There were always crowds and lines… But I had a blast: the fans, the cosplay, the panels, the artists, the dealers, the off-site experiences. It was all great. And as usual, there was so much to see an do, I didn’t have time to do half the things I wanted to. Which is a good thing.
Starting with the off-site experiences… THE LODGE FROM PARAMOUNT+, had it all. You could design your own free Star Trek tee-shirt, have pizza with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, belly-up to the Tulsa King bar for a couple of free drinks, alcoholic or nonalcoholic…
At HULU’s ANIMAYHEM FACTORY, , there were fantastic photo opportunities to be had, You could have eaten a free green donut with Homer Simpson. Played games and won prizes. You could have tried Slurm with the Futurama Crew, And left with free Futurama pins and a swag-bag that looked like a cartoon fanny-pack.
Over at FX, You could visit the restaurant from The Bear and left with a replica of the apron from the Emmy Award Winning show, You could take a ride in the scary Hell-evator. Visited the Vampire residence from What We Do In The Shadows, and Paddy’s Pub from It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia… THE PLANET OF THE APES EXPERIENCE wasn’t monkeying around either, with info on that franchise and multiple photo opportunities.
THE PANELS were numerous and informative, and sometimes extravagant. THE BOYS panel started off with a live musical performance, by Broadway professionals, that ended with a Rap from the character, A-Train. IMG_0582
The FANTASTIC 4 panel introduced the new cast, and had a life-sized Fantasti-car fly into Hall H.
It actually SNOWED during THE DOCTOR WHO panel… Surprising the actors on the panel, and the fans. As this was the supernatural event that occurred often in their new season.
THE MARVEL panel started off with a choir of Deadpools singing, while alternate versions of Deadpool danced down the aisles.
And not to be outdone; THE RINGS OF POWER panel started off with a rousing drum performance. IMG_0652
Then an Ork showed up, and one of the actors sung in elfish. IMG_0719
The THUNDERBOLTS/ CAPTAIN AMERICA panel kicked off with David Harbour in full costume, and Harrison Ford doing a Red Hulk impression.
The ALIEN ROMULUS panel had face-huggers scurrying around looking for victims, and everyone in Hall H got to take one home as a pet.
And of course the show stopper was when THE AVENGERS panel ended with a stage full of masked Doctor Dooms, and one unmasked revealing his identity. It was Robert Downy Jr., as he will now be playing Doctor Doom in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Six thousand people in Hall H lost their minds….
But they were also farewell panels for SUPERMAN & LOIS, and WHAT WE DO IN THE SHADOWS. As well as STAR TREK panels, a PERCY JACKSON panel. And so many more… (And at the FOX animation panel they gave a, picked-at-random, fan a $3,000. Check)
So… Did I enjoy San Diego Comic-Con 2024? Yes I did. And if you want to go next year, check this out….
Next year…San Diego Comic-Con 2025 will take place from Thursday, July 24 through Sunday, July 27, 2025, with Preview Night on Wednesday, July 23rd.
BUT…..
This year’s attendees will have their first chance to secure badges on Saturday, September 21, 2024, less than two months from now, during Returning Registration.
Open Registration, available to anyone and everyone, will follow on Saturday, October 26, 2024.