LA, Ep. 23

August 3, 2013 — On a dreamy mid-summer night, Literary Death Match barnstormed Nerdist at Meltdown Comics for a nerd-skewed night of lit and wit that finished when Cecil Castellucci narrowly toppled co-finalist Brian Finkelstein by a score of 4-2 in a chaotic graphic novel draw-off, winning Castellucci the LDM title. 

But well before Sharpies were leaned upon for the finale, the night kicked off with Nick Antosca, author of The Girlfriend Game & writer for JJ Abrams/Alfonso Cuaron's Believe (March on NBC) reading an excerpt from his new book about the trauma of being a teenage boy. Up next was Finkelstein (writer, comedian and Los Angeles StorySLAM host and Moth Mainstage storyteller) who wowed with a piece called "Hope Ring" — the true story of a doomed fake engagement. 

The mic was then turned over to the night's trio of all-star judges: Will McCormack, actor, producer and co-writer of Celeste and Jesse Forever; Andrea Letamendi, clinical psychologist, Under the Mask scribe, and Batgirl's therapist; and Sara Benincasa, is an award-winning comedian, author of Agorafabulous!. While McCormack and Letamendi traded praise about the opening rounders' work, Benincasa had the crowd in throes as she talked them through what it would be like to go on a date with each finalist. 

After a heated deliberation between the trio, they announced that it would be Finkelstein that would advance as the night's first finalist. 

After a brief intermission, Round 2 opened books-blazing with Cecil Castellucci, award-winning graphic/young adult novelist (Boy Proof; The Queen of Cool; The Plain Janes) regaling the crowd with an excerpt from her upcoming sci-fi novel Tin Star. Finally, it was director/author Amber Benson (The Golden Age of Death; Buffy the Vampire Slayer) who blew minds with a graphic sex parable that featured period blood-smeared lips. 

Again the judges were center stage, with McCormack hilariously handing Castellucci a new nick name "Castellooch!" while Letamendi was an enormous fan of her Darth Vader dress. Benincasa lauded both women with comedic flourish, before the trio huddled and decided it would be Castelluccio (Castelloooooooch!) that would advance as the night's second finalist. 

Then came the calamatous finale, as LDM creator Adrian Todd Zuniga took center stage, tasking each finalist with drawing the three judges in three different rounds. The first round: 20 seconds to draw Will McCormack. The second round: 15 seconds to draw Andrea Letamendi. The third: 30 seconds to draw Sara Benincasa...while blindfolded. A trio of "art critics" were cordoned off in the corner, while the finalists took turns drawing. Then, an art critic was brought to the fore and selected Castellucci's drawing of McCormack, giving her the 1-0 lead. Art Critic 2 favored Finkelstein's precise work of Letamendi giving him a 2-1 lead, and then it was the final judge who made the impossible choice of drawings, selecting Castellucci's "Benincasa" giving her a 4-2 victory, the LDM LA, Ep. 23 medal, and literary immortality to go with it. 

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