Thank you sir, may I have another?

Here we go again...

I read an article on a web site a couple of days ago about the San Diego Comic Con experience. It talked about all the things you have to do to get a badge, an hotel room, a parking spot, dealing with the lines for everything, the struggle of moving upstream in a sea of people and, of course, the frustration of not been able to get into a panel after waiting in line for hours on end.

This is all true. We have been there.

We all have experienced at least one of these frustrations, and when we tell family members and\or friends about waiting in line for 2 hours just to get a raffle ticket that might give us the chance to get the (signature, toy or seat) for that show\actor\actress\personality that we like so much, we can hear what they are thinking, it is coming loud and clear: "what is wrong with you two?"

That is a good question. I am not a doctor but my best guess is that nothing  is really "wrong" us. We like comics, movies, Anime, Manga, Sci-Fi, Horror, costumes, movies and several TV shows, and I am willing to bet that the majority of the humans in this planet share if not all, some of these characteristics as well.

I will concede to you that "the San Diego Comic Con experience" is not for every one. You will not only need a pair of good walking shoes, but a state of mind that can shield you from the unavoidable frustrations that are part of this experience. In a convention of this size, it is almost guaranteed that stuff is going to go wrong at some point.

Just like a marathon, or mountain climbing, this is an endurance test and either you get so frustrated that you swear off Comic Con for good or you let it roll down your back, lick your wounds, check your schedule and go for the next panel!

I wonder how many marathon runners or mountain climbers like comics, movies, Anime, Manga, Sci-Fi, Horror, costumes, movies and several TV shows?

Beto Jubei

Cartoon Voices at San Diego Comic Con 2014

Voice Actors are sometimes the unsung heroes of the advertisement and entertainment industry.

When you hear a voice over in a TV commercial or the radio and a somebody is telling you to buy this product, that is a real person; and probably you have heard his\her voice in another commercial, TV spot, movie preview or while picking up your friend at the airport, you know: "The white zone is for immediate loading and unloading of passengers only, no parking".

That is somebody's voice!

This panel showcases real professionals of the industry and they show us their techniques, tricks and how they got their first job.

You can watch the entire panel here.

Beto Jubei.

Reinventing Horror

Professional writers of horror comics and novels talk about what it takes to create nightmares and put them to pen and paper. How do they work and what inspires them.

You can watch the entire panel here.

Beto Jubei

Pop Culture and Robot Reality

Robots have been a constant fixture in Comics and Science Fiction, from Marvex the super robot, to the Metal Men, to the Sentinels, to Ultron. Some are good, some are bad, and some are sweet.

A panel full of industry experts and futurist compares Robots in Comics\Movies\Novel versus Robots in real life.

You can watch the entire panel here.

Beto Jubei

Hanna Barbera Panel at San Diego Comic Con 2014

You cannot talk about classic U.S. cartoons without talking about Hanna Barbera.

You cannot talks about Hanna Barbera without talking about The Flintstones, The Jetsons, Yogi Bear, Top Cat, Wacky Races, etc.

Then, you have to bring true veterans of the animation industry like Willie Ito and Tony Benedict to talk about those early days when hand-made animation really meant hand-made and creating a new episode of a series a week was a true test of endurance and sanity.

You can watch the entire panel here.

Beto Jubei.

The Legacy of Battlestar Galactica at San Diego Comic Con 2014

Richard Hatch (Captain Apollo) leads this panel where he talks about the influence that this 35 years old TV show has had and continues to have in Sci-Fi TV shows, movies and pop culture in general.

You can watch the entire panel here.

Beto Jubei

Bob's Burgers Panel at San Diego ComicCon 2014

After waiting almost 5 hours in the San Diego Summer sun, we just barely got into this panel. Seriously, Bob's Burger and Archer panels cannot fit anymore in the Indigo ballroom at the Hilton Bayfront.

Anyway, once again we got the creator and full cast of the series, except for Gene (Eugene Mirman) since it was his birthday (Happy Birthday!!), in this panel and  it was loads of fun.

We got to see some exclusive content but pretty much it was a very animated Q&A session.

You can watch the entire panel here.

Beto Jubei

Batman 75th Anniversary at San Diego ComicCon

This is the second 75th Anniversary DC panel held San Diego ComicCon on July 26 2014

This panel explores the long history of this character, his transformation over the years, the jump going from print form to the big screen and what the future has in store for the cape crusader.

Panelist included Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Peter Girardi, Ralph Graman, Geoff Johns, Jim Lee and Bruce Timm.

You can watch the entire panel here.

Beto Jubei.

Archer Panel at San Diego Comic Con 2014

Once again, the Archer panel at this year's Comic Con did not disappointed, it was hilarious!

Featuring all of the voice actors cast as well as the creator of the show, they talked about the the success of the Vice season, Lana's Baby, what can we expect on the new season (airing on January 19th, 2015, we hope) and answered questions from the audience.

Did I mention that everybody attending this panel got a new Archer t-shirt, sweet!

Watch the entire Archer panel here.

Beto Jubei

San Diego Comic Con videos\photos coming soon...

We returned last Sunday from sunny San Diego California where we had a blast attending Comic Con 2014, Monday we slept almost the entire day, Tuesday was welcome back to real life day and here are 132 unread emails, and today I am writing this during a quiet moment.

Honestly, unless you could have about 12 clones at your command, you could not cover all the panels, autograph sessions, screenings and special events happening not only inside the convention center but outside in the streets as well.

Case in point: we wanted to attend the Bob's Burger panel (at 4pm) and Archer panel (at 5pm) held at the Indigo Ballroom at the Hilton Bayfront but we also wanted to see all the events happening all around the convention center as well.

So, that day we decided to spend half of the day walking around all the booths and stands outside the convention center effectively skipping several panels or visiting the Exhibition Hall. The majority of the time we were standing in line in front of the booth\stand to get the picture, t-shirt, hat, bag ,doughnut, etc.. related to that booth\stand.

At noon we walked behind the Hilton hotel and lined up for the Indigo room. A sunburned face and four hours later we were the first group of people to enter this room ready to see the Bob's Burger panel and then Archer.

My memory is kind of blurry but after the Archer panel I think we went to the Exhibition Hall for a couple of hours and then grabbed some dinner.

So, by all accounts you could say that on this day we waited in line, got sunburned, and attended only two panels. That is true, but remember that "it’s not the destination, but the journey" (several authors). 

And sunscreen... "you nincompoop, you forgot the sunscreen" (Double D)

Beto Jubei