Another San Diego Comic Con has come and gone, possibly my favorite one in a long time. There were plenty of sights to see, events to visit, and panels to sit in on. It’s impossible for any one person to see every panel going on at a convention, especially one this big with so many days and things to talk about. I was lucky enough to see a handful of panels and events so I can share them with you, dear reader. Let’s get to it.
Before there were panels or events, Warner Bros was nice enough to allow me to use their two-story booth space to take photos from on high. So through this you’ll see the convention from a point of view that not enough folks get a chance to see, it gives the convention a new perspective, literally and figuratively.
My Hero Academia has been a favorite series in recent memory and this Comic Con had the pleasure of welcoming its creator, Kohei Horikoshi for his first visit to the United States as a guest. No photos were allowed during the panel as he appeared unmasked, a common thing for mangaka to do in Japan is keep their privacy through the use of masks, so he could look upon his American fans who cheered him on with a standing ovation. The panel was mostly an interview conducted by Viz Media through their own questions with such examples as who is your favorite American superhero? Horikoshi chose Spider-Man while the American dub voice actors for All-Might (Chris Sabat) and Izuku Midoriya (Justin Briner) chose Batman. Having the American voice actors there was also a delight since their own dynamic mimics that of the characters they voice. They also showed off the trailer for the upcoming My Hero Academia movie and for the release of the spin-off manga, Vigilantes. Being a huge fan, it was also nice that audience members were given one of the best con swag you can get in the heat of summer, a paper fan, there was also a head band and movie poster given out. It feels like with the series growing popularity, the line outside was over 1000 people long with hundreds more being turned away, maybe next year they’ll have to upgrade to Ballroom 20 or Hall H, even. Wherever the panel ends up, I hope I get to be there again.
Marvel had two panels that intrigued me, their Spider-Man and X-Men panels. Each showed off upcoming events and stories to look forward to. Spider-Gwen will be getting a new series by novelist, Seanan McGuire with the new name of Ghost Spider. Venom is getting a gaggle of new books with Ve’Nam being the one to intrigue me the most thanks to word play and being about super soldier attempts with symbiotes in the Vietnam War. X-Men will be having Wolverine return as well as a set of books highlighting the X-Villains, Mystiques being described as Sophie Devereaux the grifter from Leverage with shape-shifting powers, from writer Seanan McGuire. Another Spider-event is occurring with Spider-Geddon similar to Spider-Verse where a massive gathering of Spider-folks from all sorts of universes must unite to fight evil.
For years many have wondered when DC Comics would make their Marvel Unlimited equivalent, a service that lets subscribers read their massive back catalog of comics as well as newer fare. Well, they finally have their response, DC Universe, and it is ambitious. Not only will you have the back issues at your finger tips, you’ll also get many of DC’s TV and film outings like the Tim Burton Batman films, Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, and the Christopher Reeve Superman movies, to name a few. They will also be bringing new shows like the welcomed return of Young Justice with a third season and new live action shows like Titans, Doom Patrol, and Swamp Thing. They had a massive segment just outside the convention center dedicated to interactive exhibits to show off the vibes of the shows they had. There were also props from the movies and shows from over the years on display from the new and old series. You could also get some smoking “dragon’s breath” kettle corn with your choice of sweet flavors thanks to the laboratories available from Doom Patrol.
There you have it! San Diego Comic Con offers so much but a single person can only do so much with so little time. The five days of the convention go by in a blur and before you know, it is over and you are back at work, waiting for next year while recovering from this year. Join me next time as we discuss the video games of San Diego Comic Con 2o18, see you next time!
Dr. Bustos
drbustos@comicattack.net
