Last weekend, I finally experienced San Diego Comic Con, thanks to the boyfriend who scored tickets for Saturday and Sunday just a couple weeks before. I've always been a bit wary of how crowded and crazy the con is from everything I've heard about it, but of course I was eager to see for myself just how crazy it is. It was a blast.
When I was planning for what to try and see, I ruled out all the major panels - the ones where people line up and sleep overnight outside to try and get into - and opted for the smaller (mostly Star Trek related) ones that I was hoping wouldn't be too hard to get into. So in that respect the con was a big success because we got to see all those panels.
For the Trek panels I saw:
Star Trek: The Roddenberry Vault - where they showed some old newly discovered footage of filming for TOS. Which they are releasing as a documentary sometime soon. It looks like it will be a lot of fun, and I am looking forward to buying a copy!
Star Trek: Designing and Filming Starships - This was later in the day, so I was feeling a bit tired, so I don't actually remember too much of this one, haha. The title says it all though, the talked about the design of the starships, and showed some pictures of what it was like to film them. It was interesting to see how they shot the model ships to make it look like it was flying through space. The real draw to seeing this panel though was getting a free model starship - everyone who got into the panel got a random one. We got a Ferengi Marauder and a Klingon Bird of Prey. Oh well, not the Enterprise, but it was cool that they were giving them out for free!
Trek Talks: Star Trek and NASA Boldly Go - I really enjoyed this talk - it was moderated by Robert Picardo (the Doctor in Voyager) and featured an astronaut, and scientists working with NASA. They talked about the impact of Star Trek and how the show has inspired them, and on how technology seen in Trek, is being realized today.
For the most part, if we weren't waiting for or watching a panel, we wandered around the exhibit hall - where there were many booths set up selling awesome nerdy things, or the TV/Film studios advertising their recent or upcoming offerings. I particularly enjoyed seeing Magneto hovering above us at the Fox X-Men Booth--
For bookish things, unfortunately I didn't do much. I would have loved to see Sarah J. Maas, but getting tickets to the author signings was a bit of a pain, and standing in line was not really how I wanted to spend a good part of my first time at Comic Con. I know there were some freebies at certain times at the publishers' booths, but I didn't make time to rush over there. Passing through though, I did catch Marissa Meyer signing books, and also Tahereh Mafi, although I didn't snap a photo. The exhibit hall could get really crowded at times, so it was hard to maneuver around. There was one time when we were stopped because a path was being cleared for the Suicide Squad cast to exit, and I missed out on seeing Will Smith pass by (I wasn't tall enough!). Sadness.
Sunday I had heard from my friend that getting into Hall H for the first panel of the morning wouldn't be as crazy as the previous days, and there was a good chance I could just walk in, so I decided to do that since the first panel was for Sherlock, and I was so happy that I did get in. I was all theyway in the back, so it was mostly looking at the big screen, but it was fantastic to be in the same room as these actors and creators of Sherlock. And with so many fans of the show. They also showed a teaser trailer for season 4 which just gave me chills. Sherlock has to be the best show on TV. When it's on... which isn't often enough.
Here are some pictures of the screen, because I could not get good photos of the cast. :)
Some highlights of the panel was Benedict doing a Trump impression (disturbingly accurate) Moffat saying he's not the one blocking the Sherlock/Doctor Who crossover - seems like Gatiss is against it - Moffat and his wife Sue Vertue arguing over whether they need to change Sherlock's coat. Moffat is against it, the fans in Hall H were against it, but Sue and Benedict (it gets hot for him wearing it) were for it. (I'm against it LOL) Amanda Abbington was there too, and she and Benedict talked about how difficult it was working with the bloodhound that shows up in the next series. The bloodhound apparently didn't want to move.
The last panel we hit up was Anything Goes with John Barrowman, which was just John taking questions, telling stories, singing a bit, and being incredibly charming and hilarious. I've never seen John in this kind of setting, and he was a joy to watch. So much energy, and just a great vibe of being happy to be there, talking to us. It was a fabulous end to the con for me. Because then we had to jump in the car and make the drive home, to try and get some sleep before work the next day!
Overall, SDCC was a lot of fun. I think I experienced a small percentage of what it could be, because of the focus on the smaller panels, on not trying to do everything, and also because I was there about two days. But seeing the enthusiasm for fandom, and the awesome costumes, and the general love for nerdy pursuits made me want to come back again next year. Despite the crowds. Hopefully I will!
Another highlight of the trip for me was catching so many pokemon in San Diego. Specifically water pokemon which doesn't come around a lot in Los Angeles. And seeing how many people dressed up as Ash or Misty or pokestops was hilarious. I especially loved seeing the pokestops since that was unexpected!
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