Comic-con 2004
I went to the International Comic-Con in San Diego on Saturday. I didn’t plan on going. It was a long drive, and I didn’t have money to really spend on stuff I want. So friday night, at the last minute a friend talked me into going. It’s funny, because she isn’t into comics, anime, or games really. She was just interested in what it was all about, she even drove. So ok, I went. Got my girlfriend to go with me too.
So we set out on the 2 hour drive from El Monte to San Diego. Left at around 8, arrived a little over 10. Parking was very hard to find. After finding parking and walking to the convention center it was about 11. We were directed to a line for on-site registration. Then a person walked around asking if anyone was registering now to go over to another line. Then we get to that line and they said no not this line, go back to the other one. Then we go up, fill out a quick application and paid. 30 bucks each. We get our little badge, and a bag with the schedule and souvenir book. Then we got hungry and got some food and drink and sat down on the floor. We didn’t actually get into the exhibit hall until almost 1 o’clock. And already I was frustrated with the staff’s lack of organization and coordination. It was also very crowded. Saturday is the busiest day because it had the primo movie stars speaking. Another thing you have to deal with in a geek fest is, well, the smells. Somehow there are always a bunch that aren’t of same hygenic levels as most of us. It was also hot in there, especially when you are packed shoulder to shoulder.
So we wandered around the exhibits for several hours. The place was so huge, I didn’t think we’d ever cover everything. And we didn’t. I guess we didn’t have a real organized way of covering the areas so we missed a bunch of stuff. I had a couple friends that I used to work with at Square Enix that were working everyday there, and I didn’t see them. I didn’t find out they were there until recently. Before we ended our exhibit tour, I went by Neca and bought 2 Crazy 88 Directors, exclusive Kill Bill figures of Quentin Tarantino in Crazy 88 form. One for me, one for ebay in the future. On the way there, I lost my brother in the crowd, but we found him. Jerk. If I had more money, I’d get more stuff for ebaying. They have a lot of exclusive collectibles at Comic Con.
After we were tired of walking, we headed to Hall H, which is where they have the panel of speakers for various things, mostly movies. They talk briefly about the movie, show some clips, and take questions from the audience. They had other panels earlier in the day like for Star Wars, Sin City, and other stuff, but we missed them. We arrived right before the Paramount panel. There came out Trey Parker and Matt Stone of South Park fame. They have a new movie coming out about a anti-terrorist team. Appropriately titled Team America. Oh, and did I mention the entire movie is done with puppets? That’s right, puppets, on strings. It sounds stupid, but after the clips we saw it was hilarious. I really want to see it.
The second film they had was Sky Captain and the World Tomorrow. I wasn’t that interested in this movie when I saw the trailers. But after the clips I saw, I was very impressed. I want to see it. The panel was comprised of the producer, director, Giovanni Ribisi, Jude Law, Bai Ling, and maybe others I forget.
I didn’t know what to expect from these panels, and they were actually pretty cool. You get to see exclusive clips from movies and see movie stars in person, although we were sitting pretty far away. The main reason we were sitting through this was however, to get a glimpse of Buffy, I mean Sarah Michelle Gellar. My girlfriend and I are huge Buffy fans. But she wasn’t here for Buffy, but for her new movie The Grudge. However she wasn’t next, we have to sit through some more stuff. They wasted our time with some clips of Anacondas. The crowd booed and laughed at the clip when it was over. I don’t think they did that with any other movie all day. It was a pretty bad clip. The movie is a pretty bad idea in the first place. Next is Resident Evil: Apocalypse. That chick that is going to be Jill Valentine was the guest speaker. It was very brief. Showed a clip, showed the 5 posters that were being considered where we get to vote for one on their website, and done. And finally, out comes Sarah and her co-star, Jason Behr of Roswell fame.
You can tell there were a lot of fans of Buffy. There was a big ovation for her with guys screaming out her name and stuff. They showed a preview of The Grudge, man is it creepy. I don’t think I’ll be seeing it, I’m a big wuss. Sarah and Jason were pretty good up there alone, they kept things fun and lighthearted making jokes. And finally we are done for the day. But first we need to get our goodies for attending. They gave out tickets to get goodie bags during Sky Captain and The Grudge that we take upstairs. There was a huge rush right after The Grudge panel ended. The line to get the stuff was the most crowded is disorganized thing ever. And what made it worse was the stupid staff wouldn’t let you claim both items at once, instead making u go through the line again to get the other item. We were angry people.
There was Masquerade later in the evening, but we couldn’t make it. It’s basically silly people dressed up as comic heroes acting out skits. I wanted to see it, but oh well. I was tired anyway. About a 2 and half hour drive back, and that was that. Pictures here.
. Read my disgust 
