Another year has come and gone for the world’s most popular and longest running comic convention, San Diego Comic-Con. As it has been since the beginning, there are winning moments as well as some losing ones. Let’s recap how 2018 went…
One of the biggest news to come out of SDCC is the return of the widely popular The Clone Wars animated series. For many Star Wars fans, Clone Wars holds a special place in their hearts. Even as the prequels are often looked at as inferior to classic trilogy, the fact that it did spawn this series and dived deeper into the relationship between Anakin and Obi-Wan, makes the prequels more tolerable. It was announced during the 10th Anniversary panel that 12 brand new episodes will be coming out. It’s great to see that the Force is still strong with The Clone Wars.
With Marvel/Disney not in the mix this year, it was time for DC Comics to take center stage and judging from the response, DC had a great Con. Besides rebranding their movie universe from Extended Universe to “The World’s of DC”, still not sure about this, fans did get a look into the next big screen feature coming out in December with Aquaman starring Jason Momoa. If that wasn’t enough, there was the first teaser trailer for Shazam with Zachary Levi. Early buzz shows that this could be a huge hit for Warner Bros the parent company of DC Comics. And last but certainly not least was a small glimpse into Wonder Woman 1984 which nearly brought the house down. Perhaps there is hope for DC yet when it comes to their films.
As for DC’s TV universe, which has been arguably better than anything Marvel has put out, it may have missed a golden opportunity with its announcement and first look at Titans. Personally, the Teen Titans was my first introduction to comic book reading so they have a special place in my heart. With that said, the trailer was about as gritty and potentially off-putting to many hardcore fans that echoes the feeling and look of Batman v Superman that many complained about. Only time will tell whether this new series will be successful or not. Honestly, I think there’s more excitement for the Teen Titans Go! movie that comes out this Friday.
Speaking of DC and its TV universe, a huge surprise regarding Supergirl, was the announcement of the first transgender superhero on network television. It’s a huge moment in the ever-growing evolution for equality in today’s world. The character Nia Nil will be played by real life transgender actress Nicole Maines. Season four of Supergirl premieres this fall.
In other news, even though Marvel was not a major player that didn’t stop them from having a presence albeit a very small one. This year no mega announcements not even a discussion of the untimely dismissal of James Gunn as director of the Guardians of the Galaxy films. Instead, there was a grief counseling section for those of us who are still dealing with the many loses from Avengers: Infinity War. The only real sneak preview centered around season two of the Netflix series, Iron Fist that actually looks like it can redeem a lackluster season one. Unfortunately for Marvel fans, this was the year of DC, at least for the moment.
So there you have it, a glimpse into San Diego Comic-Con 2018 and some of the happenings that occurred. I think it’s safe to say that despite perhaps not being as overwhelming as in years past, there’s still something very special about this event that has been the benchmark for all comic conventions that have followed.
May the Dork be with you,
JPB
The Dork Knight
