Anyone interested in the history of Comic-Con and other comic book conventions should look no further than Ahoy Comics' upcoming effort: Con & On. Whether it be Comic-Con itself or any of the countless other cons around the world, each convention has certain universal truths that comic book fans (and even the professionals who work on them) can relate to. Ahoy Comics plans to explore those tropes in comedic fashion (as it often does through its works) for a brand-new miniseries.
Writer Paul Cornell (Doctor Who) and artist Marika Cresta (Star Wars: Doctor Aphra) will be collaborating to present readers with a satire on the comic book industry and its conventions. The series will be a five-part tragi-comedy called Con & On, which will center around a fictional convention known as Vista Al Mar Comics Festival. Ahead of Comic-Con International, the series is currently slated for a July 12 release date.
The Con is On for CON & ON
Across five issues, each issue of Con & On will examine five different years across three decades in the history of this fictional festival that will essentially substitute for the real-life Comic-Con. Among these stories, readers will get acquainted with aspiring comic book creator friends Eddie and Deja, a trio of boozy British creators named Anthony, Don, and Finn, and a bevy of veteran editors, forgotten TV stars, and enthusiastic fans. While the characters are all very different, each one adds to the incomparable comic book convention experience.
"Con & On is the romance of every big convention, the bittersweet journey through time and success, the highs and the lows and the silliness," says writer Paul Cornell, best known for The Modern Frankenstein and Doctor Who, among other works. "It’s the story of every fan and every pro and everyone who’s just trying to make a buck in the midst of extremity. Through the narratives of our large cast of characters we see, in miniature, the story of the last few decades of modern comics: how some things have changed and how some things have stayed exactly the damn same."
The editor for the series, Tom Peyer (best known for his '90s work on the Legion of Super-Heroes, as well as Neil Gaiman's Sandman) also had his own two cents to give in regard to Cornell and Cresta's work for the series. “I’ve never read a comic quite like Con & On,” Peyer says. “Paul and Marika expertly balance the pomp and spectacle of a huge convention with small, intimate moments among flesh-and-blood people you’ll be glad to know.” Conventions like Comic-Con offer a special kind of magic for not only fans but the creators who visit them. This creative team understands that magic and from the sounds of it, their understanding will bring to life a magical series.
“Con & On is the real mirror of the panorama of conventions,” says artist Marika Cresta. “Anyone who has ever lived in this comics world will surely find themselves in one of the many characters who animate this story and make it feel alive and unexpectedly real. I loved working on it because it's a world I live in and I'm passionate about the idea of being able to depict it, both in its positive and negative aspects!”
Comic-Con fans can stay tuned for more news regarding Ahoy Comics' upcoming Con & On before it hits comic bookshelves on July 12.