On the Beat at C2E2 2021

I spent the weekend ensconced in pop culture awesomeness. I met a bunch of wrestlers and many creators, bought some cool merchandise and attended several interesting sessions.

I started the weekend at the Headlocked Comics booth and I returned there many times to meet the various wrestlers appearing. Headlocked Comics was created by Michael Kingston to accurately depict the world of wrestling. Embraced by the wrestling community and fan base, Headlocked is a major success and it keeps growing.

The All Elite Wrestling booth was also a recurring stop for me all weekend. A major highlight was the Sunday announcement from creator Dirk Manning, who collaborated with Tony Schiavone on Butts in Seats: The Tony Schiavone Story, a fantastic graphic bio. Manning announced his next project is with the legendary Arn Anderson, who also appeared at the AEW booth.

Pro Wrestling Tees brought in local resident and Chicago favorite CM Punk. Punk has appeared at C2E2 and other places many times, but he always draws huge lines

As always, I spent a lot of time in Artist Alley. Chicago entertainer and Johngy's Beat Contributor Joey Roth joined me to do a bunch of interviews. We talked to creators Ali Cantarella, Dirk Manning, K Lynn Smith, DJ Corchin, Art Baltazar, Franco, Trevor Mueller, Jared Bartemeyer, Michael Watson, Victor Dandridge and Tom Richmond. Check out those interviews below and then go to their sites to see all of their fantastic work.

Enerjax was an artist I saw for the first time.She is a Chicago-based freelance illustrator/concept artist. Her favorite mediums are digital/gouache/ink and her favorite subjects are "magical pretties with swords, plants and favorite characters." Her work was so amazing, almost entrancing. In a room filled with hundreds of artists, it's hard to stand out, but Enerjax did. I was massively impressed and hope to see her again and interview her in the future.

Courtney V. Cusack is another creator I met for the first time. A Chicago-area illustrator, Cusack's work features a lot of cute characters and bright colors. Her creations are feelgood in all the right ways. In the madness of a comic con, her artwork is calming and heartwarming. Cusack is another creator on my watch list for the future.

Artist Agnes Garbowska has done interior and cover work for many comic book publishers. Based on the west coast, I usually only see her at C2E2. Her work is varied and amazing as you can see in the prints behind us. She is one more creator I have on my list for interviews I want to do.

Despite C2E2 being slightly (and understandably) scaled back, it was one of my most productive and entertaining events. Everyone was in great spirits, happy to be back on the con scene. I already look forward to C2E2 2022 and I will update all on news of that as it is announced.

I hope to see you all at C2E2 2022!