We’ll start at the beginning. For those of you who don’t know what a Comic Con is, it’s a type of convention (held in cities ranging from San Diego to New York, from Seattle to Boston) that features panels based on a variety of nerdy topics (think comic books, television shows, cartoons, even the occasional podcast), product sneak-peeks, a wide array of comic book and figure dealers, and celebrity guests. Though this sort of thing may seem like a bit of a fringe event for a few nerdy guys, the Skidmore collegiettes who attended this month’s New York Comic Con argue otherwise.
(From left to right) Her Campus author Grace Gerrish ’15 as a “Pokémon Breeder” from Pokémon, Zoe Gross ’15 as “Rose Lalonde” from Homestuck, and Nikki Prince ’15 as “Korra” from The Legend of Korra
This eighth annual NYCC, held from October 10th to October 14th, hosted over 130,000 attendees, of which a reported 40% were women. We were shocked and wholeheartedly pleased with this number, since comics and “nerdy” sorts of things like Star Trek and Power Rangers have in the past been considered primarily masculine interests.
“Despite the reputation of comics as a male-dominated industry, I saw plenty of female fans there,” said Kate Chin ’17. Nikki Price ’15 was impressed by the turnout in Artists’ Alley, a part of the con devoted to independent artists. “I was pleasantly surprised by all of the cool female artists [there]. There seem to be more and more each year. I guess that says a lot about how ‘nerd culture’ has become less of a gendered thing.”
Liz McCrorey ’14 adds, “It does sometimes feel like the comic world is a total boys’ club,” she said, “mostly because of the typical representations of busty, spandex-clad women serving more as objects than characters. But there are definitely stories that do not work like that.”
Liz mentioned The Walking Dead as just one series that features strong female characters. She began reading the series (which has since become a television show) while abroad in Paris, and was excited by the 10th anniversary programming that was offered at this year’s NYCC. Of course, even though she was eager to see familiar content, she was also happy to find new series as well. “I’m a pretty casual reader of comics,” she said, “so I’ve read some basics, but I thought the con would be a good chance to find some new things to read.”
Many people seem to be under the impression that only comic book experts can go to Comic Con, when in fact many attendees are there to discover new things, like Liz. According to Nikki, “I met a bunch of artists whose comics I started to read only after I met them.” At the end of the day, cons are places for artists to show off their work and get readers interested, not a competition to see who’s most knowledgeable.
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Comic Con may also not seem like a fabulous place to awaken your inner fashionista, but many con attendees let their sense of style run wild. In recent years, cosplaying—or dressing up as particular characters—has become increasingly popular at conventions. These costumes can range from a simple apron and bandana, to incredibly elaborate ballgowns, catsuits, or even moving, light-up robot contraptions. “I’ve been sewing costumes for years,” said Zoe Gross ’15, “so I was very excited to use what I already knew in a different way.” Her costume was an original design combining a Steampunk style with the theme and color palette of the existing character.
Of course, women can decide their costume based not only on style, but also on the characters themselves. According to Nikki, “I love dressing up as Korra because she’s the female main character of an action show. She’s strong and powerful, without ever being sexualized. She doesn’t let anyone tell her what to do just because she’s a woman, and I think she’s a great role model.” Zoe and Nikki also run the Random Acts of Crafts club here at Skidmore, so naturally their artsy skills came in handy, and they were excited to bring stories of crafty jacket patterns and creative uses of posterboard back to campus.
Though there is at times a concern about animosity towards women at these sorts of events (particularly in regard to the supposed “fake nerd girl” trend), we did not encounter any of it. On the contrary, Liz made a specific note of “how excited and friendly everyone was. We were all there to geek out over our favorite stories and we all knew it. There’s a wonderful lack of pretension at the event and a really fun unity brought about by waiting in line to see your favorite creators.” Her particular favorite was Lemony Snicket, who she was able to meet and get her copy of The Bad Beginning signed by.
Liz McCrorey ’14 with Charlie Adlard, the head artist of The Walking Dead
One of our favorite parts of NYCC was the “Women of Marvel” panel, which featured ten female artists, editors, and creators from the Marvel Comics company. At the height of the day, the panel was standing-room only in the largest space in the convention center. We were first treated to several sneak-peeks at new, female-driven comics to be released in the coming months.
For those of you who saw the Iron Man movies or The Avengers, Black Widow will be getting her own series focusing on her life away from other superheroes. The stylish, almost James Bond-like cover of the opening issue and the few artistic interior panels that we were treated to indicate the complex psychology of this sometimes-superheroine, sometimes-femme fatale. “I want to wipe the red from my ledger,” she tells the villain in the Avengers film. Hopefully we’ll be able to see her do that, and maybe even get a glimpse at the juicy backstory that put that red there in the first place.
Though there were many other popular announcements, such as about a lady-driven Young Avengers and a look into the world of Captain Marvel, we were very excited by talk of a new solo series for She-Hulk, a.k.a. Jennifer Walters. Jen is the Incredible Hulk’s cousin, who fights crime on the street at night and in the court room during the day. The series will focus on her life as a fiercely femme lawyer, and how she might acquire some of her evidence from some shady sources and a little back-alley butt-kicking. By the end of the series, female readers should be able to feel inspired by this high-powered professional woman (who just happens to also be green).
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The mic then turned back to the artists and editors themselves, particularly Kelly Sue DeConnick, who is known in the community for her passionate voice on equality and representation in the comics industry. DeConnick is also the head writer for the Captain Marvel series, which features Carol Danvers as the complex, powerful, and modestly-costumed title character. She said the series serves as a much-needed reminder to male writers that superheroines can sell books, and don’t have to be sexualized to do so. The women of Skidmore’s art department should take note, however, as she also spoke at length about how women interested in joining the industry should not be deterred by the false impression that they need to know everything there is to know about comics. She said that illustrative artists are just that—artists—and that comics aren’t some bizarre, genre-less form of media, so much as just another form of art.
Gesturing to the table of panelists, she said, “There is room up here—we’ll just keep making the table longer. We need you. We want you. You all have unique voices and gifts, and this industry absolutely needs you.” She added, “We need you to be ready… So I need you to start making comics. by CouponDropDown”>Start now… You have a lot of mistakes that you need to make in order to learn in order to get to the good stuff…. It doesn’t make you a bad artist; it makes you a human being…. Don’t be afraid of them. Start now.” Her speech ended with roaring applause from the audience.
Grace Gerrish ’15 at the official New York Comic Con photo booth
One of the last remarks of the Q&A section of the panel came from a young man who approached the mic to comment on the surge of female, non-white, and LGBTQ characters that have been appearing more frequently in the comics of the past few years. “I work in a comic book shop,” he began, “and I’ve seen large new audiences come in who were not coming in the store before, and … they are the nicest people.”
We agree. This year’s New York Comic Con felt welcoming, inclusive, and most importantly, fun! Hopefully this coming year will see even more great developments for women in the community and the industry, and we’ll see a few more of you Skidmore collegiettes there next year.