In the Home Stretch of Rob Hanes Adventures #27!

Order Rob Hanes Adventures #26 Now!

Captured on Film!

Over on Facebook, I posted the link below to a YouTube video from San Diego Comic-Con by a vlogger who goes by the handle JustinScarred, cued to my cameo appearance in the video! I ended up watching the entire video and greatly enjoyed it! As mentioned in my Facebook post, I was familiar with Justin, but I must say, his walk through of Comic-Con captured the show fairly perfectly. Though your mileage may vary, I do find Justin entertaining and funny—and while I know he's a big geek (his channel, Randomland, used to primarily focus on theme parks), I came away impressed by how broad his knowledge is of all things geek—including comics!

It was nice that he made a point of walking through and highlighting both the Small Press Area and Artist's Alley, and particularly called to attention his love for Stan Sakai and his work, Usagi Yojimbo, and not just in one video but two! Justin posted a video for each of the three days he was at the show—even more impressively, he pretty much edited and posted each video by the end of the day! That sounds pretty nuts! But I watched all three and enjoyed all of them. If anyone is inclined to get a sense of what it's like at Comic-Con, this is as good as you could ask for.

SDCC '25: I'm a Scheduled Panelist

Rob Hanes Adventures #26 Goes Into Orbit!

Official announcement about the next issue of Rob Hanes Adventures! For the formal press release, click here.

Rob Hanes Adventures Featured on Comic Tropes After Dark

I've been a fan of Chris Piers' Comic Tropes YouTube channel since discovering it during the pandemic. He does deep dives on a variety of subjects related to comics, including comics news and history.

In late 2024, I sent him a package of my work as an appreciation and introduction. He's a strong supporter of indie work and, as part of his live show sister channel, Comic Tropes After Dark, he often opens live on the air packages he's received and offers first reactions, which include Indie Showcase episodes where he goes through such samples in marathon episodes. I'm sure he gets inundated with such packages, and I never do such things with set expectations, though of course I was hopeful it might some day get covered.

So on May 21, it was a thrill to have my series, Rob Hanes Adventures, featured on the show!! His first reaction to the series was incredibly complimentary—it helped that I included a cover note that introduced the series and me, mentioning my Xeric and Inkpot awards. He was also impressed by my influences, including Milton Caniff, Will Eisner, and especially Roy Crane. (He actually skimmed and read parts of my letter on the air!) He leafed through the first issue and a later issue to see if I'd improved, pointing out panels he liked, and complimenting camera angles and storytelling. He summed up his reaction as "Impressive!"

It was a few days before the Pasadena Comic Con, so it was a great way to head into the show. 

Below is the video and I've cued it to around the 1:31:00 mark here to where my book gets covered. But be sure to check out the whole episode and the channel, highly recommended!

Fantastic Comic Fan Review: Rob Hanes Adventures

Talk Show Appearance

Catch the show below live on YouTube and Twitch.

WonderCon 2025 is a Wrap!

New Baseball Season!

Website Front Page Update

I just implemented a small but significant redesign to the front page of the WCG Comics website! 

Though the design has evolved over the years, a slider with multiple banner images at the top of the site has always been a prominent element  It provided dynamic animation to the landing page and was an efficient way to use the top real estate on the front page for multiple up to date announcements, news, new products, etc.

I've recently looked into updating the site for awhile, to align it more with modern website design principles and trends, particularly in the use of fluid pages with more boxed featured content and bold "hero" images, etc. To date, however, I haven't found a satisfactory WordPress template theme that meets all my needs. (The site currently uses the MH Magazine theme.) 

However, in an effort to move more towards a "content box" design popular in modern website design, I recently replaced the longtime image slider at top with a series of boxed content that takes the same space and fills the same goal as the sliding image by offering multipe important links and messages at the top—but without having to scroll through or wait for a new image to appear. However, in order to retain some dynamic sliding images at the top, the first box—essentially a welcome to the website and the series—features a sliding carousel of images. To offset these smaller images, I also expanded the size of the top banner, making it more of a "hero image."

The new design also fulfills recent changes to promote purchases more by more prominently featuring buy links at the site, making news and other items secondary.

Shout Out on YouTube

So I was listening to this YouTube show I subscribe to, hosted by Silverline Comics, and heard my name mentioned in the context of creators working for themselves to produce their own work versus a big company! (It happens at the 1:10:50 mark but is already cued up below.)

Coming Soon...

New Interview on The Heroic Voice

My interview with Dennis Mallonee on his Heroic Voice YouTube channel just dropped! It's a crisp 30-minute conversation where I talk about my series, my so-called comics career, and what's upcoming—including a way overdue third volume compilation that collects issues 9-12. Thanks to Dennis for a great conversation!

Re-visiting Three Days of the Fanboy

Here’s a blast from the past that I came across on a friend's Facebook page, unloading a (rare?) Rob Hanes audio adventure released on cassette in 1994. 

Performed as a classic radio show, it was the brainchild of college buddy Bob Westal, who wrote and directed this audio comedy-drama that was recorded at a tiny home-based recording studio in North Hollywood. It’s a completely tongue-in-cheek audio adventure, involving Rob being hired to protect a rare comic book and going down the rabbit hole of high stakes comic-book collecting!

It’s a bit dated (Paul Tsongas anyone?), but perhaps its main claim to fame is that it led one of the principal players of the “WCG Mystery Theatre Players”—Scott Brick—to a successful career as an award-winning, hall of fame audiobook narrator. As well as being a talented actor, Scott is a huge fan of old time radio (as well as comics), so this gig was right up his alley and he really sets the tone. I should add that Scott is a friend from college, as are Bob and the other members of the “WCG Mystery Theatre Players” who appeared in the show, including Terry Delegeane.

Though I later converted the master recording into digital format and made it available on CD (burning copies as needed), it’s now available for streaming free on YouTube (link below). Though it’s solely audio, I did add opening titles at the beginning and a full end credit sequence in the last couple of minutes. Accompanying this post are photos from the recording session.

A Rob Hanes Adventures Refresher

With the 25th issue of Rob Hanes Adventures recently released, it’s a perfect time to re-introduce the series to readers both long term and new to the world of Rob Hanes Adventures!

Following in the footsteps of the great adventure comic strips like Milton Caniff's Terry and the Pirates and Noel Sickles' Scorchy Smith but set in the modern day, Rob is a globetrotting troubleshooter for Justice International, a security, intelligence and private investigation agency—some call them spies and mercenaries for hire. As one of JI's newest agents, Rob's conscience and sense of fair play often put him at odds with JI's old guard.

Every story is self-contained, so readers can jump in with any issue! Each issue, Rob often finds himself in the middle of an adventure ripped from the headlines, filled with danger and intrigue, but also laced with humor and romance. The series also has crossed into other genres, ranging from drawing room murder mysteries, sports, to straight comedy and romance. (In issue 25, he even travels back in time to 1930s pre-war Asia!)

In 2018, series creator Randy Reynaldo received the Inkpot Award for Achievements in Comic Art from the San Diego Comic-Con.

With 25 issues to date (and stories that predate the current run), the series has built a deep supporting cast that include sidekicks, old flames and foes that will be highlighted in upcoming posts!

These posts about the characters, storylines and universe of Rob Hanes Adventures will be posted under the label at this blog RHAUniverse. To learn more and to order an issue (or more), visit wcgcomics.com!

SDCC 2024 Post Mortem

Below is my annual report of the 2024 San Diego Comic-Con, held July 25–28, 2024. Or go straight to the photo gallery.

In terms of crowds, the 2024 San Diego Comic-Con felt like a return to form. The show is always crowded, but this year it felt moreso, even on my end of the floor in the Small Press. With the release of milestone issue 25 of Rob Hanes Adventures, sales were strong and steady, though 2022’s show—the first “regular” Comic-Con after the pandemic—remains my best year ever. Indeed, there seems to be an inversion law: whenever there is a level of buzz and activities outside of comics that excites and draws the crowds, that seems to slightly depress sales (at least for me).
Aside from the usual mix of longtime fans and supporters picking up the new issue and new people discovering the series, there seemed to be more than the usual number of memorable highlights for me at this show compared to years past.

The only negative note was that, for some reason, my Square app for taking credit card payments was sketchy the entire weekend—I believe it was due to a combination of both the app and poor data coverage. (I should add that I’ve been at this booth location for more than a decade and taken credit card payments on my mobile device even longer, and never before experienced such a chronic problem.) I even lost one sale though that buyer graciously returned on the last day, when the sale went through fortunately.

Sales of Original Art
Another boost to the bottom line was the sale of original art. While I have periodically sold pieces over the years, they tended to be more expensive cover art. Prior to the show, for the first time, I considered preparing and selling affordable sketches. So I did a few and brought them along, including a Will Eisner Spirit piece I had done earlier this year. I always exhibit my original art at my table and, without any signs or fanfare, displayed the sketches too. Several of them ended up being sold, along with a couple of original covers as well! In the future, I plan to include more sketches among sold items.

Catching Up with Friends and Colleagues
Even before Comic-Con kicked off with Preview Night on Wednesday evening, it started on a high note when I was on line at midday to pick up my professional guest badges. When I got on line, actor, screenwriter and comedian Thomas Lennon—who co-hosted the Eisner Awards this year as he has done a few times now—got on line behind me with a small group of companions. I didn’t bother him, but a few days later during the show, he walked by my booth. I mentioned I was a fan and handed him one of my comics (my Hollywood issue, as it happens, as that seemed apropos). He was delighted to receive it and when I asked if I could take a photo, he insisted on taking a selfie with me (see photos!).

While on that line, I also said hi and chatted a bit with TwoMorrows publisher John Morrow, and met and struck up a conversation with comics artist and writer Jimmy Palmiotti, who could not have been nicer. Then, when returning to my hotel to check in, I bumped into fellow cartoonist Andrew Pepoy in the lobby! We have known each other for years—he is a true fan of comics art and history. He has had a small press table just one aisle over from me for a few years now.

Other highlights included noted graphic designer Chip Kidd making a beeline for my booth after he spotted my work while walking by. I didn’t realize it was Kidd until after we’d been talking for a few moments. He complimented me on my work before moving on.

I also met Japanese manga artist and character designer Hitoshi Ariga, a guest at this year’s show, who was awarded an Inkpot on Thursday. After returning from a break, I found him looking through my comics and he seemed enthused by it. We chatted a little through his interpreter. Later, I posted about the meeting with a picture of the two of us on social media, and received a complimentary retweet from him! That was truly a great honor.

With manga artist and character designer Hitoshi Ariga

Other industry people I saw and chatted with include Tom Mason, David Olbrich, Charles Hatfield, Rik Offenberger, Barbara Kesel, Chad Frye, Nat Gertler, Mark Fearing, Matthew Schofield, Bill Morrison, Scott Shaw!, David Rios, Lonnie Milsap, Don Nguyen, Christie Shinn, and Craig Miller. My dinner with Andrew Pepoy included John Lustig and David Lucarelli, and his companion Jules. (Apologies for any omissions in the above list!)

Comic-Con Fever
But the enthusiasm of the crowds couldn’t be denied. There definitely was palpable excitement in the room, driven of course by Hall H programming that was back in full force after being in hibernation in 2023 due to the Hollywood industry strikes. Marvel Studios, of course, drove much f this, particularly in the surprise and last minute panels for Deadpool and Wolverine and then The Fantastic Four, which of course included the films’ stars.

From my Small Press exhibitor’s booth, the floor seemed incredibly packed, right from the get-go on Wednesday’s Preview Night. The Small Press gets its share of traffic—I’m nearly catty corner from the Charles Shulz Peanuts’ booth which often has a long line for its exclusives that snakes in front of my booth. It was even worse in the middle of the hall, extending out to the south end, where Marvel, the streamers (Hulu, Netflix, Paramount), toys (Lego and Funko Pop), and entertainment companies (including DC/Sony) all sit. Artist’s Alley is on that end of the hall along with the illustrator, comics artists and original art booths. When I walked to that end on one of the afternoons of the show, it was sometimes shoulder to shoulder! (I should add that I usually wore a mask when I was out and about in crowds.)

Because my focus is on selling comics, my time on the floor is limited, which means I don’t attend many panels or make many purchases, if at all. But being a huge fan of the Beatles, I did attend a “50 Years of the Beatles in Comics” panel that was moderated by animation historian Jerry Beck and included as a panelist Bill Morrison. I later picked up Morrison’s Yellow Submarine adaptation at Andrew Pepoy’s booth, after it sold out at the publisher’s booth where Morrison did a signing. Other purchases included a Will Eisner Spirit artist’s edition book from a French publisher and the Kong Crew #1 from the Stuart Ng Books booth and More Movie Memories by Craig Miller, a follow up to his fun memoir, Star Wars Memories, which I purchased directly from the author. (Since reading the first book I’ve become acquainted with Miller since we learned we live on the same side of town!)

Extended Stay
For the first time ever, I also stayed two extra days in San Diego, arriving a day early for the convention on Tuesday and departing the following Monday morning.

My usual routine over the years has been to drive down early Wednesday morning (departing around 4:30 am, usually arriving right before 7 am when the floor opens to exhibitors for set up, in preparation for Preview Night that begins in the evening.

While that has always worked for me, arriving Tuesday afternoon made things a little less rushed and hectic, allowing me to drop off materials at my booth in advance, and have more relaxed time with family who also arrived early before the frenzy of the show began. And while I similarly never had an issue driving home Sunday evening after the show, staying over until Monday allowed me to have a nice (if expensive) breakfast at the hotel that morning (I was really craving pancakes). I checked out and departed San Diego around 10:30 a.m. and was home in two hours!

Anyway, 2024 is now on the books. On to ‘25!

Below are additional photos from the show. Or click here to see the full gallery.

More of Issue 25

See you at SDCC 2024!

I'm happy to confirm that I'll be at this year's San Diego Comic-Con, July 25–28, 2024! If you plan to be there, be sure to stop by! I'll be at my usual location, Booth K-1 in the Small Press Area.

In addition to all back issues and trade paperbacks, I'll of course have the new 25th issue of Rob Hanes Adventures, as well as the usual fun freebies.

See everyone there!

See the full press release.

30 Questions Interview

As part of the lead up to the upcoming 25th issue of Rob Hanes Adventures, which coincides with the 30th anniversary of my WCG Comics creator-owned imprint, an interview with me has just dropped over at the First Comics News website—30 questions for 30 years! The interview was conducted ty Rik Offenberger.

It includes questions and answers about the origin and development of the character and series, as well as of my history publishing in the small press and in the current comics market, and the evolution of my production process in writing and drawing the series over the years. (Find out what WCG Comics stands for!) Also some fun info about the supporting cast of characters in the series that has developed over the years. 

Plenty of nice graphics (including some rare "vintage" art lol) and he apparently managed to get the covers of all 25 issues of the series in the piece!

Note: For archival purposes, a copy of the interview is posted here.