The subject of WizardWorld Atlanta vs. Heroes Con in Charlotte is one that has caused such a stir in the comics community that we feel we would be remiss if we did not address it here.
If you have been living in a cave and have not yet heard, the story goes somewhat as follows:
Wizard Entertainment Group, (publisher of the popular comic book magazine, Wizard) currently sponsors major comic book conventions in Chicago, Boston, Texas, Los Angeles, and Philadelphia. Rumors had been abundant in comic circles that Wizard was planning to add another convention to their lineup that would take place in Atlanta - joyous news to those of us on the central east coast. And then...
I'm not sure what happened.
There was an announcement... or a leak... or something that indicated that Wizard had, indeed finalized plans for WizardWorld Atlanta in 2006... On June 30-July 2, 2006 - the same weekend as Heroes Con.
For those who may not know, Heroes Con is a convention that has been running in Charlotte, NC for nearly 25 years. The GravyBoy guys have been regular attendees of Heroes for several years (see the sidebar on our 2004 HeroesCon review) - as guests promoting GravyBoy for the last 2 years. Each convention has it's own unique personality, and Heroes is known throughout comicdom as a very creator-friendly convention.
And so - when the news dropped that WW Atlanta may be on the same date as the longstanding Heroes convention, it got some creators fairly riled. They viewed this as an attempt by wizard to take out the local competition and take over the East Coast comic con market. Many of these creators have joined a 'boycott' of sorts for WizardWorld Atlanta in favor of HeroesCon - leading to the largest ever guest list for HeroesCon 2006.
Wizard's official stance at present is that the dates for their convention have not been finalized and that the dates that have resulted in so much controversy were never officially released by the company. Thus, all of the gnashing of teeth going on around the comic chat rooms may be without cause.
Despite the blood sweat and tears, there are some positives coming out of this brouhaha. With the influx of new creators signing up to be at Heroes next year, one way or another there will be at least one - and maybe two - major cons on the East Coast in 2006. If the dates work out, you may see us at both.
As for us, we're not jumping to any conclusions one way or the other. If you're looking for a resolution, or decree on who's right and who's wrong in this, this isn't it. If you need that, may we suggest an impartial third party to meet your grudge-match needs?
We're all for anything that gets people talking about comics again.
-Marty
I
wonder if with some thick-rimmed glasses, a wand in his hand, and a year
at a boarding school we can tap into this Harry Potter craziness for
Philbert. I'm kidding, of course...and by that I mean "please
don't sue me J.K. Rowling." As I was standing in the front of
the line to get my book I heard someone saying that at the video game
shop a few doors down one of the clerks was sneering at the Harry Potter
craze proclaiming that books went the way of the dinosaur with the
advent of the internet. He was, of course, oblivious to the fact
that the quarter-mile line just outside his door posed serious problems
for his logic.