[triumphant music] ♪ [triumphant music continues] ♪ [triumphant music continues] ♪ [triumphant music continues] - It's day two at HeroesCon.

As attendees wait for the doors to open, vendors and guests make sure their booths are ready for the rush.

As predicted, Saturday was the busiest day with tens of thousands of attendees packing the convention floor, local restaurants and the streets of Uptown Charlotte.

For me, Saturday was a bit crazy.

In addition to interviewing people at the Comic Culture booth, I moderated two panels and our team recorded a third.

It was hectic, but it was a chance to meet a surprising number of Comic Culture fans.

Former UNCP Professor Carole Graham came from Alabama to attend HeroesCon.

You know, everyone has something that they're looking for.

So what is it that is on your list of things that you know you can find here if you just look hard enough?

- I collect Golden Age, specifically Fawcett, and I collect "Wows" with Mary Marvel and Mary Marvel the cover itself, so you're talking about from the '40s and '50s.

I'm talking about comic books that are older than I am.

I love looking for books in good condition.

It's usually the cover that sells me more than the stories.

And particularly for comics that were produced during the war, you understand that a lot of them were recycled, maybe not kept in the best condition.

There's one staple holding everything together because of rationing.

And so what I'm looking for is a good solid, not gonna turn to dust book.

I believe collecting is curating for the future.

And so it's not just for me to have, but for me to have, know that it's safe and then one day perhaps we pass it on to somebody else that will appreciate it.

I was telling one of the dealers, he was like, "Wow, why did you get into that?"

And I was like, "True story.

My mother was in a bookstore with me and my brother.

I was probably eight, my brother four.

And they had just published compilations for "Captain Marvel".

It's "Shazam" under DC.

And she bought that for me.

I got the "Shazam" one.

Mary Marvel was in it.

It was a different kind of superhero than Wonder Woman or anything like that.

And I was like, I love this, I love this.

And so I've been collecting it actively, probably since college, but fell in love as a kid, so."

- What are you going to do?

You're here at the con, you drove a long way to get here, so you're probably staying the night, probably come back tomorrow, so what is it that you do after being on the floor all day that you know maybe is gonna be different than just going back and going to sleep?

- Tonight is the art auction.

One year we were here, we were in the front row and it's just great, even if you don't bid or win or buy anything.

Seeing how creative people can be with different forms and mediums of art.

So that, yeah, our plan right now is to go to the art auction and enjoy that.

Run into some folks, have some conversations, just see people, which has been really great.

- Matthew Kennedy was a student my first year at UNCP.

It's a long drive for you to come here.

- It is.

- So, you know, what makes this worthwhile?

What makes it worth the drive?

- I tell you, my brother and his family, they moved to the Concord area two years ago when BB and T and SunTrust joined Truist.

They work with Truist.

So they would come last night, have a little pizza with them, play a little basketball, see them and then to spend the day with them showing just different things they can buy and see 'cause they don't come to these like I do, you know, two or three a year.

So it's nice just showing them culture, my culture, the comic book culture, comic culture and then seeing just, seeing their eyes light up because there's so much talent in this place.

- I know you're a big "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle" fan.

- Huge.

Yeah.

[laughs] - So tell me, what are you looking for?

What is your goal this weekend as you start diving through the long boxes?

- I try to find the toys that are out now.

Sometimes you can't find 'em in stores.

I like original art.

I think the prints are nice and cool, but when you actually get the original art out of it and you can afford it, that's the nice part.

So I think getting a piece of original art is fine.

I know here Michael Dooney is here.

He worked in the Mirage days of Turtles.

We're supposed to have Ben Bishop.

I'm actually part of the Bishart Kids club.

He does, he did "The Last Ronin," a lot of the interiors.

We got no, a lot of people here did to get the covers.

So anything original art, I am, you got me hooked.

Expensive, but you got me hooked.

- What about not being able to go to the cons the past two or three years?

- I think the internet and the websites, like Patreon and stuff like that, that's changed it all for some.

The communication with fans and the artists has really changed the past three years.

But there's nothing like being in person, seeing them draw in person, talking to them because most of time it's their living and they try to sell you what they're drawing and their story.

So it's fun to hear their backgrounds and I like it.

- Comic pro professor and friend Kevin Freeman rounds out the UNCP homecoming.

You traveled from Alabama to be here.

- Correct.

- I spoke to somebody earlier who traveled from San Francisco and yesterday I spoke to somebody who traveled all the way from Hawaii- - Nice.

- To be here.

So what is it about a convention that makes you want to travel, you know, hours and hours in the car to get here?

- For me, it's accessibility.

This is a place where, again, if you are a comic person, this is the place because a lot of creators are here and from all eras.

I mean there's Silver and Bronze Age folks that you and I like, all the way up to the modern folks and the crowds here are not so crazy.

The lines are not so long in that you can spend a little bit of time with a creator and talk to them for a few minutes while they're signing your book or doing you a commission.

And the number of smaller artists who are trying to break into the industry or who are doing, create their own kind of stuff, the number of those folks here is really high too.

So the possibility of you seeing something that you've never seen before and liking it is higher here as well.

- As we get to be the older, you know, shaking our fisted cloud fans, we start- - Get off my lawn.

- Right.

- We're starting to, I'm starting to see a lot of younger people doing, you know, cosplay of anime, which is something that wasn't on my radar and different characters from video games that I just don't recognize at all.

People our age might recall comics as being something you didn't talk about because it wasn't cool, it wasn't hip and you'd get a wedgie in gym class.

- Right.

- You know, as you watch the acceptance of comics, the movies, the new, you know, series that are coming out, what do you see as the biggest change?

- I think comics is still trailing, to be honest though.

I mean, the pop culture aspect of it has exploded.

I mean with the movies and the MCU and DC universe and the video games and everything else.

But the comic book part of the equation I think is still trailing a lot of that stuff because there's still that reputation that, oh, comics is for kids and then you know you shouldn't be doing that kind of stuff.

And the sales numbers reflect that.

I mean the numbers of the circulation numbers of a lot of books that are some of the most popular ones out there are still not where they were 10 or 15 or 20, 20 years ago.

So the comic industry itself still has a little bit of work to do to get caught up with the whole pop stream mainstream aspect of comic culture.

It's interesting.

- HeroesCon set attendance record on Saturday.

The day was a whirlwind and before I knew it, it was the end of the day.

I spoke with attendee Richard Patterson before the doors closed for the night.

I've talked to folks and one of the things that they've mentioned a lot is doing stuff with friends here at Heroes or the community, meeting people with similar interests.

- [Richard] Right, right.

- So, you know, as you kind of think about that, when you weren't able to go to the con, were you able to have that same kind of interaction?

- Me and my friend Jeff and our friend Jason, we organize like a mini con in our hometown Greenville.

So we've still been able to kind of keep in touch with that fan base, you know.

So we do some shows in the area as well and so we kind of never really stopped, you know.

It kind of helped us out with that too, you know.

And just that's half the fun of coming to these things is just meet people with similar interests, you know.

- We have creators like Chris Claremont here this year, Walt Simonson, you know, are you able to get that experience?

They've got the longer lines.

So when you go and wait on those lines and finally get to speak to them, do you get to spend enough time?

- It's brief but I feel like it's worth it, you know.

Like I said, when I first started doing this, I get a little tongue tied and starstruck.

I've kind of gotten over that 'cause I knew my time is limited.

So I kind of, while I'm in line waiting, I'm trying to think of what I might want to ask or what I might want say so that I feel like I get my time, my time is worth standing in that line, you know.

- One of the things that you do, 'cause we're friends on Facebook, I know that you are an artist.

You do commissions for folks.

As an artist meeting other artists, how do you sort of interact to get maybe some pointers or tips?

- It took me a while to get over my, you know, being starstruck, you know, that's the hardest part I think.

But most of the artists seem pretty happy to share the tips, you know, like especially Lee Weeks.

I know you know.

You've interviewed Lee Weeks, Jim Starlin, most of 'em are more than happy to share whatever information they can, you know, even if it's just something small, you know, like how they approach a page layout or something like that, you know.

So I just open my big trap and ask, basically.

[laughs] - It's day three at HeroesCon.

Sunday was the most relaxed day of the weekend, and that's because Saturday was so busy.

For artists and invited guests, a show like Heroes Con is business, a chance to sell sketches, commissions, and original pages.

Vendors bring thousands of comics to sell.

And a busy Saturday means business is good.

Many artists and vendors made their goal for the con by the end of Saturday afternoon and they could exhale and enjoy the slower pace on Sunday.

There's still work to be done and thousands of attendees on the floor, but vendors don't mind haggling prices for a book you'd like to buy.

It's one less thing for them to tote back home.

Even artists who may have been sketching like crazy since Friday have more time to talk as they finish up their commissions.

Sunday is a fun day and a great chance to reflect and learn what people enjoyed most during the three days of Heroes Con, which is what I did.

First up, "Power Pack" co-creator and Mary Worth artist June Brigman.

We are back at HeroesCon after a three year break.

What's it like to be coming back to the con after all that time?

- It's even better.

Somehow it's even better than before.

I've always loved this convention.

It's my favorite convention and it always feels like a family reunion because there's so many people, artists and writers here that I've known for, you know, 30, 40 years.

But, you know, after COVID, I realized maybe I was taking that for granted a little bit.

And it's just even more special now to see these people after this strange, awful time.

And we're all still here, we're all doing our work, we're all healthy and it's just, it's wonderful and we can hug each other and it just makes it even more special.

- A lot of people have said the same thing.

It's that reconnecting with friends, the sense of community that they get at a show like this.

- [June] Right.

- A lot of people have a goal, you know.

For a comic fan it might be finding that issue of, you know, "New Gods" number one.

When you're at a convention, what's your goal?

- To buy as much Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez artwork as I can.

I just, many times at a convention, whatever I make, I end up walking around and buying artwork and buying books and it just goes back into the system I guess.

Out of one artist's hand and into another artist's hand.

So that's it.

I mean I'm a fan girl too.

I haven't had a lot of time to walk around at this show, but I'm definitely going to.

I've got a lot of people I need to talk to and see and I'm gonna do a little shopping before I go home.

- That's great to hear 'cause you know a lot of times you can get, you know, that burned out feeling, you know, and maybe they don't want to go and look at another comic for a while, but.

- Oh no, that's one of the best parts to me is to see what artists I already know are doing and then to look around and find some new artists to follow.

- Walking around artists alley, you'll see dozens of up-and-coming artists looking to introduce themselves to comic fans.

Artist writer Kevin Delgado came to HeroesCon to build his brand.

You know, everybody seems to have a goal.

Now you're here as an artist.

So you are using this as sort of a, you know, business decision to come here.

- So my book is getting picked up for publication.

So for me to just come out here and kind of make connections and boost it and get the word out is invaluable.

So I'm kind of just looking at it as a positive, regardless of money, you know what I mean?

It's fine.

I've pretty much broken even, so.

And I still have all of today left, so that's kind of my area for profit.

- How do you kind of talk to the crowds, the people coming up to the table about the book to get them excited about it?

- I've got a quick pitch.

My book is a troubled alley cat has to save spring break in 1993.

And most people, yeah, exactly, get a little giggle out of it.

Most people are like, "Okay".

Then they see the artwork.

It draws 'em in a little bit more.

And you know, then I tell 'em I'm the soul force behind it.

So then that's another push.

So it's kind of got like those three things working for it where I think people really want to get behind it.

- You are a pro, but you're also a fan.

So when you go to a con, who are you looking forward to meeting?

- The cartoonists Kayfabe guys 'cause I'm in a lot of their like fan groups and everything and it's a really great community and we're all over the place, so it's kind of like a brotherhood almost.

And every con I go to, I know a lot of people from that group.

And in itself it's a network and it's a lot of up-and-coming real creative indie kind of guys, so it's ladies.

So it's a awesome community and they love the material.

It's not, you know, we're not just speculators and stuff.

We're here for the craft.

- Like Kevin, artist Licca Kirk came to HeroesCon to introduce yourself to a new audience.

For artists, you know, not being able to go to cons is really gonna affect their bottom line.

So how did you kind of weather that when you couldn't go out and, you know, meet people and introduce 'em to your art face-to-face?

- Man, I know that this definitely hit a lot of my friends hard.

A lot of 'em quit doing art full-time and picked up small, like small jobs that they could like handle.

I, luckily, had a Patreon.

And then obviously once cons came back, I was ready to roll.

So a lot of it, it was kind of nerve-racking.

It was kind of scary.

Just like, where am I gonna get my income?

Like what's gonna happen?

But I used a lot of the time to build more into my portfolio, make it stronger.

So I guess you just kind of had to do what worked best for your like what you needed.

I just pretty much, I was out in the woods.

I had moved right before COVID, not because of COVID, just so happened.

Moved out in the woods of Northeast Georgia and stayed in like a very rural place and just kind of made art and managed to like, you know, just plan properly and weather the storm essentially.

I got lucky to be so good, in a nutshell.

- Everyone has a goal, whether it's a, you know, a comic lover looking through the long boxes, trying to find that one issue that they don't have.

So what is your goal at the convention this year?

- I mean, it's like what you're mentioning with why without cons is to meet people, to like get your work out there, meet new fans, essentially expand the empire, just like go out there and meet new fans.

I do have a Patreon that I have.

Like at every show, eventually people just like jump on board.

They jump off.

And it kind of like builds.

And it's a really nice way to like keep doing the thing I love and also connecting with people.

- The slower pace of Sunday meant I could sneak away from the "Comic Culture" booth between interviews to speak with guests on the floor.

For a guest, having someone at their booth to keep things organized is a godsend.

For artist Lee Weeks, it's his wife Tish who keeps things running smoothly.

Tish, we're here at HeroesCon 2022.

It's been a three year break.

You are here with your husband Lee, who is of course behind us working on some more commissions.

So during a normal convention, you are kind of helping him out with running the table and keeping the line going and everything like that.

So, you know, what's this convention like compared to the last time we had it in 2019.

- It has been much more busy.

Actually, we're both tired from not doing it regularly, but it's been an amazing time here.

But it's always an amazing time here, so.

- And you know, we talk a lot to writers and artists on this show, but we don't talk to the people who help them out all the time.

So, you know, during a normal convention, what do you do to sort of, you know, make it easier for him to do the commissions and not have to get annoyed with, you know, people asking a lot of questions?

- Well, I try to be a little bit assertive in making sure the times for his signings are correct and people have everything out and just hand him the things intermittently for him to sign and that kind of thing.

- And you know, we're back, it's 2022.

It's a brand new HeroesCon.

What is it that you look forward to the most when you come to a convention like this?

- Well, at HeroesCon I look forward to all the people.

All the people are so sweet.

And everybody that comes into the con, like the people that wanna buy stuff, they're polite, they're nice, you know, and there's lots of room.

It never feels crowded.

- And it's funny because I heard that this is the busiest.

Yesterday was the busiest Saturday they had in their 40 years and they do a great job of making sure that there's just ample space and you don't feel congested and compressed.

So, you know, I know for some people their goal is to get that issue that they don't have in their long box.

Their goal is to get that commission or that sketch done.

So what's your goal when you're here at Heroes?

- Just to talk with people, make them feel comfortable, that the time they're waiting isn't long and they're, you know, basically happy.

- It's really cool because a lot of people I've spoken to keep saying the same thing that they like the energy, they like the people, they like the community.

And, you know, as somebody who's both an insider and sort of an observer, you know, what do you kind of just get from the whole experience?

- I think I get energy and a peace at the same time and actually I get a renewed place in my heart that humanity isn't that bad.

- Back at the "Comic Culture" booth, I spoke with Craig Zablo who helps artist John Beatty at HeroesCon.

I've seen you at Hero Con over the years.

What's it like getting back on the convention floor after that unwanted break?

- It's a little strange actually because you get so isolated.

And when you come out, you want to be careful because some people are wearing masks, some are not, and you don't want to make anyone uncomfortable.

But it's great seeing friends that you haven't seen in a while and the people that come to Heroes regularly, it's like a family.

- You know, it's funny, I've talked to a lot of people and almost everyone has made the same comment, it's the community, the family feel of coming to a show like this.

When you don't have the convention to go to, are you keeping in touch with any of those comic friends or are you just waiting 'til everything clears and you can get back on the floor?

- With a lot of them, we do keep in touch, emails and they may have newsletters or whatever and you're supporting them.

And then there are some you only see at the show.

So it's a mixed bag, but it's always, it's like a family member that you haven't seen in a while and then you see 'em and it's just like the years go by and it doesn't really matter.

You pick up that last conversation you were having.

- Everyone seems to have a goal when they come to a convention, whether it's looking for that, you know, elusive issue, that number one of "Spider-Man" or something like that.

What is your goal at the convention?

- It's changed over the years.

When I first came here, I was just hanging out with my buddy John Beatty.

He's a Marvel and DC anchor.

And through him I knew a lot of comic artists.

But as my sons started growing up and we were coming, I started to get art again, but I was collecting Sylvester Stallone characters.

I run the Stallone Zone, the website.

And so that was my goal.

And when I come now, it's basically just to hang out, get a sketch or two.

Interestingly enough, I picked up a couple of sketches for my grandson, "Blues Clues" this year.

So we got three generations loving Heroes.

- Back in artist alley, I spoke with writer artist Billy Tucci.

Billy, it's been I guess three years or so since the last HeroesCon.

What's it like getting back to the convention circuit after having that unwanted break?

- Horrible.

No.

[both laughing] No, it's fantastic.

This is almost like a big family reunion because so many of us, as you could tell by my voice, the fun I've been having in ballyhoo is that, you know, it's almost become, like these conventions become your social life in a way.

You know, that's when you see your friends and we're all scattered all across the world and big shows like this.

And this is, it was just like a fantastic reunion.

And the cool thing is, is that there's just such an amazing sense of positive energy around these shows, comic conventions and all.

And what I also love about this is that this show is so comic book centric.

It's a lot of shows, you know, they'll have their wrestlers, you'll have celebrities and all, and that's nice, but this has always been a comic book convention.

And it's wonderful.

It really is.

- [Terence] Elector Peter Roe shared what he loves about comics.

- There's nothing like going through a comic book stack and finding, you know, things that you need to fill out your collection.

There's nothing like going through original art and looking at art and saying, "Oh yeah, I wish I could have that."

But like the texture and feel of the product itself.

William Cox, he runs Comic Art Fans.

He's here and he's been getting some of the collectors together and that's been really fun to meet and join with some of the comic art collectors.

- What are you looking for this year?

- That is a very hard question.

It's just to find some, you know, to fill out some of my art books that I have, some of my sketchbooks that I wanted to get some more sketches, like from Ron Frenz.

So I've never had a sketch in my sketchbook from him, for in which Justice Society of America or to do something that they usually don't do.

And that's been a lot of fun.

- [Terence] For artist Darryl Banks connecting with fans may be turning to HeroesCon special.

- I've done this about six times and this is easily the biggest, biggest, most enthusiastic.

I mean, comic fans tend to be very enthusiastic anyway, but it seems like dialed up a little bit more.

Also, I believe it's because it's an anniversary show, the 40th anniversary of Heroes Convention.

So definitely feeling the love this weekend.

I never assume I'm gonna do well at a show.

I always hope that I will.

I imagine that I will, but I don't go, "Oh, it's automatic."

So especially I've done this show six times, but it's not like I've done it, like some of my other shows I've done for decades, you know.

So, but once again, the fans of Heroes, you know, they didn't disappoint, not at all.

- And you know, you mentioned the show is basically part of your business.

So that two year break, you know, were you able to kind of negotiate the pause in conventions by doing, you know, commissions and the like?

- Absolutely.

I mean, that's something that's really part of my workflow, you know, as time permits.

But you know, unlike most shows I'll do, I wasn't able to schedule commissions pre-done.

I do, like someone might send me a message by way of Instagram or something and, "Oh, I saw you're going to be at Heroes.

Can I order something and pick it up?"

I wasn't able to do that, you know.

So all the drawing I did had to be on site.

But you know, like I said, a lot of enthusiastic fans and I think I've had a record sales amount this weekend, I believe.

- Were you able to take a break at all and enjoy just being out and about?

- No.

[both laughing] I wish I did, but however, my number one bucket list thing, well, you know, besides business-wise, but as far as a fan, I've always wanted to actually chat with Walt Simonson, the famous, you know, well, he needs no introduction and I was able to do that.

- [Terence] Suddenly, it was late afternoon on Sunday.

For Darrin and Ruth Sutherland, it was time to reflect on the three days that passed by so quickly.

- If you go to enough conventions, you end up making some wonderful convention friends where it may be the only time you see them is maybe once a year.

So it's a bit like a reunion and to have missed it for a couple of years, I think makes it feel even more special to see those friends.

- That's a perfect answer.

I tell you, I couldn't have thought of a better one because that's what we've spent most of the weekend doing is just saying hello to friends that we, you know, only see at conventions.

So here we have a chance to see them again for the first time in too many years.

And that's just what's exciting to us.

So it's wonderful running into friends, back and forth, here and there.

We've been doing lots of hugging and lots of laughing and lots of storytelling.

- We had the pleasure of being on a panel hosted by you to focus on podcasting and so we're podcasters and we have a lot of friends in the podcasting community.

So it was, you know, thanks to you for pulling some of us together to give some tips to people who are interested in learning more about podcasting.

That was a lot of fun.

- It was such a wonderful panel you put together because I mean, that was Friday.

It's now Sunday, late in the day.

And we've had people come up to us this afternoon that were in that panel that were looking for us again to get a chance to talk because you had such great questions.

You put together a good diverse group of podcasters and we all had fun.

I don't know what my expectations were when I came, but they ended up being exceeded by just those types of interactions.

- And just like that HeroesCon 2022 was over.

It was time to pack up, head for home and plan for next year.

With the dust settled, we're back to where we started.

Heroes aren't hard to find in Charlotte.

I asked the founder Shelton Drum, one last question.

During the convention, how much work do you do and do you ever get a chance to kind of sit back and enjoy yourself?

- I enjoy the show if it's successful and this one was.

However, I did not get to look at any comic books to buy for my collection.

[both laughing] - For me, the three days were a blur.

Running a booth, conducting interviews and moderating panels kept me busy.

Like many of the people I spoke with, it felt great to get back to normal, to meet viewers, to meet old friends and to make new ones.

I'm grateful to the "Comic Culture" crew for their enthusiasm and dedication over the three days of HeroesCon.

We'll be back in 2023 and hope to see you there.

[triumphant music] "Comic Culture" is a production of the Department of Mass Communication at the University of North Carolina at Pembroke.

[triumphant music] ♪ [triumphant music fades]