Wait... They STILL Have Comic-Con?

ComicCon 2012's TV Panel Line-up

Five; three; maybe even two years ago, San Diego Comic-Con International was the entertainment event for geeks, nerds, fanboys and assorted hopeful writers, illustrators and filmmakers in an orgy of pop-culture, film, comics, cosplay and of course, merchandising. Events like this always remind me of The Merchandisers in the underrated European version of Chess. Yes, there are lots of cool and fun things for sale there, but do you really need to pay $375 for a Darth Vader telephone or $460 for a bust of Freddy Kruger? If you do, please see a doctor immediately, as you obviously have "more money than brains," as my mother is wont to say.

Of course, the big fascination for me are the cosplayers who sometimes spend hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars building elaborate costumes to wear to such events. Given the time and money these people spend, I know I could build just about any costume you could want, but who the hell has the time and money? Who are these people and how do they afford to build this stuff?

Yeah, pal. It's not fair.

But it seems Comic-Con may be losing its luster. Oh, it will still be packed with thousands of geeks, nerds, fanboys, etc. this year. There will still be cosplayers, vendors and celebrities. And while I wouldn't turn down a free trip and all-access pass, I don't think I ever really need to attend. I've mentioned many times my one fan convention in NYC in the 80's. I can only imagine they've gotten intensely weirder since then. And while I would like to be able to sit in on the panels for "The Walking Dead;" Oz, the Great and Powerful; The Hobbit; Pacific Rim and a few others, the one thing I really would like to have done is The Walking Dead Escape at Petco Park, where one can opt to be either a Survivor or a Spectator in "A ballpark infested with zombies where you will climb, crawl, hide and slide your way to safety."

Damn! There are still 3 1/2 months to wait!

Comic-Con International 2012 officially opens tomorrow. San Diego is a beautiful city with nearly perfect weather, year-round. The few days I've spent there were all memorable, for one thing or another. My "stay-cation" from the Day Job starts at 4:45 this Friday, though I wouldn't complain if some rich hottie picked me up at 4:46 and whisked me off in his private jet (not-to-mention VIP access to all events) and we spent the weekend geeking out, among other things (wink-wink, nudge-nudge).

More, anon.
Prospero