2007 saw a record crowd for the three-day WonderCon (in its twenty-second year) held in San Francisco, California. Judging by Saturday’s crowd, 2008 looks to attract more than the 20,000 who attended last year’s comic book fest.
Long-time attendee J. Michael Straczynski was on hand to discuss how busy he has been the past year. He wrote a few screenplays currently in various stages of production, including one directed by Clint Eastwood (The Changeling) and the other being World War Z, in addition to his constant comic book writing.
This is the first Straczynski panel I’ve been to, despite my many years going to WonderCon, and he seems very friendly and approachable. He also has a pretty devout fanbase.
My first exposure to Straczynski’s work was Babylon 5, so I didn’t know the full extent of his comic book work. There were, of course, B5 questions including whether there will be more Lost Tales DVD installments, thanks to the astronomic sales of the The Lost Tales DVD (i.e. “more than three”). Many more questions were geared toward his other works, including The Twelve.
He talked about many things, including telling several stories (like how he started a chant — the police would call it a mob chant — after his hotel was evacuated in the middle of the night while he was attending WonderCon 2006). He talked about how he is no longer exclusive to Marvel, how he is starting his own production company, how he is a friend of Brad Pitt, and why he never sits down during his presentations. Go ahead - ask him why.
My favorite line during the presentation (about Supreme Power): “I swallowed. I sucked.”
The convention wouldn’t be WonderCon without showcasing a big science fiction movie. While not the big budget affair of 10,000 B.C., the second sequel to Paul Verhoeven’s satire Starship Troopers was a big draw. The convention people probably should have given them a bigger room. Writer/director Ed Neumeier (Robocop), star Casper Van Dien, and (unmentioned in any of the program books) Jolene Blalock (Enterprise) made up the panel.
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