Next week I’ll be attending all four days (five if you count Preview Night) of the San Diego Comic Con. It’s impossible to do and see everything of interest. One can spend the entire show in the dealers room, or in Hall H, and have a great time. Below I’ve selected a handful of panels I hope to crash if its humanly possible.

Before the list, let me mention three things: 1. I highly recommend all the panels moderated or featuring Mark Evanier. Check his website for his complete agenda. Highly recommended. 2. My annual Worst Cartoons Ever! screening is at 9pm on Friday night in Room 6BCF. Be there! 3. I will be signing books and meeting friends at the Insight Editions booth #1035 on Saturday at noon. If you want to find me at the Con, that is the best place to do it.

Okay, so here’s a few the panels I hope to crash this year (I know, I know… some are opposite each other):

Thursday
11:00-12:00 Filmation Panel with Lou Scheimer – Scheimer will reminisce about his career with animator Darrell McNeil, director/writer/animator Tom Tataranowicz and other guests. Room 23ABC

11:15-12:00 DreamWorks Animation– Chief creative officer Bill Damaschke will join several key artists and directors to discuss the upcoming films from this studio. Indigo Ballroom, Hilton San Diego Bayfront

2:05-3:05 Walt Disney Studios: Frankenweenie, Oz The Great and Powerful, and Wreck-it Ralph– I’ll never get into this panel with Tim Burton, and the illustrious voice cast of Wreck-It Ralph, including John C. Reilly and Sarah Silverman, and director Rich Moore. Hall H

3:00-4:00 The Two Editors Panel– Sid Jacobson was the editor at Harvey Comics starting in the early 1950s, Victor Gorelick has worked for Archie Comics for over 50 years. Moderator Mark Evanier will do the Q&A. Room 8

3:00-4:00 Hotel Transylvania– Genndy Tartakovsky will show sneak peek at footage from Hotel Transylvania at the Indigo Ballroom, Hilton San Diego Bayfront

4:00-5:00 Abrams ComicArts– I like the books they do. Editors Charles Kochman and Sheila Keenan talk about their upcoming titles including Mars Attacks; Out of Line: The Art of Jules Feiffer, and Bazooka Joe from Topps, and others. Room 9

8:00-10:00 Early Fandom Meet-and-Greet– I was there. I might as well go to this. Room 28E

FRIDAY

10:45-11:45 ParaNorman: Behind the Scenes– Kodi Smit-McPhee, Anna Kendrick, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Travis Knight, Chris Butler, and Sam Fell discuss making the new stop-motion-animated comedy thriller. Hall H

2:00-3:00 ASIFA: Hollywood’s State of the Industry– Tom Sito moderates a discussion of interest. Room 32AB

3:00-4:00 Walt Disney Animation Studios: Wreck-it Ralph: The Art of Story– Walt Disney Animation Studios story artists Nancy Kruse (Wreck-It Ralph, The Simpsons), Leo Matsuda (Wreck-It Ralph, Princess and the Frog), Raymond Persi (Wreck-It Ralph, The Simpsons), Lissa Treiman (Wreck-It Ralph, Tangled) and Josie Trinidad (Wreck-It Ralph, Tangled), and writers Phil Johnston (Wreck-It Ralph, Cedar Rapids) and Jennifer Lee (Wreck-It Ralph) discuss the art of story. Room 6DE

3:00-4:00 Warner Archive Collection: Shazam!– Call it a guilty pleasure – I loved that live action Shazam show when I as a kid. George Feltenstein will moderate the panel which will include the series’ own Billy Batson, Michael Gray. Room 25ABC

9:00-10:00 Worst Cartoons Ever!– An all-new program of some of the worst cartoons ever made! Room 6BCF

SATURDAY
11:15-12:15 Cartoon Network: Adventure Time– Pen Ward and Tom Kenny (Ice King) – I’m there! Room 6A

3:30-4:30 Disney Channel Television Animation– Footage and clips from upcoming episodes of Disney Channel’s shows plus a sneak peek at the upcoming series Wander Over Yonder. Panelists include Noah Z. Jones, Maxwell Atoms, Alex Hirsch, Craig McCracken and co-producer Lauren Faust. Moderated by Eric Coleman, senior vice president, original series, Disney Television Animation. Room 5AB

4:00-5:00 Oddball Comics Scott Shaw! returns with an extra-lurid, extra-funny, new edition of his popular show. Room 7AB

SUNDAY
11:00-12:00 The Chilling Archives of Horror Comics Zombies Panel!– Co-editors Craig Yoe and Steve “Karswell” Banes discuss the lurid, dark history of pre-Code 1950s horror comics. Room 32AB

1:00-2:00 DC Nation Screening and Q&A– Cartoonists, animators, directors from Warner Bros. Animation. Room 6BCF

1:00-2:00 Disney Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two– Warren Spector, Marv Wolfman, and Peter David discuss the Epic Mickey 2 video game. Becky Cline (director, archives for The Walt Disney Company) will be on hand to discuss the reemergence and historical significance of Walt Disney’s Oswald The Lucky Rabbit, who is prominently featured in the game. Room 25ABC

2:15-3:15 SpongeBob SquarePants– Creative director Vince Waller and Screen Novelties directors Seamus Walsh and Mark Caballero present a sneak peek at the upcoming stop-mo Christmas special. The panel will also include the voice cast, including Tom Kenny (voice of SpongeBob), Bill Fagerbakke (voice of Patrick), and Mr. Lawrence (writer and voice of Plankton). Sounds like fun! Room 6A

Jerry Beck

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