Wednesday, July 23, 2014

SDCC 2014: The Pre-Show! Vikings, The Blacklist, Fury, The Walking Dead & Cosplayers Get a Jump on Comic-Con

Tomorrow is preview night, and before that, the stands will go up and the statues placed in their pretty cases and all the new movies promoted with whatever insanely awesome displays the movie companies have planned for the biggest geek gathering on the planet...SAN DIEGO COMIC-CON!!! Before the doors open and the hordes shamble in, the town itself prepares for the onslaught and even the buildings get special decoration for the event. Let's take a look around town!
 Kristel Proctor sets the scene with words and images:

Tuesday 22 Jul - Serenity… but not for long

From today, pop culture fans are descending on San Diego from all corners of the globe. Having missed preview night last year due to missed connections, history threatened to repeat itself today when my flight from Australia was delayed. Fortunately the queues at customs and immigration in LAX were kind and my original connection remained intact, arriving in San Diego at midday today, before most of the horde arrived!

Advertising for SDCC started at the airport - #DontKillSeanBean in TNT’s Legends was prominently displayed on the baggage carousel and a massive banner overlooks the Convention Center. [PHOTO]
Downtown San Diego today was serene. It’s hard to believe that in just 48 hours these streets will be packed and 130,000 people connecting with their favourite celebrities; loved pop culture properties and experiencing SDCC each in their own unique way.

Today I wandered around downtown to get my bearings and try to get a handle on what off-site events are on this year.


Near Petco Park, the History Channel’s Vikings series has a banner that towers over the road.


NBC’s The Blacklist has taken over the Gaslamp’s Tin Fish restaurant, and fans will be able to obtain Blacklist swag and become members of the Blacklist with an exclusive photo op during the con. James Spader will appear in the Blacklist panel on Saturday (Room 6A, 1.45pm).


A mysterious dome has been set up near the Blacklist area. I have no idea what this is for but it looks intriguing. (This may be for Constantine! -PN)



The Hard Rock Hotel has prominent banner advertising for Brad Pitt’s movie Fury; the 2015 feature Pixels from Columbia Pictures and Happy Madison Productions and Goosebumps (the stories come to life!), starring Jack Black. Pixels includes a video game arcade activation where expert gamers can compete for the chance to appear in a walk-on role in the movie. You must have a SDCC pass to compete.


Syfy’s Ascension has taken over Mary Jane’s restaurant. Previous years have featured a revamp inside and out so this will be one to check out during the con. 


You know nothing, Jon Snow! Valar Morghulis signs have appeared along the trolley line. With George R. R. Martin presenting a panel and HBO committing to pop-up shops (as well as exclusives galore on the exhibit hall floor), Game of Thrones will once again have a big presence at SDCC.



Finally, Ubisoft wants to introduce SDCC attendees to parkour with free running, vaulting and rolling, just like everyone’s favourite assassin. Finish the course to receive a free t-shirt. Ubisoft have also teamed with Shick to provide the world’s closest shave – experience the difference and receive a swag bag.

With so much going on outside the con, in addition to all the panels and swag to be found in the exhibit hall, it’s impossible to experience everything SDCC has to offer. Choose your path at SDCC wisely. Have back-up plans. And back-up plans for those back-up plans.




My priorities this year? Gotham. Arrow. 24. LEGO exclusives. Wish me luck!

And now...lots of eye candy! Photography below by Emilie Noetzel
















We're All Mad Photography got a little jump on the festivities by inviting cosplayers to drop by last Friday to shoot in a less chaotic atmosphere. Though few showed up, you can count them among the creme of the crop with no need for an audience to show off their geek loves! Pre-show cosplayers, this slow clap is starting just for you.

















Plenty more to come from San Diego Comic-Con 2014, so stick around. We are just warming up!
Additional Cosplay and Pre-Show photos HERE and dive into all those San Diego Comic-Con 2014 Exclusives HERE!

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