With comicons nationwide becoming a key money maker for many entities, it seems that a few con wars may be brewing. We received two separate tips yesterday about potential calendar conflicts for 2013.
First, and probably unintentionally, Mike Carbonaro is bringing back his New York Comic Book Marketplace on April 6th — the same day as the first one of MoCCA Fest. We know of no bad blood between the two entities, so this can probably be filed under a mishap, as MoCCA’s dates haven’t been widely circulated yet. Also Carbo’s shows tend to stick to the Bronze Age—of both comics and nerdlebrities—so a guest/fan conflict isn’t likely.
The same cannot be said in Cincinnati where, we’re told, someone who had a falling out with an established con is planning one for the week before.
The Cincinnati Comic Expo is typical of the current crop of local shows: a steady rise from a one-day show to a 3-day full-service comicon. The locals seem mostly satisfied with it, from what we’ve seen and heard. Next year’s show is scheduled for September 13-15th.
But not one particular local, who has started a Kickstarter for the similarly named Cincinnati Comic Con, which is planned for the weekend BEFORE the 2013 Cincinnati Comic Expo, September 6-8th.
The new shows bills itself as “The Convention Cincinnati Deserves” and has lined up guests, including Ben Templesmith and Tony Moore. The new show seems to have a more “comic-centric” focus than the Expo.
Now we don’t have a dog in this hunt, but we’re told the new show was organized out of a feud with the older show, and certainly putting your show on a week before another one has to be tagged “a shot across the bows.” So, a little aggression there.
Like we said, we don’t know who zoomed who in this, but it certainly does seem to be a classic Con War. If you know more details, email us.
Based on this recent WordBalloon episode, Tony Moore’s not just a guest of the Cincinnatti Comic Con, he’s one of the organizers. He and his partner express some frustration with the focus of the existing show, so they decided to create their own. Holding it the week before the other one does seem fairly rough.
Mike Carbonaro has scheduled the Big Apple shows the same weeks at MoCCA… there was even a shuttle bus and table one year at the Puck Building!
Plus, the one-day Kids Con in the Bronx also overlapped a few years.
Different audiences. No ill will heard (although I had to decide which to attend).
Wish I had seen this article when it first came out. I can tell you without a doubt the organizers of the “Cincy ComicCon” (which doesn’t even take place in Cincinnati) are trying to steal the Cincinnati Comic Expo’s thunder and customers. The CCE brought comic conventions back to Cincinnati after many, many years without one and proved it could be successful. Every year they have listened to the con-goers comments and have grown their show with the fans in mind. No matter what the Cincy ComicCon claims, as a fan I can tell you CCE is THE con the fans want and deserve.
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