Malta: a small island in the middle of the Mediterranean, with a tradition for bringing together cultures, people and traditions. With a steady population of nearly five hundred thousand, when someone learns that there is a Comic Convention happening there, they would expect some small-fry stuff to take place.

Far from it actually.

The Malta Comic Con is an established institution for the people of Malta, who reach out to comic creators from Europe, the Mediterranean and even the US. Bringing local artists and international creators, the people of Malta have managed to put together a respectable and welcoming convention for beginner, up-and-comers and professionals of the comics scene.

For LMC, as a creative team it was one our first international convention and it was all we could have expected.

Malta Comic Con’s team, and especially Chris Muscat and Chris Le Galle have fostered a caring and well-intended community in the interest of the artists. The fee to participate in the Con included transportation, lodging and a full-day tour of Malta that the Malta Comic Con team has put together!

Simply incredible.

Even though, LoudMouse arrived a bit late on Friday (because of a flight delay), we were relieved to be taken to our hotel room directly and just. go. to. sleep. Regrettably, we missed the mix and mingle session that the Malta Comic Con team had put together, over wine (because the only proper way to discuss comics is over wine).

The next morning, we were up and at it, to set the table and prepare for the people. And my, oh my, as soon as our coach pulled up the convention centre an hour before the doors open to the public, there was already some people waiting to come in and meet the artists of the Artist Alley.

The doors opened at 10 AM. And the people came in. Over the weekend, up to five thousand people showed up to Malta Comic Con to talk, meet and support the artists, and among them LMC. Many young people came up to us with an interest at our work noHeroes and DREAMLANDS: Lives and Epics. But it wasn’t just to buy. People would come in and take a look at the artwork, go over the narrative and start a discussion with us.

A family-oriented event, Malta Comic Con had a lot of parents that brought their children to meet the creators, to get a little memento from the occasion and sign their sketchbooks (something that we found it to be a new tradition, but welcomed it). After nearly three years, Malta had a Comic Con again and LoudMouse Crew was there for it.

Overall, there was a wonderful establishment and organisation, not only because of the arcades, the board games and the cosplay that the hosting team had put together, but because you really got to connect with the people, the comics peers and the public as well.

Even though LMC’s Thanos and Stelios didn’t get the chance to fight each other at Tekken – “it would have been a one-sided slaughter” Stelios said.

“I would have gone down swinging,” Thanos replies.

At the end of day, we, as LoudMouse Crew, got to dip our toes in the waters of the international comics scene. And sure, we might not know for sure how it is going to go, but we got the feeling that we will be seeing Malta and the Con there next year as well.

A huge, as-far-as-our-arms-can-stretch thank you to the Malta Comic Con team for making this experience as unique as it could get.