Last week, comic fans, animation freaks and vinyl toy fetishizers converged upon San Diego for the annual Comic-Con convention. The self-described "nerd prom" not only gives geeks the chance to dress up as their favorite characters, it also features a tradeshow floor filled with the finest fun products from designers. This year, a limited-edition release from Gary Baseman stole the show as people lined up for hours to snag one of his 100 Gold Hotchachacha toys. Although that superhot item is long gone, there are tons more where they came from at Baseman's online store.
http://www.garybaseman.com/

Comic-Con is the perfect place for new artists to make a splash, and so was the story last year when illustrators Chris Turnham and Kevin Dart displayed their prints for the first time, to rave reviews. A year later, the duo has released their first book, Fleet Street Scandal, an incredible collection of their work with a great story behind it. As legend has it, Fleet Street—a London gallery—was robbed in 1967, and Turnham and Dart's prints are the supposed recovered artwork. With their vintage palettes and pulp cinema subjects the pieces are pitch-perfect; it's like looking at posters for films made in the '60s that were never released.
http://www.fleetstreetscandal.com/

With the comic kids returning to San Diego every year, it's no surprise to find a year-round base of operations for the design-minded: Subtext is a bookstore and gallery in the city's Little Italy neighborhood. The creative oasis features design-based goods and books about illustration, industrial design, architecture and graphic design, specializing in hard-to-find titles. During Comic-Con, the store stayed open extra late and featured a vinyl toy show and auction featuring 50 artists like Tristan Eaton.
http://www.subtextstore.com/