Looking Back on San Diego Comic-Con

After years and years of dreaming about it, I have finally gone to the world's largest and most popular comic book convention--San Diego Comic-Con. I can honestly say Comic-Con was the most overwhelming and insane experiences of my life, but it was also one of the most fun.

Comic-Con, also known as SDCC, was so crazy and tiring that when I got home I was completely worn out and a little shell shocked. In fact, I felt like it took me at least a week to recover from four days of walking, standing in line and being pushed and shoved through a seemingly endless crowd of people. I read that SDCC is massive and that couldn't be more true. Before I went, I read numerous Web sites, blogs and even a book that gave tips on how to survive Comic-Con. I also went over the official schedule numerous times to come up with an itinerary. But nothing could really prepare me. So many events were going on both inside and outside the San Diego Convention Center that it was tough to decide what to pick most of the time.

A Comic-Con sign in downtown San Diego

Even though the size of SDCC didn't surprise me, I was completely amazed seeing it and the large crowd of people in person. When I first arrived in San Diego the Wednesday before Comic-Con (SDCC goes from Thursday to Sunday) I saw so many people who were clearly in town for the event. I could pick out most of them by their comic book or sci-fi related t-shirts and some of them by the plastic poster tubes they had slung over their shoulders. I felt like I was part of something huge, which was a pretty cool feeling. That feeling was made even stronger when I picked up my Comic-Con badge and official swag bag, which I thought was way too huge to carry around but was a nice souvenir. So many people were carrying bags around that first night that it seemed like almost everyone I saw was someone who was attending Comic-Con.

When I first went into the San Diego Convention Center's Exhibition Hall on the first morning of Comic-Con I felt right at home. The Exhibition Hall, where booths are set up for comic book stores and distributors, toy companies and major entertainment studios, is the heart of Comic-Con. The Exhibition Hall at SDCC reminded me a lot of the hall at Baltimore Comic-Con, which I've attended for the last three years. It didn't take long for me to realize that the hall at SDCC is not only much larger than the one at Baltimore Comic-Con but it is more commercial. My brother (who I went to Comic-Con with) and I saw a few smaller comic store booths but the first major booth we came across was the DC Comics booth, where a demonstration was going on for the upcoming video game "Injustice: Gods Among Us." None other than Ed Boon, co-creator of the "Mortal Kombat" video game series, was showing off some characters and fighting moves in the game. (On a side note, I was so excited to see Nightwing, my favorite DC Comics character, is going to be a playable character in the game.) I didn't expect to see something that awesome going on so early in the day.

The top of the Castle Grayskull area of the Mattel booth

I went on to see booths for Sony, Warner Brothers, Lionsgate and a lot of other major companies. I spent a lot of time at the Mattel booth, which was especially cool. Part of it was designed like Castle Grayskull from "He-Man and the Masters of the Universe" in celebration of the franchise's 30th anniversary. The booth showed off all of the figures from the Masters of the Universe Classics line of action figures, which I collect. The Marvel Studios booth had a really impressive set up that displayed all of the suits from the "Iron Man" films. Before I went to Comic-Con, I created a list of all of the booths I wanted to see and I really only got a good look at about half. Part of the reason was that I didn't give myself enough time in the Exhibition Hall. But the main reason was that the Exhibition Hall got so crowded on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. People were walking in every direction and a lot of people were lined up for various exhibits and autograph signings that it was tough and confusing to work through the crowd. Unfortunately, I also didn't get to buy a lot of collectibles because I had to fly home and it would have been a lot of trouble to carry it all home.

Cosplayers as He-Man and Superman

Another site at Comic-con was the people in costume, known as cosplayers. Although Baltimore Comic-Con has its share of cosplayers, there was definitely a larger percentage of people in costume at San Diego Comic Con. I also saw a wider variety of costumes and many extremely well done. Of course there were some costumes that weren't so well done, like one guy who simply wore a pair of underwear and a tank top (at least I assume that was supposed to be a costume.) Some of the best cosplayers were people who were working at the booths but there were plenty of attendees who looked just as good. I did my best to get as many photos of cosplayers as I could. In some cases, it was difficult to compete with other people taking pictures because too many people would be crowded around a particularly impressive group of cosplayers and the cosplayers would move on before I could get to them. People taking pictures of cosplayers was another reason the Exhibit Hall was so tough to maneuver. I read on several sites that the polite thing to do is to pull the person aside so you aren't blocking a major path, but unfortunately a lot of people didn't know or care that they were holding up the flow of traffic.

One of the main draws of Comic-Con, especially for people who aren't as much into comic books, is the panels. San Diego Comic-Cons panels are famous for having major celebrities, directors and other personalities from television and movies. I made it to quite a few panels, but nowhere near as many as I would have liked to attend or even that I hoped to attend. There were a lot of panels that sounded interesting but a majority of them conflicted with another panel or something else I wanted to do. The itinerary I created before I left for Comic-Con mostly consisted of panels, with the ones I definitely did not want to miss getting top priority. Two things I didn't fully consider  while I was going over the schedule are: (1) it takes time to get from one part of the convention center to the other and (2) many of the panels, not just those for major movies and television shows, have long lines. The San Diego Convention Center is fairly large, but it isn't too difficult to navigate if you know the layout well. Even though I tried to study the layout online, I didn't really get a feel for it until I actually saw the inside of the convention center. But even knowing the layout like the back of your hand doesn't help get around quickly when there are thousands of people in your way. Also, the two rooms where the most popular panels were held--Hall H and Ballroom 20--had lines so long that people who didn't make it in when the rooms first opened or get in line early in the morning had to wait hours to get in, if they made it in at all. 

The beginning of the dreaded Hall H line

I made it to a few panels on Thursday, including the panel for Filmation (the company that produced "He-man" and other cartoons), "The Walking Dead" comic book, DC Collectibles and the television show "Nikita," but I missed one on the Batman comics that I really wanted to see. That day I learned that some of the people working at the convention center didn't always know what they were talking about. The panel for "The Walking Dead" comic had a long line and numerous people told me I wouldn't make it into the room but I waited around to see what would happen and ended up making it end. Unfortunately that wasn't as true for a lot of the other popular panels.

I got in line for Ballroom 20 at 7:30 a.m. on Friday morning in an attempt to see the panel for the show "Community," but by the time I got there the line was probably at least a mile long. The panel for the 10th anniversary of the show "Firefly" was a couple panels after "Community" and everyone who wanted to see that panel camped out or got in line early even though that panel wasn't until 12:30 p.m., so most of the people at the first two panels of the day were really just waiting on the "Firefly" panel. The panel for the show "The Big Bang Theory" was held in Hall H at 12:05 p.m. but that line was even longer than the Ballroom 20 line so I knew I wasn't going to make that. I also missed "The Walking Dead" television show panel. But I was determined to see the panel for the movie "Resident Evil: Retribution," so I got in line for Hall H at about 1:30 p.m. and didn't make it in the room until 4:30 p.m. Luckily I made it in time to see most of the "Resident Evil" panel. While the panels were pretty cool, I was surprised at the size of Hall H and Ballroom 20. Unless you have a really close seat, you can barely see the panelists.

The "Supernatural" panel

The two panels that were my top priorities were the panel for the shows "True Blood" and "Supernatural," which were on Saturday in Ballroom 20 and Sunday in Hall H, respectively. I got up at about 4 a.m.--something I wasn't sure was even possibly--and got in line at about 5 a.m., but I was successful both days in getting in the rooms first thing. However, the lines were longer than anything I'd ever seen in my life! The lines went up one street, down a different street and wrapped up and down another street. I heard someone say that the line for Hall H on Sunday had 10,000 people in it at one point. On Saturday I spent most of the day in Ballroom 20 waiting on the "True Blood" panel, so I didn't get into the Exhibition Hall until late in the day. From what I've heard, Saturday is the busiest and best day to be on the exhibition floor so it was unfortunate to have to choose between that and the panels but the "True Blood" panel was something I had to see.

Jeff Bakalar and Justin Yu from "The 404"

Comic-Con had even more events going on outside of the convention center. A lot of bars, restaurants and clubs had Comic-Con parties and events. For instance, one restaurant was set up like a forest from the show "Grimm" and the Petco Park stadium had a "Walking Dead" zombie obstacle course. Unfortunately I didn't get a chance to go to those events. The one event outside of the convention center that I did get to attend was a meet up for a CNET podcast called "The 404," which ended up being one of my most memorable experiences from Comic-Con. I got a chance to meet "404" hosts Justin Yu and Jeff Bakalar, who were the nicest guys. It's one thing to see people who you are a fan of from afar or get to talk to them for a few minutes, but it's another to get a chance to have a conversation with them and get to know them a little.

I'll admit there were several times during Comic-Con when I felt like I had enough and thought there was no way I would ever go to another SDCC again. Most of those times were when I had been waiting in line for hours, my legs were sore from walking or I felt like I couldn't get from one place to another because I was tightly packed in a crowd of people. But, despite the number of times I cursed humanity, I am glad I went to Comic-Con because I had the experience so I will no longer sit home watching the coverage on television and wondering what it would be like to be there. I also got to meet and chat with a lot of very cool people, many of whom I met while waiting in various lines. However, I eventually realized that San Diego Comic-Con is something that you have to attend more than once before you really get used to it and have the knowledge and experience to handle it and get the most of it. If I go again, I wouldn't plan on going to as many panels as I attempted to attend this year and I would spend more time on the exhibition floor on Thursday. I would also try to get admission to preview night, which allows people to walk the exhibition floor for a couple hours on the Wednesday night before Comic-Con. I would also take advantage of more of the events taking place outside the convention center.  The main thing to know about Comic-Con is that it offers a lot of possibilities and is an experience that can ultimately be whatever you make of it.

"Dark Knight Rises" Over the Top

I must start out by saying "The Dark Knight Rises" is an amazing film. In fact, it's the best film I've seen in the theater this year. Not only does it live up to the first two films in Christopher Nolan's Batman film trilogy, but it also exceeds them in some ways.

"The Dark Knight Rises" takes the best of "Batman Begins" and "The Dark Knight" and rolls them up in one over-the-top package, serving as a very fitting conclusion to the series. It has a madman villain and a massive scale plot to take down Gotham City. Then again, what good Batman story doesn't have those things.

Picking up eight years after the events of "The Dark Knight," the film sees most of Gotham's citizens remembering Harvey "Two Face" Dent as a hero and believing Batman to have killed him. Bruce Wayne, played by Christian Bale, reluctantly returns from a self-imposed exile from society after a terrorist named Bane stages attacks in the city.

In "The Dark Knight Rises," Nolan once again does a masterful job of mixing together themes and events from the Batman comics in a more realistic setting. The film draws from some well known story arcs, especially Knightfall--the arc that introduces Bane to the comic--and Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns--an alternate world story where an older Bruce Wayne returns from retirement.

"The Dark Knight Rises" is a pretty fast paced film. It has a complex story and plenty of action so, while it does feel like a long film, it's the type of film that makes you want it to keep going. (Unless of course you drank too much soda and really need to use the restroom.)

However, even though I did love "The Dark Knight Rises," I don't think it is as good as the previous film. "The Dark Knight" is such an excellent film on so many levels that it is very difficult to top. Heath Ledger's chilling and disturbing portrayal of the Joker mixed with the right amount of humor in "The Dark Knight" is perfection. Of course, there is a reason why the Joker is considered to be not only one of Batman's greatest foes, but also one of the greatest comic book villains of all time.

"The Dark Knight Rises" focuses more on Bruce and his personal struggles than it does on his alter ego so the film doesn't include as many scenes of him in the cape and cowl than I expected. The film also doesn't feature as much of the character Selina Kyle--better known as Catwoman in the comic--as I hoped for. Selina's back story is hinted at as being similar to that of the comic book version but isn't explained in any real detail. In the film, Selina is a cat burglar and con artist who gets wrapped up in Bane's plot.

Speaking of Catwoman, a lot of people questioned whether actress Anne Hathaway could pull off the role of Selina Kyle. I'll admit Hathaway wouldn't have been my first choice, but I think she is a phenomenal actress and I trust Nolan's casting choices. Many, including me, thought the same about Heath Ledger and of course he proved everyone wrong. I'm used to thinking of Hathaway as the "nice girl" in movies but she completely captures Selina's sultry, sarcastic attitude and toughness. She doesn't go as over the top with the sexuality (nope, she doesn't brandish a whip) or affinity for cats as most previous portrayals such as the 1960s "Batman" television series and the recent "Batman: Arkham City" video game.

Julie Newmar's Catwoman costume

I also have to take a moment to discuss the costume. To me, it appears as if the Catwoman costume is mostly inspired by the one made famous in the 1960s series by Julie Newmar. I think the costume used in the current comics looks realistic enough to be used in the film. Actually the costume in the film seems to incorporate elements from different Catwoman costumes, including the goggles from the current comic costume. I think the thigh high boots with the six inch heels are a bit much, even though it turns out they do have a pretty cool use.

Tom Hardy also does an amazing job embodying the character Bane, even if he doesn't provide as chilling or compelling a villain as Ledger's Joker. The film mixed parts of Bane's back story with its larger, overall plot and made Bane as imposing intellectually as he is physically.

It goes without saying but I'll mention anyway that Bale, Michael Caine, Gary Oldman and Morgan Freeman all repeat their stellar performances from the first two films as Bruce Wayne, Wayne's butler and closest confidant Alfred Pennyworth, lawman Commissioner Jim Gordon and Wayne's second closest ally Lucius Fox.

Many of the film's events and plot twists are predictable, especially if you are familiar with the Batman comic story lines. While predictability might be a major flaw in some other movies, it works in the favor of this film because it adds to the excitement. When I was watching the movie, there were a few points where I was anxiously anticipating certain events that I knew were coming. In every instance the film provides a more than satisfying pay off. 

From this point on I'm going to discuss a few last thoughts involving some specific plot details from the film so here is the obligatory spoiler alert.

I'm somewhat of a purist so I like a film to stay as close to the original material as possible. I don't mind some deviation, especially when the translation is a different take on the original book or comic as is the case with the Nolan Batman films. 

I think Nolan did a great job adding some small nods to the comic in the films but I have to mention the whole Robin thing. Only because I am a major Nightwing/Dick Grayson fan, I would have so much loved if it turned out that Joseph Gordon Levitt's character John Blake's birth name was Richard Grayson. If that happened, my head might have actually exploded. I know that is too much to ask for because it wouldn't necessarily make sense for the character to have changed his name but I couldn't help hoping for that the entire time I was watching the movie. 

Throughout the film, it is strongly foreshadowed that Blake would eventually take over for Bruce Wayne. I realize that his characterization and background--being an orphan and a cop and figuring out Batman's secret identity--is an amalgamation of the various Robins from the comic, namely Grayson, Jason Todd and Tim Drake. So in the end, when we find out that John Blake isn't his birth name I was just waiting to hear "Richard" or "Grayson" or something. Hearing his real first name was Robin is a decent nod to the comic but I wish they took it one step further and used one of the names from the comic.

Speaking of supposedly original characters, the fact that Marion Cotillard's character Miranda Tate turned out to be Talia Al Ghul was the worst kept secret in recent movies. Despite all the denials from Nolan and Cotillard, everyone knew. The only problem I have is that "Miranda" was suddenly in a League of Shadows (or League of Assassins in the comic) style outfit before the reveal, which made it even more obvious. But I'm just glad it turned out to be true because it was the perfect way to bring the story back to Ra's Al Ghul's plot to destroy Gotham from "Batman Begins."

I think the ending tied up the trilogy in a very fitting way while leaving the story open, which illustrates how life goes on and the war on crime is never ending. I do like that Bruce faked his death and ended up with Selina. I always liked her better as a love interest for Bruce than I did Talia. And whether Robin ends up using the name Nightwing or becomes Batman or just uses his own name isn't important. It's enough to know the he is taking up the mantle and that the story goes on even if this film series is over. 

Next Stop: Comic-Con!

In just a day from now I'll be living a personal dream of mine: attending San Diego Comic-Con!

I can't believe, after years of just watching coverage on TV, I'll finally be in the San Diego Convention Center for the largest comic book convention in the world. For some, attending San Diego Comic-Con, or SDCC, is not a big deal at all. Some people go every year and have done so for many years, or decades even. I'm sure they still get excited about SDCC and look forward to it.

Attending SDCC this year is a big deal for me because I've wanted to go for years but the circumstances were never right. Either I didn't have the money or I didn't have the vacation time. But last year I became determined to make 2012 the year.

SDCC has so much to see and do that there is something almost anyone, or least anyone who's a fan of anything pop culture related. I am a fan of many supernatural themed shows (including "Supernatural"), science fiction and fantasy movies, action figures and comic books (yep, SDCC still does involve those). I know I'll only experience a small fraction of all there is to do.

In preparation, I've spent the past couple of weeks reading tips and survival guides, looking over the SDCC schedule and making an itinerary. Yep (for anyone who doesn't know), it's that serious. I've been to Baltimore Comic-Con, so I have a slight idea of what's in store, but I'm sure it will far surpass any expectations I have. Stan Lee is the biggest celebrity that I know of to appear at Baltimore Comic-Con, and that was just last year.

I could spend my entire time just going to the panels. The two main panels I want to see are the ones for "True Blood" and the aforementioned "Supernatural." But I also recently discovered there will be panels for other shows I watch including "Community," "The Walking Dead" and "The Big Bang Theory" (which I just recently started watching) and the film "Resident Evil: Retribution." Most people who know me know I am obsessed with the Resident Evil" movies. I also want to go to panels for DC Comics and "The Walking Dead" comic. They even have panels for writers and artists that I would also love to attend.

One thing I don't look forward to are the lines. From what I've read I'll spend most of my time in long lines. But I guess you have to take the good with the bad. I will definitely report back on experience. Hopefully I won't come back with the nerd flu, which apparently is a thing.

"Spider-man" is Indeed Amazing

Many people were left scratching their heads when Marvel Entertainment and Columbia Pictures announced a couple years ago that they were rebooting their Spider-Man film franchise.

Considering it's only been five years since the release of the last film in the original trilogy, the obvious question was whether or not we really needed the series restarted so soon. While the quality of 2007's "Spider-Man 3" screams "Yes," the quality of "The Amazing Spider-Man" gives a resounding "eh, maybe."

Don't take that to mean "The Amazing Spider-Man" is a so-so film. Actually, the movie is (pun intended) amazing. The story, the acting and the special effects are all incredibly well done.

Andrew Garfield as Spider-Man. Image credit: Sony Pictures

The one problem is the film, which sees Andrew Garfield donning the iconic skin tight red and blue suit, is a little too reminiscent of the 2002 "Spider-Man" that starred Tobey Maguire. Both movies show the origin story of Marvel Comic's popular web-slinger Peter Parker a.k.a. Spider-Man, including his life as a nerdy high school kid living with his aunt and uncle, being bitten by a genetically engineered spider and becoming a super-powered costumed vigilante. Both also include a love story between Peter and a female character from the comics. 

"The Amazing Spider-Man" does deviate from the original film in a few important ways. The most notable is that the new movie focuses more on Peter searching for answer's about his dead parents and the secrets his father, scientist Richard Parker, kept before his death. In this version of the story, Peter discovers his father worked on genetic experimentation at the large company, Oscorp.   

Another big difference is the film's love interest is Gwen Stacy--a character more well-known to fans of the comics--rather than Spidey's traditionally known girlfriend Mary Jane Watson. (Fans of the comics also know that Peter dated Gwen before he met Mary Jane.) In addition, the villain is the Lizard, not the most famous Spider-Man adversary, the Green Goblin.

The casting has its ups and downs. Garfield is a convincing Peter Parker, capturing his awkwardness and bringing a little more humor and personality to his Spider-Man persona than the character had in the 2002 film. Emma Stone, who played Gwen, sparkles on screen as always, but I originally thought she would have been more suited to play Mary Jane. Stone excels at playing down-to-Earth, quirky and smart women like Mary Jane. However, in the film, Gwen has all of these same characteristics so all of Stone's talents are put to good use. Garfield and Stone have a natural chemistry on screen that makes the hot girl falling for the school nerd very believable.

Veteran actors Martin Sheen and Sally Field pulled off the roles of Peter's Uncle Ben and Aunt May flawlessly, but didn't quite match the performances of Cliff Robertson and Rosemary Harris, who made the roles their own in the 2002 film.

As a movie itself, "The Amazing Spider-Man" gives the audience plenty of action along with an engaging story. It does leave a few questions unanswered, but those will undoubtedly be addressed in the sequels.  It is definitely a must see for Spider-Man fans, but unfortunately it doesn't veer far enough from the formula of the original.