Top 3's of Comic Con

This past week I went to my fifth San Diego Comic Con.  I am still recovering from participating in events, panels, off-site parties, and more with more than 100,000 of my closest friends.  The event has seen huge growth through the short five years I have been attending and I feel that the best way to capture my experience is through a series of lists.  Also, if you couldn't make it and want some swag you should enter our contest while there is time.  Click here to do so.

Top Trends in SDCC:
1. Off-site growth - This year there were more and bigger off-site events.  The Nerd HQ, in its third year, moved into the concourse of Petco Park, HBO took over the first floor of a building across from the Omni, Geek and Sundry moved into the original home of the Nerd HQ, and too many to actual list here.  With the sheer number of off-site events, SDCC is something you can experience without having a badge or setting foot into the San Diego Convention Center

2. Camping out - Before I ever attended SDCC I was warned about the lines.  Despite this warning I was still shocked at the length of the lines and how early you had to line up for panels.  I do recall getting into all of the panels I intended to and this is not the case anymore.  My plans for attending the WB and Dr. Who panels were halted when I saw people camping out prior to end of the panels the previous day.  If they are willing to show that type of dedication to be in a panel, may hats off to them and I will find something else fun to do.
3. Twitter - It seems that in order to truly stay in the loop and get the most out of Comic Con you need to have your twitter feed rolling with key individuals to follow.  Bloggers, comic publishers, and others will let you know what is currently happening and help you have a good time among the mobs of people.

The image that stole the show

My 3 favorite announcements at SDCC:
1. Batman/Superman Movie - It is amazing the amount of buzz and rumblings a simple graphic can produce.  The excitement was in the air upon the announcement and I am pretty sure that all of the attendees heard the eruption in Hall H.  On my flight home when I saw coverage on the CNN app I knew that this was the winning announcement of the con.
2. Gabriel Rodriguez working on Little Nemo in Slumberland - Readers of the blog will know my love of Gabriel Rodriguez and his work on Locke and Key.  I can think of no better artist to be involved on a relaunch of Little Nemo than Rodriguez.  The series is a complete relaunch with a new dreamland, new Nemo, and will be published by IDW.
3. Phineas and Ferb/Star Wars Crossover - I know this was covered earlier this week from Vance, but I got misty when I heard the announcement and saw some of the early art on this project.  It happens during the events of Episode IV, there is a "Sith-inator", and it is going to be amazing.

Top 3 Off-site Locations:
1. The Godzilla Encounter - Godzilla took over a building in the Gas Lamp district for an encounter that required an RSVP and a SDCC badge (wondering if more will go this route).  This event felt like an experience you might have at Disney World or Universal Studios.  You start by touring a Japanese town when everything goes wrong.  The actors in this experience was great, the sets were gorgeous, and the action was pretty good.  One of the more unique experiences I have had at SDCC in the short time I have been attending.

2. Fox ADHD - Taking over a parking lot in the Gas Lamp, the Fox ADHD headquarters featured mini-golf, a 50-ft. Axe Cop balloon, 3-D printed toys, and free pizza.  On top of that it screened episodes of both Axe Cop and High School USA.  Both were great and air this upcoming Saturday night on Fox!
3. Geek and Sundry - Geek and Sundry took over the second floor of a coffee shop in the Gas Lamp and featured board game tournaments (I played and lost in the Star Trek Catan one!), a board game library, game demos, free AMD processors, Wil Wheaton photo booth, and had appearances from Wheton, Felicia Day, and other nerd celebrities.  What I liked about Geek and Sundry is that it was truly low key, fun, and a nice break from the chaos that was everywhere else.

Most overhead complaints at SDCC:
1. Not enough swag - From preview night through Sunday, the most overheard complaint I heard was that the amount of swag handed out was down from previous years.  From what I saw the swag was moved off-site.  I, for one, welcome the move because I find that it helps with flow on the floor.  Additionally, most of the swag really isn't all its cracked up to be.
2. Line jumpers - The folks at CCI really cracked down on line jumpers this year.  I guess when people camp out to attend a panel they don't take too kindly to people cutting in line.  While it did occur and I witnessed several people line jump, it wasn't nearly as common as in years past.
3. Difficulty in getting into Hall H - My friend, who actually didn't complain about this, waited in line from 6am until 3pm to get into Hall H.  The achievement of making it into the great hall was so difficult that people appeared to stay in the hall from open to close.  Don't think I would enjoy hanging out in Hall H all day, but I had a nice time at the Community panel on Sunday.

Top 3 Panels:
1. Legend of Korra - I rewatched book one in preparation of what Nickelodeon was hyping up to be a stellar panel.  After planning on attending this panel I ended up playing in a Star Trek Catan tournament at Geek and Sundry.  My brother attended, got to see the first episode of Book 2 and said that it was great even though he hadn't watched season 1.  I can't wait for Book 2!

Some Whovians tagged a wall in the Hall H line with some chalk

2. Dr. Who - Even though I am a newly converted Whovian and I didn't brave the campers to attend this panel, it is likely the last featuring Matt Smith and included the debut of the trailer for the 50th Anniversary special.  My favorite thing is that people in England are upset because their taxes support the BBC which airs Dr. Who and they haven't even seen the trailer yet.
3. Community - Most of the cast was on hand and the audience gave a warm welcome to the return of Dan Harmon.  Harmon carried himself well about the drama related to the show, but the shining moment in this panel was when Dino Stamatopoulos hijacked the Q&A to promote a new project he is working on and to sell some ashcans.  Overall this panel got me interested in a show again that I had drifted away from.  I also fell for Dino's ploy and picked up his ashcan.  It was quite good.

Top 3 Off-Site Events:
1. Course of the Force - For the second straight year Chris Hardwick and the good people at Nerdist Industries hosted the Course of the Force.  It is a lightsaber relay race that runs from Skywalker Ranch to San Diego.  The event raises money for the Make a Wish Foundation and allows people to participate in the race or stop by one of the many local events at each stop in the race.

2. Hop Con - Wil Wheaton teamed up with Stone Brewery to release a special beer for Comic Con.  WootStout debuted at the Stone Brewery's new tasting room and your admission to Hop Con got you a collectible glass, eight pours of yummy beer, delicious food, and great entertainment featuring Wheaton and the musical comedy duo Paul and Storm.  I can't think of a better way to kick off Comic Con then through this event and I am extremely grateful I attended.
3. The Walking Dead Escape - The Walking Dead Escape returned to Petco Park with a bigger and better running of the zombie filled obstacle course.  This year the course was more physically challenged, featured more of the undead, and was an absolute blast.  You can win some of the giveaways from the event here.

Top 3 Disappointments:

1. No Mr. Show reunion - Almost the entire cast of Mr. Show made the trip to San Diego.  Bob Odenkirk, Paul F. Thompkins, Scott Aukerman, Dino Stamatopoulos, Brian Posehn, and Tom Kenny.  All we needed was David Cross and my mind would have been blown and I would have been camping out.
2. No Locke and Key panel - Neither Joe Hill or Gabriel Rodriguez were in attendance as this title is wrapping up in a few months.  Really would have been great to send off one of my favorite titles of all time in style.
3. No Fables panel - Bill Willingham announced that he would no longer be attending SDCC, but I was still hopeful that the rest of his creative staff would be on hand for one of the panels I look forward to every year.  Maybe next year.

Top 3 Prizes:

1. Mondo Studio Ghibli record - After a disaster trying to secure a Mattel toy for my daughter, I was wondering the floor trying to meet up with a friend when I walked right past the Mondo booth.  To my pleasant surprise they had just dropped an exclusive Studio Ghibli soundtrack on colored vinyl.  The line was about 10 deep and in a few minutes I had a great prize to take home to the wife!
2. Axe Cop toy - For a chance to win one of your own you can enter our contest here, but I am keeping the one I got.  Axe Cop inspired my first ever cosplay and there is no way I am giving mine away.  Vance is much nicer than I am.  This toy took over 12 hours to print in a 3d printer and 3 hours to be painted by hand.
3. Kid Robot Zoidberg - Through the kindness of a friend I was able to get my hands on the alternate universe Zoidberg from Kid Robot.  This baby looks even better in person and when my daughter Zelda saw is she asked me, "why do you have a Homer crab?"  A better question to ask is why do you not have a Homer crab?  They are great!

As I look over the lists above I realize what an amazing experience SDCC is each year.  I could write until my fingers were bleeding, but will rest now and reflect on the good times I have enjoyed in San Diego the past five years.  Here is to another five more!

The SWAG-AWAY! Comic Con 2013 Swag Giveaway

This year, two of our intrepid bloggers made the trip to San Diego for Comic Con International. They scored some neat swag, and IT CAN ALL BE YOURS!

Nerds of a Feather will be giving away one official Comic Con 2013 bag o' swag, including:

• WB 300: Rise of an Empire Bag
• Walking Dead Escape special edition novel (Rise of the Governor), poster, and lanyard
• 3D-printed, hand-painted Axe Cop figurine made onsite at SDCC
• Man of Steel Clark Kent glasses
• Special Edition TV Guides with all four "collectible" Comic Con covers

Enter to win all of this nerdy goodness below, and good luck!


Details

Participants have to be 18 years of age or older to participate. Void where prohibited by law. Giveaway rules are subject to change.

This giveaway is open to anyone with a US shipping address. The giveaway ends at 11:59pm PT on July 30, 2013. We will announce the winner later that day.

To enter, just follow the instructions on the rafflecopter widget below (if you don't do it via rafflecopter, we won't know that you entered the contest) and choose one of four actions:

1. Like us on facebook (1 pts.)
2. Follow us on twitter (1 pt.)
3. Tweet about the giveaway (1 pt. but can be done once per day)

Good luck!


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Comic-Con 2013: Confessions of a n00b

Until today, I had never been to Comic Con, despite living only a hundred or so miles from the Beast that Annually Devours All of Nerdery.

I arrived at Comic Con 2013 late Thursday night and had the opportunity to hit up a couple of smaller parties. But the convention was already well in the day's rearview mirror, so I wouldn't say it was my first day of Comic Con ever -- that honor was reserved for Friday morning.

Minions had a surprisingly robust presence.

I arrived Friday right as the doors to the Exhibit Hall opened, but I was inexplicably diverted away from them by event staff and made to walk literally the entire circumference of the San Diego Convention Center before being allowed to enter the Exhibit Hall. I was told later that this had something to do with people who had camped out being given first priority. That's fine, I'm not going to complain about a little exercise -- and neither should most Comic Con attendees, if you get my meaning. I then took a leisurely stroll through the sparsely attended Exhibit Hall until around lunch time, bought a lot of great stuff, and started to get into my head that all of the stories we've all heard about the unfathomably massive crowds at Comic Con might just be something of an urban legend.

Acres and acres of 12-sided-dice. This is where it all started, folks.

I attended my first panel -- for Disney Channel's excellent animated show Phineas and Ferb -- and was appropriately impressed. It was a great panel, with the show's two creators, most of its cast, and new information about upcoming P & F endeavors, most impressive of which is to be a Phineas & Ferb/Star Wars crossover special made possible by Disney's acquisition of Lucasfilm, and which sounds amaaaaaaazing. I was really feeling the Comic Con vibe now.

I had a break in my schedule, so I went back down to the Exhibit Hall, and I found things had changed. Dude, there were a LOT of people there now. It was hard to walk around, I got caught in a giant traffic jam at the Walking Dead booth, and my knees were starting to hurt. So I bailed out and hit a couple of off-site events, which were pretty cool, before heading over to Petco Park for my start time in the Walking Dead Escape, where I would run from zombies and leap, crawl, and climb over obstacles for a long-ass time before getting infected by the third-to-last zombie. The freaking THIRD-TO-LAST-ONE. And I'd worked so hard...

By that time the day was mostly over and I headed back to the Con proper to meet up with some friends and then a couple of off-site screenings and events. My overall impression of the day was that no human being can possibly "do" Comic Con. There's too much. You can spend three days in the Exhibit Hall and barely scratch the surface of the immense independent and entrepreneurial talent assembled in that giant room. You will also barely scratch the surface of the willingness of human beings to stand in long lines for almost literally no purpose whatsoever. Throughout my day, I got updates about a pair of friends who had lined up at 5 am for the notorious Hall H. This is the biggest room at the convention and host to the most high-profile panels. But my friends had to wait in line almost 12 hours just to get into the giant mamma-jamma. I can't fathom a world where this is worth the time invested in it. Joss Whedon answering questions for half a day wouldn't make this a fair trade, in my mind, given all of the fantastic things you'd have to give up for the privilege.

The fall will bring us a Mace Windu Angry Birds Star Wars figure, along with the game Angry Birds Star Wars II.

 

 

 

There has been talk of moving the Comic Con to somewhere bigger than the San Diego Convention Center, and I have to admit I don't think this is a solution. There aren't too many places that ARE bigger, for one. And it would just fill up again, anyway. This is a sign that Geek has become the new Mainstream, really. And Comic Con has become more "Culture Con" thank anything else. At this point, think of the largest possible venue you can imagine. Now think of all the human beings who are interested in art, entertainment, culture, and/or girls in tiny costumes. No matter what your answer to the first question, the answer to the second one will always be bigger.

On the whole, this n00b was impressed with the management of the event, and the event itself. Slightly less so with some of the people there who are willing to make very poor trades of their time and opportunities. You'd think we all would've learned from getting picked on in High School...

Halloween ComicFest

If this time of year wasn't good enough, with the candy, the jack-o-lanterns, corn mazes, and The Great Pumpkin, we now have Halloween ComicFest!  Diamond Comic Distributors and the good folks behind the Comic Shop Locator Service teamed with multiple publishers to bring us Halloween ComicFest.  So in addition to dressing up in costume, getting and giving candy, and scaring resident children, we now get free comics. 

On top of that they are hosting the Greatest Costume Contest ever and are giving away over 500 prizes in an online costume contest on their website.  Visit www.halloweencomicfest.com to find a participating store near you and to vote for me as Axe Cop in the Indy category!

Once you find a participating store in your area here are some of the free books that you can get your hands on.  There are four full-size comics and 11 mini-comics for you to try to get a hold of.  My five-year old son is most excited about Cow Boy, Johnny Boo, and Axe Cop.  With a great selection of comics for all ages, this is one event I hope becomes an annual tradition.

Full Size Comics

Batman Adventures/Scooby Doo Flip Book #1 - DC Comics

"Just in time for Halloween, it's a FREE all-ages flip-book comic reprinting classic BATMAN and SCOOBY-DOO tales! In his side of the comic, The Dark Knight meets Gotham City's new vigilante, the Cavalier, and battles the evil of Ra's Al Ghul in stories from BATMAN ADVENTURES #1 and #4. And in the other side, the Mystery Inc. Gang tries to get to the bottom of "The Costume Caper," in a story from SCOOBY-DOO, WHERE ARE YOU? #2" 






Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1 Halloween Edition - IDW

Special reprint of the first issue in the ongoing series. 











Marvel Universe: Avengers and Spider-man - Marvel Comics

"Celebrate Halloween with two thrilling tales featuring everyone's favorite Wall-Crawler and the Earth's Mightiest Heroes! It can't get any better than free Spider-Man and Avengers comics, so don't forget to stop into your local comic shop and pick up a copy!"








Jack Davis' Tales from the Crypt - Fantagraphics

"Heh, heh! Got a real chiller-diller this time fiends! Join me, The Crypt-Keeper, your host of howls, along with Jack Davis and Al Feldstein as we creep our way through four spine-tingling, hair-standing, blood-curdling tales of terror from the vaults of EC Comics! We'll scare you silly! Trick or treat? Treat!!" 








Mini-Comics


Axe Cop Halloween 2012 - Dark Horse

Ghost Busters: Time Scare Halloween 2012 - IDW

"First time in print! A long-dead gangster is terrorizing Times Square, wreaking horrific havoc on a building that once housed a spirited speakeasy. But the place is now a toy store, and when the ghostly gangster starts shooting ectoplasmic bullets at terrified patrons, the Ghosbusters - Egon, Ray, Peter, and Winston - are called in to nab the speakeasy spook! Written by Brian Lynch (Angel, Spike, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) and illustrated Marcelo Mueller (Lady Death, Aliens), Ghostbusters: Time Scare! serves as a hauntingly hilarious gateway into IDW's smash-hit line of Ghostbusters comics" 




Zombie Kids Diaries Halloween 2012 - Antarctic Press

"In the madness of the Zombie Apocalypse, amid the throngs of living dead and terrified victims, the Littlest Zombie roams. He's just an inquisitive chap filled with curiosity about the world on fire around him. Pushed around by his fellow undead (who always get to the brains first), and positively frowned upon by the remaining living citizens, the poor little guy just wants a friend. And maybe something to chew on. Like your face" 






Strawberry Shortcake/Scouts Flipbook - Diamond Publications

"Our 2012 Halloween mini-comic flip-book features 3 short stories! One side features the boys of the Weasel Troop in a SCOUTS! short story, "Meet the Pets". And the flip-side features the stories from our wildly successful STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE comic, "Custard & Cake" and "A Little Kitchen Help"! This sweet treat is sure to please boys, girls, AND their parents!"







 Cow Boy: Hallow's Eve - Archaia
"All y'all step right up for the showdown of their century: Cow Boy vs. Billy the Kid! From the acclaimed team of Nate Cosby (Jim Henson's The Storyteller, Pigs) and Eisner-nominated Chris Eliopoulos (Franklin Richards, Misery Loves Sherman) comes an all-new Cow Boy yarn from Archaia Entertainment, just in time for Halloween, and for free!" 






New Crusaders: Rise of the Heroes - Red Circle Comics

"Red Circle Comics proudly presents the next generation of super heroes: The New Crusaders! From the ashes of the past, a new generation must rise! Get acquainted with the most exciting group of young super heroes that comic books have to offer in this free introduction. Get The New Crusaders!" 








Adventure Time - Kaboom!

"It's ADVENTURE TIME! Join Finn the Human, Jake the Dog, and Princess Bubblegum for all-new adventures through The Land of Ooo. The top-rated Cartoon Network show now has its own comic book! With the show exploding in the ratings, garnering rave online reviews, major cosplay at the San Diego Comic-Con, and huge displays dominating the New York Comic Con, it's clear fandom is obsessed and 2012 is the Year of Adventure Time! Don't miss out on this new phenomenon!"





Spacehawk - Fantagraphics

"Blast off into outer space with Basil Wolverton's weird and otherworldly SPACEHAWK! Two tense and terrific tales of terrible adventure and tumult from comics' Golden Age! You ain't seen nothing like this!"









Ernest and Rebecca: The Haunted House - Papercutz

"Papercutz presents a special Ernest & Rebecca minicomic for Halloween! Rebecca is a vivacious 6 1/2 year-old girl whose best friend happens to be a germ named Ernest. He's not only her best friend- he's also her partner in mischief, adventure companion, and confidant. An inseparable duo, the zany adventures of these two continue to delight in this award-winning series from Papercutz."






Johnny Boo and Harold Tricky Treaters - Top Shelf 

"Johnny Boo is the best little ghost in the world. Don't believe it? Just ask him! What wacky Halloween adventure are he and Squiggle up to now? Plus: meet Harold, the star of Upside Down: A Vampire Tale. He's a friendly vampire kid who loves candy, so trick-or-treating is just about his favorite thing in the world! Tricky Treaters is a blast for all ages: a great introduction to James Kochalka's hit series Johnny Boo and Jess Smart Smiley's delightful debut Upside Down! Grab this free mini-comic and spook yourself silly!"





Little Miss Daredevil: The Incredible Race! - Viz Media

"From Viz Media. Little Miss Daredevil is competing in the Incredible Race, and she's in it to win it! Whether scaling to the top of Mount Dillydale or taking a wrong turn and rocketing into outer space, no thrill's too thrilling for Little Miss D!"