Comic-Con 2011

I am fascinated by all things Comic-Con, or any other gathering of this type. It's on my list of Must-Do, to attend it one of these years...this thread will be a collection of the fun stories I see reported on it - feel free to add your own!

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/c ... ted-212755
Comic-Con: TV's 6 Most Wanted Women
7:08 PM 7/19/2011 by Lacey Rose

One's returning to TV, another is switching shows and they all have a lot to say about fight scenes, Twitter and going incognito at the annual convention.

Fans of Sarah Michelle Gellar may be surprised to hear that they could find themselves sitting next to her in ballroom 20. The last time the former Buffy the Vampire Slayer star attended Comic-Con, she did so in costume.

That's one of many revelations to come out of our June 24 conversation with Gellar (the CW's suspense thriller Ringer), Jennifer Morrison (ABC's fairy tale drama Once Upon a Time), Britt Robertson (the CW's supernatural series The Secret Circle), Yvonne Strahovski (NBC's Chuck), Maggie Q (the CW's Nikita) and Anna Torv (Fox's Fringe).

After the actresses posed for what can only be described as a fanboy's fantasy, they gathered at the Montage Hotel to discuss the demands of the TV business, the advantages (and disadvantages) of genre TV and the keys to surviving Comic-Con in a no-holds-barred conversation moderated by THR's Lacey Rose and Borys Kit.

PHOTOS: Behind the Scenes of THR's Women of Comic-Con Photo Shoot


http://tv.ign.com/articles/118/1182407p1.html
Comic-Con: Exclusive Images of South Park's Fan Experience
South Park fans attending San Diego Comic-Con won't want to miss the South Park Year of the Fan Experience,
July 18, 2011

If you're a South Park fan and will be attending San Diego Comic-Con, then you won't want to miss the South Park Year of the Fan Experience. Located near the San Diego Convention Center at 450 2nd Avenue (at 1st Ave. & J St.), this 15,000 square foot attraction will begin with a South Park themed parade at 12:30pm on Thursday, July 21st at 5th Ave. and K St., followed by the venue opening at 1:00pm – and running through Saturday, July 23rd. Fans can participate in a costume contest which will take place on Saturday, July 23 in the afternoon. The best character costumes will win a Kid Robot Mysterion figurine signed by Matt Stone and Trey Parker.

IGN has some exclusive images we can share, giving you a glimpse at some of what to expect from the South Park Year of the Fan Experience when it is completed later this week. Let's start with an overview of the entire Experience...

Visitors to the Experience can participate in a Big Wheel race around a 60 ft. track. Each Big Wheel and matching helmet represents one of the iconic boys. Winners of each race will receive a prize!

Nathan Fillion is one of those rare actors who I will watch a show for because he's in it, not because I'm hooked on the premise of the show. He had me at "Oh, I'm so going to hell for this..."! tongue:
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-f ... han-209376
Comic-Con 2011: 'Castle's' Nathan Fillion (Q&A)
The former "Firefly" star recalls attending his first convention with Joss Whedon and offers sage advice for first-time attendees.
7/11/2011 by Lesley Goldberg

With hundreds of thousands of people attending San Diego Comic-Con every year and the July 20-24 event quickly approaching, The Hollywood Reporter chatted with the big names in television to discuss their favorite memories and tips for attending the annual event.

Nathan Fillion
Geek Cred: Firefly, Serenity, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog, Castle
Comic-Con panel: Sunday, July 24 at 11:45 a.m., Room 6BCF

THR: What do you remember about your first Comic-Con?
Fillion: My first Comic-Con was when I first met Joss Whedon: He introduced me to that world and I’d never been to a convention before that. He and a bunch of the Buffy and Angel writers were all going down in a big van and he invited me along.

THR: What were your first impressions of Comic-Con?
Fillion: He didn’t describe it or take time to say, “Here’s what it’s going to be like”; the experience for me was fresh as I walked through the crowd and nobody knew who I was. I wasn’t anybody until Firefly. I remember what a rock star Joss was and how just the mention of a word would get people screaming, clapping and stomping their feet to the point that the floor would shake.

THR: What makes for a good panel?
Fillion: When someone asks a question, certainly you can answer the question -- or you can answer the question and also entertain: Share an anecdote; make fun of yourself. It’s not so much about the information as it is about connecting in that moment. How many times do you get the chance to go up in front of a couple thousand people and be a rock star for a minute? Just enjoy it and be entertaining.

THR: What’s the best thing fan has ever said to you at Comic-Con?
Fillion: “Thank you.” That was it, just a thank you. When someone says, “Take off your shirt,” or “Show us your butt,” that doesn’t say to me that this person really likes the work that I do and the stories I tell.

THR: What questions would you recommend fans not ask at panels?
Fillion: I would recommend skipping anything with a closed answer: How many years have you been an actor? 13. It’s over, it’s done. An open-ended question begs a story.

I have attended Dragon Con though, and it was a blast! Making it even more fun was the fact that it was one of only a few road trips that I've done with friends only - those are always memory-making, special lifetime events!

http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badas ... tronomy%29
No on Comic Con, yes on Dragon*Con

Because it’s a FAQ: I won’t be at the San Diego Comic Con this year, but I will be at Dragon*Con.

For the past few years, Discover Magazine has hosted an increasingly popular and extremely fun panel on Science and Science Fiction at Comic Con, which I’ve been honored to moderate Comic Con 4 Abusing Science Video . Unfortunately, this year we won’t be doing the panel, so I won’t be attending. I’m sad, but we’ll be there next year for sure. I hate to miss such a huge geekapalooza, but we’ll have to figure out some way to make the 2012 panel extra-awesome. I’m thinking the panelists will skydive in. Or we’ll fight with bat’leths. Something.

In better news, I’ll be at Dragon*Con on September 1-5. D*C has a very strong skeptic track, and I’ll be there as well as doing other talks and fun things (like having a two-person panel with my friend Kevin Grazier, where we rip on science in movies and TV). There are also tons of other things going on there, like the parties, the costumes, the dealer rooms, the general madness.

I ended up missing a lot of the news being on vacation, but I found this, and one other, tidbit that I wanted to share.

http://www.aintitcool.com/node/50522
Comic-Con: Quint has a detailed rundown of the 8-ish minutes of The Amazing Spider-Man footage and panel Q&A!
Published at: Jul 23, 2011

There are two scenes that stuck out to me in the nearly 8 minutes of footage we were shown. One is a conversation in his school hallway after being reamed by the principal in front of Uncle Ben for bullying another student (Flash Thompson?). They’re interrupted by Gwen who walks into this family dispute...The awkward banter that resulted was my first indication that my early trust in this cast was paying off.

The second scene that told me Andrew Garfield was perfect for Spider-Man was a scene as Spidey, so he has both sides of the coin covered as far as I’m concerned.

The Spidey footage wasn’t an action scene, but really illustrated Spider-Man as a character in a way that the Raimi films, as much as I dig them, severely disappointed in: Spider-Man is a smart-@$$ and loves to crack wise with bad guys. There are those moments in the Raimi films for sure, but they always felt tacked on to me, not organic.

My overall feeling from the footage is that Marc Webb and his cast are nailing the tone, nailing the characters, but I’m not totally sold on the big threat. If it works emotionally then more power to them. I’d love for them to make this Lizard work on its own.

Here are some highlights from the panel discussion and audience Q&A: see link for more!

I have to admit that I haven't seen a single one of these movies, as the books really irritated me (yes, I read all of them). When the last one comes out, I might rent them all at once just to see if at least the dialog is less repetitive and annoying (my 2nd biggest beef with them). Still, I like reading that the actors really put a lot of effort into creating the characters.

http://www.aintitcool.com/node/50499
Comic-Con 2011: Capone steps into the madness that is THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN, PART 1!!!
Published at: Jul 22, 2011

I've included some of the highlights of both the press conference and the panel below. (See link)

Kristen Stewart talked about the top secret wedding scene as something she's been preparing for in her mind for more than four years, and director Condon decided to have it be the last thing they shot for the two-part story. There was also a great deal of talk about how graphic, unusual, and startling the birth sequence is, and how impressed everyone was with the way Condon shot it.