Fire & Water #237 – Boston Fan Expo

Shag & Rob discuss their trip to the 2019 Boston Fan Expo! Special Guests: fellow con attendees Ryan Daly, Dr. Anj, Derek William Crabbe, Tim Price, and Keith G. Baker! Plus a special appearance by Ruth and Darrin Sutherland!

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Opening theme by Michael Kohler. Closing theme by Stan Bush and Dirk Diggler.

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29 responses to “Fire & Water #237 – Boston Fan Expo

  1. Damn, Rob! If I didn’t just happen to be chopping onions for fresh homemade guacamole during your final outro soliloquy, one might think I was actually crying!

    Mmmm… guacamole!

  2. This was all totally familiar and relatable. It’s weird to be my age and have FOMO.

    I don’t think I can get to the States again next year, but I am aiming for something in mid 2021 should the $$$ allow. Or, you slackers could all make the effort and head down here for once!

    Pity about the Sutherland’s squabbling at the end. So them though.

    1. You should try HeroesCon. We went in 2017 and really enjoyed it. You might like that convention, because I know you’ve never been there.

  3. There are great episodes and then there are great, beautiful episodes and this is certainly the latter. Listening to the episode, I found it hard not to have this complete warmth spread over me. I love all the guys and their shows that I listen to but hearing how you all had so much fun and connected with each other was beautiful. I’m so glad you had fun with each other. I can’t wait until the next recap and photos from next year!

  4. Great episode all. It got me in the feels. I have said this to the F&W upper management, but I will repeat it here. Lump me in with Rob as this being the most fulfilling creative and/or hobby-related experience I’ve ever been lucky to be a part of. And I’ve been part of quite a few. Nothing compares. You guys, behind the mikes, and behind the ear buds, are the best.

    Sounds like you had a fantastic time. I won’t lie, I’m insanely envious of you all, but that’s my own fault for not making it a priority to get there somehow. I plan to rectify this in the future. Hope to see you guys in person sometime next year!

    Chris

    1. We missed the Franklins!!! We definitely need to connect next year. While I adore our pre-Disney vacation meet-ups for BBQ, the entire weekend convention experience is more fulfilling! Fingers crossed we can make it happen next year!

  5. Excellent episode, everyone! The “feels” are well-earned, as you’ve all built something special here, and you deserve to enjoy it as much as we all get to out here in listener-land. It was very cool to run into Shagg at the show! He was gracious enough to withstand my blatherings for way longer than I thought was humanly necessary, and it was cool to see how excited he was to be at the event. I am jealous of all the sketches! Also, I’m very glad to see that Shagg took the jump into the “Perhapanauts” and recommended it at the top of the show! If anyone wants to take a closer look at that series, just go to http://www.perhapanauts.com/ (I will gladly accept all hate mail from any dissatisfied customers directly into my Spam folder) Thanks again for a great episode, a great network, and for everything you folks do!

    1. Max – Really enjoyed chatting with you! And your “Who’s Who” podcast story was fantastic! Can’t wait to read “Perhapanauts”! I shared your praise with Craig Rousseau and he appreciated the kind words!

      1. Yes, the “Who’s Who” show is how I discovered your network, and also how I stayed out of the evening news for about two years, there! Seriously, that show came along at a pretty rough point in my life, and it was just what I needed to shore up the defenses against everything that was going on at the time. It was one of those things that I just couldn’t believe existed: a fully dedicated, super entertaining show all about one of my favorite comic series ever! You guys are doing such great work, and it’s really appreciated. I’d say not to let it go to your heads, but one of them is already on fire, so…. Hey! Speaking of letting things go to one’s head…if you ever need a “special” guest for “Who’s That?”…I have no experience or references!

  6. A great episode everyone! It was really fun to hear all the amazing experiences you had at the con, including watching Transformers!
    To respond to Rob’s speech at the end, I’m glad that, in a very small way, I get to be part of this community that helps you feel creatively fulfilled. It is you, and the other members who make these shows, that make me listen, lurk, and occasionally post on this site. Without you doing something that you feel creatively fulfilled at, I would have never found a place that enjoys the all the same things as I do and was a welcoming spot to find my joy.
    To each and every show host, creator, and message board poster, thank you so much for all that you do that has turned this into such a great community!
    Some day, I’ll have to work my way from the west coast here and meet up with you at a convention as it sounds like a blast.
    Keep up the great work!

  7. I’m happy to report that the Linton family had a blast at our first Boston Fan Expo, not to mention our first con period. We were only able to make it up there on Saturday, but we did have the chance to meet Rob, Shag, and Keith at different points during the day. Rob and Shag were particularly gracious, as they only charged me $50 a piece for their autographs, which (as they both explained it to me) was quite a deal. My only regret is that the stars did not align for us to be able to meet up with the larger group.

    As testament to how much fun my family had at the expo, my wife, who was only there out of her love for me, suggested that we might want to check out the Rhode Island Comic Con in November, after one of the vendors told us about it. Her statement taken together with Rob’s Transformer conversion experience now has me convinced that a group of body snatchers, doppelgangers, or replicants must have been secretly replacing people at the expo. If that’s the case, and those entities are reading this, please return my wife to me at your earliest convenience.

    1. Brian – So glad we ran into each other, and so sorry our time together was so brief. What an amazing story about your wife’s turnaround about conventions!! Definitely sounds like she was zapped with the Bizarro ray while she was there. Good luck getting that sorted out!

      And regarding the $50 autograph, that was actually the down payment. Get in touch with us and we’ll get that final payment processed.

      1. Shag, I’m really glad that my daughter and I happened to bump into you. It would have been a big disappointment not to have met both halves of the original Fire and Water dream team, while we were there.

        Surprisingly, my wife really enjoyed wandering Artist Alley, talking to (and buying stuff from) several of the independent artists. I think she also got a kick out of all of the cosplayers.

        Finally, in regards to the remainder of your payment, my wife and I would be willing to loan you our daughter for the next eight years. That’s probably the best way to ensure that all three of us survive her teenage years.

  8. Awww sounds like a good time was had by all 🙂 here’s hoping I can make it next year and put some faces to voices

  9. Even though I rarely comment, I have been listening to many of the F&W shows for a few years now. In some small way, I feel I have gotten to know the on-air talent and many of the frequent commenters. Hearing you discuss your experiences at the Fan Expo was like listening to old college friends talk about what they did at the latest reunion. I have only been to a handful of local cons (3?) in my lifetime, but I experienced this one vicariously through this podcast and many of your social media posts. Thanks for sharing your stories with us.

  10. I have not listened to this episode yet but based on the comments I am really looking forward to it. I am listening to the Jim Aparo episode and had intended to post this comment on that one, but when I saw this episode was available it made more sense to put it here.

    We did not get a chance to meet at the Boston Fan Expo but I still wanted to share my story about how much I enjoy your podcasts. Back in the days when there were only two podcasts on the network, the Aquaman and Firestorm show and Who’s Who I discovered your show from a google search looking for Who’s Who “stuff”. I started listening to the Who’s Who podcast and loved it. I went back and started from the first episode and could not get enough of it. I also listened the Aquaman and Firestorm show. I had missed out on the New 52 Firestorm series but I was reading Aquaman so it was cool to get the updates and analysis on that series.

    The Who’s Who show was what I really was digging though. My brother and I loved Who’s Who when it was coming out. We devoured it. We’d read and re-read each issue. We would find characters we liked and then dig through the back issue bins looking for comics with those characters. Who’s Who in the DC Universe is in my top five favorite comic series of all time and your podcast just added to that love.

    So while I was listening to your shows and one or two other podcasts I discovered Chris and Reggie’s Cosmic Treadmill. I went a little banana’s listening to that show and your podcast sort of went on hiatus with me for awhile. Please forgive me for that but the story does get better. In December of last year Reggie read several essays from Rob’s book on his solo podcast. I enjoyed what he read so much I went on Amazon that night and bought “Hey Kids, Comics!”. When it arrived I dug in and when I read the introduction from the author I had to stop for a minute. This book was done by the guy who did the Aquaman shrine? A couple of clicks later I was back on fireandwaterpodcast.com.

    I was amazed at all the shows on the network, such great stuff. I still love the Fire and Water and Who’s Who shows but my FAVORITE show right now is the Treasury Cast! What an awesome show. I’ve not finished listening to them all yet, but I’m getting there. Treasury editions are such a wonderful part of comics history it is awesome that you devote a whole show to them.

    I know this has been really long but I’ve been wanting to let you both know how much I enjoy your work for awhile now. Keep up the awesome job your doing!

    1. So sorry we missed each other at the con! 🙁

      Hope you enjoyed the Aparo episode as much as we did looking at all those amazing covers! And so glad you found your way back here to the Network! Thanks for listening and the kind words!

  11. Fun show! I have post-con letdown and I wasn’t even there. What a lovely collection of people. Was Anj in a mask because he didn’t wish to out-handsome anyone? At first I assumed that was Frank, but there he is at the table as… Cousin It? I can only assume bounty hunters were at the con.

    I’m with Rob, I just love hotels. We stayed in a nice one in Boston a couple of years back, when Ryan and Anj were ridiculously kind in making the effort to see Steve and me. I suspect we’ll be in the same one when we cruise Canada and New England (with an extra day in NYC) next year… can’t remember its name!

    And here’s a Top Tip for Rob in terms of eating by the water… take a European trip, head for Mykonos and get to the Veranda Bar. It’s just magical. Maybe we could even have the Fire and Water Global Gathering there?

    I’ve never seen any Transformers beyond a TV ad, so I’d have been up for the cartoon in the hotel. Being British, though, I’d have been shushing constantly!

    Thanks for sharing the commissions, they’re all great; my favourite is Scott Hanna’s Namor.

  12. Such a great episode. I was envious of you all BEFORE you got to the Fan Expo, and I’m especially envious now that I hear what a great time you all had. ESPECIALLY given how much the Transformers animated movie played such an important role in all that. Would love to have been a fly on the wall for that event (well, assuming Rob didn’t swat me…).

    Although I tend to be more limited to West Coast events, I have definitely increased my convention attendance in recent years, and very much agree with the sentiments shared. I never feel like I’ve wasted my limited vacation time attending one when I get to hang around with friends old and new.

  13. It was such a treat for me to crash the party of the con-goers! Thank you all for letting me share in your splendid company!

  14. Impressive pod cast. Most Impressive. Sounds like ya’ll had fun. Weird I was at a Comic Con at the same time ya’ll were at this con. Well I was at Geek’d Con here in Shreveport, LA. I got some cool photo ops with Lavar Bertan. Er Geordi from Star Trek. Kevin Nash Lori Petty and Trish Stratis. Lver had the longest line. He was a pretty cool guy. Nash was nice enough as was Lori. Trish was the nicest one there. As for having to wait behind people. There was a guy having hours on end talk with Nash which was fine. The group in front of me also talked a lot to Lori. Again fine.

    Trish was awesome and I had a good talk with her about wrestling. Yeah I had a fan moment. And she was nice about. She was pretty cool. As for stuff I bought, I got a cool Samaria sword. It had a cool gold coving over it’s metal sword. And I got 2 cool Squadron Supreme trades for about 15 bucks. Er for the trades not the sword. At any rate The SS trade had the last Mark Gruenwald story of the SS. Death of the Universe. And them appearing in the Avangers . And their New World Order SS trade by Len Kaminski and Anthony Williams.

    Which was pretty cool. I missed Barry Bostwick. He was there. And I didn’t see Michael Rooker . But they were there. Oh did I mention I have a U tube channel? That’s Liz Anne Oswalt on U tube. I didn’t get any drawings this time. A while back I got a Real She-Ra drawing by Tom Cook who was one of the artists on the 80s cartoon. And one by the Crow guy. But, I didn’t get any drawings this time. There were a lot of people at this con. It was fun.

  15. Sorry I don’t go to cons, guys. You make it sound appealing even if someone has little to no interest in spending money and meeting pros and celebs. Well… the only pros and celebs I care about are Rob, and Shagg, and Derek, and the Sutherlands, and Ryan, and Frank, and well… these pages are filled with the names of pros and celebs that matter to me.

    MONTREAL COMICCON, GUYS!!!! See you there.

  16. Great fun episode. That is amazing that you finally got to see Transformers the Movie! So many kids were heartbroken during that film.

    I am glad you mentioned The Million Year Picnic in Cambridge. When I used to live there I always had to go there for their selection of indie titles.

    If any of you are visiting NYC (or going to NYCC) let me know! I’ll be the tour guide.

  17. I never would have thought an episode of a bunch of guys talking about the fun they had would be as entertaining as it was. This makes me want to branch out on the Network beyond JLI and this podcast.

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