Headlines for February 25

As reported in numerous places, New York Water Taxi is adding another Water Taxi Beach this summer. Governors Island will play host to the city's newest fake beach. Harry Hawk and the crew have some fantastic burgers, so it'll be interesting to see what has become a Long Island City staple expand beyond Queens. Between this, the Circle Line Downtown acquisition and the Ikea shuttle, Water Taxi has emerged as a major player on the water.

Eater continues speculation on the rumor that Tishman Speyer is looking to turn the legendary Rainbow Room into more Rockefeller Center office space once Cipriani vacates. I think that would be a big mistake on Tishman's part, especially considering they would have the opportunity to more closely tie a new Rainbow Room to their very successful Top of the Rock Observation Deck.

Ephemeral New York looks back at Soho Zat, a haven for comics, zines, and graffiti artists back in the day. It later became Bomb the System, finally becoming Scrap Yard after 9/11.

Joey in Astoria confirms that the El Rey Del Taco Truck, an Astoria staple, will soon be expanding into a storefront on Steinway St. They're keeping the truck as well.

NYCC - Your Party Primer

New York Comic Con starts on Friday, and I expect you'll see lots more about it in the media later this week. The convention continues to announces guests and events, so it should be a blast. 

It has been confirmed that the convention is moving to October for 2010 and beyond, so no more February conventions. Smart move.

This Thursday there is a pre-party for NYCC at Dave & Buster's. They're hyping the following guests: Mike Perkins, Mark Brooks, Joe Quesada, Jay Leisten, Joe Benitez, Jimmy Palmiotti, Amanda Conner, Phillip Morris, Aaron Douglas, Dekker Dreyer, Brian Thompson, Yuri Lowenthal, and J. LaRose. I know there are several well known comics names on that list, but... Brian Thompson? Perhaps one of the best guilty pleasure B-Actors of his generation. You may recognize him from such films as Cobra, or from TV "classics" like Kindred: the Embraced. 

The party will also play host to a raffle to benefit the Hero Initiative, which is an excellent cause.

D&B has been named "the official con bar", but since it is far from the Javits Center and February is cold, I wouldn't expect to see too many con guests popping up there during the show itself. Perhaps once the extension of the 7 Train is finished, that will change for future cons. I'd expect Bar-Con to be occuring elsewhere. Twins Pub is a good bet, with its promimity to the convention center, Penn Station, the excellent 24-hour Skylight Diner, and midtown hotels. 

The Indy After Party, hosted by the Comic Artist's Guild, will be at Blaggard's on Saturday night. 

Pre-NYCC Festivities

New York Comic Con is almost here, and Oni Press kicks off the festivities early with several events supporting the release of Volume 5 of Brian Lee O'Malley's Scott Pilgrim series, "Scott Pilgrim Vs. the Universe".

Comic Book Club Live! Featuring Bryan Lee O'Malley

Tuesday, February 3, 8 p.m.-10 p.m. at The Peoples Improv Theater. Tickets are $5

Midnight Release Party

Tuesday/Wednesday, February 3/4 Midnight at Jim Hanley’s Universe.

After Work Signing and Mixer

Wednesday, February 4, 7-9 p.m. at Rocketship Comics.

Crowds line up for Spidey & Obama team-up

This morning, I lined up in the cold outside Midtown Comics (200 West 40th St). I was one of many in that line, which at times stretched nearly a whole block.

While Wednesday is new comic day, this line had little to do with most new releases, and was instead centered on the release of Amazing Spider-Man #583, which features a back-up story where Spider-Man saves President-Elect Barack Obama from the Chameleon. In addition to the standard cover of the issue, Marvel Comics offered a limited edition variant cover with Spider-Man and Barack Obama.

As I waited outside the store, a man walked up and down the line selling hats, gloves, and earmuffs. Thankfully it looked like most of the crowd was well bundled up for the blisteringly cold weather. I chatted with some of the others waiting in line. They included Obama supporters who didn't frequent comic shops, Midtown regulars, and speculators hoping to cash in on a collectable item.

Son of Baldwin has his take on the scene, as does City Room. Jim Hanley's Universe (4 West 33rd St) liveblogged the crowds outside of their store this morning while Robot 6 and Newsarama have a look at how the book was selling across the country.

Many in the crowd noted that the lines were far and away larger than those on Free Comic Book Day, which made some of this feel like a missed opportunity. I feel like there should have been some kind of takeaway in my bag encouraging me to return to Midtown on a less insane day. There could have been more done to create repeat business from those who don't frequent the store.

NYC's comic shops

Over at CBR, George Khoury wrote a good piece on the city's comic book shops, past and present. Personally, my regular shop is Midtown Comics. Though, I keep meaning to check out Rocketship in Brooklyn, as I've heard nothing but good things about the store.