Submet Industries

A complicated pop culture construct made from podcasts, words and gnomes, based in Edmonton, AB.

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Somehow Better

September 24, 2015 /

So somehow, Variant Edition was voted Edmonton’s third best comic shop by Edmontonians – after just five months of being open. That’s… that’s pretty cool, considering how many stores are here. Next year, the goal is to be number one. It’s going to be hard, because the two sitting at the top are both well known and established in this city – and they do a lot for the pop culture community. I mean, there’s absolutely a reason why they are number one and two. But goals are always good to have, and sitting at the top after a year-and-a-half would be pretty cool.

Anyway, what else has been happening… um… well, as of when I’m writing this (mostly in advance, with room for touch-ups later), I’m just wrapping up the first week of content in this “season”, and starting on the second. There are a few bits that have already been written for other weeks, so that has me feeling pretty confident. I am not used to that feeling.

Being me, I’m already thinking about how the second and third seasons of content will go, and I’m hoping to be able to include some original fiction as part of those runs. That would take a lot of pre-planning though, because the schedule already fills itself nicely, and the break I’m planning in between seasons isn’t really long, so much as it’s timed so I don’t fall behind. I will probably always be making content, and skirting deadlines. So that will be interesting.

I really do want to get done at least one story starring the detectives I built for a NaNoWriMo a few year’s back. I’m happy with the characters, just not with the first mystery I want them to solve. I have solid mysteries planned for future cases that they solve, just nothing that screams “pilot” – though I’m edging closer and closer to a traditional A+B=C noir story with character traits I’ve given the two leads shading the story in different ways. We’ll see how that goes.

MEANWHILE…

Over at the Something Different blog, we’ve started up our Pod People feature – which showcases podcasts that we’re into. This time around, we talk about Karen Unland’s great Seen & Heard in Edmonton podcast, which focuses on Edmonton based digital content creators. For more, just head over to the post, or just go to Karen’s website.

Also out yesterday was the newest episode of Yegs & Bacon, where Danica and I talk about all of our store events (so many), and our favourite comics that are hitting the stands this week.

STAY TUNED…

In a few short hours, you’ll be able to listen to Danica and I slur our way through the newest episode of Doctor Whooch, posted right here at Submet. We’re heading straight into Series 9, and talk a little about our experience watching the finalé to Series 8 in the theatre with a large group of fellow Edmonton Whovians. It was pretty awesome.

Tomorrow will feature the wrap up of this first week of content, and a new feature over at the Something Different blog called 5 for Friday – which is the only weekly feature that has been added to my content schedule. Everything else functions on a strange and wonderful sliding timeline of my own mad concoction. I would explain it, but honestly, it barely makes sense to me. So. 5 for Friday. A weekly set of links to five things happening in comics, pop culture, or Edmonton in general. Ideally, all three, but we are beholden to the tides.

Thanks for reading! I’ll see you tomorrow.

The Wednesday Crowd

September 23, 2015 /

When this goes up, it’s Wednesday, and I’ll be in the middle of new comic book day at the store. I always love new comic book day, because it gives me the chance to see some of my favourite people once a week, nearly every week.

In our spare time, Danica and I have been listening to this podcast about a comic store in the states that closed down after decades of serving a community. The stories they tell in this podcast are somewhat harrowing and perfectly describe society’s platonic ideal of an unfriendly, unkempt shop. When we listen, we’re generally flabbergasted at things like how there are sections of the store that are completely inaccessible (the dusty manga section) or the plethora of verbally abusive signs that roam free in the aisles – but despite this, I’ve come to recognize something that’s universal in terms of running a comic store, and that’s the strange sense of family that develops between yourself, and the customers.

If you’re running things well, a lot of your customers pop up frequently, many of them appearing each and every week to pick up a new batch of comics. These people quickly become part of your life. More often than not, I see many of our customers more often than people I would consider to be very close friends. I certainly see them more than I do any member of my family (other than my wife and the cats). These are people who, no matter what age you met them at, grow with you through the years. They find companionship. The break up. They buy houses, change jobs, get kids, or dogs, or cats, or hedgehogs. They tell you stories about their life, or… well, or they don’t, but you still see them each and every week, and you still smile at each other and recognize your mutual appreciation for each other and comics and the culture that you share in together.

It’s a great feeling, having this strange sense of place and family, and Wednesday is always the peak of that. New comic book day. As always, if you’re in the area, I’d love to see you at the store – even just to say hi. Especially, just to say hi. As wonderful as the shop can be, it’s also a black hole of time and energy, and it’s seeing everyone walking through those doors that make it all worth while.

MEANWHILE…

It’s been quite the week already, hasn’t it? I promised content, didn’t I? Again, we’ll see if this carries on through to the end of the intended thirteen weeks, but whatever.

Yesterday was kind of huge. In the Variant Edition Regularity (which you can subscribe to here) we announced the store’s next two Gender Is Not A Genre events. The first, is a generational panel of women from different backgrounds talking about their experiences with pop culture and genre in a male dominated society. We’re holding that one on October 10th at 7pm, and will be announcing the participants over the next few days. The second, is a Skype interview and signing with the one and only Kelly Sue DeConnick that will be taking place on November 15th at 4pm.We’ll be providing details about how you can get books signed by Kelly Sue when we have all the shipping details locked down.

In addition to that, Danica wrote up a fantastic organizational post over at the Something Different blog as we all prepare to declutter in advance of our first big Community Geek Swap on October 3rd.

And finally, this coming Monday is the big Indigenous Representation in Pop Culture Panel with Richard Van Camp, Patti Laboucane-Benson, Kelly Mellings and James Leask, and in preparation for that, we running content all week at the Something Different blog, hopefully offering some insight into some of the issues that will be discussed. First up, is a whole batch of articles by panelist James Leask.

STAY TUNED…

Today, there should be a new episode of Yegs & Bacon going up that we’ll link to in tomorrow’s round-up – possibly alongside a fresh episode of Podcast! The Comics! And tomorrow, a new Doctor Whooch arrives, and we’ll be talking about the first episode of Series 9, and our livers scream in agony.

Also? More big news that I can’t even hint at, but we’ll be screaming it all around the internet in just a few hours. Just you wait.

With a Bang

September 22, 2015 /

Well, the week certainly started off with quite the burst of content. We’ll get to that in a bit, though.

Next weekend, I’m going to be taking part in this year’s 24 Hour Comics Day challenge – which means I’ll be attempting to create 24 pages of a comic – story, art, lettering, the whole works – in just 24 hours. I’m notoriously bad with these challenges (see any comma all NaNoWriMo attempts) but I think doing that in a room full of people is going to help. I have a vague idea for what I want to do, and that takes the form of a webcomic I may or may not start running early next year. I always have ideas for various bits of fiction floating around in my head, but never the time or the means (or let’s face it, the discipline) to see those ideas through. Can this work? I… I really hope so. I’d love to have a way to release various pressures by retreating into a world that I create and control. We’ll see how that all goes, though. It’s not as though I’m not attempting to spin a million plates all at once as it is…

HIT THE LINKS

As promised, yesterday was a pretty big day. First up, I posted a brand new edition of The Retailer’s View over at Comics Beat – and this time, I started talking about the various ills associated with variant covers.

In the current order book, Marvel alone are offering 134 variant covers (this doesn’t include a few announced retroactively, which I’ll be adjusting during the final order cut-off period). Each and every one of these variants comes with a qualifier. Sometimes you just need to order ten copies of a certain book to get the aforementioned cover. Other times, you have to order 100. Then there’s the ones where you have to exceed 150% (or whatever number they’re using) of a different comic you ordered in order to unlock a particular variant. After you meet that qualification, you can order whatever you want. You just have to spend a lot of money for that “privilege”. The problem with that is simple: whereas the variant should be treated as the means for a customer to further connect with the product, it’s usually treated as collector bait, or worse: blackmail.

You can read the full article here where – yes – I explain how I can be so against variant covers and call the store I co-own Variant Edition. Because you know someone was going to ask.

And speaking of Variant Edition, the new season of blog content running there began strong with our regular Incoming post, and a brand new edition of #PickThree, where I find a comic series that intersects between Pushing Daisies, The Nightmare Before Christmas, and Pride and Prejudice. I’ll give you one hint, and one hint only: it’s a super weird love story. Go ahead and take a look.

STAY TUNED…

The store is announcing our next two Gender Is Not A Genre events later today, and they are pretty rad. Oh, and ahead of our big Geek Swap next weekend, Danica has a great post going up about some easy steps to take towards decluttering. So many things. SO MANY THINGS!

Also, hey! Want to find Variant Edition at this weekend’s Edmonton Expo? Wellll… you can’t. Sort of. We don’t have a booth this year, but I will be moderating a couple of panels and will be doing some brief loops of the convention floor before getting myself back to the shop, for work purposes.

Season 001

September 21, 2015 /

Things are about to get a little crazy here.

I’m trying something new – though honestly, I’m always trying something new. I’m really into plans, but no so into seeing them through. I’m wondering if I can change that. Over the next 13 weeks, I’m working on a schedule. I’ve planned out my writing, worked ahead slightly, and (hopefully) built in some time for it to all fall apart. My biggest problem has been the fact that I always want to do too many things – and once the deadlines for those things start colliding with one another and compounding, I usually just wipe the slate clean and walk away. Again, there is a chance that this could happen again… but I really hope not. At 30, I want to be able to get my things done. I want to be able to write and feel that jolt of creativity when words start flowing onto the page. I want to chase that high that I get when I hit the post button, and see people react to the dumb things that I said.

Anyway, for the next little while, you should be seeing a lot of words from me. The schedule I’ve built will hopefully keep the workload down (I might talk a little about how I built the schedule after the “season” concludes… if I get there) and keep the content coming. The best laid plans…

Make sure to check back here periodically for updates on what’s happening, and other various shenanigans.

Stay tuned…

Brandon @ The Edmonton Expo

September 20, 2015 /

A lot of people have been asking about whether or not Variant Edition will be at this year’s Edmonton Expo – and the answer to that is… no. And sort of.

While the store does not have a booth at the show this year, I will be at the show all three days, walking the floor a little, and acting as moderator for a few of the panels. Here’s where you’ll be able to find me (and some amazing guests):

OG-Xmen

Panel: Spotlight on Marcus To
Date & Time: Friday 3:45pm
Room: 109
Description: Now in Toronto but originally from Red Deer, Marcus is known for his work on Batwing, Red Robin, Huntress and Soulfire. Come meet another Albertan success story and share in his experiences!

STK655750

Panel: Spotlight on Ivan Brandon
Date & Time: Saturday 1:00pm
Room: 108
Description: Known for his work on titles such as DC’s Final Crisis Aftermath: Escape and Kobra and Marvel’s Secret Invasion and Men of War. He is also the co-creator of Image’s Viking, Drifter,  and the creator and producer of the Eisner-nominated anthology series 24Seven.

tmnt

Panel: Portfolio Review with Robert Atkins
Date & Time: Sunday 1330
Room: 107
Description: Ever wonder what to include in your portfolio when applying for professional comic work? Join Robert Atkins, a penciler, inker, and colourist within the comic industry, for a Portfolio Review panel that will discuss what to include and why.

All of these are going to be a lot of fun, and I can’t wait to talk with these great creators and about their works, and the process of making comics.

Podcast! The Comics // Episode 181 // Those Last 20 Minutes Tho

September 18, 2015 /

Features some real talk. Because all of the podcasts that I’ve been a part of this week do.

From the episode description, as presented by P!TC co-host James Leask (@Leask):

This week, the boys get together to catch up after a week off, as James insisted to Brandon that “in the middle of moving” is not a good time to record a podcast and gave him the night off, before promising that he’d “figure something out,” which turned out to be “nothing.”  James talks watching a 5.5h Bollywood movie with the hosts of Bollywood Is For Lovers (@bollywoodpod) and they settle down to discuss the most recent episode of Gravity Falls and the season premiere of The Mind of a Chef.  Then they talk about some comics, and then things get real.

You may have noticed a discussion about the announcement of Marvel’s Red Wolf solo series last week and the controversy around it.  You may have also noticed that DC canceled their book with an aboriginal character in it.  James has some emotional thoughts about these announcements, the overall landscape of indigeneity in comics, and getting burnt out on bad news.

Uh… enjoy.

It was a good conversation. I mean, I always have fun making this podcast with James, but those last few minutes, that’s where the money is. It’s always good to hear James dig his hands into something he’s really passionate about because honestly, he’s one of the best pop culture commentators I know – though unfortunately, it was under some infinitely less-than-ideal circumstances.

To that end, if you’re around Edmonton on Monday, September 28th, and would like to dig into the issue of indigenous representation in pop culture, Variant Edition will be holding a panel featuring James, Richard Van Camp, Patti Laboucane-Benson and Kelly Mellings talking on that very subject. You can RSVP here, if you’d like – it is an important conversation that needs to take place more often, and we’re happy to at least help facilitate part of that conversation.

Doctor Whooch // Episode 064 // Peak Ms. Frizzle

September 17, 2015 /

In which we swear a bunch and nobody has any problems with anyone or anything that happens in the episode. Yup.

On this week’s show, we’re talking about the series 8 episode “Into the Dalek” and Brandon does a MadLibs by himself, and it’s horrible. HORRIBLE. We also learn about space, maybe, and things get mega adoraballs. Oh, and we get really mad at Moffat and then try to rap with him with some real talk, which almost definitely works.

We’ll see you next week for SERIES 9 WHAT.

Outro music is the theme song for THE MAGIC SCHOOL BUS

Podcast picture is by GIRL NAMED SHIRL PHOTOGRAPHY

The Retailer’s View // DC Youoops

September 14, 2015 /

Last week over at Comics Beat, I wrote about DC’s recent DC You initiative, and how their current marketing structure failed the books that were coming out. Then DC went and announced the cancellation of a significant chunk of their line with their December solicitaitions. So that was fun.

Here’s a bit from my retail article:

Now that the company is attempting to push outwards from its formerly narrow viewpoint, it is essential that they learn how to market accordingly. Having lost a good source of implied retail vocabulary in Bob Wayne, they are attempting to do without any style or verve. What retailers need to see – especially in terms of their line outside of their mainstay superheroes like Batman and Wonder Woman (and hell, sometimes even Wonder Woman) – is a projection of confidence from the company, whether that’s implied by the incentive structure, or by the language they use to solicit the books, and a perceived interest from their readership, which can be done by mobilizing social media buzz and doing sustained pushes during final order cut-off weeks. Some companies are particularly good at providing previews of their upcoming books during the FOC period, alongside promotion from the creative team and editorial. DC doesn’t quite have a handle on that, as evidenced by the haphazard way they scheduled the 8 page previews of all of their DC You titles in May. Very few of those (if any) lined up with the book’s actual final order cut off date, so retailers weren’t hearing whispers of excitement right before they adjusted their numbers. What’s more to the point, all of these previews were consistently released in a chunk, instead of staggered out over a several hours and days – which would have provided the company with sustained and building noise across a longer period of time, instead of a jumble of noise created all at once.

What’s really interesting about all of this is the fact that it sets up a very interesting January for the company. With a bunch of DC You mini-series wrapping in November, and quite a few books dropping off the schedule in December, the decks are clearing – and not matter what happens in January, it will essentially be a statement on where the company will head next. There’s definitely an article in that line of thought, so more on that in the next few days…

Doctor Whooch // Episode 063 // Horseshit Levelry

September 10, 2015 /

In which we revisit the day we got engaged, with cursing.

First: EXCITING NEWS! Doctor Whooch will be weekly through the end of Series 9, and that’s going to be a thing.

Now: as we count down to the premiere of Series 9, we’re revisiting the first episode of Series 8: Deep Breath. And guess what. We have Moffat opinions. Also, we search for The Master slash fic (but generally forget to finish that quest), find out that we’re not good with boats, and Danica swears at the cats and generally can’t say words or names.

And hey, tune in next week for what’s essentially the second part of this episode – and then it’s straight on to NEW WHO. YESSSSSS.

Outro music is “Go Your Own Way” by Fleetwood Mac

Podcast picture is by GIRL NAMED SHIRL PHOTOGRAPHY

Podcast! The Comics #180 // Minnesota White Talk with Sam Humphries

September 4, 2015 /

Somehow, I started doing three podcasts regularly. This is a thing that normal people do, yes?

On this week’s episode of Podcast! The Comics, James and I are talking to one of our favourite guests and creators – the incomparable Sam Humphries! You might recognize him as the man with the sensational white-guy aphro that rotates on this blog’s very lazy header. You might also recognize him as the writer of Marvel’s Star-Lord book and the incoming writer of Weirdworld. Anyway, he’s on the show to talk about his new Image book Citizen Jack, but in true Comics! The Blog style, we get off track and stay off the rails for most of the conversation. And bless him, Shump is all in.

So drink in the magic and bask in Minnesota splendour.

Bonus Notes:

Sam Humphries Online // Twitter // Tumblr

Download the episode here or subscribe through iTunes.  If you want to subscribe the old-fashioned way, insert the following text into your audio program of choice (in iTunes, click “Advanced,” then click “Subscribe to Podcast”):

http://comicstheblog.libsyn.com/rss

You can also find all the episodes to date on Libsyn’s site here.

Brandon Schatz // Twitter // Facebook

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