This past weekend, San Diego Comic-Con (SDCC) returned as a live show, and boy, did it rock the industry!
COMICS NEWS
As always, Head Honcho Stephen Schleicher and the other folks here at MajorSpoilers.com did a great job of bringing quick updates regarding news from SDCC, and particularly brought us what was happening in the comics industry! Great job, as per usual!
I could go down the long list of news we were treated to, but it’s better just to check it out for yourself!
Of course, what was announced by Marvel and DC (as well as other companies) were great to learn about, and there was plenty of it to read up on!
What struck me most was how what seemed the biggest announcements had to do with the return of previous successes. That included Dynamite Entertainment bringing back Disney’s beloved Gargoyles and Darkwing Duck. As happy as I am to see that, I was puzzled over how Marvel let Dynamite handle these properties. Since Disney owns Marvel, I was curious to see just how Dynamite was chosen. I also thought IDW had done some great all-ages Star Wars books. I would love to know how Dynamite was picked this time. Was it a bidding war that Dynamite eventually won? I doubt we’ll ever really know how that took place, though, sadly.
Spider-Man continues to morph into other versions of himself, including now being “Spider-Rex,” a dinosaur. I don’t want to hear a single complaint about DC’s upcoming “Super-Pets” movie!
The Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers are back (and crossing over with the TMNT once again), and Star Trek is making headlines once again. Benjamin Sisko has a different starship to manage, and that will be interesting to see given the exploding franchise’s success with Paramount +.
DC had several announcements, including the rebranding of “Dark Crisis” into “Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths.” That’s one long title! I hope it helps sell some comics! Also coming is Gotham City: Year One, among other things. Just like Spider-Man at Marvel, Batman rules DC!
MANY SDCC’S HAPPENED
It intrigues me that people experience different conventions depending on their interests. For example, the cosplayers do things very differently than the people running panels or the ones trying to buy Pops or other items that require standing in lines for a long time. Yikes! All that was back, and then some!
As I stated previously, I didn’t get to attend, but I stayed in touch with others who were there, and everything that makes SDCC the unique experience it has been was back in force! Long lines, crowds, and the crazy things frustrated fans do at SDCC were there once again! Good or bad, that’s your call!
I’ve attended SDCC previously, and once I was there trying to gather news for a different organization. When I needed to get from one side of the building the con was being held to the other side for a panel to cover or news to gather, it was a long and difficult time. Then, too, I had to recharge my devices once in a while, and that required sitting on the floor and trying to think ahead for future meetings.
I learned then that, if you attend SDCC in person trying to get the latest news, you’re making a big mistake. News these days comes out electronically so fast that I couldn’t even begin to retype a printed release (does anyone even do that anymore?). I found that people sitting at home, working on their computers had the news received and uploaded much faster than I could get it walking the floor.
Now, if you want to schedule an interview or network with comics pros, THOSE work well walking the floor. As I’ve often said, connections are often more valuable than any sales you might enjoy. Granted, it might take a while, but those people you’ve met and developed a professional relationship with can make a HUGE difference in what you are working on or for.
Don’t get me wrong—I would have LOVED to have been there! But I probably knew more about the news coming out of San Diego than anyone walking the halls of the convention center there… unless their faces were buried in their mobile devices!
OTHER NEWS THAT GRABBED MY ATTENTION
As always, SDCC provides some of the nuttiest news in comics and related industries, and this year did not disappoint.
First, I do want to say that I noticed just how many TV and movie properties were based on comic books. There were tons of programs that took their inspiration from the comics. That’s a good trend I hope continues!
The one news item I can’t stop wondering about is having live-action and animation interact in Star Trek with Lower Decks meeting up with Strange New Worlds. How will they ever make that work so it’s not silly?
Marvel Studios outlined their plans for the next couple of phases, so it will be interesting to see how those Disney+ shows and movies work. I couldn’t begin to scratch the surface on all that programming!
I enjoyed watching video of The Rock appear onstage as Black Adam. It does my DC fan heart good to see the various heroes that will also appear in that film. Maybe some of them will be another lease on life in the comics? Hawkman, hmmm?
Now that SDCC is over, the comics news will be much harder to come by because so many want to ride the SDCC train when they make announcements. We’ll see how that goes in the weeks ahead. One word of advice: Be patient as people who attended return from SDCC. It took me a week to recover from my first one!
I know there was lots of schmoozing going on behind the scenes, and that is good news for future conventions when all those plans being hatched come to fruition. This con is a place where comics magic happens, and it was good to hear that happening in San Diego once again in 2022.
What do you think? Did you get to attend SDCC? If so, what was different from previous cons (besides the pandemic restrictions)? What surprised you about it? Whatever your opinion, be sure to share your opinion and thoughts in the space below!
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Wayne Hall creates the Wayne's Comics Podcast. He’s interviewed Scott Snyder, Greg Capullo, John Layman, Kyle Higgins, Phil Hester, Jimmy Palmiotti & Justin Gray, David Petersen, Christos Gage, Mike Grell, and Matt Kindt. On this site each week, he writes his "Comics Portal" column (general comics comments and previews) and reviews comics.