On the morning of March 3rd badges for Comic-Con went up for sale and closed in less than 2
hours.
Twitter and FaceBook were abuzz with people either elated they'd gotten the coveted badges
or enraged because they got shutout of the process and would not be attending North America's
biggest pop culture convention in July.
Comic-Con needs to cap attendance at 130,00 because it's maxed out San Diego Convention
Center space.
But WonderCon still has badges available for this weekend.
What's WonderCon?
David Glanzer calls it Comic-Con's little sister.
DAVID GLANZER: WonderCon started about 25 years ago, this is it's 26th year and it's
always been in the Bay Area and it's very similar to Comic-Con in that it's a popular
arts convention that centers on comic books first, but toys, games, movies, television,
things of that nature.
But about half the size with 50,000 attendees last year.
Glanzer is the spokesman for Comic-Con International, which oversees both conventions.
He describes WonderCon as Comic-Con lite.
Anthony Buonocore agrees.
He's been to WonderCon 4 times.
ANTHONY BUONOCORE: This one is smaller and less crowded, and I kind of like that.
The Comic-Con is big and it's got a lot going on and it's fun to go to but this is less
packed and when I'm looking for something specific it's a lot easier to get around...
And even easier this year because WonderCon is in a bigger space than usual.
Normally WonderCon takes place in San Francisco.
DAVID GLANZER: But this year the convention center in San Francisco is doing some renovtions
so we had to find a new location and this year we'll be in Anaheim.
This means San Diegans wanting a Comic-Con like experience but without the stress of
having to compete for badges and then waiting in long lines for panels can travel less than
two hour north and walk right up to the door and buy a badge for the 3-day convention.
Anaheim is also the Convention Center trying to woe Comic-Con away from San Diego.
DAVID GLANZER: There's no ulterior motive to having it in Anaheim if there is a side
benefit it will be that we will have done a show in Anaheim so we'll understand how
that facility works but we didn't put the cart before the horse.
But one shouldn't read too much into that.
As for WonderCon, the plan is to return to San Francisco, but no dates have yet been
set for 2013.
The Bay Area is also where the non-profit organization hosts APE, the Alternative Press
Expo, a convention geared toward very independent and self-published small press.
DAVID GLANZER: We have a mission statement to bring comics and the popular arts to the
public.
And each of those three shows help us to fulfill our mission statement.
All of our events we try to make it as easy to attend as possible.
Whether that be disabled services or shuttles again trying to have enough volunteers as
we can to assist people who come to the show and never been there before and sometimes
it can be overwhelming.
And it pays to check out the schedule in advance.
DAVID GLANZER: As we always say, is look at the events guide, look at the program book
, figure out what it is you want to see and take your time and have a good time.
WonderCon has DC and Marvel booths, a presentation on how to build your own R2 unit, panels on
TV shows like "Fringe" and "Alcatraz," and a Hollywood presence.
CLIP Prometheus trailer.
20th Century Fox will have a panel on Ridley Scott's new film "Prometheus," the prequel
to "Alien," and Columbia will showcases Marvel's "The Amazing Spider-Man."
That panel points to the changing nature of the comics world say Marvel's Vice President
of Brand Planning and Communication, Michael Pasciullo.
MICHAEL PASCIULLO: Our company has evolved over the last 5 or 6 years from strictly just
a publishing and a consumer products company to now where we're doing theatrical and we're
doing television, video games, people who are introduced to our properties through movies
can now learn about what we are doing in comics and television so it kind of let's us cross
pollinate those different demographics and create an even greater interest and awareness
in Marvel.
But it's all a part of our popular culture says Glanzer.
DAVID GLANZER: It may not be traditional art but who says art has to be traditional.
That lack of tradition is also reflected in the company that oversees the conventions.
Comic-Con has about two dozen full-time staffers and none of them could be described as your
typical business or corporate types.
DAVID GLANZER: We are all fans, it sounds kind of corny but we really do put on the
type of event we want to attend.
And a final word of advice for those planning to attend WonderCon this weekend:
DAVID GLANZER: Wear comfortable shoes because you'll be doing a lot of walking.
And stay hydrated.