San Diego Comic Con Preview night

 

Some Random SDCC Events

Okay Babblers, the time is nigh, the wait is over, the 11^th hour is here. Months of strategizing, dreaming and planning have come to fruition. Hotels have been booked, flights reservations made and much money (and time on the internet) have been spent, and finally, Comic-Con  2011 here!

That being said, maybe you still haven’t formalized all of your plans. Still looking for a place to party Friday night?  Here are a few random things I have heard about.

First of all, without a doubt, go and check http://www.whennerdsattack.com Barb has put together a solid list of on-site and off-site events. Also check out www.Crazy4ComicCon.com as well.

Also check out www.trickstertrickster.com and  www.thenerdmachine.com   Neither of these are affiliated with Comic Con International but the Nerd HQ (ie. The nerd machine) is being hosted by Zachery Levi of Chuck fame and has a Firefly panel as well.

If you are a South Park fan (and who isn’t?) then check out Comedy Central’s huge South Park 15^th Anniversary celebration. Apparently, there is a 15,000 sq. ft.  “World of South Park” located right outside the convention center. It will be there all four days. http://bit.ly/o6JFAU

Thursday Night –

Petco Park – Cirque Du Soleil will be doing a free show of Ka, their critically acclaimed 3-D, gravity defying show.  Show starts at 9:00 P.M. so be there early. Yes, it is another line after a long day, but if you haven’t ever seen Cirque Du Soleil it is well worth it. Normally tickets would start at $100 a pop but guess what? For us Comic Con peeps, it’s free!

Friday Night  -

- Nerd HQ – is doing a huge free party at Jolt’n Joe’s at 379 4^th Ave down in the Gaslamp quarter,  10 P.M. – 4 A.M. Wouldn’t be surprised if a few celebs showed up as well.  www.thenerdmachine.com

Saturday Night –

- Zombie Crawl! A huge zombie walk marks its 5^th year at SDCC. With the popularity of Walking Dead it wouldn’t surprise me to see 200+ zombies. Starts at 5 PM. Meet at Horton Plaza at Broadway and 4^th. There is also a pre-party at the House of Blues with costume contests, photo booths and much more. Here is there website. www.sdzombiewalk.com

- Cowboys and Aliens World Premiere! The ticket everybody wants is this one. Saturday night will hold a special screening complete with cast (Yes, Harrison Ford!) and director John Favrou. Text “Cowboys” to 834567 for more info.

On the same note, I heard that The Hopping Pig  in the Gaslamp will be decorated in a Cowboys and Aliens theme all weekend. Could be cool…or could be cheesy. Only one way to find out.

- USA Network Tweetup – http://bit.ly/ojy5bW  I just heard about this. If you are a fan of Psych, Monk, Burn Notice or whatever else is on USA, then you may want to RSVP to this event. It is at TGIF Fridays in the Gaslamp quarter.

- Nerd HQ – Another Tweetup for the Nerd HQ, also at Jolt ‘N Joes. Starts at 8 P.M. www.thenerdmachine.com

These are just some random things I have heard about or discovered on Twitter. If none of it sounds fun, just head to the Gaslamp, you are bound to find something. I also hear the Hardrock is always a party. Or if you want, most of the Hotels in the Downtown area have sweet bars, usually on the top floor!

Regardless, it will all be fun. If you know of anything else going on feel free to let us know!  Hope to see you there!

SDCC, what we love and why….

Dearest Babblers, the time has almost come. The moment we have been ranting and raving about for almost one whole year will be here in just a couple of more days. I give you Comic Con 2011. I asked our fellow Babblers what they were looking forward to the most. Here are their replies.

Johnny – Okay, first I would like to say Johnny named about half the convention, but otherwise here is his list: The Amazing Spider Man panel and rumored trailer, Locke & Key pilot episode, Game of Thrones, The Walking Dead, Cowboys and Aliens, Edgar Wrights’ Attack of the Block and finally, after-parties.

Tony – Chuck, Community, Game of Thrones, and the Visionaries Panel. Sadly, Tony has some responsibilities that week and won’t be around much.

Jeff – Game of Thrones! (Hands down my favorite show). Community, (my 2^nd favorite, plus I have a crush on Annie.) Dexter, Tin Tin to see Spielberg,  Chuck, Cowboys and Aliens and after-parties.

Truthfully, as cool as the panels and shows are, the thing we all love the best is being in an environment we are passionate about. We love connecting with other fans.  We also love the costumes, the creativity, and the imagination. We love hanging out with old friends that we don’t get to see very much anymore. Maybe, most of all, we love the sense of wonder it fills us with. That profound sense of possibility and endless bounds we had as children. It makes me personally feel like that 10 year old boy, who would stay up late reading comics in bed night on countless summer nights, when everything in the world seemed more simple and right. Cheers to you Comic Con, thanks for renewing our inspiration for one more year!

That being said, we want to know what you are looking forward to the most. And what you love about Comic Con! Let us know!

First look at The Amazing Spiderman

Obama and GOP Reach Deal on Comic Con Cap!

Washington D.C. (AP) -After weeks and weeks of stalemated talks and partisan bickering President Obama and GOP leaders finally reached an agreement on the Comic-Con population and spending cap issues.  If the talks had failed to produce any deal by Friday night it was feasible that the great Con may not occur at all. The debate raged between Obama, who wanted to raise both ticket prices and the number of attendees, and Republicans who wanted to cut spending by reducing the number of panels while lowering the number of attendees. Both parties, who have lost all credibility among the nations’ nerd and geek communities, were desperate to avoid any more plunging approval ratings.

Just when all seemed lost and another walk-out inevitable, nerd hero’s Nathan Fillion and Zachary Levi, stepped into the panel to offer a reasonable compromise. The final deal, which is being called CapCon, would raise the overall price to $175 but keep the current number of panels and attendees, was signed early in the morning, giving each side the much needed time to get in line for Hall H. Additionally, a special entitlement program for those who couldn’t get SDCC tickets called the Nerd HQ, was signed into existence as well.

President Obama released a statement saying, “This is a win-win for nerds and geeks everywhere. The great American tradition of Comic Con will continue for the foreseeable future. However, much more work needs to be done.  There is still the question of keeping Comic Con in San Diego and the always touchy subject of getting rid of the Twilight panels. Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to go plan out what panels I am going to.“

The signing of CapCon

SDCC Cosplay pick up lines…

San Diego Comic Con has a lot of potential for meeting that special someone, but let’s face it, it ain’t always easy, especially for us geeks and nerds. While you may think you look great in your killer Batman costume you might still feel more like the Dork Knight (or Dork Phoenix.) The point is, when it comes to dating, even heroes get the jitters. Remember Sam Gamgee at the end of the Return of the King? After everything he had been through, hitting on Rosie was still the worst of it all. Breaking the ice is often the hardest part. But never fear, us Babblers have compiled this list to help you along.  I proudly give you: Comic Con Super Hero Cosplay pick up lines.

10. “My secret base or yours?”

9. “Check it out, we both look hot in tights…”

8. “Good thing I don’t have X-ray vision or I’d be using it right now.”

7. “Look, just because I’m dressed as a Predator doesn’t mean I am one.”

6. “You must be a DC character because you are giving me Vertigo.”

5. “Let’s just say my claws aren’t the only thing that can pop out.”

4. “Don’t worry, while they call me the Flash, I like to take things slow.”

3. “You’re lucky you don’t have telepathy or you’d slap me right now.”

2.“Whoa – do you control the weather? Because it just got really hot in here.”

1. “Oh ouch! I think I just found my Super Hero weakness.”

There you go! Feel free to try them out. If you think these are bad you should see the ones I didn’t use!

Legal Disclaimer:  Babbleon5 is not responsible for any results of the use of these lines, unless they are good results.

Who’s Who? at Comic Con vol 4.

Over the last few weeks I have been introducing you to the various C list celebrities that you might encounter at San Diego Comic Con, often sitting alone and isolated in the autograph section, signing pictures for $20 bucks a pop. Those actors and actresses whose 15 minutes are long over but somehow they still manage to make money on it. I’m talking about such greats as Richard Hatch, Peter Mayhew and even the legendary Lou Ferrigno.  However, today is a very special day for we look not into the failed past but rather the miserable future. The future, you say? Yes, the future, for surely more C list celebs are sure to come and today I proudly present to you…

Future Who’s Who at SDCC!

With all the failed shows and bit parts out there, there are plenty of future C  listers to go around, however, one name stands above them all. This person has unsuccessfully starred in not one, not two, but three failed nerd shows and the casualties keep mounting. Ladies and Gentlemen, meet: Summer Glau.

At least she has nice guns

Summer Glao is one of those people who keeps getting acting jobs despite herself. In fact, our very own Tony Kim, wrote an article calling her the kiss of death (check out some of the comments that were left.). She started with a guest appearance in Angel before landing lead roles in Firefly, Terminator: The Sarah Conner Chronicles and even NBC latest embarrassment, The Cape, all of which more or less failed.

Let me say here that I LOVE Firefly, it was a brilliant show and it’s a damn shame it didn’t last, I will also say that Summer Glao is not the reason it failed, but none-the-less, it is on her resume and can’t be undone.  So that makes three, big, nerdy franchises she has been in that all were canceled. What does this mean for her career? It means that one, nobody in their right mind in Hollywood will touch her again and two, soon she will be prostituting her autographs (we hope that’s all) out at all the major conventions.

Yep, if you are at SDCC and see a cute girl with a long line of creepy guys in black silk screened shirts at her table, chances are it will probably be her. You can start saving your money for those autographs now if you really want to, but I wouldn’t worry about it, you will have plenty of chances in the upcoming years.

Oddly enough, when she was cast for the Terminator TV series, she hadn’t seen ANY of the Terminator movies! Really?

Who’s Who? At SDCC vol. 3

Today is part 3 of our Who’s Who at SDCC.  I must confess that I have really been looking forward to today’s entry for some time. You see, out of all the C listers we are making fun of, todays may be the greatest convention monger of them all. In fact, this guy is so well known among us people of the con he may actually be on the C plus list, whereas the others are C minus to say the least.  So without further ado I proudly present to you our next proud profile: Lou Farrigno.

This man is pure convention genius because he appeals to not one, but two convention types, the nerds and those who pick on them. I mean body builders and fitness junkies of course.  This guy is playing both sides! Brilliant! Here are his claims to fame.

Nerd points: He was the original Incredible Hulk. Not David Banner but the actual Hulk that Banner turned into on the hit TV series that aired from 1977 to 1982. Lou and his painted green body, dyed green hair and ripped jeans used to entertain us every week by ripping down doors, tossing 55 gallon drums around, knockin’ heads and crushing bad guys. I used to watch this show all the time. Since then he has done numerous bit parts in TV and film, including appearances in a couple Hulk made for TV movies,  Night Court, Sinbad and the Seven Seas, Chuck, I Love You Man, and even a cameo in 2008 Incredible Hulk movie starring Ed Norton. He has stayed (somewhat) busy, but wait, there is more, much more.

You see, he is a muscle building guru as well and goes to all the body building, sports supplement/steroid conventions as well.  Mr. Ferrigno won one Mr. America title and two Mr. Universe titles. He competed against and lost to Arnold Schwarznegger in the Mr. Olympia competitions. While it is currently unconfirmed he is also believed to have lost to Arnold in the NIC,  National Illegitimate Children competitions.  A fitness guru, Lou has a huge fan base in the body building community as well and has appeared in fitness magazines, product endorsements, VHS work out tapes and multiple other muscle headed endeavors.

So here’s to you Lou Ferrigno, our mean, green Hulk and inspiration to nerds everywhere. Too bad your nerd fans didn’t follow your fitness fans and actually work out.

Who’s Who? at SDCC

Dear Babblers, today we continue our ground-breaking, award winning Who’s Who? At Comic-Con. You know them, you’ve seen them and you’ve probably bumped into them and not even recognized them. They are the C, maybe even D, list celebrities, selling their dignity for $20 dollars an autograph, still trying to capitalize on a moment of fame years gone by. Last week we introduced you to the shameless Richard Hatch, today we proudly present to you our next victim: Peter Mayhew

"I did it all for the Wookie"

Peter Mayhew, better known as the big, hairy, faithful, and lovable side kick to Han Solo: Chewbacca – and that is all. Seriously, the only other thing he has done is appear in the famous Ray Harryhausen’s Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger in 1977, that being said, for a guy who has done so little he has stayed pretty busy.  He has been in four of the Star Wars movies (The original three and Revenge of the Sit- according to IMDB) and has made numerous appearances ranging from MTV to David Letterman, all dressed as Chewbacca of course. He even has his footprints outside of Grauman’s Chinese Theatre in L.A. (Along with C3P0, R2D2) Not only that but he has appeared on many Star Wars video games as the voice of Chewbacca and was recently named his official voice. Oh and don’t forget the now infamous Star Wars Holiday Special. Seriously, this thing was so bad that even Lucas has tried to hide all traces of it’s existence.  He is now officially on the convention circuit. You read that? He is a professional conventioneer. How low do you have to fall to make that your living?

Looking at the guy it’s easy to see why he fills the role of Chewbacca so well. In fact, I am guessing most people prefer him to wear the costume all the time. I mean, really, he looks like he could be on any number of internet watch lists.

So here’s to you Peter Mayhew, the ultimate furry and lover of nerds and convention s everywhere.  To  a man who appeared in some of the most popular movies ever but never delivered a single line- in English. We look forward to being creeped out by you this year at Comic-con, and next year, and the year after that and four years from now and…well you get the picture