Contributed by collector and Overstreet Advisor Art Cloos
Photos by Alice Cloos
On March 8-9, 2025, the comic convention scene got off to an early, strong start in the northeast with the first edition of the Elite_Comics11 Expo. It was held on the campus of St. John’s University in Queens, New York City. The show was run by Ali Karaouni who runs regular auctions on Instagram. St. John’s was founded in 1870 and was originally located in Brooklyn before moving to Queens. For me, it was a home coming, because I went there for my undergrad and graduate degrees after I finished high school.
There is a growing comic scene developing out on Long Island with one day shows with local dealers leading the way, but this was a national event with both many dealers and buyers who flew in from out of state for the show. Dealers came from as far away as Canada and many from the Midwest and the Northeast. The dealer list included Boom Comics, Bronze & Modern Gods, Buzzard Brothers Comics, Card Gems, Collector Supreme, Genesis Comics & Games, King Solomon’s Collectibles, Lost4Toys, Best Comics NY, Paradise Comics, Streyflex Collectibles, Threesixty Comics, J&S Collectibles, Jaws Comics, Jerard_Con40, Kyle’s Comics, LI Comic Shop, Landry Pop Auctions, Big Apple Comic Con, Next Generation NY, Brixco, Nickel N Dime Collectibles, Lightning Collectibles, Superworld Comics, Royal Collectibles, Silver Age Comics, Tastee Comics, Vintage Comics & Toys, 4TH World, and 8Bit Attic.
CGC was there and they had a long line at their booth of collectors who were getting their books graded. In terms of auction houses, Landry Pop Auctions was set up and was also a sponsor of the show. The company tailors itself for modern collectors who are passionate about comics, toys, pop culture, and more. It’s led by Travis Landry who is a former star of Toy Hunter and a regular on Antiques Roadshow. The LPA staff combines an encyclopedic knowledge with a deep passion for discovering and presenting exceptional material. This was highlighted by its two display cases filled with early Action Comics and its highlight piece was a Detective Comics #27 CGC 4.0. I spent a long time drooling over it and people were lined up to take pictures. The books will go up for auction in April 2025.
Media guest Vincent D’Onofrio, who plays the Kingpin in Daredevil, had a very long line for his autograph. Artist guests were Steve Lavigne and Christian Waggoner, both of whom had long lines of fans.
In terms of freebies, Shattered Comics gave away a free Hulk comic and free bags were given out at the check in table.
The dealer’s room which was located in the Taffner Building, had wide aisles with plenty of room, and received praise from both dealers and show attendees.
As Allie and I entered the dealer room, we could see that this was going to be a good one. With major dealers such as Silver Age Comics, Mike Carbonaro of Big Apple Comics, and Superworld Comics, we were struck by the quality of the dealer offerings. There was a very strong showing of both Golden and Silver Age books. In fact, I saw more Golden Age Batman titles for sale than I did at all the shows I was at in 2024. Titles such as All Star Comics, Fawcett’s Captain Marvel, and early All-Flash Comics were available, and books that do not show up very often were on display, with one example being Sensation Comics #2. If you were interested in the Golden Age, than this was the show for you. Also, I saw that there were more DC comics for sale in the room than Marvel, and this is the first con I can say that about from the past few years.
There were some nice vintage toys, such as a big collection of vintage lunch boxes and a large collection of vintage Kenner DC Super Powers figures on the card. My personal favorite was a vintage Master Juvenile Products Batman pogo stick from the 1970s. It was not in the box but boxed or not, it just never shows up at a con or even in an auction. It did have the instruction sheet which also was very cool.
Among the show attendees, there were many familiar faces including my longtime friends Max Gottfried and Billy Kwack and my Facebook Batman group member and buddy Charles Vizzini.
One of the sponsors of the show was Kulture City. I admire their mission statement, which is to help people with invisible disabilities such as autism, ADD/ADHD, and PTSD enjoy special events, experiences, and dreams. They had an inflatable room for both kids and adults with lava lights and convertible bean bag chairs for people who need a break from too much sensory stimulation.
No one went hungry at the show. Food trucks were outside the entrance offering a nice variety of choices from giant cheese sandwiches to full platters of food to waffles to hamburgers and fries and one that served vegan choices. In addition, there is a large number of restaurants up and down Union Turnpike for people to enjoy lunch and dinner after the show.
Tickets were $11 for advance sales and $20 at the door. The show was very easy to get to and there was plenty of parking.
So as the day ended, Allie and I were really hoping for another show next year. I asked Karaouni about that and he indicated it was being discussed but no plans, dates, or location have been made yet for a future event. Details will be shared on Elite website or on Instagram or Facebook.
To see more photos from Elite_Comics11 Expo, jump to our In the Limelight coverage.
