Because I'm Not at SDCC

I read some comics. I might need years to catch up, and that's with not buying a whole lot these days.

I'm caught up, mostly, with Batwoman. It's a bit jarring trying to reconcile it with the old DCU storyline, but it mostly fits and I'm enjoying it. The art -- covers and interior -- is stunning, and the stories are dark. Poor Bette. And I hope Kate and her father can reconcile. His devotion to Bette, staying at her side in the hospital while she fights for her life, has been quite moving. This book packs a real emotional punch.

I'm still enjoying Nightwing, despite missing a couple of issues. I've definitely had to view this as an alternate reality to let myself go along with the reworking of Dick's past, but it's an intriguing enough storyline to be worth the effort on my part. At least, Dick's personality is intact.

I'm also giving World's Finest with Huntress and Power Girl a try. Happy as I was to know they went back to Helena Wayne as Huntress, I really loved Helena Bertinelli as Huntress and feel bad about how she was removed from the current reality. The art is nice, especially with the alternating artists for the current time and flashbacks. I actually am liking Kevin Maguire's art for the flashbacks more than George Perez's current time sequences. And so far, Paul Levitz is doing a fine job on the story. It's nice having him back writing.

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Wish I could be at San Diego Comic Con. New York Comic Con is fun, but it isn't quite as large and, from what I can tell, accessible as SDCC. Everything in NY is crowds and lines and advance tickets and navigating the Javits Center takes advance training. Yet it's still fun and I can't wait to go.

One thing, though, that bugs me is I'm in the wrong generation. I've been reading and collecting comics for more than half a century, a staggering amount of years I try to not dwell on. The best thing about reading and buying comics for so long is that I rarely had to pay more than cover price to get the comics I wanted or have the need to fill in more than a few issues I'd missed now and then. But back then, I didn't know any other girls who read comics. Sure, they read the Archies and romance comics, and Classics Illustrated, and the like, but they "outgrew" them by the time we hit junior high and, well, I was the odd one out. I wasn't friends with boys, so didn't know if any of the boys in my classes were into comics.

By the time I hit adulthood and found comics shops -- actual stores that sold just comics and related items so I didn't have to hit the comics rack at the local drugstore, anymore! -- I just didn't know what to do. I found out about cons in a lettercol, and went to my first con -- a Phil Seuling's Comic Arts Convention in the old Commodore Hotel in Manhattan -- and was surprised to see other women, though not too many, but at least no one treated me like an outcast. My money was as good as anyone's, at the con and at the comic shops.

I don't recall anyone dressing up back then, though there might've been some cosplay, a word not yet in vogue (or even in existence) at that time. Not that I would've attempted it. I didn't sew. You couldn't really buy anything decent. And I was painfully shy. Now.... well, I think that boat has sailed. I just can't see dressing up as a character as I approach the big 6-0. So, I kinda envy all the younger guys and gals who run around in costume and try to get as many photos as I can of them. I post pics and post my reviews of comics and occasionally blog my opinions on what the companies, mainly DC, are doing. But I know I'm not the desired demographic in any way, shape, or form. This blog's readership is limited and my influence is probably non-existent. I appreciate every one of you reading this and while I'd love a comment, it's not required. I'm lazy about commenting, myself, so I can't expect more from my readers. :)

So here I am, living vicariously through the photos and reports posted by people at SDCC and wishing I was 30 or so years younger and still full of enthusiasm for this hobby. I wish I was younger and still full of wonder, with the cynicism and disappointments and regrets still to come.