Independents Day
Comicon. A celebration of Nerd-dom. Where movie companies come to show off their latest endeavors. Celebrities come to sign autographs and plug their latest deals. Former celebrities come to sign autographs and hope to be noticed so they’ll one day have something to plug. Toy companies can sell their outrageously overpriced toys. And off in a small corner sits the group of people who started it all. The independent comic creators.
Last year I had the opportunity to attend the New York Comicon. When I go to a Comicon, I go for one reason only. I almost never get any celebrity autographs or take selfies with anyone. I go to buy independent comic books. Most of these books you will never here of except at Comicon. Every time I go I am awed by the artists and the work they produce outside of the Big Two. Many times they entertain me more than the mainstream comics.
Some of the best comic based movies have been based on independent comics. Scott Pilgrim, Watchmen, Kick Ass, 300 and Wanted are just a few. Okay, Wanted wasn’t so good but I wouldn’t have heard of the comic if the movie hadn’t come out. And that comic was great. If you haven’t read it, go do it, ASAP. It’s nothing like the movie and goes a whole different direction than you would expect.
This year, one series in particular stood out for me. Legend of the Mantamaji (http://legendofthemantamaji.com/), created by Eric Dean Seaton (@ericdeanseaton). It starts out in typical Harry Potter fashion with the hero growing up unaware of his deep and magical heritage. But as the story unfolds you do get caught up in the history and suspense of the situations. The art is good and consistent (some artist have more trouble with that than you think). The dialog is well written and everyone stays true to their character. We even see some real growth of character in this story. I really recommend checking it out. You won’t regret it.
There’s more of course but that will come at another time. “Independents Day” will be another feature where I will highlight an independent comic or comic series. I feel Legend of the Mantamaji definitely deserves the full treatment. So with that I leave you with this. Support independent artist. Because one day that comic you bought could be made into a movie. Then you can brag to all of your friends that you knew about it before anyone else. And isn’t “bragging rights” what it’s all about anyway?
