STAR TREK and MARVEL Took Over Day Three of Comic Con!

Jeri Jacquin

It was to be expected right? Hundreds and hundreds of fans waiting in line over a two day periods and for what you ask? Because both STAR TREK and MARVEL were in Hall H and they weren’t about to disappoint with a flimsy few minutes on stage. Nope, there were surprises to be seen and heard and I’m about to tell you everything I know.

Beginning with Enter the Star Trek Universe, CBS All Access is continuing to expand that universe. Star Trek Discovery takes the story 1,000 years into the future says showrunner Alex Kurtzman. The series stars Sonequa Martin-Green, Michelle Paradise, Heather Kadin and David Ajala. Production is currently ongoing in Iceland so there might be a bit of a wait for Season Three.

Star Trek: Picard brought its thrilling trailer to Hall H as Sir Patrick Stewart returns in his iconic role of Jean-Luc Picard. This being Stewarts first time at Comic Con, he seemed to be relishing every moment and enjoying the panel time. The story revolves around Picard realizing that he never has quite felt at home with his feet on Earth but then again we all could have guess that. We want him at the helm and engage!

Not enough Star Trek? Well, how about Star Trek: Short Treks which is a miniseries to keep your imagination in space where it belongs. There are characters from the original series that you might all remember and I’m keeping that bit of information to myself. No spoilers here! The show is also brought by CBS All Access.

The official HBO trailer for WESTWORLD 3 – The New World has dropped into Hall H and available for everyone. The world has changed and now Jonathan Nolan, Lisa Joy, Evan Rachel Wood, Thandie Newton, Ed Harris, Tessa Thompson, Aaron Paul, Jeffrey Wright and Luke Hemsworth have to find their way through it. It seems like fans have been waiting forever but now these characters find themselves in Nazi Europe but you’ll have to wait a while longer to know more.

Project Blue Book from the History Channel brings characters Hynek and Quinn dealing with 1947 and Roswell, New Mexico. The show has just started production and will return later this year. If you haven’t seen season one, I have to ask you…why not? The Good Place brought a bit of a downer to attendees when executive producer Michael Schur announced that it would be the final season for the show. Telling everyone the final script was complete, the statement was met with a loud awwww-ing and man it was brutal to hear.

The Expanse is a show I have been watching from the very beginning. Throwing out props to Amazon for giving it a new home so we can see how the next chapter of this saga plays out. Due to return in December, it’s plenty of time to watch the first three seasons since I have a feeling things are going to get very intense.

TBS is about to take on one of my favorite films by putting it into a series with Snowpiercer. If you have an opportunity to see the film prior to the show beginning, do so. You will get a feel for the post-apocalyptic train ride that has a twisted structure that contains human beings trying to survive a caste system. What does everyone want? They want what is in first class!

Women Who Kick Ass comes to Hall H with ladies Shohreh Aghdashloo from The Expanse, Freema Agyeman from Doctor Who, Betty Gilpin from Glow, Ruby Rose from Batwoman and Cobie Smulders from the new series Slumptown.

Ripley’s Believe It or Not! will air on The Travel Channel hosted by The Evil Dead star Bruce Campbell. This is a perfect outlet for the star we all love for being…well…different!

Finally, what a packed Hall H has been waiting for. The Russo Bros. mix it up with the audience to get things started and Jessica Chobot introduces Kevin Feige. He thanks fans for what the Marvel Universe has become (and we thank him as well). He quickly moves on to The Eternals and director Chloe Zao along with cast Richard Madden, Jumail Najiani, Lauren Ridloff, Bryan Henry, Salma Hayak, Liam McHugh, Don Lee and Angelina Jolie. Ms. Jolie seemed beside herself with smiles at being part of the panel.

Falcon and the Winter Soldier brings Sebastian Stan and Anthony Mackie to panel. Baron Zemo aka Daniel Bruhl is back and purple once again making a promise with, “Gentlemen, I’ll be seeing you very soon”. It didn’t sound promising for either the Falcon or the Winter Soldier!

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings has a release date of 2-2021 with Tony Leung as The Mandarin. Feige announced that Simu Liu has been cast in the title role of Shang-Chi. Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is a series that Feige also says “ties directly into the world of Dr. Strange” and that sends the audience into a happy place. Directed by Scott Derrickson, the series stars Benedict Cumberbatch and Elizabeth Olsen.

Speaking of Olsen, WandaVision is an original series coming to the new streaming service Disney+. The show also stars Paul Bettany and Teyonah Parris and due out in the spring of 2021.

My dream has come true! Loki from Marvel Studios is also coming to Disney+ and Tom Hiddleston is reprising his role. Don’t ruin my day by trying to talk me out of the clouds, it isn’t possible. I am on a full lady-high right now and don’t expect to come down until the series airs, and maybe not even then.

Taika Waititi returns to direct Thor: Love and Thunder with Chris Hemsworth, Tessa Thompson and Natalie Portman and is due in theatres November of 2021. Be prepared when a lady Thor comes into the picture!

Black Widow is slated for May of 2020 with Cate Shortland as director and the return of Scarlett Johansson. The film also stars David Harbour, Florence Pugh and Rachel Weisz. It will be nice to see the back story of this iconic Marvel character before things got dicey in the last two Avengers films.

Finally, fans were so surprised to learn that Blade is being brought back to life. The announcement was made that Mahershala Ali would be taking over the role and is now part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

That is a lot to take in isn’t it? I can tell you that everyone in Hall H was exhausted by the end of the panel. It is another phase for Marvel and it is going to keep fans happy for many, many years to come.

It is hard to believe but we are one day away from putting San Diego Comic Con International 2019 into the books. Outside the Convention Center is a very fun atmosphere as everyone is finding their favorite places to visit only to discover that every place is a favorite place.

Tomorrow gets here quick so rest up and let’s make a final run on the last day!

Saturday at Comic Con 2018 Has Super Heroes, Characters and Panels Oh My!

Jeri Jacquin

Saturday’s at San Diego Comic Con 2018 is no different than any other Saturday at San Diego Comic Con – meaning there is something for everyone badge or no badge! Saturday’s bring a flood of people who just want to see and experience everything that is fun with weather that cooperated beautifully.

Outside at every turn there were things to see and so from AMC’s The Walking Dead zombie sausage making, Southpark’s gang with their own bit of fun, FX rumbled out their fantastic motorcycle for the new series MAYANS M.C. and the parking lot of Petco Park had a shark of a tale to share. That’s just a minute portion of everything to be found.

Of course I am on the inside looking out for panels and people to find out what and who is visiting our city so lets get to it because it was a long day!

In Hall H the morning began with Warner Bros. and a lot of unexpected surprises for the fans who had been waiting all night. Aisha Tyler handled the job as mistress of panel with Eddie Redmayne and the cast of FANTASTIC BEASTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM: The Crimes of Grindelwald. What came next send Hall H into a wave of tizzy.

As Tyler utters the name Grindelwald the hall goes dark which gave us all the opportunity to view the bracelets given upon entry glowing. The next thing we all see is Grindelwald himself (aka Johnny Depp) who announces “My brothers, my sisters, my friends, the great gift of your applause is not for me but for yourselves. Therefore applaud yourselves. It has been said that I hate the non-magic – the Muggles – I do not hate them, I do not. I say the Muggles are not lesser, but other.”

He continues slowly, “Not worthless but not of value, magic blooms only in rare souls. It is granted to those who live and what a world we would make. For all of humanity, all of humanity, we who live for freedom, for truth, the moment has come to rise up and take our rightful place in the world.”  The crowd took it in and ate it up.

Of course WONDER WOMAN 1984 was given its moment in the hall but it was the cast of the upcoming AQUAMAN that sent another wave of fun through the crowd. The panel included writer/director James Wan, Amber Heard, Patrick Wilson, Nicole Kidman, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II and, of course, the very hard to miss Jason Momoa.

The trailer fans were shown is of Mera and Aquaman having a go at one another with Momoa telling the crowd that “Mera’s a very strong, strong character” giving a thumbs up to Heard.

Following the long AQUAMAN panel which the crowd absolutely didn’t mind one minute of, The 19^th Annual Animation Show of Shows gave the crowd a few moments to sit back and recover.

RZA: Movies, Music & Martial Arts was the next panel to talk about his movie CUT THROAT CITY. Part of the Wu Tang Clan, RZA (or Robert Fitzgerald Diggs) makes a film about a robbery in New Orleans that stars Terrence Howard, Wesley Snipes, T.I. Harris, Eiza Gonzalez, Rob Morgan, Kat Graham, Demetrius Shipp Jr. and Denzel Whitaker.

EW: Women Who Kick Ass had a full panel this year with moderator Jessica Shaw speaking with DOCTOR WHO’s Jodie Whitaker, Regina King, Chloe Bennet, Camila Mendez and THE DARKEST MIND’s Amandla Stenberg.

For those who haven’t seen DEADPOOL 2 (and if you haven’t don’t tell me or you have to be summarily erased from my Christmas card list!), Hall H was the chance to make that right in your life.

The day in the hall ended with AN EVENING WITH KEVIN SMITH who seemed to be working overtime. He could also be found at the IMDB boat interviewing celebs from the panels all over Comic Con. Fans of Smith’s were doing everything humanly possible to get a seat to see Smith.

Indigo at the Hilton Bayfront spent the day hosting to some of the most popular television shows. Beginning with Steven Universe, the morning continued with NBC’s The Good Place, Kypton, Manifest, Legacies, Cosmos: Possible Worlds, and The Orville. TV Guide brought the TV Guide Magazine’s Fan Favorites which is always fun.

The afternoon ended with Deadly Class, The Magicians and a delight to my senses Twin Peaks and the Revival of the Classic. Nothing made my year more than the successful return of Agent Cooper and last years return of Twin Peaks: The Return. This was a chance to hear from the cast about also returning to the iconic show.

One of the spookiest characters that still haunts my brain in the return series was actor Robert Broski’s portrayal of a man I still can’t figure out but has brought new meaning to the line “Got a light?”

Creator David Lynch wasn’t in attendance but I would expect nothing less of him to find a way to be there in some form. I wasn’t wrong. Sabrina Sutherland, executive producer, read a note that said “I am working with Phillip Jefferies to see if I can get there. Twin Peaks fans are the best fans. I got my days mixed up and I’m going to be there yesterday if not sooner. It’s slippery in here. In the red room, Special Agent Dale Cooper has already won the Emmy.”

Adding her own sentiments, Sutherland gave credit to the fans for making it possible for Twin Peaks to return. I couldn’t agree with her more! That leads to the big question – will we see more of Agent Dale Cooper and the motley crew of the town known as Twin Peaks? The answer is still floating out there in Lynch’s universe because they certainly didn’t give up anything at the panel.

That’s okay, we will all be here when (not if) it’s time to go to our favorite town – and we always have pie to keep us company.

Back in Ballroom 20, the day there was no less hectic. The panels consisted of Black Lightening, The Simpsons, American Dad! and Family Guy (I mean really, how can you have Comic Con without them?), The Gifted, Supergirl and Arrow. The crowd became really excited as DC’s Legends of Tomorrow and The Flash.

The evening in Ballroom 20 ended with YouTube’s Origin Presents The Comic-Con International Masquerade.

Of course these are just tidbits of the adventures waiting to be had at the Convention Center and all places surrounding San Diego Comic Con 2018. There will be more in depth information in the weeks to come but for now – we have one more day of panels and tomorrow is family days!

Stay tuned!