Okay. So, Shanghai.I am a little emotional still. I can’t tell you how happy this trip has...

Okay. So, Shanghai.

I am a little emotional still.

I can’t tell you how happy this trip has made me. The first day of the con, all fhe comics people started a little slowly, so we weren’t sure if we were going to be busy.
Then we were simply swamped, It was a lot of people for me, but because all I do is sign and take photos and such, the lines moved quickly. For the artists, like David Finch and Adi Granov, who do sketches, holy moley, they just were pummeled and the lines moved very slowly.

This is the first such Comic Con in Shanghai, and it made me so, so happy. To see these amazing young people loving comics, talking about comics, cosplaying obscure DC and Marvel characters, it was FANTASTIC.

We had no idea what to expect. No one knew for sure, not even the organizers. But the readers here love Lumberjanes and Hawkeye and Birds of Prey and Secret Six and it is just unbelievably wonderful.

Access to comics is not easy here, or in most of mainland China, I am told. But they are getting comics digitally, or in tps. I can’t even begin to express how kind and gracious the readers here have been. And from what I could tell, it was AT LEAST half females for the guy artists and for me it was probably more like 65% or more. Several times I looked up and saw a long line and it would be ALL females, and they knew their comics, let me tell you.

Another rewarding thing was seeing the talent at the artists’ alley booths. I got to meet some of them, and holy crap, can they draw. I would not be at all surprised if Shanghai ends up as another hot talent pool for DC and Marvel.

I did a panel at the end of the day, and again, did not know what to expect. The people putting on the panel warned me that the Chinese audience was often shy and that they may not feel comfortable asking questions, so I was prepared for that.

What I was NOT prepared for was the incredible insightful nature of the questions. People were asking HARD and complex questions about important story points, things like theme and subtext and tone and WOW, the questions were so good, I feel like I didn’t begin to answer them as well as they deserved. There is something SO gratifying about someone asking questions that deep when there is a language barrier, it’s brings you together, it shows that understanding is more significant than shared surface detail. I left that panel wanting to hug every single person attending.

There was a group of Deadpools attending, we decided that that would be called a GIGGLE of Deadpools. Lady Deadpool asked some of the best questions and it was hard to respond because she was so freaking adorable.

I really want to thank everyone for making us feel so welcome. China is one of our favorite countries to visit, but last time we were here, people couldn’t watch the Simspons, video game consoles were banned, a lot of pop culture stuff we take for granted was not available. Now this stuff is here and the kids are responding to it with the same affection and creativity we see at the very best cons anywhere in the world.

I am breathless with delight. The con is half over, but I can’t wait to see what today brings. It feels like what we are doing, telling these stories, is bringing people together all over the world and I am so happy to be a small teensy part of that.

The smiles on the faces of these con-goers are going to stick with me forever. What an amazing experience.

This is the first such con, but the genie is out of that bottle and there are going to be a lot more.

What a revelation, what a beautiful thing to witness.

 

Thank you again, everyone who came, I absolutely adore you!