LA Comic Con has returned to Downtown LA and the Los Angeles Convention Center for its 14th event on the last weekend of September.
This year’s festivities felt bigger than the previous year’s in spite of a few hiccups. The main exhibit hall was cut in half due to renovations for the upcoming Olympics. Still, the hall felt roomy enough and not nearly as cramped as SDCC. Those hunting for comic book deals could find numerous vendors with discount $1 and $2 bins along with expensive Gold and Silver Age key issues. Vintage action figures were a bit more scarce, but plenty of toy vendors were selling modern stuff like Funko Pops, NECA horror figures, Marvel Legends, and anime statues. Universal Studios returned to LACC to hype next year’s Fanfest Nights, which will be headlined by Scooby Doo and the Universal Monsters. Fans got the chance to take a photo with the iconic Mystery Machine or meet Frankenstein and the Bride, played by the same character actors from the theme park. Universal also brought along a preview of the Five Nights at Freddy’s horror maze and a ride vehicle modeled after Dominic Toretto’s Dodge Charger from the Fast & Furious: Hollywood Drift coaster.
Saturday’s programming for the Main Stage was stacked with an opening panel featuring Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez with Jessica Alba as moderator. The three discussed the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art opening next year. Marvel fans surely rejoiced when actors Mike Colter and Krysten Ritter took the stage though both were guarded about possible returns to the MCU. Charlie Cox, Vincent D’Onofrio, and Wilson Bethel also took part in a panel for Daredevil: Born Again though Jon Bernthal had to cancel due to scheduling conflicts. Before the cosplay championships closed the night, Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany made an appearance to discuss their Marvel experiences. The latter confirmed that the upcoming Vision Quest series will close out the trilogy that began with WandaVision and Agatha All Along while dealing with a story about fathers and sons. If that weren’t enough, Bryce Dallas Howard shared stories about filming Spider-Man 3 and Jurassic World as well as shifting into the director’s seat for Star Wars, including two episodes for the already-wrapped Ahsoka: Season 2.
Arguably, the most controversial exhibit at LA Comic Con was the Stan Lee Experience, an enclosed booth with statues of Marvel superheroes and an AI hologram of the late-Stan Lee. Fans could interact with the avatar for a modest fee of $15-20. Obviously, many fans and professionals found the whole thing distasteful while organizers claimed they received full permission from Stan Lee’s estate.
Due to the ongoing construction, Artist Alley was moved downstairs into Kentia Hall, which has normally been used for parking. Frequent visitors of the convention center will be reminded of Anime Expo’s set up or the fact that the very first LA Comic Con (then-Comickaze Expo) took place entirely there in 2011. In addition to independent artists, major creators from Marvel, DC, and Image also tabled there. The guest list included Invincible artist Ryan Ottley, writer Charles Soule who made Wilson Fisk the Mayor of NYC, and Tom King whose Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow will be the basis of the Maid of Might’s feature film. Unfortunately, some artists took to social media about the lack of foot traffic as some attendees were unaware there was more to find in Kentia Hall. Convention organizers definitely could have increased signage in the lobby and near the escalators to raise awareness. Although, they were wise enough to move the autograph and photo ops for the major celebrities downstairs too. Elizabeth Olsen and David Tennant had the longest lines of all. Fans could also find reunions of cast members from Scream (Matthew Lillard, Skeet Ulrich, Jamie Kennedy) and Starship Troopers (Casper Van Dien, Denise Richards, Dina Meyer, and Michael Ironside).
The West Hall focused on gaming and anime with LA Comic Con renaming the area Akiba Station to pay respects to the Japanese influence. This section could have been a convention unto itself. Attendees could take a break in the lounge or play a round of Guitar Hero. A second Artist Alley was housed here along with meet & greet opportunities with numerous voiceover actors from the worlds of animation and video games. Vendors sold anime merch, Labubus, Labubu knockoffs, blind box figurines, and even custom built gaming PCs. Maruchan, famous makers of instant ramen, had an ersatz noodle shop with daily giveaways. The gaming stage here featured panels with VO actors from One Piece, Marvel Rivals, Baldur’s Gate 3, and Rurouni Kenshin.
The concourse in between halls was home to the horror zone, which also could have been a convention by itself. Anyone who missed out on Monsterpalooza or Midsummer’s Scream could have gotten their horror fix here though the area itself was much smaller than those cons. Fans could find scare actors, horror themed vendors, and a carnival themed maze.
The lobby of the South Hall is an excellent spot to meet cosplayers and grab photos. Kpop Demon Hunters, Fantastic Four: First Steps, Marvel Rivals, and Hazbin Hotel/Helluva Boss were pretty big influences this year. For more cosplay photos, head over to Flickr.
