Dramacon
| Dramacon | |
|---|---|
 Cover, Dramacon volume 1 | |
| Genre | |
| Author | Svetlana Chmakova |
| Publisher |    Tokyopop |
Other publishers
| |
| Original run | 2005–2007 |
| Volumes | 3 |
Dramacon is a three-volume original English-language manga written and illustrated by Svetlana Chmakova, and published by TokyoPop.
Dramacon was nominated for a Harvey Award1 and a 2007 Will Eisner Award in the "Special Recognition" category for up-and-coming creators.2 It was also on the 2005 Publishers Weekly list of best comics.1
Plot
A story of a fledgling teenage writer, Christie Leroux, debuting her comic with her artist boyfriend, Derek Hollman, at her very first anime convention. Although it is Christie's first ever anime con, Derek doesn't take the time to show her around and help her get used to the way things go on at a convention; he spends most of his time flirting with other girls. Christie has to endure her boyfriend ignoring her along with the culture shock of men in school girl uniforms. However, at one point during their first day at the convention, Christie meets a mysterious, sun-glassed cosplayer named Matt Green.
During the three-day convention, Christie meets famous manga artist and writer, Lida Zeff, who gives her some advice on how to improve her manga. Christie and Matt develop feelings for each other as well. Derek witnesses the two kissing and later confronts Christie about it. During the ensuing argument he attacks and attempts to rape her (albeit he's drunk), but Christie escapes and runs to Matt's room. Derek and Matt fight, and it is revealed that the reason that Matt always wears sunglasses is because he is missing his left eye. Christie spends her last day with Matt, his sister, Sandra, and Greta, a friend of theirs. She wishes the day would last forever, but the daydream is put to a halt when Sunday comes and everyone has to go home. It wouldn't be much of a problem for Matt and Christie to be together, but Christie lives on the east coast and is still in high school, while Matt lives on the west coast and is in college. They have to wait another whole year before they see each other again. However, a note Christie finds in her pocket from Sandra, which includes Matt's phone number, causes her to break out in laughter and look forward to the next con.
In volume two, Christie is back with her new artist Bethany, who suffers the same culture shock which Christie did at the start of the con, though Christie helps her through it. She meets up with Matt who now has a girlfriend, Emily. While Christie deals with her feelings for Matt, Bethany faces off with a disgruntled manga purist and is offered a job at Mangapop. Lida Zeff is there to help the two young girls, with advice for Bethany about living in a manga publishing world. Christie, as much as she wants to be with Matt, is hurt when he tells her to "piss off" when she runs after him after his glasses are yanked off in public by Emily. Christie runs away from him the next day when he tries to apologize, and as he tries to kiss her, Christie turns away and tells him that it isn't right. They part without a good-bye, and Matt unfolds his history with Christie to Emily, who is frustrated with only a promise that he will try to get over Christie. Bethany and Christie leave the con with a promise to cosplay the next year and to continue to work hard on their comic for fun, not just so they can be published.
In volume three, Christie and Bethany have returned to Yattacon, separately. Christie catches a ride with her fellow artist alley team from Volume 2, while Beth arrives early due to her design winning the T-shirt contest and becoming the logo for the convention. Christie meets up with Matt, but they rarely get anytime alone with her friends following her and her and Matt constantly arguing about one thing or another. Beth refuses to cosplay after getting a call from her mother than she is coming to the convention since she is in town visiting Beth's aunt and cousins. Christie makes her own sailor outfit, but is horribly done and has to endure Matt's criticism of her sewing skills. She runs into her ex-boyfriend Derek, which brings back the memories of him attacking her in the first volume, but he seems to have changed with a new steady, pregnant fiancée. Matt and Christie try to control their tempers, Matt in particularly trying to hold his biting retorts, and they seem to have made up, even with Emily still around and finding ways to break into their dates as a form of payback for last year.
Meanwhile, Beth is freaking out over her mom coming to the convention (which happens the second day) and doesn't notice that Raj is trying to catch her eye and attention. Her mom shows up with her Aunt and two kids; although her mother is outraged at what she sees (Beth told her was a cultural event, and her mom took it to mean museum-like culture), her aunt and cousins seem to love it and enjoy Beth's part in the festivities. After a tense lunch, in which Beth's Aunt scolds her older sister about the way she treats Beth and the way she is forcing Beth to live her life, Beth leaves with her mother to go back to the convention center in which Beth finally stands up for herself and tell her mother than she will take a job if offered another one by Mangapop. Her mother threatens to disown her if she does, but Beth stands her ground and cries about the unfairness of it all to her friends; her mother makes good on her threat and drives off from the con, telling Beth to never come back to her home. Later that day, her mom is in a car accident, and Beth leaves the convention the next day to be by her side in the hospital. After a few more words of wisdom from Beth's aunt, they reconcile, and Beth has her blessing (somewhat) to pursue a job with Mangapop.
Christie and company all leave the convention considerably happier than last year. Matt and Christie will give their relationship a real shot, and Beth might have an artist job, as well as a new boyfriend in Raj. Chmakova is hinting a 4th book, when she is finished with her current series Nightschool.
Characters
Christie Leroux - 5'7", 17 years old. She is a cheerful and outgoing person, as well as a complete pushover to someone who knows which buttons to push (like her boyfriend). She is somewhat naïve and trusting, but intelligent and fast to learn from her mistakes. Christie is a budding writer and is trying her hardest to be a success. Her writing has been complimented by Lida, who believes that Christie will make it big in the future. Christie made an influence on Matt, changing his personality in many ways. After Derek gets drunk, she and Derek break up. He then attempts to rape her in the first volume. She and Matt officially date in the third volume.
Derek Hollman - Christie's high school boyfriend. 5'11", 17 years old. He likes playing basketball and draws fairly well, though is still in need of much improvement. He is not really serious about anything and does things while they are fun. Derek mostly looks out for himself and it wouldn't occur to him to extend the same courtesy to others. At the convention, he hits on pretty cosplayers, which annoys Christie. He and Christie break up in the first volume after he attempts to rape her (albeit, he was drunk). In the third volume Derek reappears at the Con, but with his fiance Maria, who had a surprise pregnancy with him.
Matt Green - 6'2", 19 years old. Reserved and withdrawn, he has a biting sense of humor and is very cautious of forming emotional attachments to people, having had a very hard time among his peers. Matt has a very strong personality, bordering on harsh, though there is some softness left in him, still. He detests being weak and will never admit to his insecurities. Most likely to say: "Your village called--their idiot is missing." Due to an accident as a child, he lacks a left eye, so he wears sunglasses almost all the time to hide it. Matt is very self-conscious of his condition, and it has influenced his personality greatly. In the second volume Christie finds out that he has a girlfriend, Emily, since she never called him over the summer. However, he never stopped liking Christie, and Emily knows this, breaking up with him shortly after the second volume. He dates Christie in the third volume. Matt hates large crowds and prefers to be by himself, usually avoiding conflicts.
Sandra Green - Matt's sister, a mysterious, beautiful cosplayer/costumer that hangs around Matt a lot. She is a cheerful, sarcastic, no-nonsense and assertive girl. She wishes Matt would open himself up more to other people, particularly Christie, though Matt sees this as meddling in his love life. At the convention she runs a costume shop with her girl friend, Greta Huff. Sandra tries to get Christie and Matt together since she sees how positively he responds to her presence. Christie describes her as beautiful, "looking like she just stepped off of an anime poster."
Greta Huff - 5'6", 23 years old. Sandra's girl friend and business partner. Sweet and kind, as well as very mature for her age, she is quiet unless she is with people she likes/trusts. She is studying to be a nurse.
Brett Thomson - Derek's cousin, 26 years old, he studies criminal psychology at a nearby university. He is quite pleasant and a gentleman, though with a very odd sense of humor. He is full of morbid crime stories that he relishes in telling every chance he gets. He is not seen after the first volume.
Opal Maydew - Brett's girlfriend, 24 years old, she is majoring in Animal Sciences at the same university as him. Outgoing and afraid of nothing, she's had some wild times before she met Brett. She's cleaned up since then, but has a lot of stories to tell. Opal likes to dress as a cat girl and is seen to have an interest in hentai. She is not seen after the first volume.
Bethany Peters - Bethany enters the manga in volume 2 as Christie's new artist. She is an extremely talented artist (much better than Derek it seems) but is under pressure from her mother to do something more with her life besides comics. She is offered a job at Mangapop but declines after getting advice from manga artist and writer, Lida Zeff. In Volume 3, she elaborates on how her mother pressured her from an early age and made her give up many of the things that many girls take for granted (i.e., parties and friends) for her studies. She is slightly oblivious to things, such as Raj's apparent crush on her.
Lida Zeff - A talented, famous, and published manga artist and writer, Lida Zeff was the first American artist to sign on with Mangapop. She meets Christie at the con and gives her some pointers on how to improve. They meet again the following year and Lida gives budding artist Bethany some much needed advice about getting involved with the manga business. In the third volume, her popularity has risen to the point of a movie deal.
Tamera (Tam) -Lida's editor at Mangapop. She often teases Lida about her allergies to onion rings, as well as Lida's lack of sending in her scripts on time. In the third book, She promises Bethany a book deal with Mangapop.
Emily - Matt's girlfriend in volume 2. She is immediately jealous and suspicious of Christie and her relationship with Matt. She and Matt met in a karate class in which she almost broke his ribs because he was holding back. She can be outspoken and short tempered, threatening girls who glomp Matt. But despite all this, she truly loves him. In volume 2, when she confronts Christie, she admits that she argues with Matt often in their relationship, but after they do a lot of "good making up". Emily finds out that Matt has been in love with Christie the entire time they were dating, and breaks up with him in tears over it. In the third volume she reappears, and acts friendly with Matt to the point that Christie thinks that she's trying to get her jealous. However, Christie finds out that Emily has gotten a different boyfriend since she last saw her, and came to the Con again to see if it was worth Matt cheating on her to see Christie and Matt together (and presumed that it was).
Sexy Joe - Banned member of the convention by dropping his pants in front of an audience publicly. Returns in the third volume by running around naked.
Firebird Studio
Raj -A member of the Firebird Studio who enters in volume 2. In the third volume, it is very obvious that he likes Bethany, but is constantly embarrassed in front of her by his co-owners/friends, Monica and Hyujeong. He often retaliates by making them set up their table in the artist alley. He later on accidentally tells Bethany that he likes her, which later leads to the two getting closer and a probable relationship.
Monica -A member of the Firebird studio who enters in volume 2. Monica is very loud and protective of her artist "ego". Her two best friends/co-workers are Raj and Hyujeong. In the third book, she and Hyu-Jeong follow Christie and Matt around and take secret pictures of them. She also has no problem with giving away Raj's stuff, especially his Pawky.
Hyu-Jeong -A member of the Firebird studio who enters in volume 2. Hyujeong is the quietest of the three, as well as the most mature. She is best friends with her co-workers Raj and Monica. She is supportive of all of her friends, especially Christie and the situation with Matt.