It’s a one-day-only show, smaller and more intimate than the other Expo-type shows I exhibit at, but the great thing is that gives me more time to connect with fans and the fans, more time to browse without feeling hurried or rushed or intimidated by crowds. It’s a real feel-good atmosphere for everyone and I always love being at this show!
I’m launching some new items this month, including copies of Gloaming #2, and a special convention edition of Spectrum #1!
Other new merchandise at the con will include: Krampuspresso buttons, and a new corporate-logo button: GARBUCKS. That’s right, Gargoyles have taken over your local Starbucks and re-branded it. If you like green apron coffee and supernatural creatures, you’ve simply got to stop by the Two Gargoyles table at the Expo.
And hey, remember your ABC’s– you know my Superhero Groinsand Superheroine Boobs posters? Well now, I’ve made a deck of playing cards– that’s right, playing cards– all 52 guy and gal parts now adorn a deck you can play with!
Also, don’t forget there will be scads of poster prints available as well as stickers and magnets! Come on down and see– doors open at 10 a.m. and the show runs til 5!
Although it was a small, one-day show, the Calgary Red and White Expo was great for Twogargs’ sales! Although larger shows may offer more traffic for Artist’s Alley, smaller, more intimate shows give one a much greater chance of connecting with one’s audience! Sales were good, and having time and space to chat with fans and peers alike made this show a “must-do” for the future. Already looking into next September’s show!
Highlights were: sharing a table with Kyle Burles — he has such good energy and as the artist on Gloaming, adds an extra bit of oomph to sales (and fan discussions of ) our comic at the table.
There’s a definite community “feel” to the show; our group of friends have been attending it for years now– this was our first time exhibiting at it. Familiar faces, veterans of the comic and toy collecting communties, and family events like a kid’s costume show (but seriously, guys, TURN DOWN YOUR MICROPHONE)! It was a good feeling and a great way for kids to get a little break from the hubbub of “Back to School.”
My personal highlight? I MET BAYMAX. So there.
BIG WEBSITE ANNOUNCEMENT!
You may already be aware that twogargs.com is updating, going through some changes. Part of the reason is that, starting today, Twogargs will be making its comics AVAILABLE FOR VIEWING ONLINE. Yup, you read that correctly– there is now a “Comics Archive” link at the top of the home page that will take you to our comics page where you can read what you’ve been missing or re-visit old favourites! I’ve started with Diaperman, the comic that started it all– I’m posting pages from the Complete Series Graphic Novel– including the writer/artist commentary written by me, Michael McAdam, and original artist Mike Rieger.
I’ll be posting a new page every day so you can follow along. Also, there’s a series category for “Behind the Scenes” — in which one-shots like “Two Gargoyles Texting” will pop up every so often! If you like randomness, you’ll like Behind the Scenes.
Onward and upward!
–Michael
About Us
“Twogargs” is an independent publisher of comic titles, including the genres of superheroes, comedy, horror, and urban fantasy… with more to come.
You can read all about each title and individual issue on this site using the main menu above. You can purchase digital copies of these comics right here on the site, and print copies at Indyplanet, or at DriveThruComics.
Two Gargoyles Comics is based in Alberta, Canada, and appears live at conventions in Western Canada and wherever else the winds take us!
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When I was nine years old, I read C.S. Lewis’The Chronicles of Narnia, starting with The Magician’s Nephew (my favourite in the series) and ending with The Last Battle.
Those books, those stories, changed my life. The most dominant, entrancing character for me was Aslan the Lion, himself. Please remember I was nine years old when I first read these; there were no thoughts of allegory or What Lewis Really Meant or even What He Intended, there was only the story in the mind of a fourth-grade boy.
Narnia was the first series that entered my heart as well as my mind, becoming a focal building block, a foundational core, of my inner mythological landscape. Narnia had a purity, a hope, a we-can-all-work-together ethos that charmed my young heart. Talking animals with manners and tea and British proper-ness? Yes please!
I fell in love with them, with all of it. I saw Narnia begin in The Magician’s Nephew and saw Aslan sacrifice himself in place of Edmund in The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe. And through it all, I felt as Lucy Pevensie did: She loved Aslan unreservedly. And he, in turn, loved her with all the honesty of the wild and spiritual.
Even back when I had no idea about Christian this and English Culture that, this relationship was pure. So, too, has my relationship with Aslan been.
To me, Aslan is no storybook lion. He is no representation of someone’s personal deity. He is, rather, a symbol of protection, caring, and purity to me— in the way that only an animal could be: wild and instinctual and natural.
Too, Aslan is Hope. Every time he appears, things improve just a little bit for having seen him. He guides, he leads by his mere presence. He is our souls’ voice, as I see him, speaking to us from within the truths we already know, to help us feel steady and sure as we navigate life.
I have never “outgrown” fairy tales; I have always viewed them as the truths we tell our children through story in a way they can understand: moral fables of caring and sharing, to show them how to be their best selves. So too did I realize Aslan meant more than just some words on a page, or an inspiring battle scene or a triumphant roar; he meant that Spring was coming, that Winter was over, that happiness and joy would return; he was a promise.
He still is.
When I think of Aslan, I think of a lion-shaped concept that is beyond any mere fiction or human deity; he is a wish, a thought, that I/we can all be better, seeking truth and light and watching out for each other. Aslan tells me in his inner voice that it’s all going to be okay, that I don’t need to fear what I don’t understand, to persevere and discover.
Aslan-the-concept is always with me. From him I find my joy. From him I find my strength. And I don’t want to mislead you into thinking this is a religion or a Faith-capital-F. It simply is a concept that captured my heart. A wonderful writer told a wonderful story, and it changed me, and I think for the better.
I trust my Aslan. I seek that feeling in myself and others, and I love to share the joyful light it brings me. I encourage each and every one of you to remember that when you’re creating, you could be creating an Aslan for someone else, someone that desperately needs it.
Don’t doubt your words or your feelings; put them out there. Roar with me, into the wind, and hope that our words, pictures, hopes and dreams are carried to the ears of those that need them most; for these are all our stories, our shared dreams, seeking expression at one end and fertile soil in which to grow at the other.
Keep creating, keep believing in your “Aslan.” And when you’re ready, when you feel its presence…