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Chapter 12 Page 20 - Chibi History

Evil Emperor Nick

on Jan. 13, 2012

Hmmm I guess the universe must think it is funny when I fly off the handle at people because it seems to have conspired to give me a second chance to yell at Fred Gallager aka Piro if Megatokyo fame.  You see, I'm going to Ohayocon this year, it is the first time I've gone in years.  Last time I went Ohayocon had just been going a couple of years and I went to meet Piro, whose comic I was reading at the time.  I was under the rather mistaken high school impression that Megatokyo was the only web comic on the net, since it was the only one my friends read and so I thought it would be cool to meet its author who was going to be at Ohayocon doing a book signing for his first volume of Megatoyko.  I pre-ordered a copy ahead of time to get one so I would have it for the con.
 
Well as it turns out Piro only ordered a thousand copies of MT vol.1 being the depressive fellow he was, he didn't expect to actually sell that many. When pre-orders went well beyond double that he was forced to order more. Piro decided to delay shipping out the pre-orders since he couldn't cover them all and just take his first batch with him to cons so he wouldn't randomly be giving some people who pre-order a book copies and other not and if I recall he put a sketch or something in each to apologize for the wait when they eventually went out. 
 
So long story short, upset about my delayed pre-order, I went to the con and just planned to buy a copy there to get signed. Of course by the time I got there on Saturday, they were sold out.  Piro apparently promised free sketches to people to make up for this but the line was so long I couldn't even see the table and they had to stop long before I got my sketch.  Eventually, right at lunch time I notice the line had cleared up at the MT table so I could finally make my way over to it and I saw an average looking guy cleaning up behind the table.  Frustrated that I had gone to this con and having essentially wasted a trip, a fair bit of money for me back then just for constant waiting and disappointed, I calmly explained my customer dissatisfaction by screaming at the guy about what an ass-backwards amateur operation this was and how he should tell Piro how he screwed up, how he was too busy to meet he fans and how he had just lost a reader and all that jazz.
 
The guys just stared at me like a deer in headlights and backed away slowly.  He seemed like he wanted to say something but feared I might leap over the table and strangle him if did, not a bad assumption actually.  I stared the man down with my burning gaze filled with the power of the unsatisfied fan willing the man to spontaneously combust.  Of course much to my surprise, this person turned to be Piro the artist and author I had come to see.
 
This stand off and impending violence was fortunately averted when the rest of the MT crew came back and called for Piro to come with them to lunch.  Piro quickly accepted their offer and abandoned the few items still not secured on the MT table to join them as fast as possible while making sure to stay out of arms reach of me at all time.  The group quickly vanished into the crowd.  In retrospect I realize now I probably savagely berated the guy for things beyond his control and stuff he probably already felt bad about so later on I found my outburst rather embarrassing.
 
I never saw any post about this confrontation on his blog or anything and I'm sure he doesn't remember the incident but I do and I haven't been able to enjoy MT since (though some people tell me that isn't a bad thing) nor have I returned to Ohaycon.  So low and behold the very year I decide to return again Fred Gallager  aka Piro is suddenly announced to be a last minute guest.  So the universe has done it again, given me a second chance to antagoniz…..I mean apologize to Piro.