Photo Recapping 2013 Comic-Con: Outside the Con

take a look at some of the awesome activities in the Gaslamp! how many advertisements can you spot? Jonathan Bredemeyer

I've had quite a few friends who express interest in going to Comic-Con, but when they learn the amount of leg work that goes on to get a badge, secure a hotel room, plan your schedule, wait in line, etc. they change their minds. When the Thursday and Sunday badges became available for resale just a few weeks before Comic-Con, two friends actually considering jumping on that and attending, but they were skeptical that there would be enough to do during Friday and Saturday to justify the trip. I described the options that were around in the past and sent links to what was confirmed to be present this year, but this was another case of, if you haven't gone, you don't know the magnitude of the event and how long it takes to see and do things. Hopefully images like the ones below will encourage people to check out the events that take place outside of the convention center!

cartoons your thing? they're out there! Jonathan Bredemeyer

Smurfs are big, literally! Jonathan Bredemeyer

costumed folks from all sorts of things roam the streets
of the Gaslamp! Amy K. Bredemeyer

you could get in line to have your image imposed onto a Game of Thrones shirt! Jonathan Bredemeyer

Nerd HQ upgraded to being at Petco Park this year! See the baseball field in the background? Jonathan Bredemeyer

check out this awesome artwork inside Nerd HQ! It was being auctioned off! Jonathan Bredemeyer

I actually didn't venture over there, so I can't say what was inside! See what I mean about running out of time? Jonathan Bredemeyer

Adult Swim had a funhouse you could go through a few hours a day.
never made it over at the right time, but heard it was great! Jonathan Bredemeyer

notice here the Crave girls as well as the Hello Kitty, which made its first Comic-Con appearance in 2013! Jonathan Bredemeyer

even dogs get into the spirit outside the Con! Amy K. Bredemeyer

and, because the party never ends at Comic-Con, a free 5-Hour Energy station!
they didn't have the new pink lemonade flavor when I went, though. Jonathan Bredemeyer

with Wolverine about to open and Hugh Jackman at Comic-Con, it's no surprise that the movie was being promoted! Jonathan Bredemeyer

and, well, you should know that it's not all fun and games when you're in the Gaslamp.
There are always some folks exercising their First Amendment rights... Jonathan Bredemeyer

Not only does this not represent all of the things you can do outside the Con, but it doesn't even cover all of the AREAS where there are extra-Con activities! Plus, we took so many pictures at the Ender's Game Experience, those will make up an entirely separate recap, so stay tuned! 

Photo Recapping 2013 Comic-Con: The Floor

a glimpse at how crowded just a tiny portion of the floor can be. by Amy K. Bredemeyer

On Thursday night of Comic-Con I was waiting in a line and got to talking with those around me, as normally happens. Well, one of the guys was on his fourth SDCC and was going to attend his very first panel the next day. I was dumbfounded and promptly asked how he spends his days, noticing that he had a four-day badge. Turns out, he is one of those people who literally spends all day every day in Exhibit Hall, known more commonly as "on The Floor." Now, after three rounds at the annual convention myself, I would say I spend 6-8 hours perusing the booths each year. I don't get to everything, I'm not able to wait in every swag line or preview all of the shows/movies/games, and I don't wait hours for autographs. But, spending your entire Con in Exhibit Hall just sounds so exhausting to me, both mentally and physically. If you've been, you understand what I mean. If you haven't, allow me to give you a small taste of the craziness that is The Floor, starting with some film booths:

Hobbit! by Jonathan Bredemeyer

more Hobbit. by Jonathan Bredemeyer

Lionsgate and Summit had a combined booth this year, and it switched up its features, including Ender's Game. by Jonathan Bredemeyer

You could get customized t-shirts for Ender's Game! by Jonathan Bredemeyer

these are real guys dressed up! by Jonathan Bredemeyer

there are many book booths at Comic-Con, and you can pick up lots of older things for free! by Jonathan Bredemeyer

Exclusive items are a big deal, and many people wait hours
in line for a chance to buy something! by Jonathan Bredemeyer

like this collectible! (not on the previous list)
by Jonathan Bredemeyer

time for television shows! ABC brought a ship replica you could enter to watch
a scene from the new third season of Once Upon a Time. by Jonathan Bredemeyer

Starz brought a ship, too, for Black Sails. by Jonathan Bredemeyer

and a cannon! by Jonathan Bredemeyer

The Walking Dead had zombies everywhere, and a bit lookout stand. by Jonathan Bredemeyer

even classic favorites were there, like Dragon Ball Z. by Jonathan Bredemeyer

and you can pick up artwork for anything imaginable, including Castle and Firefly. by Jonathan Bredemeyer

what is this? I have no idea. But it moved and was scary. by Amy K. Bredemeyer

and now for some shots of some booths that really stood out for one reason or another... by Jonathan Bredemeyer

some kind of ice king or chill room or something? by Jonathan Bredemeyer

Max Steel. by Jonathan Bredemeyer

I don't remember what this was promoting, but it was heavily armored! by Jonathan Bredemeyer

Daft Punk concert set model. you know, as there's something for everyone! by Jonathan Bredemeyer

I love the old toys for sale! Check out some of these TMNT classics! by Amy K. Bredemeyer

Star Trek bridge. by Jonathan Bredemeyer

obligatory Star Wars homage. by Jonathan Bredemeyer

 

some celebs did booth signings, like Joss Whedon at Dark Horse. by Jonathan Bredemeyer

and the cast from Under the Dome at the CBS booth. by Jonathan Bredemeyer

and this guy hung out on the top of FOX's booth. by Jonathan Bredemeyer

Now, this is such a small sampling of what there was to see, but you get a little taste of the variety, from movies and television to toys and books to original art and collectibles. There were also many comic book booths, of course, but selecting one over others to display is rather difficult. Stay tuned for more Comic-Con articles and photo recaps to come, including more shots from the floor but in more compact categories!

SDCC 2013: The Tweets

Here's a collection of our tweets (@TheTalkingBox) from Comic-Con 2013! Be aware they are in reverse-chronological order. And, as we pointed out a couple of times, several tweets got eaten by the internet while we were there, so there are, sadly, a few gaps beyond Wednesday, when I was just over-excited and not thinking about sharing the experiences.

Sunday, July 21:
On the ground. #SDCC seems so surreal... I was trading swag 4 hours ago but now I'm almost home. 6 or 7 hours of shows on DVR... what first?
20 minute flight delay. Comic-Con just doesn't want me to leave! #SDCC 

That's a wrap, folks. We're headed to pack up the last swag bits and shuttle to the airport! More pics to come later! #SDCC 

Got an autograph from Jymn Magon on my #ducktales DVD set and I'm fighting back tears I'm so excited! #DisneyAfternoon #SDCC 

Gadget was the only character that stayed from the initial Rescue Rangers pitch. #DisneyAfternoon #SDCC 

We just had another #ducktales sing a long. I had goosebumps. #DisneyAfternoon #SDCC 

Someone in the room is dressed as a Beagle Boy! #DisneyAfternoon #SDCC 

Just saw the original pitch for Goof Troop! #DisneyAfternoon #SDCC

#DisneyAfternoon starts off with panelists statements. Voices in action! #SDCC

If anyone is there, good luck! RT @thenerdmachine Lets give away 10 Intel Core i7 Extreme processors right now at #NerdHQ Thanks @IntelEdge

That said, now in the room where Disney Afternoon will have its panel in 25 min! What was your favorite DA show? #SDCC

It always feels like you were walking forever to get to another #SDCC event, so when you arrive it's shocking to see it's only been ten min.
Did an hour on the floor, had some lunch, now back to the floor. Next panel at 2. #SDCC
A LOT of #Ducktales original gameplay was required to make the treasure locations match in easy, medium, and hard. #SDCC 

The #Ducktales game is banking on parents purchasing, not kids, as they don't know the characters. #SDCC

#Ducktales panel now featuring piano music in a special arrangement than what the credits feature. It was incredible. check YouTube! #SDCC

Special guest in the #Ducktales panel: Eric Bauza, Gizmo Duck! #SDCC 

If you played #Ducktales, you remember the pogo stick! Here's the look of Scrooge! ow.ly/i/2Fosi #SDCC 

The whole room just stood and sang the #Ducktales theme song! Magic! #SDCC

Also, for those who didn't check out my schedule, I'm doing Disney panels all day! www.thetalkingbox.com/2013/07/my-20… #SDCC 

Saturday, July 20th:

The girl who plays Charlie has REALLY white teeth. #Revolution #SDCC #Revolutioncon #WBSDCC (ridiculous hashtags!)

Seems that #Revolution is trying too hard this #SDCC with more hash tags than necessary... #Revolutioncon #WBSDCC 

This means that we will have #Revolution up next, which loyal followers know we love to hate! #SDCC 

Wait time was two hours WITH an appointment, so left and just sat in #6bcf #SDCC 20 Jul

Time to donate blood. It's a #SDCC tradition!

I'm always surprised that people don't know that voice actors usually don't sit around and all tape together... #SDCC #TheAwesomes

We're talking about #AllThat in here! Kenan can't compare it to #SNL to #TheAwesomes, but loves his job. #SDCC
Making fun of Real World and Kevin Smith. Such a funny panel! #TheAwesomes #SDCC 

#TheAwesomes just made fun of #walkingdead fans who aren't caught up. Love it. #SDCC

I actually really liked #TheAwesomes. On to the panel part, with Seth Meyers and Kenan Thompson, among others. #SDCC

We spent some time on the floor, but now seeing The Awesomes. Pretty good so far... #SDCC

Awesome! thanks for announcing! RT @jbtec Hey @TheTalkingBox there's definitely a Simpsons Futurama crossover...

Showrunners need clear visions. For #ER, it was "doctors are heroes." #SDCC 

Nice comparison of a showrunner to a start-up CEO. #SDCC 

Inside the room for Inside the Writer's Room. #SDCC

Now in line for the television writers' panel at 1130. Not as short as I was hoping... #SDCC

It's always interesting when more questions are for the producers than the actors. #BatesMotel #SDCC 

#Lost fans in the house! #BatesMotel #SDCC 

The most difficult scene for Vera to do in the first season was the admission of incest. #BatesMotel #SDCC

Norma's brother might show up in season two of #BatesMotel. #SDCC

Shelby dying was the original end of the first season of #BatesMotel. Then, network ordered four more episodes. #SDCC
Freddie has arrived. He speaks Arabic and Spanish, and spent the hiatus translating legal documents. #BatesMotel #SDCC

Friday recap for #SDCC: ow.ly/n9l9q #FallingSkies #RogerRabbit #Catan #AssassinsCreed #Marvel

#BatesMotel fans very excited for next season. Too bad Freddie Highmore isn't here. #SDCC 

Game on! #BatesMotel #SDCC

It appears everyone in line got into #6a so if you wanna come see #BatesMotel, you can probably get in. #SDCC 

I'm always amused by people who wait until the morning of each day to plan their panels... #SDCC #n00bs

I suspect we're having tweets lost in the internets again this morning... #SDCC

Autograph raffle ticket line today is enormous. Allegedly it has been cut off already. blame he who kills off all his characters... #SDCC

Have joined the line for Bates Motel in eighty minutes. should get in but it's growing quickly! #6a #SDCC

Later start than planned this morning, but starting in #6a so hopefully line doesn't suck yet. on shuttle back to #SDCC!

ANOTHER giveaway is up! This time, enter to win a #FallingSkies item! ow.ly/n3wja

there's a lot of posts going out with #SDCC going on, but be sure to check out out #GameofThrones giveaway! www.thetalkingbox.com/2013/07/givea…

Friday, July 19th:
So this party is just a club, essentially. sponsored by Magic:The Gathering. Taking a shuttle to the hotel. #SDCC
The DJ is playing "Let's go to the Mall." Seriously. #SDCC

Just noticed that quite a few updates never posted, especially during #fallingskies panel...

Hitting up to hospitality suite, because that's something at #SDCC I've never done before. Don't care about chips, dip, salsa, and M&Ms, tho

Can't stay for the entire thing, but in the first part of a panel on body image and women's issues in entertainment. #SDCC

Charles Fleischer (voice of Roger Rabbit) is really funny, guys. #RogerRabbit #SDCC

Noah Wyle made an #ER joke and the audience clapped. Five seconds later, Wheaton got it. #FallingSkies #SDCC

Wheaton's questions will focus on the theme of family. #FallingSkies #SDCC

Looks like I'll get to head to the fulfillment room after all. Let's hear it for #FallingSkies ! #SDCC

#FallingSkies panel will be starting late, apparently... #SDCC

Any predictions for the #FallingSkies panel? I hope for great swag! panel prizes have been weak this year... #SDCC

Next up is the #FallingSkies panel. Hoping for better than last year! Also, I hear there is now a line for #6bcf. #SDCC

Big minority superhero movie in the pipeline. #SDCC #MarvelSDCC any predictions?

More female team comics coming! #MarvelSDCC #SDCC

Don't forget about our photo stream! as current as WiFi allows! thetalkingbox.smugmug.com/Events/Co… #SDCC
It's gonna be a good year to be a Nick Fury fan. or a bad one, depending on your perspective! #MarvelSDCC #SDCC

Marvel panel heckles fan wearing Batman shirt. #SDCC #MarvelSDCC

There are technical difficulties, guys. sorry for the lack of tweets. #6bcf didn't let me access 4g. Better now and ready! #SDCC

Looked for line for #FallingSkies at 430 but walked right into #6bcf. Just saw a lengthy and phenomenal preview of Assassin's Creed IV #SDCC

This means I'll also see a Marvel panel! That's always a #win! #SDCC 

Well, I didn't make the finals but it was a good time. I like that adaptation, actually. Will be back later for party. #SDCC

I start in the Star Trek Catan tournament in ten minutes! #SDCC

we've got a #GameofThrones #GoT giveaway going on, so head on over and check it out! ow.ly/n3ulW 

Friday morning #SDCC update: yes, the #HallH line is as bad as you're reading. I have strong thoughts, will save for later. giveaway soon! 

Thursday, July 18th: 

change of plans. because line for #HallH is already 600 people deep, going to bed to distract husband less, who gets up soon to join! #SDCC 

stood in a line for a long time to attempt seeing #BlackSails. didn't work out. very draining. some write-up coming. #SDCC 

Learning why lightsabers wouldn't work is sad. #SDCC

Was never a #Eureka fan, but the writing process was fascinating! #SDCC

Now time for the Science Of Science Fiction! #SDCC also, just popped in fourth battery...

Spent some time in exhibit hall and now in a panel for anime. Broad interests for the win. #SDCC
in a session examining how to use comics to teach a freshman-level English course. while I love this stuff, only like 60 people here. #SDCC
Now catching the second half of the panel on how superheroes empower us and heal us. #SDCC 

Surprise! Special #Reign preview! #SDCC #b20 

Aimee Teegarden was drawn to the scifi aspect of #starcrossed. #SDCC 

Flashbacks in #starcrossed will show why the Atrians are on Earth. #SDCC 

No prize tickets given for either #Intelligence or #starcrossed in #b20. #SDCC 
#starcrossed pilot very teen. Expected that, but still. Three actors and a bunch of producers on panel. #SDCC 

Next panel will be on the CW's midseason drama #starcrossed. Early thoughts: www.thetalkingbox.com/2013/05/looki…

#Lost joke! #SDCC #Intelligence 

Both Meghan Ory and Mary Helgenberger would Gabriel's power to be smart. #Intelligence #SDCC 

#Intelligence star Josh Holloway a technophobe. #SDCC 

Just saw #Intelligence pilot. new CBS drama where a guy has a computer chip in his head. Previous thoughts: www.thetalkingbox.com/2013/05/looki… #SDCC 

#b20 first panel starting very late due to line still coming in. #SDCC 

First poster! Double-sided #reign #batb ow.ly/i/2E0K2 ow.ly/i/2E0N2 also, made it into #b20. #SDCC

#b20 folks around me getting antsy about not getting in by 10, but we started under the tents so I think it's just moving slowly... #SDCC 

Just popped in my second phone battery. Good thing I have four this #SDCC!
Also, we will try to keep our photo stream current as much as WiFi allows! thetalkingbox.smugmug.com/Events/Co… #SDCC 

Sitting next to a lifer in line for #b20. She's been going every year since childhood, thanks to an uncle. sweet! #SDCC 

#SDCC costume highlights so far this morning include Alvin, of The Chipmunks, Louise from Bob's Burgers, a Sailor Scout, Mario and Luigi. 

Up first, starting at 10 AM, will be the new CBS drama, #intelligence, followed by the CW's #starcrossed
Got in line for ballroom 20 about fifteen minutes ago and have a great position! #SDCC #b20
 

Wednesday, July 17th: 

such a busy day that I forgot to tweet very often! Don't worry, will do better tomorrow! #SDCC 

Badge lines at T & C still inside. Room about half-full right now and people pouring in! #SDCC