Many readers of manga tend to avoid US comics, thinking them solely the province of superheros.  But in addition to the superhero comics that can be found in spinner racks and in comic book stores, there has been a second market of comics in the US, the alternative comics scene.  Just as militantly anti-super-hero as the manga market, it is similar to the Japanese doujinshi market in that it is mostly made up of creators self-publishing, sometimes something as simple as mini-comics intended to be sold only at conventions.  But because of the copyright situation in the US, alternative comics cannot borrow from the mainstream publishers like doujinshi does,cannot be derivative of other people's works, so instead they are often experimental or almost ferociously realistic, often being autobiographical or slice of life stories with little overt fantastic elements.  On the weekend October 12 and 13th, the Small Press Expo, or SPX  (wiki and website) was held outside of  Washington DC.  It is the end of the traditional alternative comic convention circuit, which used to consist of Alternative Press Expo (APE) (wiki and website) in San Francisco and MoCCA (Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art) Art Festival in New York City.

Hall Photo

This picture is of about half of the hall, with exhibitors and creators freely mixed in side by side, with the only other activities that are expressly scheduled are panels and the Ignatz Awards.  The Ignatz Awards are named in honor of the classic comic strip Krazy Kat and it is intended to honor small press and creator-owned series, no matter where there are to be found.  Despite its importance as a alternative convention, you can easily see that SPX is not that large of an event.

There are several different types of exhibitors.  There are several small publishers that publish mostly alternative titles such as Top Shelf...

Top Shelf and Oni Press photos

...and Oni Press, among others.  (I have reviewed some of Oni Press's titles at Prospero's Manga that relate to manga.)

A different view of the Oni Press booth

In that picture, you can see a copy of Multiple Warheads in the lower right hand corner, a title that I have reviewed over at Prospero's Manga and was done by Brandon Graham, who has also done with TokyoPop King City. 

As manga has become more important in bookstores, alternative comics' profile and its creators have also risen, with the majority of titles in a recent collection called The Best American Comics featuring creators such as Alison Bechdel, Robert Crumb, Kim Deitch, Jaime Hernandez,  Harvey Pekar and Chris Ware.  Notice that list did not include any creators from the US superhero or US manga industries.  Though on the industry level there does not appear to be much overlap, on the creator level you can find them traveling back and forth.

Becky Cloonan is the blonde in this picture, I think...

As an example of of creators going back and forth, here is Becky Cloonan, creator of the TokyoPop title East Coast Rising along with her work for other companies...

Carla Speed McNeil manning her booth...

Carla Speed McNeil (website) is the creator of Finder, a title that started out self-published but has since moved online, with annual collections of the material.  It is a very dense work of aboriginal science fiction, whose world and character draw you in.

Blank Label booth can be seen here and here

Webcomic creators are also represented at the show, with the Blank Label Comics website there, along with the creators of Shortpacked (the travails of toy store workers), Evil, Inc. (the firm of ex-supervillains that legally support the supervillain community that is very much a slice of life story), Schlock Mercenary (a high science fiction mercenary story) and Starslip Crisis (another high science fiction story featuring an ex-warship converted in to a museum.)

Returning to the purpose of the show, there were some creators (him and him) who were there only to show their mini-comics.  (I have misplaced their contact info, if anyone recognizes them, feel free to speak up and I will include their info.)

The Evil Twin booth

There were also some creators that self-publish but are still available through traditional distribution.  Evil Twin releases Action Philosophers!, a tongue in cheek guide to a variety of philosophers, ranging from ancient Greeks to dour German psychologists.  It is much better and funnier than that brief description can convey.

Vogelein and Little White Mouse booth

Another example of one or two product publishers are Vogelein and Little White Mouse.  Vogelein is a touching story of a clockwork fairy desperate to stay wound and not lose her memory, while Little White Mouse is a space story with definite manga influences.

One of the most consistent attitudes I see in manga fans is a disdain for American comics, thinking that they are all superheroes.  Hopefully, you can see here at the SPX that there is a lot more than just superheroes in American comics.

I have previously posted articles here and reviews here on TokyoPop Online.  Please come check out the new manga reviews that are done every weekday on Prospero's Manga!