CLEARING THE JUNE GLOOM WITH THE CRAZY COMIC CON COUNTDOWN 2024!!!

Well, another month is about to fade into the past, but this time it's a welcome deal as it means we are THAT much closer to Comic Con 2024!  And since we are all getting more and more excited as we are now less than a month away, I won't dilly dally any further!  So hoist up them britches and chug your Red Bulls because this time we're heading back to the much more stable year of 2016 as the CRAZY COMIC CON COUNTDOWN plows on!  Enjoy...

If she knew then what she knows now, she would've gotten up much earlier for parking!

Okay, seriously now, who WOULDN'T trust this guy?

A glimpse of the former Tin Fish Square being set up for NBC's offsite activations as a Conan Trolley arrives at the station.  His shows were so damn funny.  The day David Zaslav gets fired will be a happy one for many.  And for those thinking that's bad taste, the man will never go without.  

The Dawn Of Justice Batmobile.  Although I do consider this one a step up from the Nolan Batmobile, it still doesn't beat Tim Burton's Batmobile.  That one's definitive in my book!

The ill-fated Entertainment Weekly ConX offsite.  Although it wasn't bad by any means, it was just too far away for most con goers to walk to.  Oddly enough though, their nighttime crowds were pretty impressive.  Perhaps that's how they should have marketed it?

There's big trouble in the little Pork Chop Express!

The Petco Park Interactive Zone as it's being built on preview night.  Note the arrival of the "Not-promoting-Mr. Robot-but-totally-is-promoting-Mr. Robot" Ferris Wheel.  People still hold a grudge over that thing!

Photo ops at the FX Experience never disappoint!  Even if the shows sometimes do!

Cartoon Network's inability to properly inflate this Power Puff Girl should've been the first red flag that the reboot series was doomed!

Nighttime fun at the Adult Swim Carnival!  So glad they finally came back last year.  Mechanical Hot Dog Riding is quickly becoming a tradition at SDCC!

The Suicide Squad offsite.  Didn't get a chance to do it, so I honestly don't know how cool it was.  If it was anything like the movie, might be wise that I skipped it!

Ghost with the most babe!

Say it with me: ROO-FEE-OOOOOOOOOOOH!!!

And finally, we'll end on the Silver Surfer.  If you got the bod, you might as well rock it!

And that was SDCC 2016!  Another fun year and another one where my niece and nephew just ran me ragged!  Still, we had so much fun at this one.  It's one of my all-time favorite years at the show.  My lasting memory will always be all these people wanting pictures with me just because I had a funny shirt on at Preview Night! Sometimes the truth is stranger than the fiction!

Well, that's a wrap on the month of June, but we're keeping the party going and just in time for the 4th of July!  So be sure to come back next week as celebrate the birth of our could-be-worse nation with more past fun in the CRAZY COMIC CON COUNTDOWN!!!  Until then, take care, stay safe and I'll catch y'all later!

HEY HEY HEY!!! IT'S THE CRAAAAAAAAZY COMIC CON COUNTDOWN!!!

 

WE ARE BACK CRAZIES!!!  We are just a little over a month away from that glorious weekend that is Comic Con!  Of course, that's still a ways away, but never fear!  The whole reason you're here is to relive past SDCC fun, and I am fully prepared to deliver!  So sit back, put down your Sailer Moon figurines and hold on tight as we head back to 2015 and the wackiness that is the CRAZY COMIC CON COUNTDOWN!!!  Enjoy...

Do you think he's ready to rock?!?

After years of taking up a back corner at the Petco Park Interactive Zone, Adult Swim decided to go all-in and created their own offsite on the lawn behind the Convention Center!  It truly is a lot of fun and among the few offsites that do nighttime programming!

Lydia Deitz has been ready for a Beetlejuice sequel for awhile now!

Woodstock and Snoopy enjoy some downtime at the Petco Park Interactive Zone where you can sort of make out part of the giant inflatable doghouse set up to promote The Peanuts Movie.  They also had beagles up for adoption! 

Pretty much since I've been going to SDCC (Over 20 years now!), this guy has been there, leaning against a pillar, pretending to be Silent Bob.  He never leaves, he never breaks character.  I admire his commitment to the bit, but that's just a waste of a badge!

2015, the year of Mario Maker!  No shortage of irony that the Wii U took off just as it was ending its service life with games like Splatoon, Smash Bros U and the aforementioned Mario Maker being monster hits.  Talk about a late bloomer?!?

The beloved Xbox Lounge, enjoying what turned out to be its final year.  It was an otherworldly experience that was completely immersive.  The next year they partnered up with NerdHQ to sponsor their gaming areas, but it just wasn't the same.  Then NerdHQ got evicted!  The life of an offsite is a fickle one.

Zombies.  They are still a threat to unsuspecting con goers!

The FX Experience at the Hilton Park!  Not always the most ideal location, due to the sun, but FX always delivers big with their offsite.  It's also one off the few offsites you are usually guaranteed to get into at some point during the week!

Johnny Depp seems to really have a knack for playing characters who wield sharp objects!

So back in 2015, Kentucky Fried Chicken set up several statues of Colonel Sanders cosplaying as various things.  They ranged in theme from the weird, like the alien above, to the downright disturbing, like the one they had dressed up like a Sailor Scout!  Needless to say, KFC hasn't been back since.  I'm sure the millions of pics of attendees doing inappropriate things with the statues that surfaced during and after the con didn't help!

The finale of the big Star Wars concert that those lucky enough to get into the Hall H panel were able to attend afterwards for a night of music and fireworks!  I just watched it all from the steps behind the convention center!

This was obviously promoting something.  I just don't remember what?!?

And finally, we'll end things this week with Sexy Skeletor because...  Why not?

And that was SDCC 2015!  Another fun year that saw my brother's kids run me ragged that week!  You'd like to think I'd be a pro at this by now, but if there's one thing I've learned about comic conventions, it's that having a plan is almost pointless because you're likely not going to be able to stick to it.  If nothing else, they're more like guidelines!

Another week down as we head towards our June finale, but never fear!  There's plenty of the CRAZY COMIC CON COUNTDOWN left to get to, so be sure to come back next week and check it out!  Until then, take care, stay safe and I'll catch y'all later!

COMIC CON 2014!!! 30 AND CRAZY!!!

 

We are back CRAZIES!!!  With any luck, I'll hopefully be enjoying the opening day of the San Diego County Fair today, but if not, I won't complain about making some money at work.  Comic Con ain't cheap after all!

Speaking of money, you may have heard last week that I got a couple of pieces up in the Team Cul De Sac Art Auction.  Well, it's true and it's this weekend over at HeroesCon in Charlotte, North Carolina!  The pieces below will be up for bidding and it's your chance to add a little CRAZY to your wall decor!  And best of all, it's for a good cause!  The pieces are:

Fidgety Digits: Cul De Sac meets Peanuts as Alice, Petey and Pals pay musical tribute to Snoopy and friends all set to the fun of an oboe recital!  Pen and ink on Bristol Smooth, colored with Copic and PrismaColor Markers.

Bubble Fox Level Up!: Bubble Fox has hit his maximum power and is ready for any and all challengers as he pays tribute to Akira Toriyama and the world of Dragonball!  Pen and ink on Bristol Vellum, colored in colored pencils, oil pastels and PrismaColor Markers.

Parkinson's disease is a horrible thing folks.  It's robbed us of many, including Cul De Sac creator Richard Thompson.  If you're heading to HeroesCon next weekend, please consider stopping in at the Art Auction and dropping some bids.  In addition to my art, MANY others will have pieces up for bidding, including legendary MAD Artist, Sergio Aragones!  It's a good cause folks, so lets try and help put a boot to the ass of Parkinson's once and for all!  For more info, click here and here.

And now, it's time for something old and new.  Old in that it happened a decade ago, but new in that these are completely unseen pics from the CRAZY archives!  That's right kids!  We're dialing the Wayback Machine back to 2014 and set the location at the San Diego Convention Center!  It's a hot weekend in July and the place is jumping!  Hold on to your Code Red Mountain Dews, because the CRAZY COMIC CON COUNTDOWN continues!  Enjoy...

Fry, Amy and Leela take in the sights of Has-Been Alley, er, the Sails Pavilion!  I miss the days when the Freebies Table gave away actual cool swag! 

Where are the Wild Things at?  Dollar Bin diving of course!

Always something cool going on at the Petco Park Interactive Zone!  If memory serves, Marriott Hotels was sponsoring cosplay/monster makeup demos all weekend! 

The couple that cosplays together STAYS together!

The infamous Homer Dome.  We spent hours waiting to do this immersive experience of being stuck inside the head of Homer Simpson.  And what was it exactly?  A whirlwind montage of Seasons 3-8 clips, aka GOOD Simpsons.  Not all offsite activations are worth it folks.  Always weight the risks and rewards. 

The Disney Infinity lounge exclusively for D23 members!  Being a D23 Member, I took my nephew, who was a huge fan of the game and he got some cool swag from it.  Then Disney shut Infinity down a few months later!  Never understood why as the game was quite popular.  Perhaps competition from the more popular Skylanders series, not to mention Nintendo and Lego getting in on the act too, made it a necessary sacrifice?  At least we have the memories.  And completely useless interactive figurines that no longer function!

Speaking of my nephew, here he is at the Xbox Lounge having fun at the Dragon Age photo op!

Bet you never realized how badly you needed Lego Smaug in your life?!?

The Sin City activation at the Petco Park Interactive Zone!  I'm gonna be honest folks.  I totally forgot there was a Sin City sequel!  The offsite was pretty cool though, especially old cars are your thing!

They're on a mission from God...

Definitely feel safer walking around Downtown San Diego with the Ghostbusters on patrol!

He's looking for Troy McClure!

Always a busy time in the exhibit hall!

We'll end things today with the Sleepy Hollow activation at the Petco Park Interactive Zone!  I only vaguely remember the show coming on and the offsite was kind of a letdown too.  And the Zone was stacked that year too!

And that was Comic Con 2014!  A wild week as I recall!  Me and my brother's kids did just about EVERYTHING that year!  It was also the year that offsite activations really started stepping things up in terms of stealing thunder from SDCC itself.  The organizers have always had a tense relationship with the offsites for that reason.  It's why they don't do concerts at the pops site behind the Convention Center anymore unless it's SDCC approved.  I don't like how many are run, but overall, I love the offsite activations.  They are a lot of fun and give folks who normally wouldn't get to enjoy Comic Con a chance to enjoy some of that fun too.  Looking forward to what this year has to offer!

Another week down in our march to the big weekend, but fear not!  We are still very early on here in the CRAZY COMIC CON COUNTDOWN, so be sure to come back and see what past treasures are unearthed next!  Until then, take care, stay safe and I'll catch y'all later!

IT'S TIME... THE CRAZY COMIC CON COUNTDOWN 2024 IS ON!!!

The time is now, the place is here!  Comic Con 2024 is on the horizon!  We are roughly seven weeks away from the greatest week of the year, but the fun is FAR more encompassing than that!  Much to talk about today, but we'll get to that in just a moment, as there's something important to talk about first.

Comic Con isn't the only show taking the stage this summer, as HeroesCon in Charlotte will also be taking place next weekend, and with it, the Team Cul De Sac Drink 'N' Draw and Art Auction!  Every year, Chris Sparks teams up with the Michael J. Fox Foundation to cohost a charity auction benefitting research for Parkinson's disease.  This year, I will again be taking part, contributing the two pieces below that will be available to bid on:

Fidgety Digits:  Cul De Sac meets Peanuts as Alice, Petey and friends get there groove on while paying homage to Snoopy and the rest of the Peanuts gang!  Pen and ink on Bristol Smooth paper colored with Comic and PrismaColor Markers.

Bubble Fox Level Up!:  Bubble Fox powers up and is ready for any challenge while paying tribute to Akira Toriyama and the world of Dragonball!  Pen and ink on Bristol Vellum paper colored with colored pencils, oil pastels and PrismaColor Markers.

Richard Thompson was the creator of the comic strip, Cul De Sac.  If you visit this blog with any kind of regularity, then you definitely know how highly I regard Thompson and his art.  He was an amazing creator and an amazing person whose career and life were cut far too short by this horrible disease, so if you're going to HeroesCon and wanna own some original CRAZY art or just wanna help, then please consider attending the Auction. MANY pieces will be available to bid on and every little bit helps.  More information on the exact time and location can be found here and here.

And now, it's time to return to the past.  A surprisingly distant past at this point, but still the past none the less.  It's been a long ten months, but the shore is drawing closer!  That's right CRAZIES!!!  We are back!  The cosplay, the booths, the spectacle...  It's all returning!  So strap into your chairs and hold on to your Batman Underoos!  We're heading back to 2013 to kick things off right!  THE CRAZY COMIC CON COUNTDOWN 2024 IS A GO!!!  Enjoy...

The view from the Harbor Drive pedestrian bridge is pretty remarkable.  Especially in more recent years as the various skyscrapers in Downtown San Diego offer the exteriors for ads.  This particular shot is from early in the afternoon on Preview Night.  Call it the calm before the storm!

TONIGHT, HE DINES IN HELL!!!  BUT FOR LUNCH, HE DINED AT SPAGHETTI FACTORY!!!

MWA HA HA HA HA... AH HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

The Nintendo Lounge in better years.  The first six years they did it, it was such a fun offsite.  A leisurely experience where you just came and went as you pleased, looking at stuff and sampling game demos.  But then they just had to start tinkering with things like reservation systems and suddenly, it became a big mess.  They didn't even have the lounge last year.  If they return in 2024, I hope they do away with the silly rules that ruined it in the first place!

The Adult Swim Inflatable Fun Castle at the Petco Park Interactive Zone!  Before they set up their own incredible offsite behind the Convention Center, AS took up some space at Petco!  I never did get to go in this thing as you had to be 18 and my brother's kids weren't old enough to go in with me, but given the lines, it seemed like a worthwhile wait!

*SIGHS* What fun I missed out on... 

Remember that four year period where every con you went to was loaded with Adventure Time cosplay?  2013 fell within that time frame.

I'm seriously beginning to think that Quailman is literally the only thing people remember about Doug at this point.

Mezzanine Level!  Visit it, you must!  Great cosplay photo ops, there are!

Any day is a good day for some Spaceballs cosplay!  The Schwartz is with us!

Cobra recruitment is surprisingly effective when the Baroness is involved!

You never know WHERE this guy might be hiding out at!

Bumblebee is making the rounds outside the lobby of the Convention Center!

You know who ELSE likes ending blog posts by seeing Muscle Man connect with young fans outside?  MY MOM!!!  Wait, what?!?

And that was Comic Con 2013!  A fun year that saw lots of great cosplay as well as some solid offsites.  After 11years, it's admittedly getting hardwire to remember some of the details of the even, but I know it was a great time had by all.  This is likely the last time I'll post pics as the well's starting to run dry!  Still, I'll always look back fondly on my last SDCC in my 20's while gearing up for my fist one in my 40's!

And that's all for this first week of TEN for the CRAZY COMIC CON COUNTDOWN 2024!!!  Plenty more past SDCC fun is coming, so be sure to come back next week as we keep the ball rolling!  Until then, take care, stay safe and I'll catch y'all later!