Okay, I went to more than one panel.  In addition to the Warehouse 13/Eureka crossover panel, which I have more than several pictures from, I also went to see Stan Lee, Kevin Sorbo and Lexa Doig (Andromeda), Laura K. Hamilton,  and a couple of others, but those pictures didn’t come out so well.  I think the Dragon*Con staff screws with the lighting in the ballrooms to mess up pictures.  Anyway, here are some select shots.

These are some of the more interesting costumes that I saw this year at Dragon*Con, most of them are costumes that I haven’t taken a picture of before.

As much as I love my American Sci-Fi TV shows, Star Trek, Star Wars, Stargate, Smallville, Eureka, and Warehouse 13, the panel that I geeked out the most at was the R2 Units panel in the Robotics Track. On Friday, I saw a guy controlling an R2D2. This isn’t the first time I’ve seen an R2 Unit at Dragon*Con. But what made me stop was the fact that he actually had the Princess Leia "Help me Obi-Wan, you’re my only hope." projection being displayed on the wall from the R2 Unit. That piqued my interest. Then I saw that on Sunday there was going to be a panel about R2 Units. I decided to go because I thought it would be cool.

The panel had 5 guys who were part of the R2 Builders Group. Three of them brought their R2 Units. I was impressed. They talked about the process of building your own unit from scratch. I didn’t realize that there was so much involved. It isn’t like you can call a company up and say, "Hey, I want to order a working remote control R2D2." You actually have to build it yourself. Of course they talked about how the community of R2 Builders help each other buy providing plans, parts, advise, and there own experiences with putting one of these things together. You can make one out of aluminum, wood, resin, plastic or any combination of the above. It can be just a room piece, or one that’s fully operational with actual R2 sounds and blinking lights. I took one look at those things and thought I could do that, but at the end of the panel I was not so sure.

These guys put a lot of time and effort into building their R2 Units. As a matter of fact, one question asked during the Q & A was what was the hardest thing to get or acquire to make the droids. The response went something like this: Getting my wife to support this hobby. Seriously, it sounded like it could cost anywhere from $500 to $40,000 to build one of these things. These guys are the geekiest of geeks.

Who wouldn’t want one of these things. I couldn’t think of anything cooler to have, especially when going to a Sci-Fi/Fantasy convention like Dragon*Con.

If you’re interested you can find more information at www.astromech.net or click here for the Astromech Yahoo! group

Source: Comic Book Resources

At Comic-Con International, LeVar Burton spoke about his Dark Horse release Con-CERNed.

Source: ComingSoon.Net

This was presented at Comic Con before the Marvel panel featuring the stars of the film.

“The Event” is a new show coming to NBC this fall.  It’s being touted as a show with a Lost vibe.  It has an ensemble cast with multiple storylines centered around an “Event.”  The main plot appears to follow Sean Walker played by Jason Ritter who, while investigating the mysterious disappearance of his fiancée, ends up unraveling the biggest cover-up in U.S. history.

The show premieres September 20.  Check out the following interview with Blair Underwood who plays President Eli Martinez. (A black man as President brings back memories of President Palmer on 24).  Apparently, the crowd response to “The Event” at the San Diego Comic-Con was rousing.  Check out the entire panel for “The Event” below, courtesy NBC.

Source: Superhero Hype

Source: G4TV

True Blood is one of the best new shows on TV.  If you aren’t watching it then you should catch up.  Currently, its in Season 2 on HBO, Sunday nights at 9 PM.

Source:  Newsarama

Captain America/Black Panther: Flags of Our Fathers comes to us from Black Pantherwriter/multi-media talent Reginald Hudlin and writer/artist Denys Cowan.   The mini series focuses on Cap, and some other familiar faces who ran into the Black Panther of the 1940s during World War II

Here’s a few excerpts”

NRAMA:  As creators, what is the appeal of the World War II era?   And what’s it like to handle Captain America in that specific setting?
 
Hudlin:World War Two is when Black Panther and Captain America met.  It’s also a rich era, with characters like Nick Fury and the Howling Commandoes, the Red Skull, Baron Strucker, and other more obscure but interesting characters.
 
Captain America is still the noble man he was before he took the super soldier serum, but he’s green.  He’s still rocking the triangle shield.  That’s a fun period in his life to explore.

NRAMA: With Black Panther, he’s been established as a generational character.  Which Black Panther will we be seeing here, and how would the protector of Wakanda react to Cap and Nick Fury at that point in history?
 
Hudlin:Azzuri the Wise is the Black Panther, who is T’Chaka’s father, T’Challa’s grandfather.  We’ve seen him before in my first run of BLACK PANTHER where he defeats the Sub-Mariner in combat, then schools him to the future implications of WW2. There’s a reason why he’s called “the Wise”.
 
Azzuri sees a lot of promise in Steve Rogers.  It’s tough love, but he wants to help him.  As for Nick, Azzuri sees the war hero he is and the cold war spy he’s going to be…and treats him accordingly.

Press Release:

BAYOU DOMINATES 2009 GLYPH COMICS AWARDS, SETS NEW STANDARDS FOR EXCELLENCE

History was made at the 2009 Glyph Comics Awards (GCA) ceremony on May 15, 2009 as Jeremy Love’s webcomic Bayou swept all five categories it was nominated in, setting new records for wins by a single comic and wins by a single comic in a single year. The previous record for the former, Nat Turner, had four wins over two years (2006 and 2008), while the previous record for the latter, Stagger Lee, had four wins, all in 2007. Bayou’s five-for-five sweep is also a first in GCA history.

In addition, DC Comics also achieved a sweep, capturing all eight categories it was nominated in, including, for the first time, the Fan Award for Best Comic, the sole award voted on by the fans.

The complete list of winners:

Story of the Year

Bayou; Jeremy Love, writer and artist

Best Writer

Jeremy Love, Bayou

Best Artist

Jeremy Love, Bayou

Best Male Character

Black Lightning, Final Crisis: Submit; Grant Morrison, writer, Matthew Clark, Norm Rapmund, Rob Hunter & Don Ho, artists

Best Female Character

Lee Wagstaff, Bayou; Jeremy Love, writer and artist

Rising Star Award

Damian Duffy & John Jennings, The Hole: Consumer Culture

Best Reprint Publication

Me and the Devil Blues V1; Del Rey, David Ury, translator/adapter

Best Cover

Unknown Soldier #1; Igor Kordey, illustrator

Best Comic Strip

Bayou, Jeremy Love, writer and artist

Fan Award for Best Comic

Vixen: Return of the Lion; G. Willow Wilson, writer, Cafu, artist

Related 

ECBACC

The 8th annual ECBACC (East Coast Black Age of Comics Convention) in Philadelphia is coming up soon.  They emailed me about the convention so I thought I’d pass the information along.  The flyer below has all the details.  Click the flyer to go to the website.  More details about the convention appear after the break.  I have never gone, but I plan on going as soon as schedule (and budget) permit.

Black Comic Book Creators Converge in Philadelphia to Encourage Youth Literacy
Annual convention celebrates the Black experience in comic books and promotes youth literacy with workshops

*** “Underworld 3” Actor and Screenwriter Kevin Grevioux to appear***
PHILADELPHIA, May 15 and 16, 2009—Concerned by the decrease in literacy rates among urban youth around the country, the East Coast Black Age of Comics Convention,Inc. (ECBACC, Inc.) dedicates its 8th annual comic book convention to increasing youth literacy and expression through writing and drawing comic books. ECBACC, Inc.welcomes back “Underworld 3: Rise of the Lycans” screenwriter, actor and creator of the blockbuster movie series Underworld, Kevin Grevioux. This is Grevioux’s second appearance at the Convention.  Internationally-renowned illustrator (Green Lantern, Supergirl and Firestorm) Jamal Igle also returns as a special guest.
The Convention kicks off on Friday evening, May 15, 2009, 7 – 9 p.m. with a FREE reception and awards ceremony at the Main Branch of the Free Library of Philadelphia,  1901 Vine Street, located between 19th and 20th Streets on the Parkway in Philadelphia. The Convention continues on Saturday, May 16, 2009, from 10 a.m. – 7 p.m., at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Philadelphia-Center City, 1800 Market St., filled with a day of celebrity appearances, networking, panel discussions, a book fair, adult and youth workshops. Admission for Saturday is $15 for adults; FREE for youth 12 and under.
“ECBACC Inc. recognizes that the literacy rate among youth is critically low and needs to be more directly addressed,” said Yumy Odom, founder and president of ECBACC Inc. “This is why we are offering workshops and activities dedicated to promoting literacy and achievement.”
This marks the 8th year for this informative and enlightening conference that connects comic book creators with their fans, as well as a Kid’s Corner featuring a myriad of youth activities. Open to all young people who attend the Saturday convention.
The Kids Corner will run from 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., offering youth a chance to learn how to take their own ideas and create their own superheroes, stories and comic books.
Four comic book creators: Alex Simmons, Aaron Beatty, Jerry Craft and Eric Battle, will be on hand to teach basic comic book, comic strip and cartoon creation skills.  For those creative youth, artist Zweena Richardson will give a hands-on instruction on creating personally decorated books and journals, a great way to bind and store comic stories and pictures. The Convention also features a "kick back zone," complete with comic books to read after touring the convention floor.
Adults will be entertained and educated at the ECBACC 2009 as well, with professional workshops, animation, and film screenings.  The ECBACC marketplace is one of the largest gatherings of rare collectible comics on the East Coast.
The ECBACC brings together African-American comic book creators, artists, writers and their fans from across the country to dissect, examine and explore the images and depictions of African Americans in comic books and cartoons. Some of the headlining artists scheduled to appear at ECBACC 2009 include:
•       Eric Battle: Philadelphia native and artist who has worked for DC, Marvel and Milestone. Some of his recent work includes DC titles: Batman and Vampirella.
•       Alex Simmons, co-creator of Orpheus, an African American hero that appears in DC’s Batman, and creator of the award-winning Black Jack, www.daponline.com
•       Reggie Byers, creator of Kidz of the King, a Christian comic book distributed nationwide by Urban Ministries, Inc., has worked on a number of projects, including The Official Philadelphia Soul Football Team Comic Book, www.kidzofking.com; and more.
For the full list of panelists and participating artists, visit www.ecbacc.com
On Friday evening, May 15, from 7 p.m. – 9 p.m., The Glyph Comics Awards recognizes the best in comics made by, for, and about people of color from the preceding calendar year. While it is not exclusive to black creators, it does strive to honor those who have made the greatest contributions to the comic book medium in terms of both critical and commercial impact. The awards are named for the blog Glyphs: The Language of the Black Comics Community (http://glyphs.popcultureshock.com) started in 2005 by comic book journalist Rich Watson.
The ECBACC dares to go where other conventions do not, and fills a chasm that has been gaping in the industry for some time.
“If the state of Black existence in comic books concerns you, this is an event you can’t afford to miss,” says the ECBACC Event Coordinator Maurice Waters. “It represents a great opportunity to network with Black publishers, artists and writers in the industry and have open and honest discussions about the Black experience in this genre. People need to make it their business to be there.”
Friday’s Reception and Awards Ceremony will take place May 15, 2009, 7 – 9 p.m. with a FREE reception and awards ceremony at the Main Library of Philadelphia  1901 Vine Street, Philadelphia, PA 19103 (between 19th and 20th Streets on the Parkway).
The Full day of the convention occurs on Saturday, May 16, 2009, from 10 a.m. – 7 p.m., at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Philadelphia-Center City, 1800 Market St. For more information, visit www.ecbacc.com