The Virgin Reader Goes To MoCCA, Again, Writes About It

Once again it's time for the Virgin take on my most recent NYC comic book related convention. (And yes, there's probably a better name than Virgin at this point, this being the third, but it's not like there was ever any thought that I might stick with doing these as long as I have.) 

I have a special place in my heart for the MoCCA convention. The first time I attended it was after picking out china patterns with my beloved. :) That is, we "registered" at Crate & Barrel. That was a weird morning--totally fun and special, but weird. Engaged people get treated differently, I think. Different from single people and different from married folks. Everyone's a little bit nicer. They smile at you more, like they just stepped into some magical fairy tale land with you. It's a little surreal, but totally awesome. I prefer being married, but being engaged--it's a pretty unique feeling.

(Although I do recall the experience of being at Crate & Barrel as being a little overwhelming. Here I am, and I've finally found the person I want to spend the rest of my life with, and now we have to decide on the dishes we want to spend the rest of our lives with as well? And our forks? The forks of our future? It's a little intense. For me at least. He just kept asking if he could put a really ugly chair on the registry, because he said it would make him feel like Michael Corleone.)

Nevertheless, we happily finished our adventure and my fiancee sauntered away to this Mocca-thingy I'd never heard of until--maybe that morning, maybe the day before--and I headed to run some errands and catch the train home. I was steps from the train, my phone rang, and it was him. "Um, are you still close by? I don't know, you might want to come to this, it's pretty cool. Would you come? I'll meet you outside...??" So, I went. I mean the weekend happens to coincide with his birthday, so it's the least I could do. (That statement never makes sense to me. Anytime that I've used the phrase "the least I could do", there's always something far less I could have done.)

The MoCCA show we went to was inside the Puck Building, and it was really charming. There were twists and turns in the hallways, an old timey elevator we weren't allowed to use, and several different rooms. It felt festive. And the people - both behind the tables and in front of them - seemed happy to be there. It felt like this true artist collective. But the most exciting thing for me was watching my man in his element. I'd never been around any of this stuff when he was around it, I think I'd only been to a comic store once at that point. To see him finally putting faces to the names of people he'd only read or had internet conversations with. To stand a little back and watch him have some face time with some of his favorite artists and writers...I honestly fell in love even more that day just watching Tucker and being with him in that environment. I don't have words beyond that. It was really fucking cool. 

This year's MoCCA experience didn't feel like that at all. I think enough has probably been written about that particular topic, so I'll keep it brief. I keep trying to remember that maybe it's because we aren't Virgins anymore. (That Crate & Barrel MoCCA was only his second convention since he was 13 years old.) I don't know...something was lacking at this one for me, some kind of feeling I remember the other two I went to as having a whole bunch of. It wasn't us, I don't think--I'm even happier being married now than I was engaged, so it has nothing to do with the lack of a Crate & Barrel experience. Maybe it's just because everyone was overheated? A lot of people mentioned that. But the year before, it was even hotter outside. Maybe it's just this--there wasn't much charm and it wasn't that exciting. That excitement that comes from being with "your people" was missing--and yet I knew even more people this time than I ever had before, from doing these blog posts. Part of me wonders how much of my disappointment had to do with presentation.

Now, let's be fair. Of course having a nice big room to evenly space out all the tables into rows and columns seems great. But I can't help but wonder why, at a comic book show, an ART SHOW, a room full of artists who deal with space and geometry, presentation, color, etc., the last thing thought about was giving the room they are all in some kind of artistic presentation? Don't we have all the ingredients, the people and resources, at our fingertips that could contribute minimally to pull off some kind of visually cool yet logistically smart way of pulling it all together? Am i wrong?  I mean, aren't there students of SVA at the show? Aren't we standing in a room packed full of artists who could do some cool-as-shit stuff? I'm not saying they should have done it for free, nothing like that. With the amount of people who are paying to be there, I'm sure that they could be given something. Maybe I'm way off base--I'm no artist, and I'm not a business person either. I couldn't do better myself than what was already done. (Probably.) But the group of people there at MoCCA, they could totally do better. I don't care what it is, whether it's somebody taking the time to hire one of the hundreds of available artists to do some funky mural on the wall, or whether it's something as simple as designing the table layout into aisles and corridors that would be fun to walk down. Just something. Anything that would have made the room look less like a sad warehouse, and more like the stuff that was sitting on those card tables.

I'm sorry. I have a whole other essay to write about, something I came up with myself when we were standing outside talking to some other bloggers, something about the lovely comics by women that I bought at MoCCA and instead I'm just writing about how this show reminded me of going to a small version of the Baltimore comic show I went to, where I watched people silently stalk around toting boxes of comics for people to write their names on. It's not that I'm sitting here trying to come up with some way to make fun or be mean to MoCCA. That's my husband's thing, not mine. I'm upset. Those first two times I went to the Puck Building, I was knocked out by how much charm all these comics had. How nice and happy and wonderful it felt to see so many nice and happy and wonderful people. Those shows felt really special. This one didn't.

Something else did, however. Let's move on to that.

Within the first few minutes of being inside the convention, I spotted an old friend. Really! An old acquaintance who I know from an old friend that I'm not friends with anymore. I run into this guy about once a year, and it's always at the most random places, although this was the most random so far. We chit chat and catch up and I find out that he's at MoCCA with his girlfriend, Meghan Turbitt, who was handing out her comic Todd, a black and white mini-comic (I think you still call it that, no matter the size) that she had drawn, written and assembled on her own. She happily gave me one, and I am happily going to tell you about it now. For it was this comic that made me decide to pick up two more comics, by some of the women who were at MoCCA to review. The other two comics joining Meghan's Todd, are jobnik! A Teenager In Love by Miriam Libicki, and At a Crossroads - Between A Rock and My Parent's Place by Kate T. Williamson.

My first general observation after reading them all is that while I randomly selected three comics from three different women, all of them happened to be autobiographical. I like that. All three have definitely followed the "write what you know" suggestion.

The biggest risk taker - in terms of comic book subject matter, that is - is Meghan. Todd is about (spoiler alert!) the adventures of a woman, spring break and her first yeast infection. Yes! You read that correctly! A YEAST INFECTION. Now, I know all you men are squinting your faces and turning your heads in horror - but not because you are actually squeamish. No. Things are written about male bodily functions all the time, and ya'll think it's HILARIOUS. Yeah. 

I got two words for you, you babies: Boobs Pooter. 

Am I right, or am I right?  And I venture to guess that there is not another comic out there about the hilarity inherent in one's first yeast infection.  

Yeah, it's gross. It is. Yeast infections are gross. But so is farting. And shitting. So suck it up, people. (God, that's a terrible choice of words, "Suck it up".) You know what, rarely does one have the opportunity to turn to one's girlfriends and laugh about the things that have happened to us at the onset of such things. Okay, I have one friend who I've laughed about it with because it involves whole garlic cloves and hydrogen peroxide. Mmm-hmm. The funniest thing about yeast infections has to be the time I was in line picking up a prescription and overheard this woman say "Where the hell is the Monistat?" to the man behind the counter who then explained the three different varieties ranging in price from $15 to $40. To which she replied, "Shit - I am NOT spendin' $40 on my pussy tonight."

Hilarious!

So, if you want your girlfriend, wife or sister to read comic books, here's one to get them started. Seriously. No, it's not Spider-man. But it definitely speaks to us a hell of a lot more than Powergirl does. Girls who say different?

LIARS.

Next on my reading list was jobnik!.  I was so impressed with Miriam when I met her, and I had to read one of her comics. I, like Miriam, am a Jewish girl, however I was not raised in a very religious home. We were raised in what's called "Reformed Judaism." But even so, I think we had it distilled down to what a friend once referred to as Judaism Lite.

When I heard that Miriam what felt like, that here she was a Jew, but knew little about Israel and the Middle East Conflict and therefore decided to join the Israeli Army, my mind was blown. Honestly, I find that incredibly courageous. I would never do that. I don't even carry my own dirty clothes to the laundromat anymore. I mean, I'm Jewish, I even have family in Israel, and I am so self centered and afraid of death that I won't go. Committing to the Army is just leaps and bounds beyond anything I'm able to do, and she has all my respect for that.

What's cool about her comic is that it's, to put it very simply, a depiction of exactly what she was going through. Who she met, what she did, what she liked and didn't like, and her overall experience. Pure experience. I think it's really cool - she has this completely unique story to tell. And just like no one's done a comic about a yeast infection, I'd venture to guess that there isn't anyone else in Miriam's exact position who is writing and drawing about it.

I loved how the drawings looked like they were done in pencil right into the book that I'm reading, almost like she'd loaned me her sketchbook. But the one thing that stood out to me most about the art was the way she drew the character Adi. It's amazing that she was able to illustrate for the reader the glow and warmth in Adi's face and eyes in a way that made her different from all the other characters. I found myself constantly looking forward to seeing Adi again, and wondering when she'd show back up. And I'm guessing that's how Miriam felt too. It was an enjoyable journey into a piece of life that I would otherwise never have experienced.

Finally, there's At A Crossroads by Kate T. Williamson. I loved this comic. Everything about it. I read it very slowly just to stretch out the experience. I love the art. I want to carry the book around and keep looking at it. I was drawn to Kate and her book because I, too, came home from a long trip abroad, when I was 26, and went to my parent's house for "a few months,' like Kate. And like Kate I stayed way longer than I intended to. (I beat Kate's 23 months by serving almost 3 years.) 

I was knocked out by Kate's ability to tell this particular story. Being "at home", but not quite feeling at home. Trying to get your life started, but somehow feeling misplaced by the fact that so much of the "start" has already been decided. What is it about being "home" in your 20s? You're either way too old or way too young for anything. It's so hard and weird to explain, and yet Kate totally captured that experience. She's also clearly a master at letting her picture and her words compliment each other and tell the story. Words are only used where the pictures would fail to get the point across, and vice versa. Nothing is ever hammered at, it's all just expressed, and then we move on. I really can't say enough about this one. It's simple, touching, and beautiful. More please, Kate!

You know, I was going to try and wrap this up by discussing the differences between women and men, and how those differences are reflected in comic book and comic book art written by the different sexes. But you know, that sentence says enough. It's kind of interesting as an idea.....but not interesting enough. It's a motivating force I like experiencing, but it's not one that motivates me to write. It makes me want to read, to delve in a little more to see other comics written by women to see if they do, in fact, appeal to me more than, well, the other male-dominated comics that I've been reading. No harm in that, right? I don't mean that I'm going to turn these little review things I do into a battle of the sexes or anything. I just want to see if I can find more like these--comics that speak directly to me, comics that want me as a reader. I don't think that's too much to ask.

-Nina Stone, 2009

Previous Convention Wrap-Ups by Nina:

Baltimore 2008

New York 2009

Comments

[david brothers]

I really liked this. I don't have anything clever or pithy or whatever to toss into the mix. No witty "MOCCA? Shoulda had a MOCHA! LATTE! HEYOOO!" I just wanted to say that I dug this, particularly your review of At A Crossroads.

[Matthew J. Brady]

Great reviews as always. Bummer that you didn't have the best time at Mocca, because I totally loved it. I don't have lots of warm memories about the Puck Building though, which is what everyone else seems to be saying. I think I wasn't as worried (or whatever) about the overall presentation; I just love going from table to table and checking out all the comics, meeting people whose work I like and people I've never heard of before but still blow my mind. And hey, hanging out with you and Tucker helped, along with getting to experience the big city. You guys are jaded New Yorkers, that's my theory.

Glad to see you liked Jobnik; I'll take credit for that one, since I introduced you to Miriam. I thought you might be interested in her stuff, if only because you Jews like each other, right? No, actually you had mentioned wanting to check out some comics by women, and I know that story about joining the Israeli military is pretty amazing. I'm happy that it paid off.

Also, that anecdote about Monistat is hilarious. That's all.

[Tucker Stone]

I think Matt's theory is correct.

[Justin]

Did any of the small press comics that had male authors pull you in as well? A lot of the more traditional male-authored comics on the Virgin Read are the ones produced by Marvel/DC; I'm curious to see if that same sense of connecting with the author comes not (or partially not) from gender but from the self-produced mini format.

I'm trying to leave a comment on a web page without sounding like I'm trying to grind some sort of axe about gender; I'm sorry if I do.

This is the first Virgin Read where I've immediately written down the books for later purchase. That may be because the books are actual objects of affection here, not derision or confusion.

[Nina]

Hey, thanks David!

And Matt, I agree with your theory, too. ;) Honestly I'm really happy to hear you had such a great time. Because, yeah, it proves that we have jaded, black hearts now. Must be time for us to move to Northern California or something. (???)"

And Justin, great point that it might be that i enjoy small press comics, not necessarily "female." Because, yeah, I loved what I'd read from Secret Acres and Sam.....Oh, his name is escaping me now, but I wrote about him too. And I totally LOVED Achewood. And although I didn't write about it, I loved Anders Nilsen's comic about his girlfriend.

You know Tucker often mentions how Comics Of The Weak began as a way to make me laugh. And likewise, Virgin read came out of me, unintentionally, making him laugh when I'd haphazardly pick up some (unknown to me) sacred-cow of a comic and say something like "Why do his thighs look literally like sausages?" (Okay, something funnier than that, though) And he'd laugh and say, "you've GOT to right that down."

So, that's how a lot of this came to be, and thus why I might tend to pick up more mainstream things and then kind of complain about it. But it does seem like the Virgin Read is changing.... so maybe they'll be a little bit more of me seeking out comics rather than me just flipping through someone else's pile and picking one.

But first, there's been a request for Love and Rockets. And then I've got to do Secret Acre's latest. and THEN I'll peruse the small press comics and see what I like.

In other words, thanks for your comment, Justin!

[Justin]

That works; the Virgin Read can be about first encounters with given series, instead of first encounters with comics.

It'd be interesting to see what someone says about Love and Rockets, or something Alan Moore has done recently, etc., without knowing all the history around it. Come to think of it, that's just the flipside of the calcified superhero comics mythology.

[Spitfire]

I love your review of those 3 comics! I've been reading your reviews for a while, obvi, but that's the 1st time I've wanted to pick up one comic and read it.

Perhaps the fact that I just read all 18 volumes of Naoki Urasawa's "Monster" randomly while recovering from oral surgery has something to do with my wanting to read comic books all of the sudden. But your reviews are also pretty dope.

Heart you!

[Matthew J. Brady]

Justin, if you go back a couple weeks, Nina reviewed the latest League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.

And hey, Love and Rockets! That should be interesting. Are you doing the volume that came out last year? I was trying to think of where would be a good place to start with the series, but I guess that's as good as any. Some of the stuff from the 80s would be good too, like Heartbreak Soup, Human Diastrophism, or stuff from Maggie the Mechanic or something. As great as that series is, jumping in in the middle can be confusing as hell, since it's got characters and storylines that have been going on for over 20 years. Some of the best comics ever though.

If I was going to suggest other comics for Nina, I dunno, have you read Scott Pilgrim? Or Blue Monday? Hmm, there's probably some others, but I wouldn't want this to turn into "get your girlfriend to read comics" hour.

[bp]

Just wanted to echo some of the comments above - love your Mocca story and your reviews. Going to try and track down "At a Crossroads"