A Not So Silent Review – Comic Con: Episode IV A Fans Hope

By Michael Worthan on Apr 11, 2012 with Comments 0

Hey folks Mike here for a very rare review on a movie. Now I know usually this isn’t what I do, but this specific movie actually got to me a bit. It’s from acclaimed documentary creator Morgan Spurlock. If you don’t know his work just give Super Size me a watch, but this movie, this movie was about where I’ve grown up and that my friends is the realm of all things comic books. The movies name basically says it all “Comic Con: Episode IV A Fans Hope” I mean a take on Star Wars? This was obviously a good sign from the beginning right?

Unlike most shows I’ve seen on Comic Con or on being a fan in any way shape or form this follows around a eclectic mix of people who are fans, who aren’t famous, and more than anything else who understand what being a fan means. Now not to just blow the whole movie wide open, I mean the plots obvious but still I won’t ruin it for you, the basic idea is that every one of the people this documentary follows around is from a different part of fandom in some way. Two are a couple that met at Comic Con, one is a costumer who oddly enough is from a part of Southern California that is a few minutes down freeway from me, and she’s right that area is bad, two are aspiring artists, one was a toy collector, and one is the owner of Mile High Comics.

I think the honesty in the movie was that it showed what these people were, who they were, and didn’t mock them in any way. Instead it showed the passion that each one has for their own particular area of expertise. Personally I loved watching the parts about the owner of Mile High Comic merely because he was so honest about how bad Comic Con has gotten when it comes to the blockbuster movies. The movie also featured small short interviews from stars of all over like Eli Roth, Kevin Smith, Joss Whedon, Matt Fraction, Stan Lee, and a few others. Their takes on Comic Con and what it means were interesting to hear, because a lot of times it’s exactly what you’d expect with a slight twist.

I think, don’t quote me here, it was Matt Fraction who stated it best about comic being in the name and yet they, the writers and creators, are the lowest man on the totem pole there and this is more then evident with what Comic Con has become and the form that it has taken. I remember my first Comic Con in 2002 right out of high school, there were maybe 100,000 people there and it was fun. I have gone a number of times since then, only missing a few for vacations and what not, and it has gotten bad enough that I have to remind myself why I go. I don’t like hitting the big panels, nor do I star hunt beyond trying to meet writers and creators of the books I love. I go for the show floor, for that empty area on the side where the comic are and not the movie merch. I go to meet authors, see their books, and maybe buy a few things, but most of all I go to have fun and I think that’s what a lot of people miss when they go to the big Cons, they miss the fun.

Now I don’t give stars or anything for my review system instead I give recommendations and I say definitely give this a watch. I felt that it does leave out some of the downside to what Comic Con has become it is a good look at what it is now, and what it means to people, to the comic community, and it may make you take a moment to reflect on why you go to Comic Con. Judge the movie for yourself, enjoy what it is, and leave a comment below!

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Michael Worthan

Creative Director at ComicBookTherapy

Reader, writer, and creator I am Michael Worthan, known often enough by the online moniker of (Not So) Silent Mike. I am here to bring you interviews, our web comic Nerd Geek Dork, and hopefully to bring you up to date news on what's going on in the comic world.