Comic conventions are many things: a controlled form of chaos, a chance to meet some of your favorite creators in person, a chance to be around fellow nerds who love the same things you do. Drawing Blood #4 tackles all those aspects and more, as Shane “Books” Bookman finds himself in hot water when attending New York Comic Con. The source of that hot water? The director of the new Radically Rearranged Ronin Ragdolls movie announced a major change to their origins…and now Books has to navigate one of the biggest conventions on Earth to avoid a mob of angry fans.
I have to give Kevin Eastman and David Avallone props: they perfectly capture how overwhelming yet comforting a comic con can be. (I should know, I was at San Diego Comic-Con last week.) But they also capture the double edged sword that is being a comic book creator in two scenes. One scene has Books confronted by a mob of angry fans who think he “betrayed” them with the changes to the Ragdolls movie, showing how fandoms can often turn on a creator because of a single choice. Another has him running into another artist, with their conversation showing how the joy of creation can outstrip all else.
Ben Bishop also embraces the chaotic vibe, once again drawing the Ronin Ragdolls accompanying Books – but unlike their previous encounters, this one is more reconciliatory than retaliatory. The same can’t be said of the big-shot movie director, since his entire vibe screams “douche”: Bishop draws him in a hot tub surrounded by models as he yells at Books to mollify the fans for the mess he landed Books in. One panel even shows a fire-breathing, cursing ogre behind him as if to represent how Books truly sees the guy, topped off with a blood-red background courtesy of Tomi Varga. It made me snicker a bit.
Drawing Blood #4 also contains a backup story, “GTFO Girl”, from Amanda Deibert, Skylar Patridge, Ellie Wright and Taylor Esposito (who also letters the main story.) I don’t want to spoil the context of it because it ties into the main story in a pretty heavy way, but let’s just say I wouldn’t be opposed to seeing more of this. It’s that feeling of finding something new, but amazing, that Drawing Blood #4 taps into; that’s the feeling more comics should be going for.
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