The Emerald comic scam was held in Seattle last week, and according to the social media posts I’ve seen, it seems like another explosion of the comic scam, with many of the hottest names participating in and showing off their merchandise. (The second issue of Little Onion Gift!), but it also reflects a new era of comic-themed events and makes some common complaints.
Here is an interview with ECCC and NYCC Showrunner Kristina RogersVice President of Reedpop’s Comics Portfolio, by Rob Salkowitzthe guy who wrote this book about the drawbacks of comics. Rogers has some interesting things to say.
“We’re competing with Coachella, we’re competing with spring break and all sorts of other big events,” she told Salkowitz. “For us, that means expanding the meaning of pop culture – everything from Renaissance performances to comedy to music. The idea is to attend every cool festival you’ve been to and bring it indoors. It’s more of a “fair world” approach.”
Some of this means looking at programming hard:
“Every year we’re reducing things that are 15% less conducive to making room for new programs,” she said. This year’s ECCC program relies heavily on workshops and engagement events, including expanding space for games, productions, tattoos and fan gatherings.
This inevitably leads to higher planning, belonging to the leaders of the Axe, who cater to those more professional fanatics who realize that such exhibitions are no longer the best place to sell, given the high cost of setting and labor. Ultimately, “Comic Con” (which is what CC stands for) becomes “everything scam” and offers some stuff for fans in every aspect of pop culture, plus the extra bonus of celebrity photo ops, a slightly nerdy vibe and lots of glorious outfits.
This 15% deadline may be horrible to some of us, and it’s used to the small audience on our panels. Paper on paper!
I’ve interviewed Rogers several times, a very smart executive who knows a lot about hosting big things. She also works at ReedPop, focusing on data, surveys, and demographics, so she has plenty of information on hand to inform how the show is. You and I might want a panel about the Nichey Comics theme, but…. They did not perform well in the large room. In theory, 15% of the phase-out should result in the explosion after the explosion, which is on the panel’s banner line. However, just doing one popular thing leads to inevitable flattening and lack of surprises.
It’s no surprise that it’s been said that ECCC (and presumably other Reedpop shows like Chicago and New York Comic Con) are taking more “festival” approaches. I kind of think they’ve always been that way. People have been complaining about NYCC, forever, there are more insurance companies on the floor than comic publishers.
As Salkowitz and Rogers acknowledged in a longer version of the interview, part of the reality is that comic publishers don’t set up any shows on any shows, but SDCC and NYCC. Moreover, fewer publishers have had these events. Building a stall, paying for everyone’s staff, and all the materials needed to make the booth vibrate is just a lot of money. Both SDCC and NYCC are expensive and don’t leave much for other shows.
Therefore, artist Alley has become the blood of life for other comic performances…. This is indeed what it should be. In any case, fans/consumers are more inclined to meet artists at publisher booths these days.
There was some discussion about the ECCC and Rogers’ comments about Bsky, and the post started with cartoonist Kody Okamoto.
When I read their strategy is to cut 15% of the “not working” every year, I feel that’s why they’re moving AA from OG buildings to smaller buildings instead of running Aisles a ta a ty a ty z on that building and then multiplying Z again instead of now by abbreviation.
In another post, Okamoto compares past and present artist Alley layouts – saved here for future generations:
Right! ! Yes, like, AA used to be big! I’m misunderstood that it doesn’t exactly double the Z (looks like QQ, thanks to Jim Zub’s blog now history AHA), but the first round is alphabetical only aisle compared to today’s 450 booths, which is still ~364 booths.
Added with artist Jodie Troutman
If we go back to 2013, AA is divided into two different areas due to its size. However, almost every ordinary stall is also a comic. (Ignore the graffiti, this is the best I can find). The second year of 2014, the third AA flowed to different floors. This is a comic show.
Participants even Jim DeMonakos, who founded ECCC, had a lot of money.
Unicorn Empire once had a local artist exhibitor aisle. I vaguely remember them talking about paying the full price for a better position
I still remember that when artist Alley moved to his own floor, the print sales/commissions on the CFFT table fell. Just like the spiritual person, switching between what they are looking for on each floor.
So I started telling the people who posted merchandise and books with us to do better on our table
I think they are doing what publishers and artists do on the same ground with the publishers and artists that artists Alley can use. But they have to pay more attention to who is selling where and who sells what
I think there are many things that can be done theoretically, but it requires more attention to who is placed where it is, rather than the disadvantages of being willing to give.
Mainly because they are for profit.
Just like signing in a separate version is a good idea to cut crowds elsewhere
I found the whole discussion fascinating, but then I was a history of comics.
One of the weird/charming things about ECCC is that it takes most of its time in a very strange facility. The original Seattle Convention Center highway runs through it, and I think Robert Moses will frown. Find all the exhibition halls that make you feel like one of the characters in Mc Escher’s prints, wandering on the secret stairs and selling Açai bowls in unexpected kiosks.
In 2023, ECCC moved to the new, wood tones and the adorable Seattle Convention Center for spanking, which unifies most exhibits and panels into a building with continuous floors. However, some programming is still in old buildings (at least when I went), so you’re still hiking.
When I went, the ECCC had been a very active show, with a large nerd population in the Pacific Northwest and was very focused on TTRPG, indie video games, webcomics and other very modern fanatics. I keep saying that ECCC has the deepest role-playing of any show I’ve ever been to.
How this quirky and niche audience adapts or drives the atmosphere of the “World Expo” is an interesting proposition. Although Salkowitz thinks this leads to less niche programming, I took a look at the programming guide (still on the website), and among those popular workshops, the first one was the school of rotation tools: from beginners to 60 minutes beginners, which is very professional. The interlocking lamp lanyard and vinyl seat belt are also lit up. So I don’t think at least it’s handmade by specialized fans, nor should it be.
That left a small question: “Where is the comic?” The Blue Army’s conversation seemed to be a little worried about the comic being squeezed out. In 2023, several independent publishers were unhappy with booth placement and traffic flow. In 2025, I’m not there and can’t speak, but from my records, there are much fewer comic shows than workshops. All events – especially big and expensive events like the ECCC, need to make money, and we increasingly get fudge and posters when comic publishers and other media companies stop buying large stalls.
Watching from 3,000 miles away, ECCC seems to be an active event, with comics people having a lot of space to meet with their fans and other comics people. Since I’ve been preaching for 20 years, you just can’t take the comic out of the comic and expect it to be just as good. People have tried that these events no longer exist. Even if ECCC does become a World’s Fair, it needs to have a very large comic gallery, otherwise it will be missing something very important and important.
