50 Comics Positives In 2012: It Was A Great Year For Conventions
There's always a danger in making too much out of comics conventions, festival and shows, as it places emphasis on a way of accessing and enjoying comics that is not the way most people that read them now or may read them in the future are likely to primarily interact with the medium. Still, they're freaking fun when they work, and whole grasping handfuls of these suckers worked this year. And many of the small-press oriented shows in particular play an important role for comics that don't have a natural marketplace to match the skill and appeal of the objects being created. I moved to Silver City and its 210-minute ride to an airport at a time when you went to San Diego and maybe one other show. I sure feel dumb now. There's a show a month now, easy, maybe 20 in a year that a reader can enjoy and a professional can use. It may not be the best thing, but it can't be a bad thing.
