It's a rare convention that doesn't leave its attendees with much to complain about, so it's remarkable that Amazing Houston Comic Con accomplished that in its very first roll out of the gate.

OK, I do actually have two complaints, but they're pretty minor. Attendees with three-day passes received blue wristbands that couldn't be removed for the duration of the con. That's right: you ate, slept and showered with them, looking like an escapee from an institution wherever you went. It's the only pop culture convention I've attended where the wristband system was used in favor of lanyards. Actually, as press, I had a lanyard, too. At least that I could remove.

The other issue was that the main stage area, where the larger panels were held, were only divided from the main convention floor with curtains. This worked well during the cosplay competition, which was held after the exhibit floor had closed for the evening. During the day, though, general announcements kept booming over the presenters using that area. I hope that next year the main stage panel is held in one of the rooms on the second floor. (The main announcer, however, was awesome, making hilarious announcements like "John Smith, your credit card was found and we aren't afraid to use it!")

Those two gripes aside, Amazing Houston Comic Con was great. I've been attending conventions for the past six years, but this was the first that was a pure "comic book convention," as opposed to a "pop culture convention" that also included film and television stars. I liked the tighter focus and the feeling of getting back to our roots. Comics, after all, are why many of us started going to conventions in the first place.

Some of the top talent in the biz was there, too, like Jim Lee (co-publisher, DC Comics, X-men), Bob Layton (Iron Man), Len Wein (The Incredible Hulk and co-creator of Wolverine), Rob Liefeld (X-Force and creator of Deadpool) and Scott Lobdell (Uncanny X-men). Liefeld proved he knew how to work a crowd, striding up and down the aisle and engaging audience members during his panel.

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