Complementing Luke Williams “Impressions” of this year’s Thought Bubble Comic Convention in Harrogate. previously published here, James Bacon offers his take on the event, and sidesteps, briefly, into some thoughts on Variant Covers. Bane or boon?

The rain is sheeting down, roads are flooded, rail services are being impacted, flights are cancelled, Storm Claudia has been rending havoc and travel chaos, but there is a determination among many comic book fans and professionals who are dedicated to this journey.

My final train pulls into Harrogate, the rain has gently eased off, and the stream of comic book people alight and head to Thought Bubble.

The chat and excitement in the queue is well natured and enthusiastic, even as live news of the challenges faced by guests are shared: but despite the cancelled flights and delays, the sense is that it is not in defeat but in the steely successfulness of those who will make it, who will be there, despite it all. As professionals enter the hall,  there is an obvious pride to be seen by those who share the travails of travel disruption, but who have made it!

One fan in the queue is at their second Comic Con ever. Let’s call him Adam. He is definitely a Hellboy fan, in his BPRD T-Shirt and hoody top, and an avid reader. He stepped away from comics as “real life” occurred, something I think many of us can relate to, but returned.

Adam is mildly worried about how this will be, but encouraged by the positivity and chat. His previous con experience which was, how shall we say, a huge comic con with not much comics, and much disappointment. But that’s in the past: here there is laughter and smiles as he is reassured, that here at Thought Bubble, he will definitely get to see the artists and writers he likes, get his comics signed, and we are all hopeful he picks up some art… he is quite pleased that art is something that is available. One could spend a fortune on comic art here, but you can also find incredible pieces at very affordable prices. It’s a superb balance, and his expectations only add to our seasoned hopefulness and excitement. 

This is Thought Bubble, and there is a lot going on and as the doors open, fans head towards their destinations, there is no running. 

There are so many artists and writers, and so many comics. One has to do some mental gymnastics to remember back when Thought Bubble was in Leeds, next to the Armouries in New Dock Hall. I recall 2008 vividly, when I worked a table there: it felt huge. Then I had a tremendous time in 2009 with a great Barry Kitson story: but the reality is that the Leeds hall is even smaller than any one of the four halls here at Harrogate that Thought Bubble takes over now, and in total it’s now over three times the hall space that was achieved by the peak at Leeds in the Armouries.

I can’t believe that in 2027 it will be 20 years of Thought Bubble. I can’t wait to see what the line up is for that celebration and for me this year, the line up was great.

An Aide Memoir to fans

Leeds

New Dock Hall 1259m2

+ Armouries hall 886m2

Total 2145m2

Harrogate

Hall A 1600m2

Hall b 1815m2

Hall c 1853m2

Hall m 1560m2

Total 6829m2

Thought Bubble must have the largest amount of spaces dedicated to comics, comic artists, writers, publishers of any convention in Britain. There are some posters, although I missed if the Mondo craze, with fans running in, from some years ago is still happening, or has passed, and some crafted items, but crikey, it’s all comic related. Stickers adorn my comic book notebook, all acquired here.

Indeed, there is such demand for tables, especially from people selling their own comics, and with so many new comics that there are only two back issues stalls. Not that there is a shortage of back issues and current comics and comic bargains across the whole show either. There are just so many comics available at so many tables. 

There is too much!! My brain cautions.

I will miss something, I know it. Such a wonderful complaint!

Megan Huang was in fine form at the start of the day and engaging and I really like her Star Wars and 2000AD art, so it was lovely to meet her and see her other work. The day had started with what would be a continual discovery of wonderful art.

The passion for comics is strong here, and especially for creativity and for great stories and art. Kieron Gillen and Stephanie Hans new series of Die hit the shelves on Wednesday, along with a superb comic book sized introduction to the the RPG based on the comic. Kieron is only too delighted to inscribe three copies to some pals for me, the RPG is not for me, but it’s a perfect Christmas present and Stephanie is amazing and her watercolour work stunning.

There is so much and so many small press comics, and it’s so professional and well done, it can be overwhelming, but I’ve paused to take in the comics. An example is The 4Forty2nd by Tony Moy, about a Japanese regiment fighting in the second World War for the United States. Tony’s art is brilliant and I was very impressed with this story,  and Tony was doing some incredible sketches inside the comic, really very wonderful and for any war comic fan, something they should check out.

There was big news about Stephanie Phillips and Lee Garbett announced, as they will be working on Daredevil, for Marvel. I’m excited, but as I waited to speak to Lee, a fan expressed their excitement for this super team up on a well loved character who has had many great stories told, and I can only say “what they said” as we go on to talk about other comics. Such synchronicity on so many levels, but it’s great news and I’m looking forward to this story line. Lee has some incredible work on display including a set of linked covers.  

DaNi‘s run on Invisible Man with James Tynion IV has gone down well. I’ve been tasked with the ask to get some of them signed for another Irish pal. The infectiousness for a direct connection to the art is indescribable, but Dani is an incredible artist, her work exquisite, and she is delightful in person. A surprise is in store, as I got a quick drawing on a blank cover. The concept of the blank cover is popular and it presents a fabulous way for artist and fan to have a unique moment and a genuine one off comic, adored and appreciated and in this instance unexpected.

The Garth Ennis queue is impressive, confirming, as if downthetubes readers needed reassurance,  his popularity. He is also generous with his signing, kind to fans and good with his time, engaging with them as he gets through the comics.

The Jock queue which seems to start as Garth ends, neatly planned, likewise has a serious length and is ably managed by the volunteers. Jock is kind, giving fans time to speak and engage, his work continues to be outstanding. These are two comic book greats, and it’s clear fans are delighted to see them and appreciate getting their comics signed, and buying comics as they go.

The most recent issue of Judge Dredd Megazine with the Messerschmitt Bf109 on the cover has created much interest and Keith Burns is busy chatting to fans who are loving the cross over between World War Two and Mega-City One.

Burns is one of the few artists who can reach the brilliance of Ian Kennedy when it comes to aeronautical detail, who did the superlative cover of 2000AD prog 446 in 1985. 2000AD and Battle fans chat to Keith. The revival of Battle has been a wonder and I hope it continues, and there is talk of fans converging for Christmas in London for the Battle signing at Forbidden Planet with Rob Williams, Torunn Grønbekk, Garth Ennis, Keith Burns and John Higgins on Saturday 13th December. 

Duncan Fregredo is happy to chat as he signs and it was fantastic to hear about his time on Star Wars Rogue One, as he shared some of his experience working on the story boards. It was really interesting and I left it to others to hear about his work Hellboy. (There were some really nice Hellboy drawings available for fans to hand, satisfying the desire to take home a piece of art).

Nick Roche is in great form, and I was pleased to see he had undertaken to draw Judge Joyce, and he kindly signed a couple of Scarenthood‘s for me. We got chatting and I had forgotten that he had drawn an amazing cover for the Robotech series, and then it turned out that Nick Brokenshire, whose work on Star Wars really appeals to me, had also done some Robotech work, which I had missed, I do like it when favourite artists do a variant cover, it’s a really nice addition, and learning of this work was excellent. Nick’s Transformers Last Bot Standing is an amazing series, which Nick wrote and drew, with E.J. Su also on art and Rebecca Nalty and  Brittany Peer on colours. It is a great story, a real favourite. 

Cam Smith had some stunning artwork for sale and I was pleased to pick up a page from Superior Spider-man, featuring a selection of favourite characters. Cam’s ability, in my view, is utterly underestimated, I have a number of pieces by him, and they are all stunning. His ability is remarkable, and a real example of a person who is consistently brilliant with ink and pen.

I see Markus Pattern, one of dozens of small press practitioners, with so many comics, including two issues of his anthology series, 13 Shots of Whiskey. The first follows the tangled narrative of a compulsive liar in a Wild West setting while Burnt ends is a noir detective story investigating the death of Roxy Jackson. His Stomping on Rats one shot looks at the toll taken on a young son when his father takes the Red Pill. Finally, I was taken by Here Comes The Dragon Punch, a homage to the 1990’s, Street Fighter and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. An exuberant, fun-filled romp Marcus plans a sequel: OMG It’s Omar.

Limit Break Comics from Ireland, are on hand: Paul Carroll, Gareth Luby and Gary Maloney were on the table, and were planning dinner for 17! A phenomenal gathering. Gary has written a story for the forthcoming Marvel comic, Black, White & Blood and Guts, which I am looking forward to. 

Peter Hogan, well known for Resident Alien, but with a long comic book history is signing copies of Black Forest’s, from Scratch Comics, a collection of six stories of suspense and supernatural and is in terrific form.  There are two variant covers of the comic available, one by David Hitchcock and one by Ally Fell at the table and some serious artists involved in the comic, and it looks fabulous. [It is! – Ed]

He’s at Forbidden Planet Wolverhampton on 6th December, by the way, signing with artist Jimmy Broxton. Full details here.

I contemplate variant covers, I have a Wonder Woman and a Superman both with covers by Declan Shalvey, and picked up a couple of variants from Pye Parr, I’m thoroughly enjoying the Transformers run from Daniel Warren Johnson and now Robert Kirkman, and Pye’s ability to detail vehicles which was brilliantly done in Petrol Head with Rob Williams, clear on the Transformer covers that he has drawn. I noted he really enjoyed drawing a Starscream on a blank cover, so many people’s favourite character.

A Divergence: Thoughts on Variant Covers

 “Variant covers are the bane of comics”* said Irish comic scholar Pádraig Ó Méalóid, and one can appreciate that perspective.

The current proliferation of variant covers is, in my view, an aspect of brilliance, the way it is managed currently, especially by DC Comics and I hope it is working well for comic shops, publishers and artists alike, because as a fan, the chance to get a beautiful cover by a favourite artist has increased incredibly.

The two covers for Superman: The Man of Steel, from 1986, nearly forty years ago, saw the start of the variant cover, and, of course, the concept became entangled with the comic book speculation boom and collapse as comic covers in the early 1990s deployed fascinating interesting gimmicks. The linked multiple covers of X-Men #1, the poly bagged Spider-Man #1, foil stamped logos, glow in the dark highlights, in the case of Batman by Kelly Jones, a choice of two, foil covers, and then prismatic foil covers, and let’s be honest,the Amazing Spider-man 375 was a cool comic; embossing, die cut covers, and the 30th anniversary of Spider-man covers with holograms, and the amazing acetate covers with Alex Ross artwork of Marvels, presenting what would be known as “Virgin” artwork for readers to enjoy. 

I don’t have that number of variants from back then, but I know I have both Kelly Jones Batman glow in the dark covers.It’s an amazing run with Doug Moench as I bought one at the time and a pal kindly passed the other one to me amongst a selection that plugged so many gaps. 

The line in the sand that saw the collapse of the comic book boom in 1993, seems to begin with The Death of Superman in November 1992 which also marked a decline in the gimmickry. Not that I didn’t love the Superman Armband, but it was speculation that drove the industry from boom to bust. I admit that with so many different covers at the time, for me, it felt like a hard sell and I didn’t succumb that much.

Buying the comics you love, for enjoyment, for the story or the art, can never lead one astray.

In recent times, as variants returned, it’s become quite nice to hear about favourite artists doing covers. Recently Bill Sienkiewicz,  Martin Simmonds and Jock have done Batman comic covers that have really impressed me. Here at Thought Bubble I got variants signed by DaNi, Megan Huang and Zoe Thorogood: they are super covers, and I admit I bought some comics, all fine in their own right when I read them, driven by the cover, which has indeed been the motivator to find new series on occasion.

Both DC and Titan Comics identify the artist on the cover, which is helpful, I know Marvel lists the variants inside, but it helps especially when there is no signature or a different style, or an artist does something exceptional and unexpected.  The proliferation has allowed in my view a much broader, more diverse and for me, given favourite artists an extra canvas to share their brilliance and if it’s on a comic I’m going to pick up, how awesome is that. 

Absolute Batman has proven hugely popular, and it’s a cracking read, I’m really enjoying it, and one does not find a surfeit of leftover variant covers in comic shops, indeed, you’ll be hard pressed to find recent back issues at all. It is so popular, there are even fan videos of it, like this one by Alex Babb.

 When I saw John McCrea was doing an Absolute Batman cover last year *#6), I paid the extra asked to get the 1:25 store incentive variant, as I love John’s work. Thanks to variant covers, I was able to pick up some comics at Thought Bubble by artists I really like, unexpectedly. While in some cases it means I have more than one comic, but with a different cover, that’s fine by me. 

I think it’s an exceptionally good time for comic fans, I reckon,  there are great stories, and incredible art and we have access to so many wonderful writers and artists, happy to engage and kind enough to sign, sketch, and the variant covers just allow a little bit more of that.

I have accumulated “nephews” I swear to ghod(sic) a mixture of second cousins, friends of the family, and so on, but there is a love of Star Wars and with that, much appreciation for the signed Star Wars comics that I send off by mail, all inscribed, and it’s thanks to variant covers that I was able to get some of those signed here at Thought Bubble. I am feeding an interest, I tell myself,  the first few ones are free!

Views will vary, but there is such beauty to be found in some of the covers and there are even publications just of covers which are impressive while Absolute Batman Volume 1, which has been released, includes the first six issue arc and at the back over 30 variant covers. 

I know a couple of fans found the uncertainty of the signing times and that creatives were only signing for a short time challenging, I appreciate that, but had no hassle getting to see most of the people I was hoping to, and Charlie Adlard went well beyond his end time allowing the queue to extend.

Of course one can’t do everything and indeed, I reflected afterwards on what I had missed – an Akira fanzine, thanks to our own John Freeman sharing photos of the ZineFreak stand in Lancaster’s Assembly Rooms, its creator, Matt Simmons, also visiting Thought Bubble to gather new stock! 

Meeting Stephanie Phillips, who had a long queue, I realised I had arrangements made to meet pals, so I missed her, sadly and Caspar Wijngaard too, whose work on Power Fantasy had been so good; and Ellie Wright, who fought the good fight and arrived late, and got set up, and I did not realise until I was on the way home.

I also missed Simon Harrison, who drew Bradley and Strontium Dog, as I was not aware that he  would be at the con, which was great news, even if I missed him, perhaps a future opportunity will present.

And what of our BPRD fan, who we call Adam? Well, he seemed to have a brilliant day and did much better than we hoped, he hit comic book jackpot. Laurence Campbell was selling BPRD pages at affordable prices, so Adam picked up two consecutive pages featuring his favourite character. He got ample time to chat with Laurence, too, and then got to casually chat to Duncan Fregredo, so all and any concerns of even getting his comics signed had utterly disappeared in the realisation of some great interactions with his comic book creative heroes. It was perfectly wonderful for him by all accounts and a reflection of just how enjoyable Thought Bubble can be. Treasured time, encounters and art for life. 

What would Adam hope for for the future? Well, he wasn’t alone in saying he’d love to see Mike Mignola as a guest, that would be unbelievable, although would he want to sign comics? Meanwhile in queues or over coffee some fans wondered if Bill Sienkiewicz, Fiona Staples, Todd MacFarlane, Katsuhiro Otomo or Jenny Frison could be asked. 

Although Fiona was at TB previously, Marjorie Liu would be a dream come through for one fan while another said that Sana Takeda, Jim Lee or Marc Silvestri would be phenomenal, as would Frank Miller and  Peach Momoko, both names voiced by many in queues, as I asked about next year and beyond.

John Bolton and Dave McKean were two “local”  names also raised, and a great discussion about Bolton’s X-Men work began, mostly as I think the back cover of Classic X-Men #16 is lovely. Dave, of course, has been a regular guest at the Lakes International Comic Art Festival for a while.  Frank Quietly, Amanda Conner, Grant Morrison, Phil Noto, Annie Wu, and Dan Moira were all suggested as hopes.

Fans are always hopeful for the future, big names or favourites draw them in, as was seen in the queues this year. For sure, it’s hard work though running an event like Thought Bubble, so sincerest thanks to the whole team and volunteers who work so hard and all the professionals who are so generous with their time. 

I said my thanks as I left, the journey to London was delayed, a power issue just south of Doncaster, followed by a broken rail further south, saw a bit of a delay, but resulted in decent comic book reading, starting with the new to me ones, I had picked up.

I had an amazing day, full of comic book chat and art appreciation. It exceeded my expectations and was brilliant and I’m already looking forward to next year’s Thought Bubble.

James Bacon

• Thought Bubble Comic Art Festival – The Yorkshire Comic Festival and Thought Bubble – Comic Convention returns to Harrogate next year | Web www.thoughtbubblefestival.com

Events across Yorkshire in November, across Leeds and the whole of Yorkshire, an unmatched celebration of comics

Head downthetubes for…

• Making the Most of the Thought Bubble Comic Convention by Luke Williams

• Bleeding Cool’s Rich Johnston’s “From One Side Of Thought Bubble 2025 To The Other”

• Broken Frontier coverage of Thought Bubble 2025 including interviews

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James Bacon

James Bacon (he/him) is an Irish fan, a train driver living in London. A Hugo Award-winning editor of the fanzine “Journey Planet”, he is a comic fan and enjoys comic art, war Comics, Star Wars, Irish aspects to comics and railways in comics or otherwise. He has been writing about comics for over thirty years.

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Tags: Events Comics, Harrogate, James Bacon, Jock, Keith Burns, Lee Garbett, Meghan Huang, Pye Parr, Thought Bubble Comic Convention, Variant Covers