Englishman In San Diego

WCA 2019: In Conversation with Joshua Dysart (recorded at WonderCon Anaheim, 30th March 2019) Comic-Con International's sibling convention, WonderCon, has over the years grown and developed into a truly epic event in the North America comic convention calendar, selling out over its entire weekend and bringing thousands of talented creators, publishers, artists, writers, cosplayers, actors and actresses and much more to Anaheim in California. WonderCon has developed and evolved from what was primarily a passive 'experience' delivering show into one which companies and creators can now bring new projects and share updates on brand new content - we have been lucky to have a couple of correspondents visiting the show as Press, catching up with a number of these fresh stories. One such correspondent is Dan Berry (@fatj00) who met up this weekend with esteemed and prolific, award-winning and best-selling comic book writer Joshua Dysart, someone who has had quite the career to date - and still it just keeps grow

MCM Comic Con Birmingham, 24th March 2019: Felicia Day Spotlight Panel MCM Comic Con, under the auspices of that convention behemoth that is ReedPOP, continues to bring grand and exciting events to the UK, along with some world-class talent... Yes, the Hollywood razzmatazz was represented nicely, with the likes of Asa Butterfield (SEX EDUCATION / ENDERS GAME), video game voice talents Charles Martinet (the voice of MARIO and LUIGI) and Veronica Taylor (POKEMON, YU-GI-OH!), Tom Hopper and Emmy Raver-Lampman (THE UMBRELLA ACADEMY), Osric Chau (SUPERNATURAL), and Felicia Day (SUPERNATURAL / THE GUILD) were all in attendance and had quite the crowd keeping them occupied throughout the day. Felicia's panel was the one panel that I did make myself available for on the Main Stage and, buzzing from a full nights sleeps and too much coffee, she answered plenty of questions from both the MCM panel host and audience members with her trademark charm and wit. (No swears, mind, she kept herself in check, the cheeky tin

ReedPOP’s Emerald City Comic Con once again takes over the immense WA State Convention Center in Seattle, attracting tens of thousands of comic book and pop culture fans from across the globe, by showcasing some of the best creative talents there is to offer – our man on the ground, Dan Berry, has been very lucky to be invited along as Press, meaning hes got the chance to speak one-on-one with members of this outstanding creative melting pot. One of the many independent comic publishers that stood out to him was Miami, Florida based Mad Cave Studios (https://madcavestudios.com/), who are going on their second year of distribution through Diamond Comics. Dan spoke with Chris Sanchez (Communication & Digital Media Manager for Mad Cave) about the origin of the company, their current titles, as well as what they have planned moving forward. Thanks to the team from Mad Cave for giving up their time during what was a very busy convention, and to Dan for bringing the interview to us. Intro music: 'Punky', benso

ReedPOP’s Emerald City Comic Con once again takes over the immense WA State Convention Center in Seattle, attracting tens of thousands of comic book and pop culture fans from across the globe, by showcasing some of the best creative talents there is to offer – our man on the ground, Dan Berry, has been very lucky to be invited along as Press, meaning hes got the chance to speak one-on-one with members of this outstanding creative melting pot. BAKUGAN is a manga and a property which has had a strong and dedicated fanbase for many years, starting with BAKUGAN BATTLE BRAWLERS in 2007. While not being an immediate success, BAKUGAN has since that time grown and developed into an amazing entertainment platform with developers Spin Master evolving the franchise over the last few years into new ways for fans to experience the story and characters, from animation and manga to gaming. It's this last one that caught the attention of Dan, as he was given the chance to talk to the developers at Spin Master at ECCC - in

ReedPOP’s Emerald City Comic Con once again takes over the immense WA State Convention Center in Seattle, attracting tens of thousands of comic book and pop culture fans from across the globe, by showcasing some of the best creative talents there is to offer – our correspondent on the ground, Samantha Maybe, has been very lucky to be invited along as Press, meaning she's got the chance to speak one-on-one with members of this outstanding creative melting pot. Here at The Convention Collective, we really like THE SEQUELS. Like, *really* like THE SEQUELS! Published by Fanbase Press, written by Norm Harper, with art by Val Halvorson and Bobby Timony, it has been ticking all of our boxes in terms of '80s nostalgia, sci-fi, horror and action tropes and a wonderful sense of empowerment and self-analysis that you don't often find in modern comics. (Seriously, we've flipped for this book: do check out Samantha Maybe's reviews for Issues #1 and #2, here http://theconventioncollective.com/sandbox/the-sequels-1-holy-8

ReedPOP’s Emerald City Comic Con once again takes over the immense WA State Convention Center in Seattle, attracting tens of thousands of comic book and pop culture fans from across the globe, by showcasing some of the best creative talents there is to offer – our man on the ground, Dan Berry, has been very lucky to be invited along as Press, meaning hes got the chance to speak one-on-one with members of this outstanding creative melting pot. Skybound Entertainment are continuing to bring new and exciting books to the shelves, with one of their upcoming titles very much piquing our interest: THE OBSOLETES is by Washington-based writer and cartoonist Simeon Mills, who has been carving out a path of thought-provoking and brilliantly told stories, kicking off with his book BUTCHER PAPER in 2012. Here, Simeon talks about THE OBSOLETES, due to hit stores in just a few months, about what inspired him to write the story, and what else he's got working on for 2019 and beyond. Enjoy! Find out more about THE OBSOLET

ICE International Comic Expo 'Winter Edition': Holiday Inn Bayfront Brighton, Saturday 9th March 2019 I was very lucky and honoured to have been invited down to the South Coast of England to participate in the Winter Edition of Shane Chebsey's ICE International Comic Expo in Brighton. A satellite event of the larger Birmingham event, it allows fans of comics in the area to meet with some incredible talent that they might not usually be able to so and see without braving the horrors of the M25. You could argue that the headlining panel of the day was the collection of esteemed talent gathered for this retrospective - and forward-looking - panel, looking into the Past, Present And Future of the Galaxy's Greatest Comic, 2000AD, a publication that has thrilled and chilled comics fans and kids since its first 'prog' in 1977. It's an anthology that has had featured in its pages pretty much every major comics talent that this country has produced, including our panellists: Glenn Fabry (SLAINE / PREACHER), Clint La

ICE International Comic Expo 2019 'Winter Edition': Holiday Inn Bayfront Brighton, Saturday 9th March 2019 I was very lucky and honoured to have been invited down to the South Coast of England to participate in the Winter Edition of Shane Chebsey's ICE International Comic Expo in Brighton. A satellite event of the larger Birmingham event, it allows fans of comics in the area to meet with some incredible talent that they might not usually be able to so and see without braving the horrors of the M25. One of the talents that I got to chat with was comics writer and illustrator Rachael Smith, someone I've been a follower and admirer of for some time - and I'm not on my own. Since creating her first book, CLARA'S SHADOW in 2013, Rachael has garnered quite the following, drawn to her forthright and bold characters, her appealing art style and her passionate approach to personal issues and individual challenges within her stories. This has led to award nominations, plaudits and a legion of dedicated fans, eager t

ECCC 2019: In Conversation with Camilla d'Errico (Emerald City Comic Con, March 2019) ReedPOP's Emerald City Comic Con once again takes over the immense WA State Convention Center in Seattle, attracting tens of thousands of comic book and pop culture fans from across the globe, by showcasing some of the best creative talents there is to offer - our man on the ground, Dan Berry, has been very lucky to be invited along as Press, meaning hes got the chance to speak one-on-one with members of this outstanding creative melting pot. Dan has been a fan of artist Camilla d'Errico's work for quite some time, following her progress as she releases incredible and distinctive work. When the two last met up in November, there was some great projects in the pipeline - here, Dan and Camilla speak in Seattle about what she's been up to since and what she has planned for 2019. Thanks to Camilla and Dan for taking time out of their busy con, and to Dan for bringing the interview to us...

ECCC 2019: In Conversation with Erica Henderson and Kyle Starks (Emerald City Comic Con, March 2019) ReedPOP's Emerald City Comic Con once again takes over the immense WA State Convention Center in Seattle, attracting tens of thousands of comic book and pop culture fans from across the globe, by showcasing some of the best creative talents there is to offer - our man on the ground, Dan Berry, has been very lucky to be invited along as Press, meaning hes got the chance to speak one-on-one with members of this outstanding creative melting pot. Erica Henderson and Kyle Starks are two of the most critically acclaimed and popular creatives in comics today, with massive hits like THE UNBEATABLE SQUIRREL GIRL, JUGHEAD and SEXCASTLE garnering them awards and fans across the board. And more recently, the pair have been knocking it out of the park with two excellent - and wildly tonally differing - books, ROCK CANDY MOUNTAIN and ASSASSIN NATION (Image Comics/Skybound). ASSASSIN NATION has been a massive success from

ECCC 2019: In Conversation with Khary Randolph (Emerald City Comic Con, March 2019) ReedPOP's Emerald City Comic Con once again takes over the immense WA State Convention Center in Seattle, attracting tens of thousands of comic book and pop culture fans from across the globe, by showcasing some of the best creative talents there is to offer - our man on the ground, Dan Berry, has been very lucky to be invited along as Press, meaning hes got the chance to speak one-on-one with members of this outstanding creative melting pot. One such talent is the excellent New-York-based artist Khary Randolph, someone who continues to make quite the impression on many books of varying scale and tone, from the likes of SPIDER-MAN, TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES and TEEN TITANS for the majors, to comics for the independents such as TECHJACKET (Skybound), NOBLE (Lion Forge) and CHARISMAGIC: THE DEATH PRINCESS (Aspen). Randolph provided the covers for the acclaimed BLACK series, published by Black Mask Studios - he returns to t

ECCC 2019: In Conversation with Vita Ayala (Emerald City Comic Con, March 2019) ReedPOP's Emerald City Comic Con once again takes over the immense WA State Convention Center in Seattle, attracting tens of thousands of comic book and pop culture fans from across the globe, by showcasing some of the best creative talents there is to offer - our man on the ground, Dan Berry, has been very lucky to be invited along as Press, meaning hes got the chance to speak one-on-one with members of this outstanding creative melting pot. One of the freshest and vital voices in comics in 2019, Vita Ayala is a truly exciting new comics talent. Making an impression on books such as SUICIDE SQUAD; SECRET FILES and SUPERGIRL for DC Comics, TWISTED ROMANCE and BITCH PLANET for Image Comics, and THE WILDS for Black Mask, Vita builds on that experience in 2019 by taking on one of Marvel's young and intriguing characters, SHURI, in a guest two-issue story, in which the Wakandan meets up with Miles Morales, SPIDER-MAN, in Brooklyn.

ECCC 2019: In Conversation with Jonathan Maberry (Emerald City Comic Con, March 2019) ReedPOP's Emerald City Comic Con once again takes over the immense WA State Convention Center in Seattle, attracting tens of thousands of comic book and pop culture fans from across the globe, by showcasing some of the best creative talents there is to offer - our man on the ground, Dan Berry, has been very lucky to be invited along as Press, meaning hes got the chance to speak one-on-one with members of this outstanding creative melting pot. Jonathan Maberry is having one hell of a time, deep in the middle of a creative windstorm in many fronts which is keeping him very busy, with new titles on the way, the promotion machine for the PATIENT ZERO novel continues to roll on, and adaptations of his books are either heading towards production or barrelling on full steam to hitting screens for fans to enjoy. Jonathan talks to Dan about what is keeping him distracted at the moment, spilling a whole bunch of wonderful anecdotes

ECCC 2019: In Conversation with Vault Comics - Damian and Adrian Wassel (Emerald City Comic Con, March 2019) ReedPOP's Emerald City Comic Con once again takes over the immense WA State Convention Center in Seattle, attracting tens of thousands of comic book and pop culture fans from across the globe, by showcasing some of the best creative talents there is to offer - our man on the ground, Dan Berry, has been very lucky to be invited along as Press, meaning hes got the chance to speak one-on-one with members of this outstanding creative melting pot. What a time we are in in comics, with some incredible talents across the board creating some dynamic and thrilling stories, contributing to increased sales and, in the main, positive responses from readers and retailers. Indeed, the industry is looking at improved sales versus this period last year, and we're not just talking at the big companies, either, but also the smaller and more vital independent publishers. One company that has benefited from its stunnin

ECCC 2019: In Conversation with Michael Moreci (Emerald City Comic Con, March 2019) ReedPOP's Emerald City Comic Con once again takes over the immense WA State Convention Center in Seattle, attracting tens of thousands of comic book and pop culture fans from across the globe, by showcasing some of the best creative talents there is to offer - our man on the ground, Dan Berry, has been very lucky to be invited along as Press, meaning hes got the chance to speak one-on-one with members of this outstanding creative melting pot. One of our favourite books on the shelves right now is the very-much-in-your-face sci-fi romp WASTED SPACE, published by Vault Comics, written by Michael Moreci, art by Hayden Sherman, colours by Jason Wordie. WASTED SPACE is a book which ticks all of our boxes: strong, deep sci-fi worldbuilding, sharp, acerbic characters and a sense of humour and panache that brings comparison to books like PREACHER and HELLBLAZER. As the book gets into a regular series beyond its original limited ru

ECCC 2019: In Conversation with Tim Seeley (Emerald City Comic Con, March 2019) ReedPOP's Emerald City Comic Con once again takes over the immense WA State Convention Center in Seattle, attracting tens of thousands of comic book and pop culture fans from across the globe, by showcasing some of the best creative talents there is to offer - our man on the ground, Dan Berry, has been very lucky to be invited along as Press, meaning hes got the chance to speak one-on-one with members of this outstanding creative melting pot. In conversation with Dan in the first couple of days of the show has been Tim Seeley, which has been quite the lucky coincidence as Tim was announced as the new on-going writer for Valiant Comics' BLOODSHOT as of September this year, as one of the big Valiant announcements of ECCC. Bloodshot is a character that has has in incredible history, not just in the pages but also out, so it was great fro Dan to get the chance to talk about how Tim looks at approaching the character, especially as

ReedPOP’s Emerald City Comic Con once again takes over the immense WA State Convention Center in Seattle, attracting tens of thousands of comic book and pop culture fans from across the globe, by showcasing some of the best creative talents there is to offer – one of our esteemed correspondents, Samantha Beard, has been very lucky to be invited along as Press, meaning she’s got the chance to speak one-on-one with members of this outstanding creative melting pot. Samantha managed to squeeze some time with someone she's been a fan of for some time, fantasy writer Django Wexler, the chap behind such books as THE SHADOW CAMPAIGNS series, THE FORBIDDEN LIBRARY cycle, and the more recent JOHN GOLDEN books. Django has two new books for 2019 - DEEPWALKER, due later in the year, and SHIP OF SMOKE AND STEEL, published in January and the first of a new series of books called THE WELLS OF SORCERY. Here, on a very crowded ECCC floor, Django talks to Samantha about these, as well about his process and influences... Than

ReedPOP’s Emerald City Comic Con once again takes over the immense WA State Convention Center in Seattle, attracting tens of thousands of comic book and pop culture fans from across the globe, by showcasing some of the best creative talents there is to offer – one of our esteemed correspondents, Samantha Beard, has been very lucky to be invited along as Press, meaning she’s got the chance to speak one-on-one with members of this outstanding creative melting pot. Samantha settled down beside comics writer Zack Kaplan, a talent whos star has risen fast and furious over the past couple of years, with his debut sci-fi series, ECLIPSE, making an impression with every one who read it, including us. Zack followed this up with the equally impressive PORT OF EARTH, also published by Image Comics - here, Zach talks about the lessons he has learnt and the relationships he has developed that has influenced his writing, Thanks to Zack for taking his time to talk to The Convention Collective, and to Samantha for hostin

ECCC 2019: In Conversation with Phillip Sevy (Emerald City Comic Con, 14th March 2019) ReedPOP's Emerald City Comic Con once again takes over the immense WA State Convention Center in Seattle, attracting tens of thousands of comic book and pop culture fans from across the globe, by showcasing some of the best creative talents there is to offer - our man on the ground, Dan Berry, has been very lucky to be invited along as Press, meaning hes got the chance to speak one-on-one with members of this outstanding creative melting pot. Somebody that Dan has had the opportunity to talk to is someone we've been a fan of for some time - writer/artist Phillip Sevy, the chap behind the excellent work on books such as TOMB RAIDER, PARADOX and TITHE. Here, talking on the very busy floor of the first day of the con, Sevy gets into all of the latest books he's working on, including THE FREEZE, written and created by Dan Wickline and published by Image Comics/Top Cow, and horror/thriller THE HOUSE, written by Sevy and featur

ECCC 2019: In Conversation with Magdalene Visaggio (Emerald City Comic Con, 14th March 2019) ReedPOP's Emerald City Comic Con once again takes over the immense WA State Convention Center in Seattle, attracting tens of thousands of comic book and pop culture fans from across the globe, by showcasing some of the best creative talents there is to offer - our man on the ground, Dan Berry, has been very lucky to be invited along as Press, meaning hes got the chance to speak one-on-one with members of this outstanding creative melting pot. One such creative is hugely talented and highly prolific comics writer Magdalene Visaggio, who has a number of books on the go at the moment - MORNING IN AMERICA (Oni Press) with Claudia Aquirre and Zakk Saam and CALAMITY KATE (Dark Horse Comics) with Corin Howell and Valentina Pinto. Both books come at the fantastical from different directions, one from an ensemble cast and one from a solo voice, both approaches of which are new to Visaggio, as she explains in this interview