new york comic con 2011

I didn’t get to do my artwork this week because of a monster. And that monstrosity was called New York Comic Con. I attended 3 full days of absolute geeky madness. Though, like a kid in a candy store, I enjoyed every minute of it. Besides, it was good exercise with all the walking.

The highlights of Comic Con for me was about the art and creativity that comes in the form of comics, costumes, videogames and movies.

I got the chance to preview the Halo Anniversary game for the Xbox 360.  Updated graphics and new armor give this classic a recharge.  Playing capture-the-flag on linked up Xboxes felt sort of laggy.  Hopefully, the official release, next month, will have that issue smoothed out.

To me, Rockstar Games had the best freebie – a black t-shirt with the Grand Theft Auto III logo on front.  They were celebrating the 10 year anniversary of GTA.  They just asked you to mention them on a social network of your choice – Facebook, Foursquare or Twitter. Good publicity for Rockstar.

Nintendo was also giving out t-shirts for those who would demo the new Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword game for the Wii.  But that waiting line was insanely long.

Talking about merchandising, The Walking Dead had a big table full of hats, mugs, t-shirts, etc.  Unfortunately, the shirts were made with American Apparel brand, a rather cheap material.  But the graphics were too cool for me to pass up.

This year, Chevrolet let people test-drive their new car, the Sonic, which comes in sedan and hatchback styles.  They claim it will get 40 MPG.  It seems Chevy thought the convention was a car show, because their cars were being displayed all around the floor.  Most of them sported graphic art for a paint job.

In addition to being a haven for comic book lovers, toys are a big item for collecting as well.  Plenty of toys can be found including those from DC Comics, Hasbro, Lego, Star Wars and various anime series.  The collectible toys that caught my attention were the mascot from the Google Android commercial.  Each android figure is designed by different artists. Very simple vinyl toys, but graphically pleasing. (See them in my pics).

What was the best costume by the cosplay-ers you ask? I think it was a toss-up between the guy in the Transformers Bumblebee contraption, who had a difficult time moving around much, and the lady as Poison Ivy, who was posing everyday. I guess she was really proud of her costume.  (These two cosplayers are also included in my pics.)

Anyway, enough of my blabbering.  Here are some of photos I took of the Comic Con event.  More can be seen at my flickr page.

new york comic con 2010

I didn’t have time to do my artwork, unfortunately, because I attended the three days of New York Comic Con, this past week.  As expected, the show was even bigger than last year. And that’s a good thing for us fans of sci-fi, fantasy, horror, etc.

As an artist, it is inspiring to be surrounded by so much creativity from comic artists of all different styles. One of my fave comic book artists is Cliff Chiang with his simple, yet realistically proportioned graphic characters. And there he was, sitting there and drawing at his table. I got a chance to meet him, and purchase some autographed work. I hope, one day I can be as popular as he is.

But take note, Comic Con has grown into a much greater monster than comics. There are now movie panels, how-to sessions, book sales and displays of amazingly detailed toys, just to name a few. There is a large presence of videogames, and, of course, the cosplay costume extravaganza. As I toured the floor, I took some photos and I wanted to share them with you.

For more pics, please visit my flickr. Comments are welcomed!

illustration: no signal (v2)

Houston, we have a problem. The Shuttle program is shutting down. This drawing, originally, was to be a simple cartoon, but I liked how the drawing turned out, so I pushed it to be more complete, painting it digitally in Photoshop. As a kid, I marveled at the art for sci-fi such as in Star Wars. So, for that as my inspiration, plus the basic structure of the Shuttle, I worked extra on the concept design for the spaceship, including windows for passengers and sleeker aerodynamics. One day, perhaps, a ship will be used as human transportation between planets. Unfortunately, this is the last year for NASA’s Shuttle program. So the dream of mankind traveling in space will have to wait further into the future. The following list details the last flights for the Shuttle:

2010 Space Shuttle Launches

February 7
Space Shuttle: Endeavour
Site: Kennedy Space Center
Time: 4:39 a.m. EST

March 18
Space Shuttle: Discovery
Site: Kennedy Space Center
Time: 1:34 p.m. EDT

May 14
Space Shuttle: Atlantis
Site: Kennedy Space Center
Time: 2:28 p.m. EDT

July 29
Space Shuttle: Endeavour
Site: Kennedy Space Center
Time: 7:51 a.m. EDT

September 16
Space Shuttle: Discovery
Site: Kennedy Space Center
Time: 11:57 a.m. EDT

Note: date and times may vary due to weather and launch conditions.
Please refer to the official NASA site for more details.

Do you agree with the government ending the space shuttle program?

cartoon: no signal

star trek collectibles

If you’re a fan of Star Trek, then Burger King is the place to go for stuff from the latest remake directed by J.J. Abrams.  Burger King has four drinking glasses – Kirk, Spock, Nero and Uhura themes.  About $1.99 each.  There are also 16 toys – 8 characters and 8 Trek ships and gadgets that make sounds when a button is pressed.  Check out their commercial too.  They say you can get a toy with the purchase of a kids meal, but for the most part, it depends on the cashier or the manager.  Most of the time, you can just ask for the toy and not have to eat the fast food.

As for the movie, I give the Star Trek film my seal of approval.  It appeals to both the avid fans and the new-comers to the Star Trek universe.  A job well done, J.J., for breathing new life into what was an aging franchise.  In fact, it feels more Star Wars-like, except with a much better delivery in character development.  It has lots of action – laser guns, aliens integrated into society, etc.  And some crazy shaky camera angles a la Battlestar Galactica.  Don’t worry no spoilers here.  Just go see it and have fun.

In Memorium: Stan Winston

In memory of the great Stan Winston, the special effects, costume and make-up guru of many of our childhood fave movies, we geeks salute you. He is most known for his work on Terminator, Jurassic Park and of course, Aliens. He made our hearts pump with fear and excitement, not to mention, pop out of our chests! Most recently, his team created the awesome suit for this summer’s superhero hit, Iron Man. Personally, I will remember him for his work on one of my all-time-favorite sci-fi/horrors, John Carpenter’s “The Thing”. And, I quote a friend of mine who commented on Stan’s monsters, “He has some imagination!”