Focus on: London Super Comic Convention 2013

My pass, complete with Black Canary nail art...

So this weekend I travelled down to London for my very first London Super Comic Convention.

The Boy had gone last year as a surprise stag do weekend with his best man and absolutely raved about it so I knew I had to get down to London this year and get my geek on.

Still relatively in it's infancy, this was only the second convention and despite a few little kinks needing ironing out it was fantastic.

Held at the London Excel Centre, a huuuuuuuge venue in the Docklands, the convention took place in a large exhibition hall.

We decided to go to the con around lunchtime, having looked at the program and deciding we'd rather be there all afternoon and then nip to the pub after the con rather than get there for the opening. It really felt like we'd made the right decision as there was absolutely no queue at all when we arrived! The ticket staff were really friendly and efficient and I got my pass and fab goodie bag quickly and headed on in to the rest of the hall.

Goodies....

The first thing we came across, randomly was a group of girls offering massages.  I'm not so sure about that one - it was a little confusing.  Although it didn't really have the whole icky booth babe vibe about it, it did just seem a little weird... 

A little bemused, the Boy and I went on in to the rest of the con ready to sample of the geeky delights on offer before us.  There were loads of indie comics stalls as well as the usual big name publishers and and vendors. The indie stalls were really high quality and I got to see a lot of comics I wouldn't otherwise have come across.  I also bought a couple of zany titles that I'll be reviewing later in the week as well as my very first 2000AD anthology - Judge Anderson 01.

There was also an amazing stall selling vintage movie posters and had to physically restrain myself every time I walked past an original 1977 Star Wars poster in Thai. I needed it so very badly, unfortunately my bank balance needed staying in the red just a little more. I didn't even dare to look at the many silver age comics! Next time though, next time...

The con itself had a really relaxed vibe about it and it was so nice to come in and take my time looking at everything without being ridiculously crowded or feeling rushed.

A very blurry shot of the 2000AD Judge Dredd Panel

There were panels on offer although not as many as I would have expected from a major convention.  Although I'm not a huge Dredd fan the only panel I found appealing was the 2000AD Judge Dredd one with John Wagner, Brian Bolland and Alan Grant among others. I must admit I enjoyed the panel as the writers and artists were entertaining and honest about their opinions and processes.  The addition of the cosplaying Judges was a nice touch as well and they stayed in character throughout.  But while this panel was interesting, the other panels bit wishy washy sounding and there weren't very many compared to other cons I have been to.  I think that this is a definite area for them to work on - if BICs in Birmingham could pull in bigger panels then a London convention certainly should be able to.

Something that worked really well was the seperate section for the portfolio reviews for artists and it seemed to be really useful and well organised.  There seems to be a lot of portfolio reviews for artists at cons which is fantastic, but as an aspiring comic writer it would be fantastic to have something for us wordsmiths too!  Maybe something where we could run pitches past people or a page of script of something?  I suspect that this would be just as popular as the artists reviews and feedback is so important for anyone looking to develop their skills!
 
All in all, the con was really enjoyable. I loved seeing the range of cosplayers and met some wonderful kooky and creative people.  I'll definitely be going back even if it is just for the one day, it was worth the trip!

This Week I've Been Mostly...

Gearing up for London Super Comic Con

 

It’s the Con today and so all this week I have been mostly going SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am very excited to see my geeky friends new and old and to make new ones.  

I’ll be lusting over the cosplayers costumes and trying to justify why silver age comics are more important than rent.  Unfortunately for my landlord and my bank this is an argument that The Boy would find all to persuasive!

 

I’ll be hunting down the remaining issues of Secret Six that I am missing, looking for Powergirl/Huntress/Batgirl/Black Canary anything and hoping to spot a bargain.

Hopefully you’ll be there too but if not never fear, I will fill you in on all the gossip next week!

Geek DIY: Board Games

Somewhat obviously, this week's DIY post focuses on all things game related.

Defeat the Laws of the Universe

So dice ALWAYS go missing. It's like an unwritten rule of nature - no matter how careful you are, as soon as you want to get that game down off the shelf, those dice are guaranteed NOT to be on the box.  Well worry no more as games enthusiast Dean Hale has a youtube video for you!  Make your own dice, make them fun, make them funky, make them in abundance using Dean's easy to follow guide here:

Guess Whooo?

As a kid I loved playing Guess Who? but those same old random faces get boring after a while.  Wouldn't it be some much more fun to play with people you actually know? Or a full set of comic book heroes? Or the cast of Doctor Who?

Well you thanks to Sugardoodle.net you can! Just use the downloadable template and follow the instructions to make your very own, super customisable Guess Who? game. 

Just don't go all Mass Effect fan girl like I did and make every character Garrus Vakarian... Ahh Garrus with your sweet Turian honeyed voice and super sexy mandibles... Ahem.

 Watch your head!

Summer is just around the corner (thank God!) and for those of you lucky enough to have a garden bigger than a postage stamp, barbeques and lazy afternoon's outside beckon.  Make the most of your time with your very own outdoor Jenga set like the clever folks at I'm Loving Today did right here.

Rewrite ALL the rules...

So, you think you've got what it takes to knock Hasbro into a battered hat?  Are you the next Steve Jackson? Fancy being featured on Wil Wheaton's surprisingly awesome show Tabletop?

Follow these rules from Bernie Dodge at the Educational Technology Department at San Diego University, design your very own game and get ready to take on the world!

Midweek Munchies: Games Night Nibbles

So you've been inspired to set up a games night and have invited your BFFs around for a night a gaming magic.  Now all you have do is feed them!  

Fear not, we've got it covered with a super simple, ultra cheesy games night themed supper! 

Checkers and Draughts

For a a quick snack or starter, why not try this ultra simple watermelon checker board from Food Lion

A quirky combination of watermelon and cheese, this is really easy to do but looks impressive. 

Try it with feta instead of cheddar for a truly scrumptious combination or swap out the cheese for a lighter galia or honeydew for the same effect with half the calories and none of the lactose!

For more finger food with a checker board theme, why not try this sandwich platter from My Recipes.com. 

You can try plain cheese as the recipe suggests or sex it up with some gourmet filings like:

• crumbled blue cheese, crushed walnuts, rocket and chutney
• avocado, roasted chicken, crispy bacon and dijon mustard
• brie, grape and redcurrant jelly
• chopped peppers, spring onions, peach and sweet chilli sauce

Just make sure your fillings aren't too chunky or they'll spoil the effect of the board!

Parcheesi

And what games night would be complete with pizza!  Try this super cute and really easy Par-cheesy Pizza from Taste of Home.

Munchkin

 

For something a little more upmarket, why not pay homage to Steve Jackson and John Kovalic's Munchkin with these little stuffed Munchkin squash from IVillage.co.uk: 

Scrabble
 
And to finish?  These declicious scrabble cookies from Not Quite Nigella of course!

Games night munchies? Sorted!

Ink Inspiration: Board Games

So most of us who are inked like to use tattoos as a way of expressing what is important to us and  these hardcore gamers are no different.

My favourite tattoo this week has to be this cute little Scrabble inspired tattoo designed by Brad Mills and inked by Tommy Haley at Danny's Ancient Art Tattoos in Kanawha City. Brad is a member of the Kanawha Valley Scrabble club and has blogged his tattoo design process here. Bonus points for the owl Brad!  

 

Also check out this amazing Battleship inspired piece by Dan Bythewood at Regeneration Tattoo in Allston, MA.  I'm loving the old school styling of this piece!

Found at Tattoo Snob

  

For some light hearted nostalgia you can't beat this very Hungry Hippo found at Global To You News

Where I also found this Monopoly half sleeve:

 

 
On the theme of Monopoly, how about this handy Get Out of Jail Free card found at Holy Taco:

 

Then there's the ultra nerdy and pretty cool Magic the Gathering ink below found at Nurgleprobe

Then there's this brightly coloured huge Game of Life Chest piece. That's real dedication to a game right there!

  

So, got any board game ink?  Got an awesome idea for a gaming tatt? Let me know in the comments below!

Don't forget, if it's not credited and you see someone you know or your own work, get in touch!

Focus on: The New Board Games

We’ve all got memories from our childhood surrounding board games – all sitting around with Ma and Pa, grinning like mindless zombie drones enjoying moving coloured bits of plastic around a printed cardboard square... Right?

This much domestic bliss is just creepy... Photograph: Lambert/Getty Images

found at the Guardian Online

 

Well, maybe not quite like that, but board games are a common factor in most of our childhoods - everyone had a shelf of dusty boxes that would get dragged out in the summer holidays or over the Christmas break.

Hungry Hippos. What the hell were they meant to be eating anyway, Xanax?

One of my favourites as a child was Hungry Hungry Hippos, although those slippery little marbles always seemed to escape and disappear into the ether quite quickly.  In fact this happened to most of the board game pieces in my household.  Somewhere in another dimension there is a place filled with stray dice, puzzle pieces, marbles, odd socks and pens.  A sort of final resting place for the essential small pieces of daily living without which Operation would simply be called “Who can make the most buzzing noises” and everyone has a cold left foot.

Pick Up Sticks - or as I like to call it, the Stabby Game

Another favourite childhood game of mine with a million easily lost pieces was called Pick Up Sticks.  A game of deftness and concentration in which players must carefully remove coloured skewers from a pile without disturbing the others. 

A game full of fun for all the family, and I have many happy memories of spending summer afternoons testing my skills against my younger sister. Well until the fateful afternoon when after a particularly tense match descended into a heated discussion about what exactly constituted cheating.  In the absence of any referee the argument was swiftly settled by my 5 year old sister grabbing one of the brightly coloured and questionably sharp skewers and inserting it at high velocity into my arm. Good times...

 

And who doesn’t remember playing Guess Who? or Connect 4 or indulging your inner capitalist pig tycoon with a good old round of Monopoly?  

The old joke goes that board games are for the terminally bored, to be broken out only when trapped inside a bunker with the inlaws amidst an interminable nuclear winter.  But no more!

Board games are experiencing a recent revival with champions such as Chris Hardwick of The Nerdist and all round geek extraordinaire Wil Wheaton being at the forefront of championing what is actually a rather enjoyable way to spend time with friends and family.

With games such as Zombie Dice, Munchkin and Pandemic shooting to the top of the game charts board games are cool again.  No longer the preserve of children, family afternoons and the stuffy middle classes, board games are edgy, they are different and they are a perfect recession friendly way to spend a night in with mates.

This week I’ll be looking at some of my favourite games out at the moment and giving you some handy hints and tips for making your games night more fun than the tired old Saturday night car keys in the fishbowl affair!