The Black Mirror

By Patricia Donohue

Not too long ago, a few of us DFIers had a discussion about comics and movies in the Middle East. I believe most of the conversation consisted of me trying to get a non-comic lover to drink the Kool-Aid. I not only wanted others to see what it is I love about comics but I also secretly believed that the more people I get to love comics, the more accessible they’ll become to me in Doha.

So really, my reasons are selfish.

I’d like to think the Middle East Film and Comic Con is doing the same thing … just with a greater degree of success.

I went to their first comic con last year and was pretty impressed with what I saw. They had comics for one thing, so I was already sold. But they also had an audience. In costume. When I went again this year, I was blown away by how much the event had grown by its second year. Not only was the turnout massive, but the costumes were better and more varied, and some of the guests actually have a place in my comic collection at home.

I was not expecting that.

I got to watch Jock (‘Black Mirror’, ‘Dredd’ and ‘Snapshot’- – BUY THEM!!), one of my favourite artists, draw. But the best part was that there was a crowd of people watching him draw. A crowd I can guarantee immediately became converts. Older women were lining up to get their copies of ‘Green Arrow’ signed. Kids hung around the table talking Batman…to a guy who draws Batman.

One of the most interesting conversations I had that weekend was with someone brand new to the comic world. A writer who had attended MEFCC the previous year as a journalist. A girl who had never read comics before that first MEFCC, who had come back, not just as a new fan but as a guest – promoting the first issue of her own series.

Her name: Mai El Shoush. Her comic: ‘Drawn’ – a unique fantasy tale tracing the history and myth of henna through a girl who falls into a mystical world that is unlocked by the painting on her hand.

The world of comics is not a female-dominated industry. Nor is it strongly represented by people from this part of the globe. But this is quite clearly changing. I’ve been to other comic cons and MEFCC is different, I think because it has become a statement for the need for a new kind of excitement. In established cons, everyone’s an expert so they almost lose that sense of wonder, but here, well … here you get to watch people fall in love with comics for the first time.

I don’t know about San Diego or Toronto or New York, but I’m pretty sure you wouldn’t stumble upon a female Sudanese journalist with a love of creative writing and see the opportunities she has by being in a place that’s so excited about building this industry. You get to see what kind of influence WE can have on the medium because it’s only just starting here. Mai went from walking into a store and buying ‘Star Wars’ as her first comic, to someone who’s asking for recommendations. Because she wants to keep going. Because it’s become a kind of limitless territory. Where Artists Alley is full of tables of young people drawing, sharing and trying to get their art out there.

I remember comics in the Middle East used to mean manga and Darth Vader and Superman, but now we’re seeing a boom. With so many comic based movies and TV shows drawing from the art form like ‘The Walking Dead’, ‘Sin City’, ‘The Losers’ and ‘Arrow’ (Green Arrow was never even a good character), this world has opened up. It’s provided way more possibilities than people here ever expected. Comics in the Middle East aren’t just about the Marvel or DC universes anymore. It’s about the independent creators becoming a part of the culture – the ‘Kill Shakespeare’ guys with their epic adventure series including the Bard’s biggest characters, and the Mai El Shoushes, who realise that the most beautiful way to tell a story about henna is through sequential art.

Expression is expression – regardless of the form. And this concept is really expanding in the Middle East, for what feels like the first time. But I believe this is the time for comics. The MEFCC has proven that. Mai has proven that. My dwindling bank account has DEFINITELY proven that.