Con & On has the strange quality of feeling slightly atypical of Ahoy Comics’ usual output and yet somehow completely at home in their catalogue of projects. “Funny Vertigo” may be how Ahoy describe themselves but there’s also a level of heartfelt pathos amidst the humour and in-jokes of Paul Cornell and Marika Cresta’s story of a major comic convention and those who attend it regularly over the years.
The five chapters of the story allow us to visit the Vista Al Mar Comics Festival (VAMCon) from its humbler beginnings to its status as the biggest event on the comics calendar, through to the reality-changing pandemic era. Across the different timeframes of 1992, 2001, 2008, 2015 and 2022 we follow a recurring cast of characters whose lives and fortunes shift and evolve in the intervening years before each featured convention. Sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse, as relationships change and careers go in different directions.
The central characters are Eddie and Deja, newbies hoping to break into the industry when we first meet them in 1992. Then there’s Julius Kerunkle, veteran editor with a dodgy reputation; superfan Val Molson; jobbing actor Jeff Kent; hard-drinking British creators Anthony, Don and Finn; and a whole host of others. Adding context and providing a sense of dramatic irony is the accompanying commentary track by comics historian Dr. Vanessa Chay which adds a certain dry humour to the proceedings.
Cornell juggles a huge cast of characters with skill and care, ensuring they all get satisfying arcs across the five issues/chapters. Con & On balances appealing character study – finding the sheer humanity in a cast who could so easily have been two-dimensional comics stereotypes – with an often biting commentary on the industry’s darker corners. From misogyny and abusive behaviour to the appalling antics of comics hate groups it’s all satirised and eviscerated here.
Con & On, though, is as much a celebration of fandom as anything else. What’s particularly resonant here is the way in which Cornell captures that feeling of the comings and goings of players on the scene. If you, too, have been involved in comics community for many years this will give you a familiar buzz of nostalgia as you remember the trends, movements and characters who have made up your own supporting cast over the decades.
Marika Cresta has the unenviable job of not simply ensuring that we feel invested in such a large group of characters but also in bringing the spirit of so any timeframes and eras of publishing to the page. Giving each chapter the correct visual feel for its time without lapsing into period caricature is an achievement in itself and Cresta never lets wistfulness overwhelm narrative flow.
Some storylines herein are poignant, some bittersweet, some quietly triumphant. Some characters find redemption, others find acclaim, and the two guys who complain that every year sales are so bad they will never return at least find a sense of consistency. Slice-of-life comics with true heart, Con & On is one of the finest projects to come out of Ahoy to date.
Paul Cornell (W), Marika Cresta (A), Paul Little (C), Rob Steen (L), Dan Schoeneck (CA), Mauricet (TPB CA) • Ahoy Comics, $17.99
Review by Andy Oliver
