Comic Con 2013

[CelticPredator]

Deadpool is my favorite character, so I'm definitely going to try to get one of these. However, last year I made the mistake of getting there at 6am on Saturday morning to get in line for the Hasbro "tickets to purchase an exclusive"....only to find out at 7:30am when the Hasbro people showed up that half of the exclusives were already SOLD OUT! I wanted the Helicarrier and the X-Force figures. The X-Force ones were totally gone.

So I ran over to the Hall H line which was about 6 miles long. Ended up being about 50 people from the front of the line when they stopped letting people in. Waited there SIX HOURS and didn't move a single inch because no one left.

To top it all off, I took my stupid Hasbro ticket into the exhibit hall to buy my stupid helicarrier.....only to find out that they had plenty left and you didn't even NEED a stupid ticket, anyone could just walk right up and buy one!

Needless to say, #### that. This year SDCC is all about Hall H for us, we love the panels. I would have been better off paying $90 for the XForce set and getting into the Hall H line at 6am. So I'll be picking up Deadpool Taco set only if I can walk right up and buy it. No waiting in their stupid line for their stupid tickets.

That sounds like hell. Pure hell.

 

[Ktjn]

Yeah, the first year or so it was fun. Overtime it just became a pain with how some booths handled it and trying to help too many people.

Yeah, but a lot of people go now just to scalp/flip. Why lines are so insanely long.

NO SS exclusives this year...did SS just give up?

 

[cofphoto]

This will be our 5th year. First two years we only went on Sunday and only started going because our Son (who was 3 when we first went) liked watching super hero cartoons on tv.

Now our whole family is completely immersed in everything that has anything to do with super heroes. Living in So Cal, we now go to SDCC, LBCC, Wondercon (the last 2 years) and Comikaze. We're going to so many now that several of the vendors know us as soon as we walk up, it's funny.

My Wife and I started going to the movie panels in Hall H three years ago and absolutely L-O-V-E them. They are SO much fun, even if it's a movie that you're not really into or have never even heard of. The panels are very, very entertaining.

After last year's mess, we've decided that moving forward, since we go to all of the other cons, for us now SDCC will be 95% about Hall H and 5% about the rest of the show. We'll hit the convention floor, do a little shopping, see some amazing artwork....but all of that stuff can be done at the other shows (in fact, IMO the shopping is better at the other, smaller cons). But SDCC is the only one that has the movie panels, no other con compares.

So this year I'll be driving down there early in the morning and getting in line, then she'll come later and get in line with me.

I'm really hoping that the SHIELD panel will be in Hall H, but I don't know if it's worthy? Hopefully it is. Because if it isn't then we likely won't see it.

 

[cofphoto]

Just did an online chat with SSC:

me: I just wanted to know if there were going to be any SDCC exclusives from SSC this year?
not what they are, just if you are doing them or not.


Sideshow Lisa: Hi we will not have specific “San Diego Comic Exclusive” items this year. We will, however, be having limited Exclusive pieces over the next few months over the summer season. Be sure to sign up for any our newsletter and follow us on Facebook to get all the latest and greatest information on these pieces.

 

[The Josh]

Yeah, but a lot of people go now just to scalp/flip. Why lines are so insanely long.

NO SS exclusives this year...did SS just give up?

Yeah, I always crack up when I see the people pulling carts of stuff. Thankfully most of it isn't stuff I want nor interested in but crappy as all get out

After last year's mess, we've decided that moving forward, since we go to all of the other cons, for us now SDCC will be 95% about Hall H and 5% about the rest of the show. We'll hit the convention floor, do a little shopping, see some amazing artwork....but all of that stuff can be done at the other shows (in fact, IMO the shopping is better at the other, smaller cons). But SDCC is the only one that has the movie panels, no other con compares.

I'm just the opposite. I'll be in Hall H the day they do The Desolation of Smaug trailer but that's it. The rest of the time I'll be on the floor taking pictures, helping out at the TORn booth, etc. I just prefer to take in the floor as much as I can. Funny enough last year with the WB Panel was the first year I had been in Hall H since the first or second year I came out (this will be my 9th year).

Just did an online chat with SSC:

me: I just wanted to know if there were going to be any SDCC exclusives from SSC this year?
not what they are, just if you are doing them or not.


Sideshow Lisa: Hi we will not have specific “San Diego Comic Exclusive” items this year. We will, however, be having limited Exclusive pieces over the next few months over the summer season. Be sure to sign up for any our newsletter and follow us on Facebook to get all the latest and greatest information on these pieces.

Interesting but unless they had something from The Lord of the Rings or The Hobbit I wouldn't be getting anything anyways.

 

[cofphoto]

Well that will likely be Saturday, as it was last year for the Hobbit panel. That was the day that I got in line about 8am and nearly got in but didn't....then waited six hours without moving.

The stuff that I like to buy (artwork and Hot Toys) I can get at other cons. In fact last year, I could hardly find any Hot Toys figures for sale anywhere at SDCC (aside from ordering them at the SSC booth of course).

 

[Darth Waller]

I enjoyed just walking the floor and looking at booths. Too bad tickets are a pain in the *** to get.

 

[The Josh]

Well that will likely be Saturday, as it was last year for the Hobbit panel. That was the day that I got in line about 8am and nearly got in but didn't....then waited six hours without moving.

The stuff that I like to buy (artwork and Hot Toys) I can get at other cons. In fact last year, I could hardly find any Hot Toys figures for sale anywhere at SDCC (aside from ordering them at the SSC booth of course).

Yeah, I figure The Hobbit panel will be on Saturday again this year. We just camped out last year overnight outside and obviously got in fairly easy. We did get to see Sir Ian McKellen who came to visit people in line.

I've never bought anything from the sellers at that end of the floor before. I generally buy some stuff from SS, Weta, GG and then pack it and fly home. I have had to mail stuff home before but I don't buy that much anymore.

 

[cofphoto]

I enjoyed just walking the floor and looking at booths. Too bad tickets are a pain in the *** to get.

The first year (5 years ago) that we went, we bought tickets to go on Sunday only. We walked up, showed our IDs, got our badges. Right where they hand you the swag bags there was one little booth with a sign that basically said "buy tickets for next year".

We figured why not, walked over and bought tickets to Sunday for the following year.

My how things have changed in just a few short years.

 

[The Josh]

Yup! When I started going tickets were $55 bucks, and now they're coming in at $175.

 

[firefly2121]

Yup! When I started going tickets were $55 bucks, and now they're coming in at $175.

Oh, how I miss those days...or buying a pass the day of the show for $25.

Bye bye to those days.

 

[The Josh]

Yeah, I miss the prices for sure. It's funny back then they acted like the 80k that showed up was amazing now they easily get twice that a day.

 

[mrjasontodd]

Back in those days how much easier was it to get into the big panels? Were there still people camping out?

 

[Takaboi]

supposedly SS isn't having any exclusives this year.

That's what they say. 1 week before they open their doors, they gonna announce it.

 

[The Josh]

Back in those days how much easier was it to get into the big panels? Were there still people camping out?

There were still line and some camping buys not quite the same level as now.

 

[Mack]

Wow, how'd you do that?

It's all about who you know. This will be my 12th Con in the 13 years I have lived in San Diego (missed one because I was deployed).

 

[Ktjn]

I enjoyed just walking the floor and looking at booths. Too bad tickets are a pain in the *** to get.

Yeah, the days when you could actually walk through the halls, heh.

 

[mrjasontodd]

Does anyone here still go and walk around the outside booths even if they don't have a con pass?

 

[swabie2424]

My first year at SDCC was 1992, and I have gone every year since. This will be my 22nd year in a row.

The first year I went was with an old pal who just flashed his business card (he was a professional animator) and they just handed us tickets and were happy to see us. Boy have times changed. Those early years were a ton of fun. It really was a comic con. Hollywood and gaming hadn't invaded. Heck, even the toy companies weren't there in force. Exclusives weren't the norm by any stretch (I cant really remember any at all!) Sideshow was just a glimmer in its founders' eyes. And it was pre-Internet for the most part, so there were things there that I'd have never been able to see/buy otherwise. It's amazing how much the web changed the nature of shows since its a global market now.

Anywho, I've watched it go mainstream and change all these years - some for the better and some for the worse. I'm a spoiled brat as I've never paid for a ticket once. The hotel dance has gotten to the point of the absurd but that's just the way it is. The last few years I've brought my wife and kids and it's now a family affair. Yup, my ultimate geek getaway weekend has turned into family fun. It was bound to happen... a natural evolution. It's a lot if fun seeing my wife and two girls discover what I've loved for decades.

Every year as I walk in for the first time I think about those old timers who started it all back at the Grant in 1970. I wonder what they think (if they're still kickin'). Heck, I hope they have lifetime passes!

 

[furystorm]

My first year at SDCC was 1992, and I have gone every year since. This will be my 22nd year in a row.

Every year as I walk in for the first time I think about those old timers who started it all back at the Grant in 1970. I wonder what they think (if they're still kickin'). Heck, I hope they have lifetime passes!

How old are you Swabie? Something does not compute here...

And you're dead right about the old timers. You know Chuck, from Mile High, has been there every year, and from the very beginning. It's so great to chat with him about the changes.