Ness Con 2017, the Inverness Comic Con (8th & 9th July, Eden Court)

[Dog Deever]

Drunken Highland shenanigans once more a possibility...

http://www.highlandheartevents.co.uk/inverness-comiccon/
https://www.facebook.com/invernesscomiccon/

Initial investigations turned up that it was sold out, but it may be that the tickets haven't even went on sale yet- not sure on this.

On the surface it looks like another film/ tv celeb event due to the guests announced so far, but I sent their fb a somewhat cheeky message asking if there would be any actual comics related stuff/ creators there and got confirmation that there would be a few familiar faces there. Hopefully there might be more, though it seems they are still in the organisation phase. 'Twould be a rather dull day out if'n none of you peeps can make it. Hell, even we get some sun round about July (sometimes).

[The Amstor Computer]

Initially I was quite interested in this, but the previous few months of watching what's happening with it haven't filled me with confidence. Lots of talk of things like offering merch with the NessCon logo, asking what people would pay for autographs and announcements of appearances by minor character actors,  but nothing much about comics (I see Graeme Neil Reid and Gary Erskine will apparently be there, but the rest of the exhibitors seem to be predominantly merch sellers) and the vibe seems to be more along the lines of the larger sci-fi/fantasy cons. It's quite a different tone from Hi-Ex, where there was a real focus on comics - from small-press up - and the other stuff was welcome but ancillary.

I'm also a little uncomfortable with how ticket sales seem to have been handled - I could be being cynical, but the early sell-out, the VIP tickets, the "limited availability" of basic tickets now etc. all feel a bit iffy.

I'd love it to be the start of a new regular comics event for Inverness - it's only 20 minutes down the road from me, so much more convenient than any other Scottish event! - as the area could do with more events like that, but at the moment it feels like a grab on to the wave of smaller "geek culture" events springing up across the country more than anything else.

[Dog Deever]

Yeah- I feel a similar sense of woe about the whole thing and I'm a bit skeppy about it all as well. I'm just about 45 mins away from 'The Sneck' so I had high hopes but atm they seem to be destined to be dashed. In their reply to the mail I sent them they asked for ideas of who I would like to see there, which didn't bode well. When I suggested a few names they replied with they would 'vertically' look into those which I took as corporate BS for 'yeah, yeah, I've never heard of any of them so on with the TV stars'. Good luck to them, I hope I'm wrong- but it looks like an exceedingly poor shadow of the excellent Hi-Exes.
Unless there's some sign of improvement I think I may body-swerve, tbh.

[The Amstor Computer]

My impression - and this could be unfair, but it's looking at it from the outside and based on what they're presenting as a public face - is that the organisers are into event management first and saw a "comic con" as another event to try, rather than actually being interested in comics and wanting to put on a convention because of that interest. I'm happy to be proved wrong - in fact, if it goes off well, I'd be delighted - but I don't get the same vibe from it as I did from Hi-Ex (which itself was very well-organised, but that came from a love of comics and the scene).

[Proudhuff]

Just a little rough and tumble, Judge man.

Why does this phrase haunt me?

[Dog Deever]

Just a little rough and tumble, Judge man.

Why does this phrase haunt me?

Full Mental Jacket.

[Dog Deever]

[sheridan]

Hah - it was even Dog saying it!

[Dog Deever]

Hah - it was even Dog saying it!

I Know right! Strange quincyquonce...
 

[The Amstor Computer]

We're about a month out now and the lineup is looking... thin.

On the comic side they've got Richmond attending now which is nice to see, but it leaves the comic-related lineup looking like this:

• Gary Erskine
• Graeme Neil Reid
• Richmond Clements

...which is a major step down from the last Hi-Ex (which had, from memory, John Higgins, Colin MacNeil, Graeme Neil Reid, Gary Erskine, Cam Kennedy, Nigel Dobbyn, Al Ewing and others, plus a good small-press presence and people from a few different Euro publishers).

They seem to be more interested in their "entertainment guests", but even that list is looking a bit skimpy now that Jason David Frank has dropped out (because of the events at Phoenix, I assume?). I think the full lineup now is:

• Sean Johnson (Power Rangers Lightspeed Rescue)
• Alison Macinnis (Power Rangers Lightspeed Rescue)
• Kai Owen (Torchwood, but maybe better known now as Creepy Pete from Hollyoaks)
• Josh Herdman (Gregory Goyle from Harry Potter)
• Paul Warren (apparently a creature performer on Star Wars: The Force Awakens, among others)
• Miltos Yerolemou (Syrio, from Game of Thrones)
• Richard Oldfield (Hobbie from Star Wars and others)

£15-20 a pop for an autograph or photo with the folk on the list above too, according to the website.

Beyond that, there seems to be a mix of exhibitors selling photos, merchandise, some indie outfits I hadn't heard of before (no slight; I'm not as up on the indie comic scene as I was 5 or 6 years ago), cosplay outfit sellers, jewellery makers etc. Nothing stands out as being particularly exciting there, but there may be some gems mixed in if you go looking.

It's the first time the organisers have done this kind of event, as far as I can see, so it's probably fair to make some allowance. That said, now that we're only a few weeks away my take on it from what has been announced is:

If you're into comics and want a good local comic con, don't bother.

If you want to meet some relatively minor sci-fi/fantasy TV/film celebs and browse what looks like a glorified merch sale, then it might be for you.

Disappointing.

[The Amstor Computer]

Bugger - just messaged Graeme to see if we could meet up while he's up here, but he's no longer attending so that cuts the comic guests down to Gary and Richmond now, plus a smattering of small-press outfits

[Dog Deever]

Nice roundup, Amstor. Aye, it's all looking pretty much like, vertically, I won't be heading through for this. Just not enough comics stuff for me- I'm not interested in TV/ movie celebs and photos at all.

[The Amstor Computer]

Nice roundup, Amstor. Aye, it's all looking pretty much like, vertically, I won't be heading through for this. Just not enough comics stuff for me- I'm not interested in TV/ movie celebs and photos at all.

 

Yeah, it's not my cup of tea. It may be that it works out for them and goes off well, and we see something bigger and better next year, but I have my doubts. The con calendar has gotten a lot fuller in the last few years, but even taking that into account the lack of comic guests here - and the organisers' comments, shares etc. on social media - does suggest that they just weren't that interested in comics and were looking at this as a con along the lines of the big TV/film sci-fi & fantasy cons from the off (or perhaps more accurately, that they have a kind of vague interest in comics in a kind of "ooh, doesn't that new Spider-Man film look cool" way, but not the kind of passion that Vicky and Richmond had for them that drove them to attract creators to Hi-Ex).

I'm maybe being really pessimistic, but I don't see any great outcomes for local comic fans here - if it succeeds as what it is, I'd guess we'll see a bigger version next time and maybe more comic creators participating (though I wouldn't bet on it...) and if it's a one-off and doesn't do well enough to justify another in 2018 then it will likely put the kibosh on a local con for another few years.

I reckon Fort-Con and Granite City Comic Con are the best bets for Highland comic fans for now - FC seemed to be a bit chaotic, but the organisers were enthusiastic and seemed to have a bit more of an interest in comics, and GCCC just had what looks like a cracking second year and seems to have a decent balance between film/TV, cosplay and comics.

[CalHab]

The comics element of GCCC looked pretty limited, I thought (although I didn't go, so may be misunderstanding it).

[The Amstor Computer]

The comics element of GCCC looked pretty limited, I thought (although I didn't go, so may be misunderstanding it).

Yeah, looking back at the lineup for 2017 I'm maybe overstating it a bit - there was more general con stuff than I remembered. That said, I think they got John Wagner, Glenn Fabry and Ryan Brown for this year, and in 2016 they had Nick Brokenshire, Ryan Brown, Gary Erskine, Montynero and Nick Percival on the roster.