I went to the Lexington Comic and Toy Convention over the weekend, and it was a blast.
I’ve always been a fan of comic books. I recall laying on the floor of my grandmother‘s living room and flipping through Spider-Man and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comics when I was a child. I got away from comics a little bit when I was a teenager, but I returned to them in adulthood.
I love the art and the stories that they tell. I love how reading a comic feels almost like an intimate act, like you come to really know and care about the characters you follow. But also, I just love collecting.
And I collect all sorts of things.
Aside from comics, I also collect trading cards, such as Pokémon cards and Magic: The Gathering cards. I collect a specific brand of hats, and have quite a sizable horde of them. More recently, I began collecting memorabilia from each MLB park that I visit.
So, somewhere like Lexington Comic Con is a potential treasure trove for someone like me.
Despite my love for comics, I had actually never been to a comic con before. I’ve planned on attending for probably the better part of a decade now, but one thing or another typically prevented me from ever being able to go. But this year, the stars just happened to align.
I was fortunate enough to obtain a pair of media passes for this year‘s convention. I used one and Trevor Sherman used the other.
I took two of my daughters along with me who have similar interests and a borderline unhealthy adoration for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. While at the convention, we were able to meet Gavin Smith, a comic book illustrator who worked on one of the most recent runs of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. I got each of the girls a copy of a book with his cover art and Smith graciously signed each one for them. It was a fun experience to get to share with them.
While at the convention I also met up with Corbin’s own Justin Mason, who is an illustrator for comic juggernaut, Marvel. Mason now works on several titles, but he got his shot as lead artist on a book back in 2022 with Spider-Punk, which is an offshoot character in the Spider-Man universe.
I have spoken with Mason on several occasions throughout the years, dating back even to when I was part of the staff at the Times-Tribune, but meeting him at comic con was the first time I believe we have ever interacted in person.
I’m putting together a short video piece about the trip to comic con and plan to focus on Mason’s involvement, so I had the chance to speak with him a bit about his experience. We briefly discussed how he got into the industry and why he feels what he does is important.
Mason has talked previously on social media about how often he was told that his pursuit of being a comic book illustrator was too lofty and that he needed to be more realistic about his goals. He alluded to that during our conversation also, as he stressed the importance of “trying hard.”
“I understand in our area—and even other areas of the world—it’s tough…and maybe you feel like you’re destined to do something you don’t ever want to do in life, but that’s not true. If you have a dream, if you have a goal in life, just push for it as hard as you can,” said Mason. “Because, at the end of the day, if you can say you tried, that’s all that matters.”
Mason was also kind enough to sign my copy of Spider-Punk #1 that I’ve been hoping to get signed since it released.
I spent time at several other booths during the convention as well, though I believe I spent the largest portion of it at another that has roots locally: The Game King.
The Game King had a fairly large presence at Lexington Comic Con. There was a sprawling spread of trading cards for purchase, most notably the two that I already mentioned I am a collector of. Needless to say, I spent the lion’s share of my budget at their booth.
Overall, it was a good time, even though my feet were aching by the end of the day. I appreciate the organizers for providing the News Journal with passes to this year’s event and I’m glad I got to see some familiar faces from back home.
