Montreal Comic Con

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It’s been a year, y’all. We shook off the collective nightmare of lockdown, put on our dancing shoes, and partied. Bars, theatre, concerts, comedy, art, all the stuff that keeps the lights on in our city and our souls returned from the forced hiatus.

It didn’t take long for us to get used to it, and every now and again I stop myself while doing some mundane thing like walking through the Eaton Centre and remember how much I craved the basics.

As some of you may know, I have a lot of well thought out complaints about the ways of the world (catch me on FTB Weekends with Jason C. McLean), but provincial elections and healthcare crisis aside, the gratitude was especially delicious this 2022.

January

It’s a mind bender to recall that we came into 2022 under curfew, and in lockdown, but at the time it was hard to think of much else. Instead of show announcements, we kept our ears to the ground for cancellations, wondering how far ahead they were planning.

It was miserable. Igloofest was canceled. Online shows offered some reprieve, but meh. If we were in a tumbleweed climate, they would be rolling through this month.

The whole thing was gloomy.

February

February is often called the most depressing month, and in the COVID time it was at least doubly so. We were still under partial lockdown, but hope was on the horizon!

Nuit Blanche was finally coming back and Osheaga announced its lineup, signaling that normalcy was within reach. Some performers would change before the show, but all we heard is that there would be shows.

In fact, some local shows started to pop up and bars were scheduled to reopen February 28. Is dancing allowed? Is singing allowed? No one’s sure, but we’re stoked to get out there and find out.

March

The show is finally going on, which is really saying something considering the curtain on CATS was originally supposed to go up in March of 2020.. Just For Laughs announced its lineup and things to look forward to were starting to pop up everywhere.

This is when Montreal Museum of Fine Arts was doing what it could with limited capacity: starting at the end of February, you could get in if you booked your time slot (in 15 minute increments) online, masking and distancing are mandatory, giving the security staff the new task of keeping people from moving through the rooms too quickly or getting too close to one another. Only the major exhibit was open, and I learned that I don’t like Riopelle, but being back feels momentous.

Concerts have begun, but safety measures are in place there too, making the whole thing seem weird. My bf goes to see Sepultura at a fully masked metal show, and it sounds dystopian to me.

April

The MMFA is actually factually all the way open, though you still need to book a time slot. I beeline for The Decorative Arts & Design Pavilion, which is open for the first time in ages, having been “closed due to reorganization” or some such even before the pandy. I am in my happy place.

The MMFA’s Decorative Arts and Design Pavilion (photo by Dawn McSweeney)

As part of an experiment on our party rules, the SAT serves up drinks and tunes for 24 hours straight which gives me some hope that maybe the “new normal” will allow for some reconfiguration of things we’ve taken for granted as status quo for too long (writing this at the end of December, that hope has long since crashed and burned, but it was lovely while it lasted).

I’m comforted knowing that while everything feels like it’s on the brink, Montrealers can unite against some showy corporate silliness as we all discuss the city’s new giant ring.

May

Spring is springing, and the good times are indeed rolling. I finally get out to my first post-COVID show. I’ve seen Symphony X before, and they put on a good show despite not being on my regular rotation. This is about getting out, and bring with people and not wearing a mask in a crowd.

We meet up with friends for drinks and food. No vax passes. No masks. We come and go from the show so much, it’s about the band the same way high school dances are about dancing. I’m jazzed.

I also leave town for the first time in years, and head to Halifax for the first time ever. We hit some familiar territory, and hug people we’ve missed.

Back in Montreal, masks were still in place at Mainline Theater where performers wore them throughout Carrie: The Musical rehearsals. As someone who’s still masked at work, let me say that phone calls are hard enough, kudos for pulling off a musical.

There were no masks on stage for Contact Theatre’s Next to Normal at Monument Nationale and Cirque du Soleil came back strong with Kooza.

June

At this point our regularly scheduled Montreal programming seems to be rolling right along, and Fringe is next! James Gartler checks out Tango to the Pointe along with Al Lafrance’s Is This Yours? and Josephine, a burlesque cabaret dream play, saying of Josephine that “it stands easily as one of the best shows to ever play at the Montreal Fringe Festival”.

I peep What About Albert? and enjoy the heck out of it.

Photo by Joseph Ste-Marie, courtesy of The Malicious Basement Theatre Company

July

I smiled through this whole month. There are events at every turn, and Montreal summer is thriving. At the beginning of the month, our Editor Extraordinaire says to me “hey, someone approached us with a creative thing that made me think of you”, which is how I met my creative soulmate, and that will come up later.

ComicCon is back, and the fits are fierce. Flipping through the cosplay pics, I get a little sentimental thinking about how long it’s been since we’ve all been able to let our freak flags fly in all their carefully crafted glory. Man, we’re beautiful.

James Gartler went to Malcolm McDowell’s talk and he learned that the only time in his 60 year career he was ever stiffed on gig was by a producer in Montreal, so we have that dubious distinction.

JFL is back for its 40th edition, and I’m desperate to laugh with strangers. From late July into early August, all my friends have to listen to me fangirling about who I’m interviewing. I loudly tell everyone I know that I can’t make their things ‘cuz I have media passes to comedy shows, and article deadlines. Everyone calmly assures me that I wasn’t invited to their things, and pats me on my head for being so cute and excitable.

Seriously though, when you look at it all in one place our FTB Team had JFL on lock. Samantha Gold spoke to Canadian comedy royalty Rick Mercer, comic, Hollywood and Bollywood actor Vir Das and even Randy Feltface, an actual puppet. Jason C. McLean spoke with Letterkenny star Mark Forward and caught Irish comic Tommy Tiernan’s new show. James Gartler took in Trixie Mattel’s free outdoor drag show and SNL and stand-up star John Mulaney’s latest one-man show.

I spoke to a bunch of folks I never thought I would such as Alonzo Bodden and Pete Holmes. Despite Big Jay Oakerson closing out our phone interview by saying I should come up and say hi at the show, I freeze and never say hi. I see him outside with Brendan Sagalow on another day, after a different show, and I stare like a weirdo, but keep my distance.

July/August

As Montrealers we’re confident in our summers, but painfully aware of their fleeting nature. By the end of July squeezing in all the summer activities becomes a full time job, and this year it’s coming to a head as Osheaga & JFL share a weekend.

Osheaga 2022 photo by Chris Zacchia

As one FTB team was all over JFL, another team covers Osheaga with Joe McLean and Jerry Gabriel‘s previews and coverage from Jerry Gabriel of the rock-oriented Day One and the mix of everything Days Two and Three, plus Chris Zacchia’s festival photos.

Meanwhile, my Maritimers BIL & SIL come to town for their first Osheaga, and they haven’t been here in years. We live it up, and I fall in love with MTL yet again as I experience it through tourist eyes. They had a blast at the show.

August

Oh, I remember August because before we’d even sent the Scotians home, my bf tested positive for COVID. Damn it. We lock ourselves in, and I catch it in short order.

Considering I’ve been working at an office this whole time and taking public transit throughout, it seems fair. We both feel like bags of poop, but we’re super glad it wasn’t worse.

Meanwhile, Samantha Gold was checking out Repercussion Theatre’s All Shall Be Well and the POP Montreal lineup is released giving us more to look forward to.

September

In September I interviewed a fictional character when I sat down with Andrew Jamieson as Conor Blaine, (the aforementioned creative thing and the aforementioned creative soulmate). It was like playing with someone else’s imaginary friend, and it tickled me.

Drinks with fictional character Conor Blaine (photo by Dawn McSweeney)

Montreal Stop Motion Film Festival returns for it’s 14th edition, and I didn’t know this existed until it was over, so as I write this I’m marking my calendar for next year.

At MMFA, Nicolas Party’s pastels surprised me as the colours spilled off the pages and onto the walls. The Decorative Arts & Design Pavilion is closed again as pieces from there are used as part of another exhibit.

POP Montreal started at the very end of the month which takes up right into…

October

POP Montreal taught me a lot about how to better cover a multimedia, multi location arts festival. There was so much to do and see, but for me the highlight was catching Sophia Bel, who I’d never heard of, and now I tell other people about.

Samantha Gold interviewed Rocky Horror Show director Amy Blackmore and the time warp was live for the first time in years. Me First & The Gimmie Gimmies come to town, and it’s a fun time.

November

In art news, MMFA puts on a fantastic Jean Michel Basquiat exhibit called Seeing Loud: Basquiat & Music. It features works by the artist, but is specifically designed to showcase the importance of music in both his career and life. The music plays throughout.

Big famous pieces aside, there are framed journal pages, concert posters, and a super cool map where you can track his path via concerts in NYC. This bad boy runs through February 19, 2023.

In other museum news, the Decorative Arts & Design Pavilion is back to being closed for reorganization or whatever. I sigh dramatically.

Anti-Flag brought old school punk to town, and image+nation celebrates 35 years.

December

The beginning of December already feels like a year ago. The Candyass Cabaret brought sexy back, the Stygian Caravan brought creatives together, and speaking of together, Glass Tiger still is.

Andrew Jamieson’s Sleazy Christmas introduced me to comedian Morgan O’Shea who I thought was just some friend of a friend, and next thing you know, he’s going up on stage, and I’m laughing till it hurts. Turns out he’s profesh. I’ll be intentionally seeking out his comedy in the future.

As is always the case, this year isn’t over yet, and we’re already looking to the next.

Osheaga 2023 headliners have been announced, and I already have Lizzo tickets for May.

Entertainment this week? Personally? So much chilling.

All the best to you, yours, and the dreams you’re chasing. Blessed be & haribol.

Featured Image of Sophia Bel @ POP Montreal by Dawn McSweeney

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Legendary British actor Malcolm McDowell is in Montreal this week for a special Just For Laughs event promoting his CBC comedy series Son of a Critch. Going by a story he told at the recent Montreal Comic Con, however, we should consider ourselves lucky he’s here at all.

During the course of his hour-long panel at the Con, the prolific performer fielded questions from fans about his work in everything from A Clockwork Orange and Heroes to Star Trek and Halloween, all while dropping hints that one of his worst professional experiences was somehow linked to MTL. When someone finally found the courage to ask him outright what had happened, McDowell spilled the beans in his inimitable fashion.

“I’ll tell you this – the only time I was ripped off by a producer was in Montreal. That is the only time in a 60-year career that I was actually not paid. They paid half and suddenly on the last day of shooting I get a call from my agent in LA who goes, ‘Stop working! Don’t do anything else!’ and I went, ‘It’s the last day – are you kidding me? That’s no threat. They’ve got everything they need!’”

After the crowd’s laughter died down, the 79-year-old recalled exactly which project had ripped him off. “It was a remake of The Portrait of Dorian Gray,” he remembered with a chuckle. “They paid me a little bit and still owed me quite a lot of money and then, like five years later, somebody else bought it (…) and I got this call to say, ‘look, German TV will pay you half of your fee. What do you want to do?’ and I went ‘Take it. Absolutely. A half is better than nothing, right?’ So that’s Montreal filmmaking for me!” he quipped. “No, I loved working in this city and it was fantastic, except for that nasty little surprise at the end.”

Pact With The Devil, the Montreal-made picture that failed to properly pay McDowell

Pact with the Devil, also released under the title Dorian, costarred Christoph Waltz and Ethan Erickson and was filmed here in 2002. Thankfully, it’s not the only project McDowell associates with Montreal. “I did a movie here with Mos Def,” he told the crowd, citing 2000’s horror picture Island of the Dead. “It was a cool little movie and the food was good too!” he said of our unparalleled local catering.

“I’ve always loved Montreal. It’s a great city. I’ve had wonderful times here and made some weird little movies here, so it’s a pleasure to be back. I’ve been shooting in Newfoundland doing the second season of Son of a Critch, a show that I absolutely love, and it’s a fantastic place too. I really love being there and I’m going to be there for the next two months.”

Critch is based on the 2018 memoir of the same name written by Mark Critch, of This Hour Has 22 Minutes fame. The comedian stars as his own father in the semi-autobiographical series, which flashes back to his upbringing in the 1980s and features McDowell in the role of grandfather Patrick.

When asked by a convention-goer if he’d been officially ‘screeched in’, he feigned ignorance of the classic Newfie tradition, retorting, “Is this where they hit you over the face with the wet fish?” The tradition actually involves getting newcomers to The Rock to recite a poem, take a shot and kiss a cod. “No, they didn’t do that to me, I’m glad to say,” he remarked before adding, “at this point, I think we’ve probably gone past that. I’m now a sort of honorary Newfoundlander.”

The cast of CBC’s Son of a Critch

“In the new season, I do get to go out fishing for cod with my son Mark Critch, who is a wonderful humorist and terrific writer,” he went on to say. “Of course, things don’t go smoothly and we try to get a bit of comedy out of it, as you might expect. It’s such a fun series. I love it.”

Returning for Just For Laughs, McDowell will be joined by the cast and creative team of Critch for a special panel and discussion this Saturday the 30th at Doubletree by Hilton. It seems a safe bet, however, that his thoughts might also turn to fellow thespian David Warner, as they did during the Comic Con. Warner sadly passed away this week at the age of 80, losing his battle with “a cancer-related illness” after a lengthy career on stage and screen.

Though he is best known to the public for his supporting role in James Cameron’s Titanic and voice work in shows like Batman: The Animated Series and Disney’s Gargoyles, Warner is fondly remembered by McDowell because of their earliest days together in the Royal Shakespeare Company.

“My great mate was David Warner,” McDowell said during the convention, flashing back to Warner’s star turn in 1965, at the age of 24. “David was playing Hamlet. He was the Beatles generation Hamlet and used to get like 300 schoolgirls outside the stage door waiting for him after his performance, all screaming. I mean, it scared him to death, but ahhh…those were the days! It was fun.”

The two would go on to appear in 1979’s Time After Time, where McDowell played H.G. Wells opposite Warner’s Jack The Ripper.

McDowell and Warner in 1979’s Time After Time

In spite of the ups and downs of a life in the limelight, McDowell seems to have weathered the storms no worse for wear. “I’m really having so much fun as an older actor, actually. It’s lovely and delicious, because I get to play the full spectrum of parts now, from serial killers to grandfathers. And yeah, I kind of enjoy playing psychos because you can do things you can’t even dream of as a person. As a character, you can go nuts and have so much fun. And I love doing comedies because it’s the hardest thing to do. Real emoting is really easy, basically, but the real tough stuff is comedy and timing and getting a laugh, especially on film or on television. It’s always very difficult but it’s challenging and I really enjoy it. That’s why I’m doing Son of a Critch.”

Malcolm McDowell and the Son of a Critch cast will take the stage this Saturday July 30th. For ticket information, visit hahaha.com Son of a Critch is broadcast both on CBC and on the CBC GEM streaming service. The next edition of the Montreal Comic Con will be held from the 14th to the 16th of July 2023

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The party’s going down over at the Palais de Congrès this weekend, and all the proof you need is in this gallery of standout outfits from Montreal’s finest cosplayers. Before you head on over to join in, get inspired and dress for the occasion. Everyone else has!

Classic Harley Quinn @ Montreal Comic Con 2022 – Photo by James Gartler
Covid-conscious Jedi @ Montreal Comic Con 2022 – Photo by James Gartler
Supergirl @ Montreal Comic Con 2022 – Photo by James Gartler
The Heathers @ Montreal Comic Con 2022 – Photo by James Gartler
Spider-Man and Deadpool(s) @ Montreal Comic Con 2022 – Photo by James Gartler
Disney’s Esmerelda @ Montreal Comic Con 2022 – Photo by James Gartler
Peaky Blinders @ Montreal Comic Con 2022 – Photo by James Gartler
Belle Squared @ Montreal Comic Con 2022 – Photo by James Gartler
Captain America @ Montreal Comic Con 2022 – Photo by James Gartler
90s Catwoman and cohort @ Montreal Comic Con 2022 – Photo by James Gartler
Death Note @ Montreal Comic Con 2022 – Photo by James Gartler
Ariel @ Montreal Comic Con 2022 – Photo by James Gartler
Castlevania’s Trevor Belmondo @ Montreal Comic Con 2022 – Photo by James Gartler
Droogs @ Montreal Comic Con 2022 – Photo by James Gartler
Batgirl and Robin seeking refreshment @ Montreal Comic Con 2022 – Photo by James Gartler
Cruella @ Montreal Comic Con 2022
Maui and Moana @ Montreal Comic Con 2022 – Photo by James Gartler
Hogwarts Professors @ Montreal Comic Con 2022 – Photo by James Gartler
Creepy Clown @ Montreal Comic Con 2022 – Photo by James Gartler
Mutual Admiration Society @ Montreal Comic Con 2022 – Photo by James Gartler
Angela from Spawn @ Montreal Comic Con 2022 – Photo by James Gartler
Raven @ Montreal Comic Con 2022 – Photo by James Gartler
Miraculous’ Ladybug @ Montreal Comic Con 2022 – Photo by James Gartler
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Dust off your best cosplay and bust out that autograph album because the Montreal Comic Con is back. This Friday through Sunday, the Palais de Congrès will play host to artists, actors and fandoms of all varieties in a celebration of all things geeky and game-related.

To help you figure out what to prioritize, Forget The Box has combed through the Guest List so you can make the most of your weekend. No thanks necessary. It’s just what we do.

The original Borg Queen herself, Alice Krige, will be headlining the convention – if not descending from the ceiling as a head – to reminisce about her various appearances in Star Trek, as well as her work in 2013’s Thor: The Dark World and 1992’s Stephen King classic Sleepwalkers.

Her costar in the upcoming indie film She Will, none other than Malcolm McDowell, will also be attending to reflect on his Trek experience – aka killing Captain Kirk in Generations – as well as his voice work on Superman: The Animated Series and, inevitably, 1971’s A Clockwork Orange. Look for his panel on Friday and Krige’s on Sunday.

Arrow and Teen Wolf star Colton Haynes will take the stage on Saturday to field questions about his time working on both larger-than-life shows, with X-Files and Terminator 2 star Robert Patrick speaking to the crowds on Sunday, possibly about his uncanny ability to terrify us without so much as uttering a single word.

Of course, one of the biggest thrills of any comic convention is seeing all our local talent gathered in one place. In that respect, this year’s show will not disappoint. A-List artist Yanick Paquette – of DC’s Wonder Woman and Swamp Thing comics – will be in attendance, probably with plenty of gorgeous art in tow. Comic artist-turned publisher Andy Belanger will also be present, hopefully demonstrating some of the sick moves that have helped make him a regular in the wrestling scene.

Concordia animation graduate and cartoonist extraordinaire, BOOM, will return with her autobiographical Boomeries graphic novels in tow and maybe even a tease of her upcoming book, La méduse, due out this fall. And Montreal institution Terry Mosher, aka AISLIN, will also be present to speak on his decades of political cartooning for The Montreal Gazette. Who better to provide a lighthearted perspective in these dark political times?

Add a host of vendors selling all the merch you could possibly want to add to your secret display case – don’t pretend you don’t have one! – and a Masquerade Ball where fans with sewing skills get to strut their stuff, and a good time is pretty much guaranteed. Plus, unlike the Jazz Fest, it can’t get rained out, which is definitely a perk.

Tickets to the convention are still available over at the show’s official website , where additional updates will be provided in the days ahead.

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As anyone who has attended Montreal Comic Con knows, one of its great privileges – in addition to hobnobbing with creators and celebs – is seeing the best of our local cosplay scene. This year proved no exception, as can be seen in following gallery of costumes covering everything from Star Wars and Disney characters to Horror icons and Burton films. Enjoy!

  • Alice and the Queen of Hearts Cosplay – Montreal Comic Con 2019 – Photo by James Gartler
  • Ariel and Flounder Cosplay – Montreal Comic Con 2019 – Photo by James Gartler
  • Beetlejuice Cosplay – Montreal Comic Con 2019 – Photo by James Gartler
  • Captain Marvel and Chewie the Cat Cosplay – Montreal Comic Con 2019 – Photo by James Gartler
  • Constantine Cosplay – Montreal Comic Con 2019 – Photo by James Gartler
  • Gizmos Cosplay – Montreal Comic Con 2019 – Photo by James Gartler
  • Esmeralda Cosplay – Montreal Comic Con 2019 – Photo by James Gartler
  • Demona Cosplay – Montreal Comic Con 2019 – Photo by James Gartler
  • Daenerys Targaryen and Dragon Cosplay – Montreal Comic Con 2019 – Photo by James Gartler
  • Cosplay – Montreal Comic Con 2019 – Photo by James Gartler
  • Goku and Tony Stark Cosplay – Montreal Comic Con 2019 – Photo by James Gartler
  • Jacket from Hotline Miami Cosplay – Montreal Comic Con 2019 – Photo by James Gartler
  • Jason Friday the 13th Cosplay – Montreal Comic Con 2019 – Photo by James Gartler
  • M. Bison Cosplay – Montreal Comic Con 2019 – Photo by James Gartler
  • Moana’s Island Goddess Te Fiti Cosplay – Montreal Comic Con 2019 – Photo by James Gartler
  • The Little Mermaid Ariel Cosplay – Montreal Comic Con 2019 – Photo by James Gartler
  • She-Ra Cosplay – Montreal Comic Con 2019 – Photo by James Gartler
  • Ron and Kim Possible Cosplay – Montreal Comic Con 2019 – Photo by James Gartler
  • Queen Amidala Cosplay – Montreal Comic Con 2019 – Photo by James Gartler
  • Poison Ivy Cosplay – Montreal Comic Con 2019 – Photo by James Gartler
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Bust out your back issues and binoculars folks, because it’s that time of year again. Montreal Comic Con descends upon the Palais Des Congres this weekend for three days of autographs, celebrity encounters, cosplay and of course, comic books.

This year, the 1990s will be very well represented, and not just by those sporting fashions from Forever 21. Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman’s very own Man of Steel, Dean Cain, will be present to reflect on his time in the iconic red and blue tights, as well as his turns as Vandal Savage on Smallville and Jeremiah Danvers – aka Supergirl’s foster father – on CW’s Supergirl.

Dean Cain, 90s Superman, will be there

Voiceover actor extraordinaire Jim Cummings will also be making a long-awaited appearance at the Con. If the name doesn’t ring a bell, his voice certainly will.

Remember the classic after-school programming block known as the Disney Afternoon? Cummings worked on nearly every animated series you raced home from the bus stop to check out, from Gummy Bears, Duck Tales, Chip ‘N Dale Rescue Rangers, Aladdin and Gargoyles, to the comic book/sitcom Darkwing Duck, where he brought the titular Masked Mallard to vivid, egomaniacal life.

He’s also voiced both Winnie the Pooh and Tigger for the last few decades, and stood in for Jeremy Irons and Christopher Lloyd as the singing voices of The Lion King’s Scar and Anastasia’s Rasputin. He’s lent his pipes to various Looney Tunes projects, all sorts of video games and even theme park attractions. Suffice it to say, if there’s an animated property you hold dear to your heart, he was likely involved.

Speaking of Disney, the voice of Belle herself, Paige O’Hara, will be present to reflect on that tale as old as time, Beauty and the Beast. Given her character’s reappearance in Ralph Breaks the Internet and the continual popularity of the ‘Disney Princess’ brand, one can only wonder whether we’ll be seeing more of the brunette bookworm in the years to come.

So will Paige O’Hara, voice of the animated Belle

Celebrated Canadian comic artist and writer Ty Templeton will also be in attendance once again this year, telling stories and taking commissions from his booth in Artists Alley. Templeton is best known for having adapted the classic superhero cartoon Batman: The Animated Series into a monthly comic for DC through the 90s and 00s.

The Batman Adventures series won multiple Eisner Awards and helped introduce a whole new generation to the Dark Knight Detective. Though Templeton’s credits span multiple DC and Marvel titles, as well as the late, great Mad Magazine, which only this week was cancelled after 67 years in print. Try not to bum him out about that one.

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers fans will be tickled by the appearances of Austin St. John, Karan Ashley, Walter E. Jones and David Fielding aka the Red, Yellow and Black Rangers and their amorphous floating head of a leader, Zordon. Though the action-packed live action kids series became a pop culture phenomenon in its day, it also left us with plenty of unanswered questions, such as: how exactly is saber-tooth tiger a dinosaur?

Ray Park will be there too, probably without the makeup

All this isn’t to suggest other decades of comic book and pop culture deliciousness won’t be equally represented, mind you. 70’s Hulk Lou Ferrigno will be hulking about, X-Men and Star Wars actor/athlete Ray Park will also be around (and maybe even demonstrating roundhouse kicks? No?) and Elijah Wood will be reminiscing about the Lord of the Rings films with the one and only Captain Kirk himself, William Shatner, holding court for autograph seekers, no doubt surrounded by Starship Enterprise memorabilia.

Comic Con is the perfect time to let your inner geek out, whichever era you prefer, so take some time this weekend to enjoy its more than 200 activities and remember to invite children under the age of five to tag along. Because they get in for free…and because it’s never too early to start obsessing over sci-fi.

For full program details and ticket information, visit montrealcomiccon.com. Comic Con runs from July 5th to the 7th

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For the past seven years local cartoonist Samantha Leriche-Gionet has attended the Montreal Comic Convention with copies of her autobiographical comic strip, Boumeries, in hand. The graduate of Concordia University’s Film Animation department has made a career for herself chronicling the ups, downs and in-betweens of daily life by finding humor in everything from raising young children to having vivid dreams on a nightly basis.

To get a sense of how our annual Con has evolved, FTB took a moment to speak with the artist about the challenges facing illustrators working the convention circuit, finding French readers in unexpected places and the double-edged sword of celebrity.

Forget The Box: Do you feel like there’s been enough support for you here on home soil to build your brand or do you feel like you get further along outside Montreal or Quebec?

Samantha Leriche-Gionet: No, I do much better here. I used to sell equal amounts of English and French copies at Montreal Comic Con, but that shifted when I started getting somewhat popular and because I’m a local, I’m going to attract a lot more Francophones.

So now, for the last volume I printed 500 in French and 100 in English. The ratio is really unbalanced now but I do sell a lot of English copies on the web and it’s nice to have English copies if I want to travel. When I went to Seattle, I didn’t bring any French copies and the first person who stopped by my booth addressed me in French and said “I’m from Calgary but I’m from Quebec originally. Do you have any French copies?” [Laughs] I have a bigger readership here than anywhere else.

Is it cathartic chronicling your personal life in your comic strip?

Yes!

It’s also a great document to look back on….

Yes, it’s a really great archive. I didn’t think of it that way at all when I started doing it. Even after having kids, I would just keep doing the comic and then I’d forget about some strips and then when I read the books again I’ll go, “oh yeah – my daughter used to do that!”

Now, I’m aware that on top of baby photos my kids are going to have a bunch of comics about them to look through. They’re probably going to be angry with me at some point over some gags I’ve written about them or something they did. I’m not making fun of them though.

How do you choose what to edit out of the stories?

I never want my kids or [my partner] Pierre-Luc to be the butt of the joke. Pierre-Luc can veto anything. Usually he vetoes it right away – “don’t put this in the comic!” My kids can’t do that yet. My oldest knows it’s her and her sister but she doesn’t get that the whole story is about them yet. I just try not to make fun of them because I don’t want to. I try to depict them in a funny light. I want them to be likeable and fondly remembered. It’s not that big of a problem. I know when something is good enough for the comic.

What conventions, other than the Montreal Comic Con, have you attended?

TCAF in Toronto, VanCAF in Vancouver, Emerald City Comicon in Seattle. Here, I do the Montreal Comic Arts Festival, Expozine which is in the fall and I do Otakuthon which is an anime con, which is pretty good for me because there is less of a focus on comics.

We are three cartoonists, so if people are looking for comics in French they have three choices. There’s a small comics festival in Prevost, in the Laurentians. I did a really crummy convention in Toronto that doesn’t exist there anymore called Wizard World. The franchise exists but not in Toronto anymore. It was really bad. I did okay, but…

Bad terms of sales, you mean?

I sold one book in three days and out of desperation I started taking ten dollar commissions and paid for the whole trip with those. I did forty-five, I think. It was exhausting. I’m never doing that again!

What have you seen change here at the Montreal Comic Con in terms of the way people come through Artist’s Alley and check out art?

Well, the place got much bigger so I don’t think it’s to our advantage really because people get lost. They say “oh I’ll be back later” and they never find you again. Of course that’s also a good excuse if they don’t want to buy anything [Laughs]. And of course there are a lot more artists than there used to be.

Comic Con is not on the growth curve for me actually. I did better this year than last year but just barely. It’s not a great Con for me but it’s an okay Con so I still do it.

It’s often said there are different atmospheres at different conventions…

Yes.

Do you feel, as other attendees have expressed, that the focus at this event has shifted more towards promoting the big-name celebrities?

Yes, more than before. I heard that David Tennant was something like 130 bucks if you wanted an autograph or a photo-op, I can’t recall which, but it explains why people are hesitant to buy anything. People also have to pay to get in, so it gets expensive.

I don’t do commissions but other artists here do and attendees don’t really order commissions at all. If you go to Ontario or the States, it’s basically what everyone wants. I have a friend who usually pays for her table with commissions and she was complaining all weekend because no one orders commissions.

At other conventions, do you find people will ask for commissions even if they aren’t familiar with your work?

Yes. They see “Commissions” and they’re interested.

Has there been a highlight to this year’s Con for you?

[Laughs] This isn’t a highlight but somebody told me it’s too bad I don’t have PAW Patrol merchandise and I wanted to tell him that PAW Patrol stuff is everywhere. Why did you come to Comic Con looking for PAW Patrol stuff?

I do love when kids buy my books. I love when kids know what it is. Adults are nice too, but kids are special. I think my ideal target audience is geeky parents.

What would you like to see change as the Con evolves in years to come, if anything?

I’d like the prices to drop but that’s impossible. I don’t know. I’m doing okay.

What’s next for you? More Boumeries…?

Yes. I’m also illustrating a series of children’s novels. I’m working on two comics at once: one that I’m only illustrating and one that I’m doing completely by myself. I already have a publisher behind it.

Is it weird being a local celebrity of sorts and having fans recognize you? I remember once seeing someone asking you and Pierre-Luc for a photo…

People feel like they know me. Yeah, it’s weird. I’m the one doing the comics so I’m okay with it. Pierre-Luc found it weirder so he doesn’t come to conventions a lot, in part because of that. People know a bunch of stuff about me. Some people I don’t even recognize. They’ll say hi and I’ll wonder “who are you?” But it’s nice to have three days of people saying “your work is awesome!” even if they don’t buy anything. Just hearing “this is great, I’ve read it, keep it up.” That’s my real pay.

You can check out Samantha Leriche-Gionet’s work, including Boumeries, at comics.boumerie.com

ArtsFestivalsVisual Arts

If you happen to spot a Power Ranger or Sailor Scout in the days ahead, do not be alarmed. It’s simply that special time of year again, when fanboys and girls of all ages gather at the Palais de Congres for three days of celebrities, cosplay and comic books. Yes, the Montreal Comic Con is back in full swing this weekend and expecting some 60 000 visitors with a passion for all things sci-fi and spandex.

Those who’ve frequented local cons since the early 2000s have seen these gatherings grow from modest affairs in hotel ballrooms to an annual event proudly featuring the likes of Patrick Stewart and Nathan Fillion. But while Hollywood heavy-hitters are sure to draw in the crowds, it’s important not to overlook the ones who do the actual…well, drawing.

Yes, there was once a time – back before geekdom went mainstream – when comic book conventions were focused more on actual comic books than comic adaptations. Of course, those were the days when superheroes rarely made the transition to television let alone the big screen. Now, we can watch the adventures of Supergirl and Preacher from our living-rooms while Wonder Woman and the Guardians of the Galaxy battle at the multiplex for box office supremacy.

It’s impossible not to be excited about that, but as films like Batman V Superman have shown, adaptations can often pale in comparison to the source material. Why not then seize this opportunity to spend some time with the creative minds who’ve been fueling these franchises for decades and truly understand what makes these characters great?

Case in point: Ty Templeton. This Ontario-based Renaissance Man has worked in just about every area of the entertainment industry – and has the hilarious anecdotes to prove it – but is probably best known for helping to adapt the Emmy Award-winning Batman: The Animated Series for comics. The celebrated tie-in book, The Batman Adventures, debuted in 1992 and proved so popular DC kept it going for another twelve years, long after the animated series concluded its run in 1999.

Templeton provided scripts, covers and interior art for the all-ages book, which won several Eisner Awards during its run and is widely considered to feature some of the best Batman stories of all time. He’s also written for Bongo Comics’ Simpsons books and provided art for DC’s recent Batman ’66 Meets the Green Hornet series.

Templeton’s sense of humor and passion for comics is evident in all his work, but especially his weekly online comic strip Bun Toons, which cleverly comments on comic book culture and even politics in as few as six panels. If you happen upon his booth, don’t be surprised to see him regaling a group fans with one of his rousing stories. He’s an entertaining one to be sure.

…not that he’s the only one with stories to tell. Comics legend Neal Adams will also be in attendance and hosting a panel called The Sordid History of Comic Books. Having worked on characters as diverse as Tarzan, the X-Men, Green Lantern and Batman, he has a wealth of knowledge to share with both readers and aspiring comic artists.

In addition to having drawn Superman’s famous boxing match against Muhammad Ali and co-created the villain Ra’s Al Ghul, Adams is especially well regarded within the artistic community for having stood up to the big publishers in the 1970s to ensure creator’s rights were being respected. His efforts saw Avengers creator Jack Kirby and Superman creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster get long-overdue credit for their contributions to the medium, and helped ensure today’s crop of comic book artists aren’t at the mercy of their employers. If anyone can speak to the industry’s sordid past and possibly brighter future, it’s him.

Archie Comics’ artists Dan Parent and Fernando Ruiz, meanwhile, will be present to reflect on the adventures of the world’s oldest teenager, who just so happens to also have a new hit series on the CW network. If you haven’t checked out an Archie comic since your last visit to summer camp, rest assured that little has changed in his neck of the woods, except perhaps the variety of representation now featured.

Parent ushered Kevin Keller – Riverdale’s first openly gay resident – into the pages of Archie back in 2012. The character has since made the transition to all corners of the world of Archie after weathering an initial storm of controversy. Now, Parent and Ruiz are focused on their first creator-owned collaboration: a saucy series called Die Kitty Die! which came about through a successful 2015 Kickstarter campaign and sees their typically kid-friendly style take a walk on the wilder side.

Perhaps most fittingly, given Canada’s recent 150th birthday, attendees can get to know a bit about our own somewhat forgotten national superhero Captain Canuck, whose latest adventures are being scripted in part by Jay Baruchel. The former Montreal-based actor has invested in Chapterhouse Comics to help chart the course for this character, originally created in 1975.

These are but a few of the comic book writers and artists attending this weekend’s festivities. Walking through Artist’s Alley will also offer an opportunity to familiarize oneself with the work of local independent artists whose unique perspectives and enthusiasm for comics could very well lead them to success and fame down the road.

In short, great as the temptation may be to spend those hard-earned savings on autographed photos with the host of talented actors and actresses present, celebrating the creative minds at the hearts of these larger-than-life franchises is really what a comic book convention is all about.

Full guest and schedule details for the Montreal Comic Con, which runs through Sunday July 9th, is available at MontrealComicCon.com

* Featured image: The 2011 Montreal Comic Con main room, via WikiMedia Commons