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UNQUESTIONS 2016-11 (Nov)

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Richard Jackson writes...

Convergence 2016

I've seen other con journals in the past, so I thought I could take the time to write my own. This summarizes my experience at Convergence 2016 and meeting Greg Weisman, Christopher Jones and Khary Payton.

June 30th

I caught a 6am flight from Oklahoma, changed planes in St. Louis and arrived in Minneapolis around 1pm. I unfortunately missed the "Why Gargoyles is Still Relevant" panel, but my plane ticket and hotel had been reserved months beforehand, so that's life…

My friend picked me up from the airport and we had lunch and checked into the hotel. I made my way to the con and got my bearings. I attended one panel and then attended the opening ceremony. It was so funny. The emcee was Paul Cornell, a novelist/comic book writer/screenwriter. The mascots of the ceremony were Connie the Convergence Robot and Connie Mark II, her evil younger sister. You had to be there, but there was something enduring and hilarious about the way Connie Mark II kept calling Paul by his last name, "Corrnnneelllll." The guests of honor were also introduced, Greg Weisman and Christopher Jones being among them. Khary Payton hadn't arrived yet, but they played a pre-recorded message of him.

After the ceremony, there was the Fancy Bastard Pie Competition. It was my chance to finally meet Greg. Greg arrived and stood behind a table and sampled the pies. He was very thorough and made his decision. The prize was that he would give someone an exclusive spoiler. Wish I had contributed a pie…. I waited around and I finally got to meet Greg, which was awesome. I also got some pie as well.

July 1st

For Greg to come to Convergence, there was a crowdfunder on Genorosity and those who contributed were rewarded with prizes. In my case, I contributed enough to have breakfast with Greg and Christopher Jones. The breakfast was nice. I got to chat with two men I admire and they were gracious enough to sign my stuff and take a picture with me. Towards the end of breakfast Greg had to take a call and Paul Cornell walked up and asked if he could join us for breakfast. Chris told him regretfully that we had just asked for the checks. Oh drat, if Paul had come just a little earlier, I could have had a bonus breakfast mate.

I went to the Mall of America with my Minnesota friend (I'm such a tourist!) and returned in the early afternoon to attend several panels. A panel on teenage superheroes with Greg, Chris and Khary was the highlight. After the panel, I was able to get Khary to confirm that he was on General Hospital as Dr. Terrell Jackson. He seemed to be flattered I knew that. Several other panels later, I returned to the hotel.

July 2nd

Saturday was a long day. I arrived at the Double Tree Hotel area around 8:30am and didn't go home till about 1am that night. The day pretty much consisted of attending panels and being a Greg-head.

I attended "Building Worlds for Fiction" panel with Greg as one of the panelists. Then I attended "Why We Need Representation in Superheroes" with Greg, Chris and Khary as panelists. Then the Radio Play, "The Cosmos" with Greg, Chris and Khary as actors along with 20 other fans who had auditioned. The play was the thing. It totally pandered to Greg's fans and was so funny. A rich, rewarding experience.

Later I attended a panel "Superficially Strong Female Characters" with Greg as one of the panelists. Then I attended a one on one with Christopher Jones and Greg Weisman, with Greg interviewing Chris about his career. Something I noticed that Greg and Chris have in common is that they were good at anticipating things when they wanted to break into the comics business. After seeing a Marvel talent search, Greg prepared a packet for DC, knowing that they would have a similar talent search and was one of the first ones to apply. In Chris' case, he knew that when The Batman and Young Justice premiered, there would undoubtedly be a tie-in comic and threw his hat into the ring early on.

Late, at 11:30, I attended the "Animation Blue" panel, with Greg, Chris and Khary as panelists. It was based on the Gargoyles Blue Mug which I have read about where the panelists and audience get into the sex lives of cartoon characters. It was interesting.

July 3rd

I got up and attended a "Young Justice" panel with Greg, Chris and Khary as the panelists. Then I went to a signing that Greg, Chris and Khary were having. I left the con with many signed art prints of Chris Jones. I bought a Young Justice script and Spirits of Ash and Foam from Greg. I also got a signed picture of Aqualad from Khary. Then I decided it was time to get back to my hotel and get to the airport. It was sad that I had to miss Greg's Rain of the Ghosts panel, a one on one panel in which Greg would have been interviewed about his career, and the closing ceremonies.

This was my first real vacation in over two years and it was a blast. Convergence was such a nice event, emphasizing the stereotype of "Minnesota nice." Most of the people at the con seemed to be local fans. Many were surprised that I had come all the way from Oklahoma. It was as if I had journeyed halfway around the world for them. Although I mainly attended because of Greg, Chris, and Khary, I got the chance to encounter many other talented and intelligent individuals, such as Paul Cornell, Ytasha Womack, Max Gladstone, Mark Oshiro, "Duck" Washington and many more. I definitely want to come back to Convergence and make it a yearly vacation if possible.

Greg responds...

I'm glad you have fun. CONvergence is pretty much my favorite convention. I always have a blast there. Love the people. Do a lot of panels. It's great!

It was also great meeting you! Hope to see you again sometime soon.

Response recorded on November 18, 2016

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Anonymous writes...

What do I need to write in character biographies? As I'm making my project, the way I do my character bios, I write a lot of backstor, the characters' personality, birthday and age, and a bit of present, etc. Is that all necessary or do I need to do them in a better order?

Greg responds...

There aren't any rules. You do what you need.

Response recorded on November 18, 2016

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Anonymous writes...

So are the Illuminati to blame for Donald Trump being the presidential nominee for a major political party? Or, like the media and the other politicians, did they not take him seriously when he started running?

Greg responds...

We're not going there. When you wrote it, this might have sounded funny, I don't know.

But it is NOT funny now. My line used to be, "Trump is a cut-rate Lex Luthor. Only Luthor has better hair."

I still like the line, but it's no longer amusing.

So before I go on a rant--

Response recorded on November 18, 2016

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Nathaniel R. writes...

I think someone asked a question similar to this, but I just wanted to ask about something specific in case it doesn't get answered there:
1) You've recommended buying Young Justice DVDs and comics to help show continued fan interest, so will buying the Young Justice: Legacy video game help as well?
2) If yes, where would you recommend purchasing it? I assume it would be best to buy digitally, but is there a place where the royalties would go to WB?

Greg responds...

1. It would have way back when. I honestly don't know if it would still help now. It can't hurt. And it's got a great canon story.

2. I don't know enough about video games to answer. Just be sure you're not buying it second hand, I guess.

Response recorded on November 18, 2016

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Green Lantern's Nightlight writes...

1). You say to fans a good way of showing they want Young Justice to return, is to buy the comics, DVDs, and the game (and the toys still?), but how much would fans have to buy for this to happen? Is there a goal to reach maybe or perhaps just enough to get noticed by DC/WB that it's still something that people want more of?

I would think they'd be more interested in what was selling when the show was still on the air, because that's obviously what Mattel was looking at for it to pull its funding.

2). If by miracle, YJ does get brought back by Netflix, where would the funding come from? Having Mattel as a backer makes it look like it couldn't be made without it. Not every Warner Bros. Animation show has a backer (unless there's a silent contributer), and most of the Netflix shows have a backer (helped by broadcasters who air it around the world), so what would happen with YJ? Would it just be supported by Warner (and DC), itself? And I guess, Netflix.

Greg responds...

Well, this is all largely moot now, but...

1. I never had a NUMBER or AMOUNT. It takes more to get a company's attention after a show is off the air, then it takes to keep a show on the air. The other thing to keep in mind is that buying toys (or whatever) second-hand does nothing to get a company's attention. So, for example, I was not advocating buying YJ toys this year, because those toys were off the market. Any purchases were second sales and does nothing for Mattel or WB or DC's bottom line.

2. So YJ's coming back, but I don't know where it will air. The term "backer" doesn't really fit, either. It's about MONEY. Money to produce the first two seasons of YJ came from Mattel and Cartoon Network. (Mostly from Mattel.) When Mattel pulled out, the money from CN wasn't enough to produce the series. Period. For season three, Warner Bros itself is paying for it, for now. They have confidence, I guess, that wherever it winds up and whatever merchandise they may or may not eventually release or license, they'll still make a profit. That's based on what the fans proved over the last few years.

Response recorded on November 17, 2016

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Just a Nerd writes...

So I should have waited a bit longer to post that last question.

Also in Happy New Year, Mal tells Robin that all Team squads and Justice League units are in position.

1. We know the three Team squads that Nightwing assigned, but do you have an idea how the JL units might have been organized?

Thanks again.

Greg responds...

If I did, I no longer remember.

Response recorded on November 17, 2016

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Just a Nerd writes...

Hey Greg.

I'm #StillBingingYJ. At the beginning of Happy New Year, Wonder Girl and Batgirl were within a few blocks of the UN building when Lobo attacked Secretary General Tseng.

1. Were they the only two members of Beta Squad at that time? Or did other Team members head back to the Cave? (Don't know why they would, but hey. No assumptions.)
2. Okay, one assumption: I assume they were on mission, not just hanging out in costume in New York. Is this assumption accurate?
3. If you don't mind giving out a slight spoiler... what was that mission?

Thank you for your time.

Greg responds...

1. Just them.

2. Yep.

3. I ALWAYS mind giving out a spoiler. ALWAYS.

Response recorded on November 17, 2016

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ND writes...

Have you watched the 'Twilight' movies? Do you dislike them?

Greg responds...

Haven't seen 'em.

Response recorded on November 17, 2016

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Charisma82 writes...

Hello. How soon do you usually post about a convention you will be attending? I keep up with your "Ramblings" section on Station 8 and usually don't see a post about your conventions until a few days to a week beforehand. It's hard for me to get to a convention when I only find out about it a week before it happens. Do you post information earlier than this on twitter or somewhere else (I do know you have a twitter, but I haven't seen earlier convention posts there unless I've been missing them)? I ask because I've always wanted to attend a Gargoyles panel, and have not yet had the opportunity. If I knew a month or more in advance you were going to for sure be at a convention I would do my best to be there for a panel. I know you usually go to the ConVergence convention now, but are there any other conventions you go to regularly? I know you are VERY busy man, and that this may be asking a lot, but if it is possible, could you, in the future, put up a list of which conventions you plan on attending on Station 8 near the beginning of the year, even if that list may change as time goes by? I hope my request isn't bothersome, and if I've been completely clueless to where you've been posting more updated convention info, please call me out on it and tell me where this information is.

Thank you for your time and help, and here's hoping you have a wonderful day too.

-Charisma82

Greg responds...

I think it's a legit request. I haven't focused on this, since I was assuming, frankly, that I wouldn't be what drew someone to a convention. So I was just posting to inform folks who might ALREADY be attending that convention to check out my panels and booth.

Also convention arrangements are often in flux, so I've tended to wait until I was sure I was going, which sometimes isn't until right before the con.

But here's what I have scheduled so far in 2017:

February 17-19: Gallifrey-One in Los Angeles. I'll only be there for one day - probably Saturday, February 18th. http://www.gallifreyone.com

May 5-7: Wizard World Minneapolis. http://wizardworld.com/comiccon/minneapolis

June 16-18: Wizard World Sacramento. http://wizardworld.com/comiccon/sacramento

That's it, so far. I'm sure there will be others, particularly if Warner Bros decides to start sending Brandon Vietti and I "on tour" to talk about Young Justice. I'll try to update as I know more. BUT - ALL OF THIS IS TENTATIVE!!! ALL OF IT!!

Response recorded on November 17, 2016

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Charisma82 writes...

I just re-read all of the Bad Guys comics, and as I read I kept wondering if there were secret clues or hints in the art or the way you worded the narrative and it got me thinking about a few questions:

1. a) In Gargoyles, is there a clue or hint you've dropped either in the show or in one of the comic books that you thought was clever/you really liked that no one has picked up on yet? (you don't have to say what it is/don't need to give spoilers).

1. b) Was it a clue or hint that you thought people would pick up on and they never did or is it one that would've become clear/made more sense as the show/comics went on?

2. Follow up: I remember reading that you said you dropped a hint/clue/big fact in the 2014 Radio Play at ConVergence that no one picked up on when you thought they would. Has anyone asked/talked to you about it yet or is everyone still in the dark to whatever it is you put in that radio play?

Thank you for your time and answers.

-Charisma82

Greg responds...

1a. Yes.

1b. Both.

2. One or two people have picked up on it. Not many, though.

Response recorded on November 16, 2016


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