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Hey! Red Penguin and I have successfully braved the New York Comic Con, and I’m here to give you a report.

Day 1: Traveling by train with my school chums Sally and Dante, we arrived in Grand Central Station in the late afternoon. We waited for a long time for a bus to take us to the Jacob Javits center which never came. To get to the convention, we had to take the subway. This normally wouldn’t be difficult, but my friends were dressed as Batwoman and the Punisher. We naturally attracted a lot of attention from passersby (my favorite response was a street musician playing the “Batman” theme on his saxophone as we passed).

It was particularly windy as we approached the Javits center. I was prepared, but Sally/Batwoman was suffering. When we got inside we were immediately shifted outside to wait in a twisting line. Luckily, we got to the convention floor in really no time at all. I stuck with my pals for a bit, but the draw of the SLG booth was too powerful. I’ve got a friend there in Landry Walker, you see.

Other folks I got to see were the Dumbrella crew, the man behind Dr. McNinja, and Garry Black of Jet Pack Pets fame. Very Nice.

Landry and I had been planning for some time to go at it in Mario Kart DS. We had a throwdown then and there – no contest. I was the undisputed champ. Jhonen Vasquez saw what we were doing and lamented that he hadn’t brought his DS. I joked that he should bring it tomorrow. Yeah, right; did he wanted to get beaten too?

After this my brother showed up (we didn’t travel together, if you’ve been paying attention). He had a lot of homework this weekend so he made a point of visiting the Con on Friday to get the whole thing done with in a single go. I estimate he “did” the the con in twenty minutes, seeing and meeting just as many people and things as I did in the last few hours.

We then met up with our friend Pinguino, and traveled with her to the restaurant NINJA New York. It was a wacky experience being served by ninjas, but Red referred to it derisively as a “Ninja Goofy’s Kitchen.” Still, seeing friends, and especially seeing my brother, was a great experience. Even though we are only hours apart we don’t get the opportunity to hang out that often, so the NY Comic Con was kind of a blessing. But enough with the sappy talk.

Day 2: After spending a comfortable night on Red’s bed (as he uncomfortably slept on the floor), we parted and I subwayed to the convention. Upon arrival I bothered Landry again. Then I found my school friends from simply walking around. Today Dante was dressed as the Marvel character “Multiple Man,” and Sally was “Dark Phoenix.” While Multiple Man had a difficult time being recognized by the crowd, Phoenix couldn’t walk two steps without ten different people asking for her picture. It was highly amusing.

I saw more of the convention with Dante, like the artist alley and the food court. But I didn’t eat – the con had totally sapped my wallet. One of my favorite purchases of the day was an old Batman comic (more on that some other time). Then 4:00 came and I was at the SLG booth, when suddenly the stars alligned and the DSes were whipped out: it was me, Landry, and Jhonen Vasquez hitting the Mario Kart DS.

I won seven times, Jhonen won twice, and Landry once. But a rematch is going to happen: I guarantee it. That was pretty much the highlight of the convention, and I left on that high, knowing I had soundly thrashed the SLG booth with my elite skills (Evan Dorkin included, but with my backpack and not my skills. Sorry Evan).

So, my final thoughts? This was a much better convention than last year’s, where I barely got in. They expanded the space, which really made everything that much more enjoyable. It was a lot of fun going with my friends, but it was best being with my brother. Oh, and a final aside: I stayed last night at my friend Doug Lee’s apartment. He hooked me up with a Nickelodeon Hat and a Apple t-shirt. The Nick hat was cool because I don’t have any wearable swag from working there. The Apple shirt is unique because it’s only get-able at the Cupertino Apple Store. So that’s the end of my report! I hope you enjoyed it, and I hope to bring you more news from upcoming conventions :wink-wink: