Last year I did this really extensive 3-day coverage where I shared the experience of my first con with everyone. Unfortunately I didn’t do nearly as in-depth an overview of this year’s (nor did I go to nearly as many things as I did last year). Still, I will try to make you feel like I earned my press pass for this year’s New York Comic Con. Today is a brief overview of my weekend. Sometime this week I should be doing one or two photo posts to make you feel like you were really there with me. Explanations out of the way, let’s begin…
The con started a day early this year for press, pros, and those dedicated enough to buy the special 4-day passes that were offered. I went to pick up my press pass and walked around for a bit to get a lay of the land, as it were. The floor didn’t open til 4pm on that day, and since it would be there all weekend I decided not to stick around too long.
Friday was the real start of the con. I started my day by meeting friends briefly before going to Felicia Day’s Spotlight. This was moderated by Chris Hardwick and almost felt like a scaled-down version of his podcast. I actually really hope one or more of the panels he moderated were recorded and are eventually shared. It’s not like this is a concept that is totally unheard of for Nerdist listeners…
Felicia was joined by fellow Guild cohort Sandeep Pariikh. For those who are not familiar with his work, Sandeep plays Zaboo on the web series “The Guild” and also is the creator of Legend of Neil. He and Felicia have great chemistry together, most likely because of their friendship outside of The Guild. This friendship was also cited during the panel as the reason it would be super awkward if Zaboo and Codex ever dated or had to kiss again, so don’t expect too much romantic happenings between their characters anytime soon. Other things discussed at their panel included Dragon Age and what it’s like creating your own web series. The panel ended with questions from the audience, my favorite of which was the very first one – essentially asking what shows past or present the participants wished they could work on. Felicia said Game of Thrones (even though she’s not British so it’s never going to happen), Fringe, and Big Bang Theory. Personally I would love to see one or both of the last two become a reality. I think she could be excellent in either show, but especially Big Bang Theory. Her awkward, nerdy, adorableness would fit right in with the rest of the cast. Chris Hardwick answered the question by saying “The Walking Dead,” which is another thing I would love to see happen. He has such a love for that show, I think he would make an excellent guest. Even if he’s just painted up as a zombie…
The other panel I went to on Friday was “Inner Light,” which was a behind-the-scenes look at the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode with writer Morgan Gendel. He told the story of what it was like pitching the story as an outsider of the ST team and eventually collaborating with everyone. The rest of the panel was clips from the episode with live commentary from Gendel as we went through everything. It was a very cool experience to get inside the head of the writer and see what the whole process was like.
I left the con early that day to get a double dose of Nerdist podcast live. I’ll probably write about that at some point either here or on my other blog, News on Shuffle. Moving on to Day 2…
Saturday for me was a lot of missed connections (trying to meet fellow Nerds in Babeland-ers and members of Ghost This) and one panel – Dark Shadows. For those unaware, Dark Shadows was a television series that ran from 1966-1971. It also had 2 films and spawned a comic series. There is a new movie due out May 11, 2012 that is directed by Tim Burton and stars Johnny Depp. This movie takes place in 1972, a year after the original series ended. The panel was mostly Q&A with Lara Parker and Kathryn Leigh Scott, two of the actors from the original series who also have cameos in the upcoming film. Lara could not make it to New York because of her schedule, but was able to Skype with the audience for her portion of the Q&A. They couldn’t share much, due to confidentiality clauses, but they were able to describe the sets in some detail and tell us that the movie will be a new interpretation of the old series and films. They added the new movie was still very well-done and they were both excited to be involved in the project.
Unfortunately I had to leave early on Saturday as well, so I didn’t make it to The Walking Dead or Avengers panels like I wanted to…
The final day of the con I spent mostly wandering the floor and trying to get as many pictures as possible of cosplay and such. I felt like there weren’t as many good costumes as last year, but still managed to get a few good shots. The highlight of the day for me was meeting Dave Marquez in Artist Alley and getting him to sign my copy of Days Missing. We also chatted a lot about the difference between NY and SD Comic Con, which was cool. He really is a genuinely nice guy, as well as an amazing artist. If you’re not familiar with his work, then please go pick up a copy of Days Missing. Not only is his artwork fantastic, but it’s also an interesting and unique story that I think will really get you thinking. Marquez won’t be doing the art for Days Missing 3, unfortunately, but he will be working on Fantastic Four next, so you can check that out as well.
That about wraps up my NYCC coverage for this year. To be honest, I think last year was overall a better experience for me because it was my first con and I spent most of it with a very good friend. I didn’t get to see as many people this year, which dampened my experience a bit. I still had a great time though and enjoyed the things I did manage to see. Plus it was all worth it just to be a fangirl for 5 minutes with one of my favorite artists. Seeing Chris Hardwick and Felicia Day in the same room didn’t hurt either…
*All photos taken by Christine Wagenheim.
