It takes a while to sort out what happens each year at the San Diego Comic-Con. This year is no exception. At SciFiPulse.Net, Ian and I are still sifting through news items and videos from the big event.

Here’s how one reporter, rudie from anyclip.com, looked back at his con experience:

>>It’s Tuesday, I just got back from San Diego and Comic-Con. This was my first trip to Comic-Con and moreover, my first trip to San Diego. What a wonderful city! This city is the perfect mix of surf and pop culture. Everything in the downtown area is dedicated to Comic-Con and it’s fans. From the 70 degree weather to the smell of sea water, to the beautiful people of southern California to, of course, the beach; my experience in San Diego for Comic Con was magical, exciting and, by far, one of the nerdiest things I have ever done in my life.

From first landing in the San Diego International Airport, I knew I would feel welcomed into the city by seeing a humongous ad for Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World on the Hilton Bayfront Hotel. So big, mind you, that I could see it from the airplane. Lucky, that was the hotel I would be staying at for the week. Getting into the airport itself, I could tell who was in San Diego for Comic-Con by the numerous Star Wars hoodies and Green Lantern t-shirts. I knew I belonged here. And despite from being stopped and questioned by the SDPD within 2 minutes of leaving the airport, I had an amazing time.

The convention started on Wednesday for Preview Night which involved very limited access for a few hundred fanboys/girls, geeks and press. And when I say limited to a few hundred it is comparative to a few thousand attendees who would end up enjoy the entire convention. This was an opportunity for me to walk the exhibition floor without the foot traffic of Time Square in a convention center. Looking around at all the exhibits and vendors, it kind of felt like a casino in Las Vegas mixed with the pop culture wax museum, it was extremely overwhelming. As soon as you walk inside, you see a giant Prince Adam (He-Man) statue holding the Power Sword. I saw this as a metaphor for the whole convention, “abandon hope, all ye who enter”. It is important just to give in to Comic Con, give in to your nerdy side, otherwise you’ll have no fun at all and its all about having enthusiastic geek-gasms!

Preview Night gives the opportunity for everyone who attends to buy merch, pick up swag (Stuff We All Get) and to, yes, preview, the upcoming week at Comic-Con. It’s also a showcase for TV studios to preview pilots of new TV series. From ABC to USA, every TV network is in San Diego hoping to sell their new wears on you. This is a way for fans to be ahead of the curve. They can see what works and what does not. This is also a chance for fans to get autographs from writers, artists and celebrities without waiting in long lines. And I say long lines, I mean waiting for 1 hour rather than 3 to 4 hours. No joke, the lines are super long at Comic Con.

This statement became a reality for me on Thursday, the official start of Comic-Con. The movie panels started at 11AM on Thursday with Dreamworks presentation of Mega Mind. A new animated feature starring Will Ferrell, Brad Pitt and Tina Fey. These movie panels took place in Hall H, a room whose capacity is 6,000. Fans started lining up at 10PM, Wednesday night. Waiting in line for 13 hours to ensure a good seat in Hall H is not uncommon. I, personally, like sleeping in a hotel bed so I woke up at 6:30AM to start my day. After getting a cup of coffee at Starbucks, I was (not so) shocked to see the line wrap around the hotel I was staying at which was directly across the street from the convention center. Being the resourceful blogger I am, I quickly found some of my colleagues waiting further in line, so I cleverly joined them (i.e. I cut in line). Surprisingly enough, line cutting is not frowned upon at Comic Con. It’s something that has been accepted because everyone is either holding a spot for you in line or holding a seat for you in Hall H or Ballroom 20 (which is the 2nd biggest room in the convention center).

Dreamworks’ Mega Mind, Disney’s Tron: Legacy and Sylvester Stallone’s The Expendables were highlights of my Thursday. The footage these studios showed were amazing and they did its job, get people excited for these movies. It worked! I was luke warm on seeing The Expendables and after seeing the footage and after the panel, I am completely sold. The biggest thing on Thursday was Universal’s Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World panel, complete with director Edgar Wright and the cast of Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World. My geek heart exploded when Edgar Wright introduced the cast and showed footage. My heart swooned when he introduced Ellen Wong who plays Knives Chau. Ellen Wong! *swoon* After which the Q&A with the fans started, Edgar Wright announced a secret screening of Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World with the cast and a few secret special guest immediately after the Universal panel.

The longest day for me was Friday. Friday involved early morning panels of CBS’s Hawaii 5-0 and AMC’s The Walking Dead. Let me just say, The Walking Dead looks fantastic! Frank Darabondt (Shawshank Redemption, The Green Mile and The Mist) led the panel by answering questions from fanboys and girls. Figuring out what Comic Con is all about was pretty sobering. It’s about fans and the things they love. It’s a way for movie studio and TV networks to bring awareness of their products to the people. By doing this, they show a lot of trailers and footage of future projects. In that way, it’s a really a film festival for movie trailers. I say that in a very loving way.

I also finally caught a screening of Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World, after waiting 6 and a half hours in line. Well worth the wait, not because of the movie (although it was pretty awesome), because of the people I met while waiting in line. The horrible experience of waiting in line quickly turned priceless after the friendships made in those hours.

My average day at Comic Con was kind of like this… wake up at 6:30/7AM to start waiting in line, a full day of panels, press conferences or interviews. After which were the after parties, meeting other bloggers, studio executives and celebrities. Come back to the hotel around 1:00/2AM, sleep and do it all over again. It’s a fun and very exhausting process. In the middle of which, try to find time for eating and writing. I wouldn’t exchange this experience for anything.

Saturday was the big day for movie studios with panels from Warner Bros, Universal and Marvel. It was by far the longest line imaginable. The wait for Hall H on Saturday was at least 4 hours. Warner Bros kicked off the day with The Green Lantern panel with director Martin Campbell and actors Peter Sarsgaard, Mark Strong and Ryan Reynolds. The highlight was Ryan Reynolds reciting the Green Lantern oath…

“In brightest day, in blackest night,
No evil shall escape my sight
Let those who worship evil’s might,
Beware my power… Green Lantern’s light!”

Wow! This blew me away! I actually felt chills when he recited this oath. And a collective cheer from the 6,000 fans attending Hall H felt this impact. The end the day Marvel revealed footage from Thor and test footage from Captain America. Much-rumored Avengers get together was in the air all week at Comic-Con, and quickly these rumors were put to rest when Samuel L. Jackson came out to introduce the cast including Mark Ruffalo as The Hulk and Jeremy Renner as Hawkeye.

Sunday was a day off for me. This was my chance to enjoy the convention and the company of people I’ve met. There were no big panels on Sunday, Hall H was closed for the rest of the convention. It was also Kids Day, so everything was children oriented. This was also a chance for me to hang out with a dear friend who drove down from Los Angeles to see me. I feel special!

Comic-Con was an experience I will never forget. It is also an experience I am looking forward to next year. As much of a problem covering Comic-Con was, I didn’t get frustrated by the lines, the crowds or the random stabbing in Hall H on Saturday. I had an amazing time in San Diego and I look forward to July 2011.<<

As I’ve mentioned previously, I hope to get to the SD Comic-Con next year.  We’ll see.  I thought folks would enjoy seeing the above-mentioned encounter between Mr. Reynolds and a young fan:

Finally, here’s the trailer for a show that looks better and better to me, NBC’s The Cape:

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