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So it starts. I have to confess, this is my first Comic-Con. Back in the day, I would go to a proto-Comic-Con called WindyCon here in Chicago. But I’m sure there are few if any comparisions I can make between the two (except maybe for the presence of otherworldly weaponry, cos-play, filks, and fantasy artwork). So maybe I’m not such a newbie, after all, except for the sheer scope of San Diego Comic-Con International (SDCC for short).
SDCC week has gotten off to a very sobering start. Yesterday, a fan hoping to get in line for a Thursday Twilight fan panel was struck and killed by a car after trying to cross the street against the light. It’s a tragic way to begin a week that will be characterized by star-gazing (as in Hollywood stars), swag, partying, and hob(bit)-nobbing. We are told that she will be remembered at the Thursday panel.
As for me, armed with press credentials and an overflowing schedule, I look forward to a week of interviews, press roundtables with several TV series and film casts, a couple of parties, taking in some of the smaller (okay, and maybe a mega) panels, and just enjoying the hundreds of exhibits that line the convention center and sprawl outside it and into the surrounding parks.
I’ve been warned about crowds, about holding onto my precious badge, about making sure I have with me a small bottle of anti-bacterial gel, about long lines, and all sorts of other things listed in every Comic-Con survival guide on the Internet (all of which I’ve dutifully read. Twice).
I will be filing stories and reports from the field all during Comic-Con 2012, including interviews with Jane Espenson, Branded director James Bradshaw, the cast of the new Tron animated series, and the casts of Once Upon a Time, Psych, and others. So hold on to your light sabers and wands, and stay tuned for Blogcritics’s ongoing Comic-Con 2012 coverage.
