I have been going to Comic-Con since I was thirteen years old. I remember my first Comic Con very vividly. It was one of the greatest experiences I had ever had at that young age. The San Diego Convention Center was a place where the true comic book fans could go and talk comics, a place to buy, and sell, and trade. A place where one of the most misunderstood mediums was given the reverence it deserved. I have noticed bumper stickers all over the roads in recent years that say things like “Save the Rainforest,” “Save the Polar Bears,” and “Save Trestles.” I think that it is time a new sticker was added to this list, “Save Comic Con.” The one place where comic book fans could go and have fun and speak about their passion for comics without being ridiculed for it, has been turned into nothing more than a place for Hollywood and the media to come try to pimp their new products and point and laugh at the pasty freaks.
The big studios have essentially taken over Comic Con in the past few years; for that they should be ashamed. They have perverted something that was once pure. If the product does not relate to comic books, it should not be at a convention where the first word in the title is Comic. A quick glance at the list of panels for this year reveals tons of things that do not belong at the convention. Let me begin with the slate of films. Those who go to Comic Con this year will be treated to material from the new films “Zombieland,” “Boondock Saints 2”, “2012” and, of course, “Twilight: New Moon”. Not a single one of these films should be at this convention. Don’t get me wrong, I am thoroughly excited to see the first two films, and have no interest what so ever in the second two, but none of them, no matter how I feel about them, should be at the convention
Next up is television. I know for a fact that there are tones of guys lining up to see what Anna Paquin has to say about this season of “True Blood,” (once again not a fan watched some episodes, read “Living Dead in Dallas,” didn’t like any of it). Fox will be there shilling it’s new T.V. show “Glee” which I saw the first episode of and really liked a lot, this may be due in large part to the fact that I was in show choir when I was in High School but the fact of the matter is that it doesn’t have anything to do with comic books and therefore it does not belong at Con.
After leaving the convention last year I was so dejected and so upset that I swore I would never again buy a full pass to the convention. The comics had become tertiary, with retailers forced to the dark fringes of the floor. This week I was reading an article in the new Entertainment Weekly which posed the question has Comic Con alienated its base. To this I say a resounding yes. There is nothing more frustrating then being unable to search for that rare comic book gem while being accosted by a bunch of media crews attempting to get the scoop an the newest fad. The comic book fan has been made to feel like an outcast at our own convention. I hope that this years con will be better but am certain it will not be as for last years convention I give it….
1/5 - Basic shite.
