While the new and current are understandably in vogue, Comic Con does do a good job of honoring the old-timers. Aside from the old Marvel Guys, Friday saw 25th Anniversary looks at both the Hernandez Brothers Love and Rockets and Dave Stevens The Rocketeer. Spotlights were also placed on Allen Bellman, who started drawing backgrounds for Captain America in the 1940s, George Gladir, Archie Comics writer for almost 50 years, and Mel Keefer, who worked on newspaper syndicated comic strips.
With so much to see, there’s only so much one man can cover. Fellow Snob Tio Esquelto reported in from the Dimension Films: Halloween and The Mist panels. Director Rob Zombie came off as if he didn’t want to be there. Certainly not a great way to sell a film about to released in a few weeks and may speak to his thoughts about the end result of the project. During The Mist, a young man asked Thomas Jane if he wanted to discuss his departure from The Punisher franchise. He responded, “No.”
I attended The Jim Henson Company panel and they had a lot of projects of interest. Fans of Farscape, Fraggle Rock, and Dark Crystal all have something to look forward to. My favorite was a hysterical project called Tinseltown about a gay couple, a pig named Bobby and a goat named Samson, living and working in Hollywood. Everyone else in the show is a real person. A pilot is being created for Logo, a gay-themed channel, but I don’t see why they should restrict or limit their potential audience. It was so funny it could work on networks or cable channels with a larger audience.
Skrumps, a digital show based on a toyline, appears at Yahoo! Kids. While the characters aren’t visually interesting, the technology behind it is fascinating. They perform puppetry combined with motion capture to create real-time visuals on screen. This allows for live interaction and improvisation in the performance. The Henson gang’s improv skills are also on display in Puppet Up! Uncensored, a live sketch show that currently plays in Hollywood. You can watch the puppets on the monitor or the performers on stage.
The showroom remained just as busy as Thursday. The sea change in celebrity status was on display as Oka from Heroes had a couple of bodyguards while John de Lancie, who played Q in the Star Trek franchise, wandered alone and unnoticed. The channel G4 was broadcasting from the show floor, getting the crowd to cheer into and back from breaks. I had to meet friends for dinner so I was disappointed to miss special effects legend Ray Harryhausen provide a live commentary to 20 Million Miles to Earth in honor of its 50th Anniversary.
Article comments
1 - Glen Boyd
Sounds like geek heaven Bicho. Glad to hear that you had fun though.
-Glen
2 - El Bicho
Glen, I have fun wherever I go.
3 - Deano
Man, I loved Rocket Robin Hood growing up! That theme song is now stuck in my head for the rest of the day....