Yes, it’s about time I got Robert Kirkman’s signature. All these
years I’ve gone to SDCC and have seen him, I never got a chance to have him sign something.
This year was a different ComicCon for me. I could spend
some time around the comic booths and I was on the expo floor early enough to pick
up a wristband. Yeah me. I guess seeing Robert
Kirkman walk the floor on Preview night and having him wave back was a good
omen.
Kirkman is not a ‘hard’ get at SDCC. He is accessible and he
signs at different booths (or did in the past) and on multiple days. It’s a
question of getting to the booth that is having the signing before the wristbands
are gone. This year, I accomplished this feat.
Once I had the wristband on my grubby little wrist, I had to
figure out what to get signed. I wasn’t
going to spend hundreds on a comic as that’s not my thing. While I could get three
items signed, I wasn’t looking for collector’s items to flip. I wanted something
that was more my style.
I went to the booth (they had lots of merchandise for sale) and
asked one of the clerks what I should get.
He didn’t have a poker face and you could tell he thought I was a
loon. Okay, it was an odd question. I spent just enough time
with him to be polite and left. I had some time before the signing. I would come
back and ask a different a worker.
Later, I got someone different. I asked again.
He only wanted to sell me collector action figures. Not my thing. A coworker came up and she worked better for me. I got a book
(I like books), a Walking Dead comic book variant (at least they told me it was
a variant. How would I know?), and the first volume of Outcast. Outcast is another comic that crossed over to
TV.
I got to the signing early and I was close to the front.
Robert arrived about 15 minutes early and said with a smile: You’re here. I’m
here. Let’s get started.
I heard the people in front of me. They gushed. They were fanboying out. Not an issue. I do
it too. When I handed over my things, I said
straight up: I don’t read comic so I don’t know much about these but I love
both Walking and Fear. He paused. He digested
that. He smiled to himself and said, That’s okay. Nothing wrong with that. We can be inclusive.’
I liked that answer. I picked up my items and left with a great
memory.
AH
