Sorry for the lack of post last week. Wonder Con kicked my butt. I feel like I’ve been sleepwalking the past week.
(Image via Dark Horse Adaptations)
Speaking of Wonder Con, it was an action filled, jam packed weekend. I don’t have much information to report back, but hopefully my ramblings about the experience will do.
This was the first time I had been to Wonder Con since it was in San Francisco. It was really busy. More so than when it was up here in the Bay Area, I think, but I can’t be really sure since it’s a totally different space. Even Easter Sunday was packed! Definitely not San Diego sized, but that’s ok. Especially since I don’t do well in large crowds.
For the most part, I spent my time wandering around and catching up with Josué Cardona. It was great to talk to a colleague who not only tolerates or accepts my views on using nerdy interests in therapy, but who does it himself. He is my self-proclaimed #1 fan. I’m sure my fiance would take issue with that. Regardless, it is nice to know that my writing is appreciated. I definitely came home after spending the weekend chatting and planning with a renewed desire to write and dive head first into the geek world…just as soon as I’d had some time to sleep. Like a week. Or a month.
I did go to a few awesome panels during the con! The first was a panel on the Psychology of Cult TV. Josué, Dr. Travis Langley, Elizabeth Ann, and Dr. Janina Scarlet discussed how the shows that we love bring us together as a community and can actually help us. Whether we love Buffy, Dr. Who, Firefly, or Sherlock, we are able to connect with one or more of the characters and feel like we aren’t alone. They asked the audience if they had ever seen something on a show and felt as though they were going through the same thing. Many people raised their hands. In my opinion, the take away from the panel was that regardless of what show you like, if it makes you feel better, and gives you someone to connect with, don’t let someone make you feel bad for watching.
Saturday was a late night. I went to a panel called “Wild Queer Women of the Web”. Essentially it was a discussion about queer webcomics from a female perspective. The consensus among the panelists was that writing webcomics has an advantage over ink and paper publishing mainly because no one can tell you what you can and cannot make. Therapeutic Code and Geek Therapy got plugged, mainly because my fabulous fiance made the announcement that she will be collaborating with Josué on a comic in the future. The crowd (and even the panelists) seemed excited about the concept of Geek Therapy, so even if it was shameless, the plug was worth it!
During the day, we picked up a stuffed Herobear (which you can expect a post about later on), who I have decided needs to travel with me and take pictures everywhere. That way he can save geeks everywhere! He made a cameo at the webcomics panel, but the highlight of his night was hanging out with the fish at the Rainforest Cafe.
The last panel I went to was a look at Batgirl called “Batgirl Begins Again”. Dr. Travis Langely led a discussion with Gail Simone and Dr. Andrea Letamendi on Batgirl, her past, her present, and where she might go in the future. I loved the panel, and it made me want to go out and read more Batgirl comics. However, I took issue with how often the words “victim” and “victimization” were used.
It’s a pet peeve of mine, I understand, but there is a method to my madness. To me, the word victimization puts a judgement on the person involved, not the event. Survivors are those who have suffered through events and lived. Victims are those who have died. The words trauma and traumatization put the focus on the even, rather than the person involved, which allows for those who have been through a trauma to see themselves as a survivor.
Putting that aside, I thought it was an insightful look at how mental health can play an important role in comics. Gail Simone did her research, and I appreciate that. It’s a responsible move, and I hope that in the future more writers can be as forward thinking as her. I even heard her use the word trauma instead of victim a few times.
I hope my rundown of the weekend wasn’t too boring. The semester is ending and I will be back up to writing snuff soon! I have a lot of awesome things to write about as soon as I have time. In the meantime, I leave you with this awesome evil Delsin Rowe (from InFamous: Second Son) cosplay!
