Giving Thanks!

Wow. It’s a great time to be involved in comics, you know that?

I mean look at how big this genre has become. We have successful TV & movie franchises derived from Marvel. Great animation and TV from DC (Their cinematic universe has yet to be unveiled save for Man of Steel). Other shows like the Walking Dead, thrive in popularity.

Comic books are pop culture juggernauts. The conventions rake in money every year, with San Diego being a massive mecca for those obsessed with them. Sub-generes have spawned from them; Cosplay is now a giant facet of comic conventions. 15-20 years ago, you wouldn’t see model-attractive people walking around dressed up as Phoenix or Gambit or whomever. As much as I have expressed my slight disdain for the sensationalism of SDCC, there is no denying that its far more impressive to say that you work on a comic book these days.

People flock to conventions and buy t-shirts, statues, and exclusives of their favorite books. They scramble to catch a glimpse of a star who has portrayed a character. Or a director who’s made his stamp on a title on film. Mainstream actors are all chomping at the bit to be involved in potential series, with some even penning their own books. It’s nuts.

The irony? This used to be a sort of closet-guilty pleasure for some. Comics were never always this celebratory. Now, if you know your comic shit, you might as well be MVP on the best team in the world.

Ok, maybe not THAT celebratory.

So, it being so very close to Thanksgiving, I want to express how thankful I am to have seen this phenomenon evolve from shameful secret to “everybody’s doing it”. I’m thankful to be able to have created something along with the rest of my fellow crew here at Afro Stache Studios, and not only sell it, but also sit at tables at conventions from Las Vegas to Long Beach to San Diego, (the granddaddy of them all), and meet people who showed sincere interest in what I was involved in. I like doing this. Right now it’s a glorified hobby. But it’s one of the most satisfying hobbies that I have ever been involved in. I hope all of you reading this have that special craft you indulge in.