Though the con does often sell “twilight” Disney passes for evenings if that is your jam.  Just know we are toying with Easter Weekend and the crowds that come with it. 

The con wraps up pretty early on Sunday so many people fly out that night.  But its up to you and how far you have to go.  We have kids to get back to school on Monday.

Pricing out airfare can be maddening at it’s best.  google.com/flights kayak.com and southwest are all my go too.  I personally will track air for a little bit to get an idea of the prices and points.  I will also price out one way to one way vs round trip because sometimes you can save flying a different airline home.  The absolute best advice I can give on airfare is when you find a fare you are happy with....book it and never look again.    When booking fares watch what kind of fare you are booking and any restrictions it might have.  IE can you have a carry on and how much are bag fees.   

Hotels

The Con is in the Disneyland area and as such will share many hotels.  Meaning booking early is always a good idea. Easter is an incredibly busy time for Disney and the hotels will fill up.  You can book a refundable rate now (make sure its refundable before booking it) to secure your choice hotel.  Then when the con drops their hotel rates a few weeks out you can see if its worth making the move.   

What you need to be careful of is distance.  I like to keep within .3 miles and still check the map to make sure you aren’t crossing a streets, it can add like 10-15 minutes to your walk.  Other factors I personally take into account is does it have a free breakfast, that is a huge thing for our budget.   I know other people don’t care and just bring a box of power bars.  

Here are my favorite Con area hotels.  I own I am a hotel snob, I like a nice hotel for me and the family.  I also like to be close, so like airfare I’m personally willing to pay more to do so.  

Hyatt Place

Cortona

Residence Inn Anaheim Convention Center...especially if you need multiple bedrooms.

Courtyard Anaheim Convention Center

Springhill Suites Convention Center

Hilton *official con hotel

Marriott *official con hotel

Clarion:  This is the closest of the budget friendly options, but know its older and in desperate need of a refurbishment.  

If you drive do know most of the hotels will charge at least $15 a night to park.

Note a lot of these hotels have multiple locations in the same two block area.  those with Maingate in the name will usually be closer to Disney.  So once again check the map.

Other

One of the big items is the signings put on for the various casts and panels.  The last two years they’ve used a ‘lovely’ lottery system where you get so many tickets to enter each day.   I have yet to get into a signing via the lottery and I’m curious to see if they change it.  I know it hasn’t been too popular but its also a lot easier to do.  Once you purchase your badge keep your eye on the page for when this lottery opens up and you can enter.  They don’t email you or anything its you going in and its there.

The schedule starts getting announced usually in January and AOS is notorious for being a last minute add so be ready to wait.  Start tracking the panels you want to see.

Familiarize yourself with the rules of the con.  Wondercon typically doesn’t clear rooms after panels so that is something I plan for when working out our day.  IE I live in the AOS room and am prepared to suffer through some crazy weird panels before.  I still have no idea what happened in that Batman Ninja one.   

Know that many on here are happy to offer their own help and advice.  I’m also okay if you want to come up and say hi to me if you see me there.  I’m hard to miss with the herd of mini cos players.  I’m very nice in person I promise.  

In that same vein  I know we are talking about doing a bigger more formal AOS fandom meet up.   Once I can get an idea of how many people are going I can coordinate with local fans on a spot.   

If you are Cosplaying do a test drive of your costumes before.  There are lots of amazing cos players in the fandom who are always ready to share their knowledge.  

Its always best to arrive to line up for a panel or other event too early rather than risk missing out.  

If you are there alone make friends with who you are by so you can help each other out saving spots for food and potty breaks.

The Expo/Shopping area has lots of awesome goodies and can easily take most of the day to get through.  I do suggest shopping at some point on Friday for the best selection.

Keep an eye on some of the Expo booths for Special Signings, this was how we got Gabrielle Luna’s autograph our first Wondercon, he was at Golden Apple comics with the illustrator.  We had to pay for it separately but it was a great little meet n greet.

The food trucks outside offer a wide variety of offerings if you don’t want what they have inside.  I also like to Uber Eat Dinner to the hotel if I’m not going down to Downtown Disney or the Garden Walk.

Most importantly have fun.  You have a lot of control over your experience just with the attitude you go in with and how you react to the situations.  IE not all fans are nice and will gladly run down your child to get into a line before them. So be ready to roll with the punches and make the most of the situations you find yourself in.  

Every Con we’ve gotten a bit of Magic one way or another but I don’t expect it.  Every Con we’ve met other fans that are just amazing in person and only make the experience better.   Also being polite goes a long ways.  Polite to other fans and polite to the con staff.    

Well that turned into a small novel but I hope that helped!   

[youngjusticeslut]

Hello I’ve not kept up with YJ (like last season ended and I haven’t been on Tumblr since),,, have I missed something important?? I crave to be back in the fandom

Hello! Thanks so much for checking in 🥺You haven’t missed too much, but there are a couple of things. 

Young Justice Season 4 Information Round-Up Post!

Current Status (as of 11/23/2020): All 26 scripts are written, with 22 fully recorded and 4 partially recorded. 

It wouldn’t be insane to assume that this is finished by now, and that there may even be a couple episodes in the can. The season should be deep into the animation side of things now. 

The season will release in 2021, but the date is unknown.

If Wondercon will be held virtually, it’s likely we might get news (or even a trailer!) then. 

Season 4 will be doubling down on the core Season 1 characters, so that’s fun. 

We have the official title! Season 4 will be called Young Justice: Phantoms.

DC Universe is no more, Young Justice: Phantoms will be released on the HBO Max Streaming Service. Seasons 1-3 are there already.

There’s been a Young Justice Audioplay released! It allegedly takes place right before Season 4, it’s super cute and wholesome (and canon!), you can watch it here!

I can’t find the link for it, but I think I remember seeing on Twitter that the YJ in-show comics will be bundled together for a second volume? But don’t quote me on this. You can buy the first volume here  

That’s all the news that I have! The fandom has been pretty dormant, but we’ll come alive again soon ❤️

[meeedeee]

Here is a list of fan-run, professional and semi-professional virtual conventions for the rest of 2020. This is not a comprehensive list, feel free to drop a link below (Name; URL; dates; type; whether the event is free or charges a fee)

https://tinyurl.com/virtual-cons

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1vLyi3qcuOUZGcPKWd0PF4mTtYNlpEbgmjhQtR1sHKv8/edit 

 I am also posting a recent essay about  the history of virtual conventions written by Claudia Rebaza with her permission

________________________________________________________

Many fan conventions aren’t being held this year but some are going virtual. Surprise – this isn’t actually new!

by Claudia Rebaza

Pandemic restrictions have meant that many events are moving to some kind of online equivalent, but fan conventions have offered online alternatives for a very long time. What’s more, conventions have only been one type of activity fans can take part in online with other fans.

Although numbers are hard to agree on, there’s little doubt that fan conventions have never been more popular. But while it’s possible to find a fan gathering in most cities (or even on the ocean!), there are still barriers that keep many people from participating. Whether it’s because of high costs, difficult travel schedules, physical disabilities, or social anxiety, many people have found themselves on the outside when it comes to fandom events. However fans have always been inventive, so the virtual convention developed decades ago. These virtual cons might mean:

an entire convention held online

live streaming of a physical gathering

activities taking place online at the same time as other fans were meeting in person

The 2000s Say Hello

Yuri Con began in 2000 not as an in-person gathering, but an online fan community. A few years later it sponsored a three-day anime and manga convention in Newark, NJ. The convention brought together fans of Yuri with panels, an academic lecture series, games, vendors and video programming. This was similar to FemSlash Con, which ran from 2012-2017.

Femslash, which is art, fiction and more involving female/female romantic pairings, was celebrated with panels for different TV shows as well as workshops for the creation of fanworks.

In the UK, VidUKon has been held since 2008. The convention focuses on the making and sharing of a style of fan videos called vidding, and features showings, panels, and workshops. People who can’t attend can still follow along with events through the use of convention memberships, which allow access to real time streaming as well as access to content after the convention ends.

But if an event isn’t online or doesn’t offer access to drop into the in-person event, there’s a third option. For example, the Starsky & Hutch fandom's Share Con began in the 1980s and is now held every other year. Like many conventions it has a mailing list and a Facebook group, but some fans also held a Virtual ShareCon from 2012-2016. The virtual con was a side event that took place at the same time as the physical gathering for people who couldn’t meet up in person. At the virtual con, members met at a community on LiveJournal, with an organizer making posts and people commenting. They watched an episode of the show together, watched fan videos together, played a trivia game, had panel discussions, and had a drawing for prizes. Attendees also contributed to the creation of a virtual goody bag with pictures of Starsky & Hutch items.

Virtual con attendees also used the opportunity to prompt one another to create fan art and fanfiction in what has become a common practice among fans – the challenge or fest.

Challenges and fests

Given that not all convention activities are free, and many a fan is having a particularly hard time economically this year, there are fan events that don’t cost a thing. They do, however, require some time and creativity. A fanworks challenge or fest, is an organized event that prompts participants to create fanworks. These events can take many forms, one of which is the “challenge” where people create fanworks to fit certain criteria, or an “exchange” where people create fanworks to order for one another. The fandom wiki Fanlore lists nearly 800 entries on fests that have been held for a wide variety of fandoms over the decades, with many more out there.

The fest is a typical option for a virtual con, so that fans who are not going to an in-person gathering can celebrate as well. In some cases people sign up ahead of time to create fiction, art, videos or other fanworks to share on an assigned day. In others, people respond randomly to prompts from the fest organizers or other participants in a more game-like activity. But in the case of a virtual con, the fest is important for both keeping people engaged, as well as producing new content that outlasts the few days during which the con is held. That way the benefits can be shared with people who couldn’t attend the virtual con due to its timing.

Sometimes virtual con events are held at the Archive of Our Own which includes a feature for fanwork collections and tools for creating specific types of fests. Some virtual convention contributions that can be found on the site include fanworks for Due South, The Closer, Shadowhunters, Game of Thrones, Highlander, and the K-pop group B.A.P. 

The con on your laptop

With large public gatherings prohibited almost everywhere, many fan conventions have been cancelled or postponed, including the mega-popular San Diego Comic Con. But other organizers and fans alike are still trying to keep fan activities going. As a result some events are still being held, only online, and sometimes at no charge.

May saw Balticon 54, WisCONline/WisCON 44, Con Carolinas, and the 2020 Nebula Conference go virtual. July will see more taking place from smaller events such as CON.TXT 2020 (free) on July 24-26, to major cons like CoNZealand (WorldCon 78), host of the Hugo Awards, on July 29-August 2. Just as with the early virtual cons, these events will adapt activities to online space, and not just for panels and vendor rooms. In the past many fans have paid to shake hands with their favorite artists, writers, or actors in quick meet-and-greets, photo or autograph sessions. Some events are shifting these bookings to one-on-one video chats, where each person has a few minutes in which to spend some face time with those celebrities. 

What about next year?

Researcher Dr. Naomi Jacobs published an article on virtual conventions in 2018. Discussing the future of such events, she said “I think that as the barriers between online and offline fandom become more fluid, and as technology improves, we might see new ways that conventions become digital spaces as well as physical ones. Conventions are about fans coming together to share experiences, to ‘convene’, and it is no longer the case that this has to involve a face to face meeting.”

Jacobs studied fans’ experiences at Supernatural conventions and found that, while most of them preferred meeting in person, there were various reasons why virtual attendance was important. For some fans who go to many conventions a year, attending them is a part of one’s social activities and a way of staying up to date on happenings in their community. Jacobs said, “Being part of the digital space during a convention seemed to be almost as important as being at the event, particularly because there were so many conventions each year and many people attend several, but very few could go to them all.”

For fans whose favorite part of attending a convention is meeting celebrities, a virtual con might not seem like much of an alternative. But for many fans, the principal draws of a convention might be interacting with other fans, shopping, or sharing information about their fandom interests through meet ups or attending panel discussions, all things that could be done in other ways. There are many conventions whose principal draw is activities rather than celebrity guests – although even celebrity appearances will be going virtual in some cases.

For example, one staple of conventions that has become a central part of many fans’ experience is cosplay. While you’d think that this kind of fanwork would be something missing at a virtual con, being online doesn’t have to be a barrier to sharing one’s costuming skills. A lot of cosplay experience has already gone virtual. For example, in 2015 Nicolle Lamerichs wrote about the rising popularity of cosplay music videos (CMV) which are created and shared after the event. In discussing common factors for the videos, Lamerichs notes that “the videos are usually shot at the fan convention and are also a means of preserving the performances and making them accessible to a wider audience.” The practice has developed to the point that “some CMVs are also fan works in their own right." 

Is it for you?

While the virtual con may not replace the experience of an in-person gathering for the majority of fans, it does address the importance of these events for both specific fandoms as well as fans as a whole. When writer/producer Alison Zeidman wrote that comic books changed her life, the examples she gave were of personal experiences surrounding comic books, such as attending a fan convention. "At Wondercon, I was the most relaxed I’ve been in years, but it was also so incredibly creatively stimulating and inspiring. And I realized that how I felt on that exhibition floor is how I want to feel every day of my life: constantly learning, seeking out new experiences and meeting new people — whether or not they’re dressed in a custom-made Captain Marvel uniform.” Whether in-person or online, many fans share that feeling.

[catdesignsunlimited]

2021 WonderCon Masquerade@Home - Victorian Poison Ivy

WonderCon Masquerade Contest: Catherine M. Fisher of Cat Designs Unlimited

Costume Name: Victorian Poison Ivy

Costume Description: My favorite character to cosplay all dressed up as a woman of class from the late 1800s!

I haven’t been costuming as much this year as I should be and while I was half expecting there to be a WonderCon Masquerade@home like last year’s Comic Con Masquerade@home, I was still taken by surprise to get the email on March 12 announcing we could submit WC Masquerade entries.  Like last year for SDCC 2020@home, it took me a while to figure out what to make in such a short time that would still be Masquerade worthy.  St. Patrick’s Day was coming up and I don’t know if all that green had anything to do with it, but the idea of a Victorian Poison Ivy popped into my head and I knew she was meant to be my entry this year! I’ve done many incarnations of Poison Ivy (my favorite villainess of all time), and Victorian Poison Ivy is definitely up there as one of my new favorites. I’m better known for my sexy leggy costumes, but after my first foray into period costuming thanks to Gaslight Gathering 2011, I developed a taste for the beautiful formal gowns of the Victorian era and knew one day I’d make a fancy formal version of everyone’s favorite redhead vamp, and this year’s WonderCon Masquerade@home was just the inspiration I needed to make it happen!  I’m very pleased with how this turned out even if it’s a little different than I originally envisioned it to be.  I had originally planned on glittering a TON of ivy leaves and trimming the gown with a variety of glittered leaves, but once it was made, I decided that in Victorian Poison Ivy’s case less is more, and chose to use a few leaves here and there as accents.  Glitter is one of my favorite mediums, and no Poison Ivy costume is complete without a pair of glittered emerald slippers, so I got my glitter fix that way.  There was a lot of fabric involved (9 yards for the gown and 6 yards of netting just for the bustle), a lot more hand sewing than I’d anticipated and in the end, it was 100% worth the extra effort bring Victorian Poison Ivy to life!  I made this gown in about 24 hours over the course of two and a half days, and while she may not show as much skin as my other versions of Poison Ivy, I still feel incredibly sexy sashaying around as Victorian Poison Ivy – if you see her coming your way, you better watch out!!!

Bio: I’ve entered the SDCC Masquerade since my first year attending Comic Con (2005), and I entered WonderCon’s Masquerade from 2008 to 2013.  I was planning on entering back in 2019, but some outside circumstances prevented me from attending that year, so I was hoping to get back into the swing of things this year, but sadly WonderCon was postponed yet again, so this was a great way to jump back into the WC Masquerade scene!  I know this year’s entry isn’t as big or as fancy as some of my past entries, but I think she’s a great addition to an awesome array of entries this year, and as always, it’s an honor to be part of the Masquerade!

Be sure to follow @WonderConAtHome! 

[disneytva]

San Diego Comic-Con Cancels 2020 Event, Sets 2021 Return Due COVID-19

Sorry Disney Channel & FOX fans no exclusive reveals this year as Comic Con International Cancels its San Diego Comic Con 2020 edition.

For the first time in a half-century, the San Diego Comic-Con show won’t go on this year. Event organizers said today that the 2020 confab has been canceled over coronavirus concerns and set dates for 2021.

Also, WonderCon Anaheim, which was to have been held April 10-12 at the Anaheim Convention Center, has been rescheduled to March 26-28, 2021.

“Extraordinary times require extraordinary measures and while we are saddened to take this action, we know it is the right decision,” said David Glanzer, spokesperson for the organization. “We eagerly look forward to the time when we can all meet again and share in the community we all love and enjoy.”

Here is the full statement from Comic-Con:

For the first time in its 50-year history San Diego Comic Convention (SDCC), the organizers behind the annual pop culture celebration, announced today with deep regret that there will be no Comic-Con in 2020. The event will instead return to the San Diego Convention Center from July 22-25, 2021.

Recognizing that countless attendees save and plan for its conventions each year, and how many exhibitors and stakeholders rely upon its events for a major portion of their livelihood, they had hoped to delay this decision in anticipation that COVID-19 concerns might lessen by summer. Continuous monitoring of health advisories and recent statements by the Governor of California have made it clear that it would not be safe to move forward with plans for this year.

Similarly, WonderCon Anaheim, which was to have been held April 10-12, 2020 will return to the Anaheim Convention Center from March 26-28, 2021.

In addition to their conventions, Comic-Con has been planning a major renovation of Balboa Park’s Federal Building to be completed for the grand opening of the Comic-Con Museum in the summer of 2021. However, the COVID-19 situation has had an effect on those efforts as well. As such, they will be rephasing the Museum’s initially planned major renovations, but will not scale back the experience to be offered to visitors upon the Museum’s grand opening. They anticipate releasing building plans illustrating the Museum’s transformation and sharing more information about those efforts in the coming months.

SDCC also announced that individuals who purchased badges for Comic-Con 2020 will have the option to request a refund or transfer their badges to Comic-Con 2021. All 2020 badge holders will receive an email within the next week with instructions on how to request a refund. Exhibitors for Comic-Con 2020 will also have the option to request a refund or transfer their payments to Comic-Con 2021 and will also receive an email within the next week with instructions on how to process their request.

In the next few days onPeak, Comic-Con’s official hotel affiliate, will be canceling all hotel reservations and refunding all deposits made through them. There is no need for anyone who booked through onPeak to take any action, including trying to cancel their reservations online or contacting the company via phone as the process will be handled automatically. Those who booked rooms through onPeak will be notified when refunds have been completed.

[jlf23tumble]

Top 10 Niche Interests

Fixations? Obsessions? This is incredibly hard because I have wayyyy too many niche interests, so instead of stressing about it, I tried to channel the 10 things that immediately speak to me and maybe aren't so obvious from what I post here, like how much I'm obsessed with wigs, doll furniture, incredibly specific blogs, all forms of clothing with pockets, swimming pools, whimsical bus stops, over-the-top bathrooms, etc. etc Instead, I opted for some specifics that feel a little more evergreen and long tailed, like, so LIFE-long tailed that it's tough to nail down when or how they became part of the national psyche. I thank @alienfuckeronmain​ for the initial tag, and I'm tagging her AGAIN for round two because I know she has a billion additional niche things, and she'll post them, and I'll scream because it'll trigger five other things I neglected to post here, and I'll probably post my own round two, arggggh, insert aggressive sighing. Anyway, I tag ANYONE who wants to do it, just tag me so I can see! 

1. Indoor Trees

I have no idea why this concept PULLS so hard because houseplants are kind of meh to me, but you want to plant an entire-ass TREE indoors, in the place where you live? Me, too, and I'd add a conversation pit plus a combo gold/red bathroom, among other things, and, bam, we're in my imaginary dream home, which I have literally, constantly ALWAYS mentally constructed from the time I was about six or so. (If you're curious, it has multiple themed rooms, and the closest I've seen to it recently is the outstanding Dita von Teese AD feature, but Amy Sedaris’s apartment comes close, too). There are two (2) 1960s houses in Long Beach with magnificent indoor trees, but I can't find them online, so have this modern interpretation and cry with me about how I can't visit the multi-story fake tree inside Clifton's Cafeteria for a good long while:

2. Conventions of Fans of Any Kind

One thing that I don't think I'll ever lose is how much I *love* people who are fans of SOMETHING, people who have a passion and create something about it or cosplay it or simply gather to celebrate it and connect to other people through it. The Internet provides in all kinds of ways, but I'm talking specifically about IRL conventions and the way my heart pitter pats when I first walk in those doors, SWOON! And it doesn’t matter how big the convention is or how random, I've been to smaller events like CatCon and the My Little Pony convention all the way up to biggies like WonderCon and Comic Con, and I have yet to be disappointed. I might know jack shit about what I'm walking into, but I want to see the merch, hear about the panels, and check out the people who are fucking PUMPED to be there. Sadly, I think it's gonna be a lonnnnng time until these come back, but I can live vicariously through my old photos, sigh:

3. Dutch Wax Fabrics and African Fashion

I'm not the snazziest of dressers, but textiles, colors, and patterns have been an obsession that has soothed my visual soul for as long as I can literally remember. Wax fabric marries all three of those touchpoints, plus throws in a healthy dose of style, and I count myself lucky to have seen two big exhibits on the subject (this was one of them), oh, how I wish there were more! For sure, there's a fucked up underlying colonial/imperialist history here, but there's also humor and color and vibrancy, a reclamation of sorts, and multiple levels of fashion that take my breath away. I cannot do the different patterns justice at all, but the fan motif is one of my faves:

4. Hearst Castle vs. Madonna inn

These two fall into my #home tag because they're where I'm from, and they speak to me as equally sublime and ridiculous, camp and kitsch writ large and small, different (yet similar!) versions of Xanadu that two rich white men built as shrines to their own personal "taste." And the irony is that a lot of people shit on Alex Madonna for being tacky (the Madonna Inn is...uh, something else), yet praise WR Hearst for all the high-class art and architecture, most of which is fully lifted from desperate churches between and after world and yet they're both more or less the same concept (lodging for weary travelers, self-aggrandizement, questionable taste-mixing). Hearst Castle edges out slightly for me because it's bigger and has spectacular scenery and history, plus it gives me doses of LA noir thanks to the way Hearst killed a guy in a jealous Charlie Chaplin-related rage and Hedda Hopper covered it up, all kinds of old Hollywood shenanigans happened up there, etc. But I'm low-key an expert on both houses of the holy, I'm OBSESSED with both, and we can leave it at that. I mean, come on:

5. Snow Globes

I had to cull my personal collection slightly just to fit it all on the dedicated shelf in my bathroom, and I seriously need to refill all the water lines, but nothing beats a snow globe in terms of memorable souvenir, especially when you put it in a bathroom. The majesty!!! The jewel of my collection is the one from Sherwood Forest because WHY NOT celebrate a historic place and moment in the basic way?? He robbed from the rich to give to the poor, and the gift shop about 100 feet from the tree he hid in does the same! The circle of life! The irony of all the watermarks on this blessed image...protect:

6. Highly Specific Museums

Look, we can all agree that the more venerated museums in the world are a form of garbage in terms of what they represent, what they've done, and who runs them, but I'm here for the museums that collect and celebrate things that tend to get overlooked. There are too many to list that I love that are still thriving, so I'm going to say goodbye to four recently departed faves. RIP to the Pez museum, I'm so glad I saw you and purchased your stale candy souvenirs. RIP to the museum of terrible food, you were a pop up when Phoenix and I saw you, and I will forever think about the worker describing people literally vomiting during their visits. RIP to the currywurst museum in Berlin, I've had currywurst exactly once and it was not for me, but I respect the Journey you took me on, including obscure east German TV shows that helped make you so popular (??). Finally, RIP to the velvet painting museum, there's no way to mince words, the person who owned you was crazy AS FUCK and had zero clue how to run a business, but I'm so glad I saw you multiple times and purchased my own velvet treasure (not this exact one, but remarkably similar):

7. Liminal Spaces: Grocery Store Edition

Confession time for those who don't know me all that well, I'm a big time voyeur, and nothing fills my heart with joy like a walk at 7 or 8 pm, the witching hour when people haven't pulled the curtains, and I can scope out their decorations/furnishings without it being "weird." Another confession is how much I unabashedly adore grocery stores in other countries and will spend at least an hour wandering aisle by aisle, falling in love with how much everything is different yet completely the same:

8. Agatha Christie Novels:

As a child, I was a fairly compliant reader--I had to read something for school? Okay! For my mom? Sounds good! But the books that sparked the initial fire for me to read something purely for myself were second-hand (probably fourth- or fifth-hand, judging by cover art) Agatha Christie short story anthologies, which were the gateway drug to full Agatha Christie novels, then other mystery novels, and so on. But getting back to Agatha, I obviously loved all the stories, but every decade spawned incredibly good cover art (like, exceptionally good), and this particular artist's are right up near the top for me (I go back and forth on a lot of the '50s and '60s ones):

9. Scopitones

I link my obsession with scopitones both to my love of music videos in general and a shop in Austin, TX, that sold DVD compilations of them in particular, but either way, they're underappreciated and kitschy all in one! Francoise Hardy and the rest of the ye-ye's are my forever girls for this medium, but seemingly every country cranked them out, both actual set videos and "live" performances? If you don't know what they are, scopitones were machines that played music videos in French cafes in the '60s (??), so it was sort of your proto-MTV way to see your faves sing and dance. Oh, Francoise...so moderne!!

10. Cover Songs

I have so much patience and love for cover songs of any stripe, the more genre-bending and/or surprising, the better! My only minor beef is the trend in slooooooooowing down songs to make a point, but even those ones have a special place in my heart if they're effective. Live Lounge feeds my hunger the best, but my meta fave for representing this concept is Pulp's Bad Cover Version, which was already lyrically INSPIRED, a song about bad cover versions in terms of relationships, but then they did a video that was a visual "bad" cover version, with actors lip synching over an audio "bad" cover version, and all of it just worked? The cover for the single is someone in the band as a boy, making his own bad cover version of a Bowie album cover, it's meta meta meta, and I love love love, here's the video, if you're curious. In the more sublime cover category, I'm absolutely addicted to all of Orville Peck's covers, I truly hope he officially releases them sometime soon, but I wholeheartedly support any artist who does it:

[love-takes-work]

Steven Universe Comic Fusion Frenzy (2019) - Outline & Review

Steven Universe: Fusion Frenzy is a mega issue with five separate stories that each focus on a different Fusion from the show. It's available digitally from ComiXology in the States and from Boom Studios and your local comic shop.

There are four covers for this one: two are by artist Nathalie Fourdraine and they connect together to make a single picture, while a third rarer variant is by Abigail L. Dela Cruz, and then there's a Wondercon exclusive by Alexandra Lillie.

The five stories feature Stevonnie, Garnet, Smoky Quartz, Opal, and Sugilite. And though, as per usual with comics, these cannot be taken as "show canon," they all show us experiences and perspectives we've really wanted to see with these Fusions! Except for Garnet--who speaks so rarely about her experience despite her everyday presence--we don't get to spend much time with any of these others, and it's so much fun to get a peek at these comic authors' and artists' ideas of what it would be like.

This is a review of each story, with an illustrated plot description and a list of notable items.

STEVONNIE: "When the Light Breaks," written by Anthony Oliveira and illustrated by Ver.

Plot: 

Garnet tells a story about the "dangerous side of fusion"--meaning that when you stand for who you are and what you believe in, you become a target, and you must be prepared to deal with that ugly side of it.

Stevonnie, after training, unfuses into Steven and Connie to attend a parade. It appears to be a celebration of love, with many rainbows and confetti. The Gems discuss how they really haven't been too active in these celebrations (though Garnet MAAAY have thrown rocket punches during one in the past because "love is a riot"). Garnet's narration continues to tell us that Homeworld was always against the diversity that Earth celebrates.

Steven and Connie are very excited, but then an attack begins. A monster appears--it’s an attacker that was used by Homeworld to separate Fusions, but it's also corrupted--and it looks like a Gem destabilizer. Garnet's narration encourages those who are attacked for how they love or identify to "learn together, grow together, laugh together, and endure together."

The monster is able to unfuse Garnet, but Steven and Connie quickly fuse into Stevonnie and protect them. They are able to attack the monster and get its Gem. A rainbow appears after the battle clouds clear.

Notable:

1. The narration talk bubbles are so cute--not only color-coded, but identified by the symbols for who's talking. Garnet's are decorated with both her Gemstones at the bottom right corner, while Stevonnie's has a star.

2. "Never forget how much bravery it takes to love each other"--what an incredible quote.

3. Uncle Andy is chilling in Greg's van during the parade. He looks kinda uncomfortable.

4. So many Beach City regulars are visible doing their thing during the parade!

5. Steven sticks his head into Lion's portal and comes out of Lars's head just to share some confetti with them. It's one of those things that's just too convoluted to explain if you don't already know what you're looking at.

6. Interesting that the destabilizer effect seems to just separate the Fusions instead of poofing them the way the modern destabilizer does in “The Return.”

GARNET: "The Gauntlet," written by Jy Yang and illustrated by Doki Rosi.

Plot: 

Steven and Connie are achy after fusion training and complaining about why it's so hard. Garnet--who's baked them cookies--is happy to give her perspective.

The art style melts into a more colorful, whimsical depiction of Garnet's days as a new Fusion, when she was pink and blue and innocent. She loved her early days learning about being a Crystal Gem with Rose and Pearl, but she wasn't given all the time she needed to learn about herself. There was a war going on.

Rose urges Garnet to run and hide, but she feels so weird running away and leaving her friends to fight the battle. Ruby had always been a soldier, after all, and Sapphire's ability lets Garnet predict where her help (and her failure to help) all led to different futures. When she realizes the soldiers are Blue Diamond's, looking for HER, she knows she has to fight.

Garnet unfuses, and when she comes together again, she has her more modern look, with a more consistent color and her visor in place. She confronts the soldiers and identifies herself as a Crystal Gem, standing up for who she is. Back in the present, telling the story, Garnet admits she didn't exactly "kick butt" at first, but she emphasizes that what's important is doing the right thing when it matters.

Notable:

1. Garnet in an apron, baking cookies (which she did in the episode "Warp Tour") is super cute. Her smiley style in this artist's depiction is really interesting!

2. The art style of the flashback is not exactly the same as the show's version of the same thing, but it is absolutely successful at being reminiscent of it. It's so soulful and expressive!

3. In one of Garnet's visions of a battle, we see Pearl fighting a Hessonite. Wow, cool.

4. This comic seems to imply that unfusing and re-fusing can create a new permanent form, and that Garnet got her more recognizable look (including the visor) during this time, but as of this writing we still haven't been told in the show canon when Garnet started wearing her visor and when she stopped looking like cotton candy.

SMOKY QUARTZ: "The Art of Friendship," written by Steve Foxe and illustrated by Xiao Tong Kong.

Plot:

Steven and Amethyst are fighting a pretty stubborn corrupted Gem, and they decide to fuse since Smoky Quartz's yo-yo is perfect for this battle. They have to think fast to stop an innocent bystander from getting injured in the battle, and it turns out to be Amethyst's old pal Vidalia.

Vidalia is immediately enchanted, thinking Smoky is basically just a weird shapeshift of Amethyst's since that's what she's used to, and she invites Smoky to be her model for a painting the way Amethyst used to in the old days. Smoky quickly becomes uncomfortable with Vidalia's reminiscing, because she's treating them like they're just Amethyst, the Gem who has a history with her. Steven doesn't have that history, and neither does Smoky.

Vidalia invites Smoky out for a day of partying "like they used to," and Smoky reluctantly accepts. No matter how many times Smoky reminds Vidalia that those memories belong to her history with Amethyst and Smoky is NOT just a different version of Amethyst, Vidalia keeps using the wrong name, ignoring the commentary, and making assumptions. Finally, in the pizza shop, Smoky unfuses out of frustration that Vidalia doesn't want to hang out with THEM and won't listen. Vidalia finally gets the message and pledges to do better.

Finally, Vidalia has Smoky model for her and this time she treats them like they're really someone she hasn't met before. She listens to Smoky's stories of beating Jasper, hanging out with Sardonyx, and showing Greg yo-yo tricks. They've finally bonded over who Smoky actually is, and Smoky likes Vidalia's portrait of them.

Notable:

1. Smoky's puns. Aiiii. "'Eye' bet you weren't ready for me!" *groan*

2. Fusion is a very specific thing that isn't exactly "like" anything in human life, but the parallels in this comic to misgendering are really interesting. Not only does Smoky exist as "sort of" a version of the person Vidalia knew BUT NOT REALLY--Vidalia also has to dispense with some outdated beliefs and perspectives so she can really know who this person is. It's great.

3. This art style looks really, really cool on Smoky! They're not quite as roly-poly-looking as in the cartoon, but they're consistently bigger than most people and the third arm looks great.

4. When Amethyst and Steven briefly unfuse to show Vidalia that Smoky is a Fusion of two people she knows, the effect is just like it was when Amethyst and Steven unfused for the first time in the Kindergarten during the episode "Earthlings"--Amethyst was glowing and diffuse, but Steven isn't. I love that that detail was mirrored here.

5. Steven is happy to fuse with Amethyst and model for Vidalia, but he's worried he'll have to visit Onion's room again. Yeah, that was traumatic. Heh, great callback.

6. Smoky tells some familiar stories to Vidalia at the end (beating Jasper, interacting with Sardonyx and her room), but then another one that's unfamiliar is added: Greg freaking out at first but enjoying Smoky's yo-yo tricks. Interesting! I'd like to see Greg meet Smoky, though he hasn't gotten to yet in the show. (Smoky also says "our yo-yo tricks," which is interesting since it's not exactly singular speaking, but that's not out of the ordinary for certain Fusions.)

OPAL: "Winging It," written by Nicole Andelfinger and illustrated by Mollie Rose.

Plot:

Pearl and Amethyst are after a flying Centipeetle, and they're having their typical trouble working together to catch it--not to mention Amethyst's saltiness over having to miss Taco Tuesday. Amethyst's noise attracts the attention of bats who are a nuisance that gets in their way of trapping the Centipeetle.

They're not fast enough to catch the Centipeetle by themselves, but then they realize their Fusion, Opal, would be able to move faster and might have the skills to capture it. Pearl and Amethyst fuse.

Opal's superior height, dexterity, and grace make it simple to catch the flying Centipeetle. She does it almost effortlessly, without saying a word.

But then Opal gets curious and opens her hands a little to look at the Centipeetle she caught, and it screeches, disturbing the hordes of bats. They quickly poof the Gem, unfuse, and go on their way--with Amethyst enjoying the idea of getting her tacos after all.

Notable:

1. Amethyst's griping about tacos is adorable. It's so her.

2. Really nice to see Opal. She looks pretty cool in this style.

3. I think it's funny that Opal doesn't speak in the comic. Some people joke that Opal is so rarely on the show because they can't get the guest voice actor back, but I think it's cool that this comic took a cue from what they actually do in the show and have her make a brief, action-packed, silent appearance.

SUGILITE: "An Overdue Conversation," written by Sarah Gailey and illustrated by Maurizia Rubino.

Plot:

A really big corrupted Gem needs to be taken down, and though Steven believes Sugilite is the obvious solution, Pearl has AGGRESSIVE objections to bringing Sugilite back.

Pearl's argument is that Sugilite is uncontrollable and leaves Garnet and Amethyst in bad shape when they unfuse. She doesn't want to even consider using Sugilite for the mission, and suggests Sardonyx instead, but everyone else wants Sugilite. Amethyst points out that Pearl doesn't have much business talking about her nature since she's never been Sugilite.

Steven invites Amethyst and Garnet to tell them about what that feels like for them. Amethyst loves the chance to not be held back by anything, and Garnet finds it a relief to be impulsive instead of thoughtful sometimes, though she has reservations about ignoring her calm side. When Garnet says fusion isn't supposed to feel like that, Amethyst takes ownership of why their Fusion goes wrong, and Garnet assures her it's just as much her responsibility. They decide to try to respect the different parts of themselves and try being Sugilite on the mission.

Sugilite ends up fighting the large corrupted Gem, and enjoys herself immensely. They capture the Gem, but then Pearl is fully ready to have to fight Sugilite to get her to unfuse or not unleash her anger at another target. But instead, Sugilite is happy that they saw her do a good job and peacefully unfuses.

Amethyst and Garnet learned to listen to each other better, and they had a much more satisfying fusion experience--with a promise of next time!

Notable:

1. Most of Pearl's irritation over including Sugilite is, of course, referring to the events of "Coach Steven." Interestingly, Pearl makes no reference to the last time they saw Sugilite, who was the choice Garnet resorted to when Pearl did something horrible in "Cry for Help.”

2. Steven having issues with getting tangled in his sweater and suggesting cocoa was really adorable.

3. Pearl is really being a jerk in this one. I realize she's traumatized by the last time she fought Sugilite and that she has a low opinion of her, and it’s true she has had to clean up their mess before, but Steven's right there listening to her talk crap about someone he loves. She at least could've expressed her reservations without actually telling Steven to get ready for a fight against their own teammate. But that's Pearl for ya.

4. Sugilite being satisfied that Steven saw her kick butt is very her. She was all about showing off for Steven during "Coach Steven," and seemed very disappointed and angry when she found out no one had seen her wrecking the Communication Hub.

REVIEW:

My favorite was the Smoky Quartz comic, which is probably pretty weird for this Garnet nerd, but Garnet’s was my second favorite, and I honestly really did love all of them! The message in the Stevonnie comic was powerful, and I love how even though fusion is a science fiction concept, it allows so many parallels with facilitating lessons about self-love, love that requires bravery, being different, identity acceptance and allyship, teamwork, and various types of intimate relationships (not just romantic love). 

I thoroughly enjoyed this collection--not just because I love seeing these Fusions, but because the writing said something worth hearing. ALL THE STARS!!!

[SU Book and Comic Reviews]

[thelittlefanpire]

2019 Year In Review

Rules: answer some questions about 2019 and tag some people! I was tagged by @dylanobrienisbatman a while back! 🥰

Top 5 Films you watched in 2019:

Aladdin

A Simple Favor

Captain Marvel

Always Be My Maybe

Endgame

Top 5 TV show in 2019:

Russian Doll

Always A Witch 

Good Girls

The Passage

Lost In Space

Top 5 songs of 2019:

Old Town Road -Lil Nas X

Lose You To Love Me - Selena Gomez

Sucker - JoBros

The Man - TSwift

Baby Shark

Top 5 books of 2019:

I didn’t read a single book this year. What a #fail! But if I did read it would be...

The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern

On The Come Up by Angie Thomas

Wayward Son by Rainbow Rowell

Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens

The Atlantis Code by Charles Brokaw

Top 5 fanfictions of 2019:

the feel-good hit of the summer by @errorofyourways (GOAT, Rock Band AU)

Wellarke S6 AU Drabble by @chase-the-windandtouch-the-sky

And Maybe I’ll Grow Into You by @thefangirlingbarista (Bellarke Slow Burn Childhood Friends to Lovers AU)

our backs to the sun by @charmanderdiyoza (Bellarke S2x16 AU Angst)

With stardust embedded in our skin by @dylanobrienisbatman (Becho Reincarnation Soulmate AU)

Five good/positive things that happened to you in 2019:

I went to my first Convention, WonderCon, saw the cast of The 100 and watched 6x01! It was the best Day Trip™!

I checked off almost all of my California Bucket List Places! We went to Disneyland, Laguna Pirate Beach, the Slot Canyon, a Winery, and Camping!

I saw my Soulmate Best Friend! We live on the same coast but traveled all the way across the country so we could meet up at the beach and love on each other’s babies!

My little family is strong. We went through so much this year, but we are here...alive, healthy, and together.

CHOPPED WITH BAILEY! OH HEY I LOVE YOU!

Tagging: @pawprinterfanfic @the-most-beautiful-broom @marauders-groupie @kindclaws @craniumhurricane @kinetic-elaboration @captaindaddykru @hiddenpolkadots @probably-voldemort @teeandsnowflakes and anyone else who wants to do this! Not sure who’s done this already!

[missdontcare-x]

@alyciajasmin: 🎀🎀 wondercon here we come.

[purge-that-urge-rhackathon]

So everything considered, I actually had a pretty good birthday I think.

I’ll stick it here cuz i dont want to redo my tags: there’s no need to reblog this so please dont its not one of those kinds of posts :\

I still have a lot to unpack in terms of how I’m feeling and mainly I am so fucking exhausted like i do not have room to deal with more fucking trauma.

The excellent thing is, so many strangers (and now new friends) have been sharing the post I made that the man who assaulted me has been chased down by multiple others (I’ve called the cops and been to the station twice since I was first assaulted but so far the cops have been pretty useless if i’m not personally there to point him out wtf) and I am now friends with multiple people who live right near the bar district where it happened, they’re still looking.

It’s not justice but the fact others are keeping an eye out for me, a total stranger, is jarring as fuck like I did not expect anyone to actually help or anything to come from posting something online :/ It’s an incredible comfort as i’ve been up and down trying to just unpack everything im trying to feel and I’m just shocked by that haha i always expect the worst of people so when I see the best i really can’t ever actually believe much of it.

I’ve been hyper-vigilant about my mood, what i’m feeling, why, any external factors (am i just hangry, or am I thinking about it again? ahaha) and I’m definitely more aware of how close I let people get to me in public, i’m on/off tears, on/off having fun/needing to be alone in quiet, basically my bullshit been turned all the way to 11 and i am rethinking applying to any of the bars downtown now. My current workplace isn’t too far from there and one of the other bartenders had his window smashed in the other night (this keeps happening in our parking lot) and I need out and basically im exhausted and not sleeping and more anxious than normal and just so so aggravated and i should probably call out of work this weekend but I am hurting for money real bad and BASICALLY i am one big panic attack inside a plastic bag waiting to pop AHAHAH

It’s only the 4th and already this month is long as hell x_x

Who else is going to Wondercon? (i say we riot if they cancel from coronavirus bullshit. folks just need to wash their damn hands ugh haha) anyways yeah fun things

[agl03]

The kiddo and I are heading out for Wondercon tomorrow so this is going to be my “Housekeeping” post for the awesomeness to come this weekend.  

Spoilers

All spoilers will continue to be tagged with #aos spoilers and #wondercon spoilers.  Please blacklist accordi

As of right now I am not planning on doing a blow by blow breakdown of the episode.  Others will be much faster than I will getting them up and I figure I’ll get enough asks to fill in the blanks.  I will also adhere to any and all policies by the con in regards of sharing and posting.  If they say I can’t post something, I won’t.

I’ll share news, articles and interviews as they come out and I come across them.

Asks

I will get to the asks as soon as I can.  But I do ask for patience.  I am going to be there with the Kiddo and meeting up with other Tumblrs.  I want to enjoy the experience and be present for all of them.  Last year I had over 125 asks and eventually I just had to call it and do blanket posts that addressed most of the issues.

Once I start answering I will combine where I can.

As always please do not use my ask box to voice unpopular opinion or hate towards a certain character or ship. Those will be deleted.  

Please check my blog to see if I already answered your question before sending one in.  

Remember I am not a writer and therefore not responsible for any story decisions people may not like.  I am also human, my predictions have been off before and will be again.  

Please get any last minute asks in today if possible.

If there is something you want me to see or address send it in an ask.  I tend to miss when I am tagged in a post when things get crazy.

If you are at the con please don’t hesitate to say hi if you see me, I’ll be hard to miss with the Kiddo in costume (I’ll post on Friday her looks and I am thrilled with how they turned out).  Don’t forget we have a meet up on Saturday at 5:30 pm at Trader Sams at the Disneyland Hotel (by the pool).

Thanks so much in advance!