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This year,as pointed out,I intended to go to the Comic Expo and just enjoy myself rather than run around like an idiot. So,on the Saturday at 2.00 p.m.,I went to the Dave Gibbons Spotlight.

Lee “Budgie” Barnett[above Left] held the microphone while Dave Gibbons took us on a long ride looking at his life as a Mod,as a super hero -the Big E- and his visit to the set of The Watchmen movie:I’ll give no spoilers here but it seems that David really enjoyed himself and how the film was going.

I have to admit that Gibbons is always a fun speaker -and the Hypotheticals panel at 5.00 p.m. with the gathered Barnett,Gibbons,Walter & Louise Simonson,Karen Berger and Emma Vieceli was hilarious!  Watch Emma dig herself into a very funny hole!

above:Emma Vieceli

For someone allegedly taking it easy this year,Ms Vieceli seemed to be everywhere:the Self Made Hero table,The Hypotheticals and Manga To Mainstream and Vice Versa!

But did you know Emma was also a great singer?  Check out her My Space site -and YouTube.

above:Bob and Laronzo at the Blink Twice table.  Two very busy fellas selling their Malcolm Magic complete book and sketching and talking and not talking about that very,very,very secret Random House comic that Random House won’t even tell..anyone about!

Two very nice lads and deserving of the success they are getting.

above:Tim Pilcher,Helen McCarthy,John Aggs,Akiko Shimojima and Sean Michael Wilson on the panel discussing the phenomenal Manga genius Osamu Tezuka.  Very enjoyable.

above:Brian M. Clarke wearing a shirt to match the weather -though it did blur my vision for several hours after! The latest issue of British comic tribute magazine Crikey! was available -No.5 [last one I saw was no.3!].  Seems the mag is doing really well which was good to hear.

above:the international jet-setter Sonia Leong back from her trip to Paris [France] to see her favourite pop group. In case you are wondering,Sonia put those nails on while travelling on a train to the Expo –style and skill!

Sonia was,as you’ll see [below],was on the “Manga To Mainstream..” panel with [L] David Hine,Emma Vieceli and Ilya.  Another fun Manga panel.

below:Sean Michael Wilson was the host “Manga Alternatives” in which Yishan Li [seated] and Akiko Shimojima talk about their way of creating Manga.

It’s interesting that most of the Japanese creators do not use computers to tone their artwork but use the commercially available Letraset-type tones.  The reason being that it would take too much time to learn the techniques using computers and it was quicker to do the work by hand.

Akiko,polite and shy,was stumped when,after mentioning that she has an assistant to help her,was asked by Sean to “explain ‘Assistant’ as most artists in the West do all the work and don’t use assistants”.  Akiko:”Okay. He is my assistant and assists me” -seems fair enough!

Those were some of my highlights and people I met.  My apologies for some of the photographic hitches [quality] as it seems traditional that every year whichever camera I use it gets the heeby-jeebees!