Where the Wild Nerds Roam

ATTENTION: The following blog has been rated PG (Pretty Geeky), for intensely suggestive nerdiness, strong Klingon language, crude costuming, graphic novels, and explicitly no sexual activity. Some Material May Be Inappropriate for Children Over 13.

For the record, I shot first.

I spent my weekend in a little slice of nerd heaven, which I am calling Dorkhalla (where all the brave nerd-dead go when they pass on, to do nothing but each nachos all day and spend their time arguing about who would win in a fight between Batman and Jesus). I found this little haven of my own kindred right here in Melbourne, Australia, at a "Pop Culture" Convention, called Supanova, and as I have been doing my own independent exploration of the comic book community in Australia, by visiting different comic shops around the area, I decided to attend this prestigious event (purely for scientific research, of course).

What I discovered was a magical, mystical land, squeezed conveniently in an old exhibition warehouse. It is hard for me to convey how awesome of a time I had at Supanova 2011. I have attended smaller conventions before, but only with a timid curiosity, being too afraid to fully throw myself in the deep-end of geekdom. However, this time I decided to hold my nose and take the plunge. Though I did stop short of pulling out my full Green Lantern costume, I did manage to super doggy paddle my way through this event by purchasing a full weekend pass, and making a commitment to see and be seen by as many people as I could. This pass allowed me to spend my Friday, Saturday, and Sunday rubbing elbows with people in costumes and everyone's favorite B and C-list sci-fi and fantasy celebrities.

One of my biggest highlights was getting to sit three rows of folding chairs away from Simon Pegg and Nick Frost as they talked about their new movie Paul. (For any Americans still scratching their heads over the names, they are the two guys from Shaun of the Dead, and if that really didn't help, Simon Pegg played Scotty in the new Star Trek). The British duo were just as entertaining in person as one might expect. They were funny, and incredibly tolerant of some of the idiots in the audience... like me, when I got a chance to ask them a question. I asked Simon Pegg if he might do his impression of an obscure Star Wars droid known as a "Mouse-Droid." He performed the impression in good humor, I laughed loudly, and awkwardly into the microphone I was standing behind and sat back down. (It was everything I could have dreamed of.) I even struck up a very interesting conversation with person sitting next to me who was dressed as an anime character I still cannot identify.

This brings me to my next point of observation about Australians... They love Japanese anime. Nearly 80% of those costume playing (or Cosplay as it is called by those in the know,) were of people with spiky white, pink, blue, etc hair, wielding ridiculously over sized weapons. However, if you look at Australia's proximity to Japan (geographically speaking) this tends to make a lot of sense. More to the point because of the Australian fervor for the wide-eyed Japanese animation style, I was able to catch a premiere screening of Neon Evangelion 2.22, and if you think the name is confusing you should have watched the movie. In all seriousness though, I joke because I care. I am an equal opportunity nerd, and many years ago my good friend Jicha explained to me the premise of the Neon Evangelion storyline. I won't give anything away, but the movie was decent, if not very anime. In other words, by movie's end I was left feeling both a little confused and disturbed by what I had just seen. On the plus side, it was introduced by Mike McFarland who voiced Master Roshi on Dragonball Z, which brought back many pleasant and violent memories of childhood.

But not everyone was dressed as a disproportinate animated character. There were your standard and non-standard outfits. You can always find a Darth Vader or a Princess Leia, but I also found people dressed as Mario and Lugi, Disney Princesses, obscure supervillans, and a very creative half-pirate/half-ninja outfit. As for myself, I got into the spirit of things by buying a 3 dollar shirt from the Salvation Army and 4 dollars worth of felt and sewing supplies. I very crudely sewed an X-Men "X" patch onto the shirt and called it my contribution to costuming. For my first attempt at sewing I actually don't think it came out too bad, and for seven dollars how can you beat it. I took many photographs of people in costumes and some of the amazing coolness I saw around me.

However, my time at Supanova was not spent solely in the pursuit of costumed characters. I met (and stalked) a lot of interesting people. On the top of this list is Chris Claremont (a personal hero), which is a name that should be a household one, as his is one of the great American comic book writers of all time, coming in only behind people with names like Jack Kirby and Stan Lee. It was under his 17 years of care that the X-Men went from a failing unknown comic book to one of the most popular series of all time. He was one of the first comic writers to create strong female and African-American superheroes (though, when asked about it he seems rather bitter toward Jean Grey, preferring to refer to her only as "the redhead.") When I met him and asked him for his signature I was profoundly speechless, and when I asked him a question during one of his panel sessions the question came out rather incoherently, much to my chagrin. Not many people can tongue-tie me like that. (For point of reference, not even Simon Pegg and Nick Frost did that to me.)

Ironically, some of my most memorable meetings were not of famous comic writers, British movie stars, or other celebrities (like Charisma Carpenter or the kid who played Draco Malfoy,) but people of lesser known fame. I met and talked with an awesome band by the name of Kirby Krackle. The two guys behind the band, Kyle and Jim, are from Seattle and really knocked me for a loop with their genuine, funny, and touching songs about things like video games and comics. I become an instant fan and bought both of their albums. (I may even have over overdone my enthusiasm a bit as I attended everyone of their sessions and concerts and even got into discussions with them about all sorts of randomness from the best Philly cheesesteak to my favorite Australian candy bar.) I think this is the first time I came off as the weird American to fellow Americans, but they suffered it in good humor and proved to be just two awesome guys. Here is one of their more popular songs about Green Lantern called Ring Capacity.


Above Paul Mason's Soldier's Legacy,
for a piece done for the Tides of Hope comic
book in support of the Queensland Flood
Relief Effort.

Next, I was given a chance to meet a very talented Australian comic book artist by the name of Paul Mason. He was not only an interesting and excellent guy to talk with but he has created and published a comic called Soldier's Legacy, and the moment I saw his artwork it just jumped out at me. For any American who thinks that there are no quality Australian superhero comics, than you need to check out Paul's work. Not only is he talented, but he has created a comic book that has both an iconic and unique feel to it. On a more personal note, I enjoyed talking with Paul, as I learned we even shared some similar views on comics and comic book theory. I feel very happy and privileged to have gotten to know and interact with so many talented people like Paul Mason and Kirby Krackle.

I had a great time at Supanova 2011. I met all sorts of people and got to walk around with superheroes, anime characters, Star Wars charaters, comic writers, artists, and much more. This weekend really reminded me why I have such a passion for my own geekiness, and it also inspired me. When I get back to States I may have to start looking for a comic artist who might be interested in some of the comic scripts I have put together over the past few years. At the very least it really inspired me in my own writing to be proactive and take risks.

I will end here on one last thought. I know most people tend to judge the community that dresses up in capes and masks and attends comic conventions, but the truth is I spent the weekend talking and meeting some of the nicest and friendliest people I yet to meet anywhere on my travels. There was no tension, or presumption, or even arguments to be found (other than who is the best Dr. Who, which is obviously David Tennant.) You may even think that the people who attend these conventions are weird and a bit extreme, but I ask you to consider the person who paints their face for a football game, or wears their team's jersey everywhere they go. Those people are just as committed to their passion as anyone I met this weekend. I had a lot of amazing experiences, and whether it was watching the Kamameha Contest (hosted by the voice of Master Roshi) or watching the One-Man Lord of the Ring Comedy Show, I knew I was among people who were there to just have fun. In the end. if I have taken anything away from my experiences both this weekend and in Australia, all we should ever strive to be is who we are. So I am a nerd and I'm damn proud of it.