We're still getting back on our feet after the onslaught of intensity that was Comic-Con 2008. As always, we had a blast meeting fans, hosting a load of artist signings, and movin' units.

Take a quick video cruise through our booth on Wednesday just before the "preview night" crowd descended:

The unqualified hit of the Con for us was the brand-new Love and Rockets: New Stories #1 — we blew through a gross of them, our whole supply, by Saturday afternoon. Other hits of the show were the debuts of Jim Woodring's The Portable Frank and Deitch's Pictorama from the Deitch brothers; Strange and Stranger: The World of Steve Ditko by Blake Bell sold out too. Also making a strong debut showing were the new 2nd issue of Sergio Ponchione's Grotesque, which is turning out to be a sleeper hit of our Ignatz line; the new 4th issue of the smash-hit Tales Designed to Thrizzle from Michael Kupperman; Tim Lane's Abandoned Cars; Where Demented Wented: The Art and Comics of Rory Hayes; Krazy & Ignatz Vol. 10; our new giant Krazy & Ignatz hardcover; four more new Ignatz Series issues (Baobab #3, Delphine #3, Interiorae #3 and Sammy the Mouse #2); and Meat Cake #17 by Dame Darcy. John Pham's Sublife made a late appearance in unbound preview form, which didn't stop fans from snapping up a few copies. Holy man, that's a lotta new stuff!

Personal highlights:
- Best Costume: the guy wearing a Green Lantern jersey with a Devo energy dome.
- Best Celebrity Sighting at the Booth: Tom ("Spongebob") Kenny. I'm told that Tom Lennon and Ben Garant of Reno 911 also shopped, but I missed them.
- Best Shopping Find: Jim Woodring's Pupshaw & Pushpaw book at the Picturebox table.
- Best After-Hours Activity: there were several, but the winner is Friday night Chinese food and The X-Files movie (blast the critics, it's frickin' great).
- Favorite Addition to the Yoda-Themed Con Sketchbook: all of them, but maybe especially Mary Woodring's (stay tuned for scans).
- Biggest Disappointment: forgetting to ask for a Yoda sketch from Natalia Hernandez (who was wearing a Yoda backpack for crying out loud). Runner-up: wasting time in a hopeless line for the Venture Bros. panel.
- Best Suggested Name for a Theoretical Off-Site "Alternative" Comic-Con: "Fuckin' C'mon-i-Con," suggested by our own Ajax Wood.

Big thanks to all of our lovely and wonderful artists who turned out (not to mention their lovely and wonderful families); bigger thanks to our hard-working, ass-kicking staff (Kim, Gary, Ajax, Kristy, Janice, Jason, and Zuniga at the Con, plus everyone back home, especially Eric, who still did all the heavy-lifting prep work); and biggest thanks to all the comics-loving fans, customers, and looky-lous who stopped by our booth. (Apologies if I'm forgetting anything or anybody — my brain overfloweth.) We're already looking forward to next year.

Here's a selected handful of photos; head here for 42 more (plus whatever we add over the next few days).

Mario & Gilbert Hernandez:

Blake Bell & Paul Karasik:

Jean Schulz:

Johnny Ryan:

Jim Woodring:

More!

Courtesy Gilbert Hernandez: 

Here's the official flyer announcing "La Semaine de la Bande Dessinée - A Week Celebrating the French Graphic Novel," supported by Fantagraphics Books, the 4Culture King County Lodging Tax, the Alliance Française of Seattle and the Cultural Development Fund of the Federation of Alliances Françaises USA. Click here for our previous announcement.

Good news for my fellow Angry Youth Comix fans (for full details go HERE): 

New Character Parade features 24 one page comics starring all new soon-to-be icons like Half Man Half Shit, Fuckball, Ralph Waldo Schmegma, Baby Stud, Kenny Kloggins, Rasputin On A Dirtbike, Sherlock Homeless, Butt Douglas and many more. I am so there.

Every day in July we've been spotlighting books from our month-long Hidden Gems Sale, wherein we're featuring some of our under-the-radar backlist titles and encouraging you to try them by offering them at a nice discount of 25% off! The sale is ending, so now is your last chance to take advantage of these great savings!

Today we present our final spotlight, featuring two realistic, character-driven books by Andrew Zaben.

Dream Big Dreams

A promising 100-page debut novel, Dream Big Dreams is a complex narrative about a local bar owner grappling with the decision of whether to sell out to a big chain. The Lower Depths is a secluded basement tavern where locals congregate to discuss socialism and other philosophical concerns. When the owner contemplates selling to a corporation whose sincerity regarding maintaining the bar's integrity is in question, the idealistic regulars resist and decide to take matters into their own hands. Dream Big Dreams is a rarity among debut works: a compelling story rich with thoughtful observations on contemporary society, with well-developed characterizations that slowly come together over the novel's dense 100 pages.

100-page black & white 6.5" x 10.25" softcover
regularly $10.00 • ON SALE $7.50
Order Now

Queens Blvd.

Black humor and strong characterization defines this realistic (but fictional) look at a day in the lives of three bookies as they deal with the everyday hassles of living in search of a mildly dishonest buck.

56-page softcover
regularly $6.00 • ON SALE $4.50
Order Now

Courtesy Jaime Hernandez:

From Publishers Weekly's "PW Comics Week." The Hernandez Dynasty: Gilbert, Natalia, and Unca Jaime. As Tom Spurgeon put it this morning, "My friends and I make jokes that everything always comes back to the Hernandez Brothers, but it does." Except now it comes back to the Hernandez Brothers... and Daughters!

Update: Photo by Jody Culkin. Thank you! 

Steven Weissman continues bringing us in-progress pages from "Blue Jay," an epic 32-page story from Chocolate Cheeks, the next collection of the Yikes! gang's adventures. The story continues right here! (We'll be back to our regular Friday update schedule this week, so this page will only be up for a few days! Remember, you must be registered and logged in to read.)