Comic-Con 2012: Day Two

Friday’s line was freaking nuts, as there is apparently a TV show called The Big Bang Theory, and it is apparently very popular.  We didn’t make it in to see the first couple panels, but we got in for The Walking Dead.  It was a really cool panel and we saw awesome footage from Season 3.  It holds a lot of promise, but that show tends to shit all over promise, so that remains to be seen.  On a related note, on Preview Night, Robert Kirkman (creator of the comic and show) was unveiling a Walking Dead-themed car and I got a picture with him.  He’s so adorable and super nice!!

Game of Thrones is a great show.  George R.R. Martin must be a genius for thinking all of that up.  But he’s boring as shit.  And he moderated the panel.  OMG he’s awkward and painfully unfunny – so he’s a typical socially-awkward nerd then.  They didn’t have new footage and I could tell that it was going to be dull, so I headed upstairs to hopefully not miss Breaking Bad.

And I got right in to Ballroom 20.  I saw an Entertainment Weekly panel about “Women Who Kick Ass” featuring Anna Torv, who does indeed kick ass.  Plus Lucy Lawless!  It was cool. Joss Whedon was up next, and he’s pretty much a Comic-Con god.  It was just him and a microphone on stage, answering questions from the audience.  He’s hysterical and I love him.

The panel I was really there for was Breaking Bad.  And I got way up front!! They didn’t show the premiere like I had heard they would, but really that’s OK because we got to hear the cast talk for an hour – Bryan Cranston, Aaron Paul, Betsy Brandt, Dean Norris (in a warrior princess costume), Jonathan Banks and creator/god Vince Gilligan.  And they are A. May. Zing.  And they were very appreciate and awesome about the fans.  So cool to have them at Comic-Con!!!

Here’s what I learned from the Breaking Bad panel:
•    The season premiere will be one of the funniest episodes, and not violent like last year’s
•    The opening segment will say a lot and yet leave you with a lot of questions.  Have patience – all will be revealed.  From the teaser we saw, it looks like Future!Walt putting something in a trunk.
•    You will likely lose any remaining sympathy you might have had for Walt – full bad guy mode now
•    The season feels “creepy” with Aaron Paul comparing it to the Crawl Space episode in tone
•    We’ll have some more Skinny Pete and Badger and Grey Matter
•    Madrigal Electromotive and Germany will be featured this season
•    Episode 5 is the opposite of a bottle episode, with them actually filming outside of Albuquerque.

Comic-Con 2012: Day One

This past-its-prime, no-longer-relevant report on Comic-Con 2012 is brought to you by Hilton Hotels, and the fact that our otherwise-awesome, expensive-ass hotel room didn't have wireless.  And I didn't feel like going down to the lobby every night just to blog.  FAIL.


Thursday we trolled the Exhibit Hall for swag we didn't get on Preview Night. After, we saw panels on Oz the Great and Powerful (looks cool) and Wreck-It Ralph (looks funny and geeky).  Jackie Chan showed up to promote some movie no one will watch, but it’s Jackie Chan and it was awesome to see him.  He’s hysterical and really adorable.  Next up was The Expendables 2 – because how can you resist seeing Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Dolph Lundgren all at once?  Pretty epic.  The only thing missing was Jean-Claude Van Damme.  Lundgren hasn't aged a day.  Schwarzenegger did Kindergarten Cop schtick.  Gotta love it.

We closed out the night at the Walking Dead Escape zombiepocalypse obstacle course they put on at Petco Park.  It was epic and everything I wanted it to be.  We ran through the park chased by zombies, and had to climb, crawl, run, and balance to escape.  I did my usual laugh-screaming and by the end I had red on me.

My Life Is Awesome

So they're doing a zombie apocalypse thing at Petco Park - The Walking Dead Escape - during Comic-Con.  Check it out.  More details to come, but I picture it like Halloween Horror Nights combined with an obstacle course.  I've got tickets for Thursday at 9 PM and I'm soooooo excited about it!!  I'm going to run from zombies!!!!

Then check out this casting news.  He'll always be Chase Edmunds to me!  Glad he's getting more good roles!

The latest addition to the cast of Shane Black‘s Iron Man 3 is James Badge Dale, who has signed on to play a villain called Savin. Despite the fact that the film starts shooting just weeks from now, Marvel has done a very good job keeping details of the plot quiet. There are rumors that Ben Kingsley is playing the Mandarin, and other rumors that the overall plot of the film involves nanotechnology and some version of the Extremis storyline from Marvel’s comic series.

source

The Walking Dead

I don't love The Walking Dead.  I don't even enjoy it half the time, and it's not as good as it could or should be.  But I keep watching.  Why?  Because I'm Team Zombie, and there's nothing like it on TV.

OMG these people and their emotions and their moral dilemmas and their talking.  Let's not even mention how much the women just stand around talking about their periods.  Or how many times everyone yells, "Carl!" in a Southern accent.  Or how they spent half a damn season looking for a dumb little girl who was clearly not gonna come back.  Even in a world without zombies, you can't wander into the woods and expect to live.

But yes, I watch for the zombies.  And because they've had some cool gore effects and a couple genuine surprises (Dale's death... thank god that annoying old man is gone).  You're guaranteed an awesome 5-7 minutes a week.  I was also Team Shane because he became genuinely crazy and dangerous.  I love crazy.  But then last week, Rick killed Shane, he caught the zombie virus (which is apparently simply airborne), and then Carl's dumb ass killed Shane again.  R.I.P. Shane.  What will I do now?  Oh that's right -- I have Daryl.  OMG I love Daryl so much.  I used to love the Asian guy, but he's been blah and pointless this season.  Daryl and Andrea - that's really all I got now.  Because I'm sure as hell not rooting for Lori's dumb ass.  Or Carl's.  CARRRRRLLLLL! 

The last few minutes of last week were epic - epic action, epic music, epic visuals.  I wish the show was that good for the other 36 minutes. I also wish my cable company carried AMC in HD; it will seriously be the death of me.  I can't keep watching TV like a poor person.  But anyway -- on to the season finale....

We open in the city.  I miss the city.  I hate being stuck on that farm.  It's worth noting that there was a helicopter in the sky.  Other people are alive!  Yay!  A massive herd of zombies are making their way from the city through the fields to the farm, like some sort of goddamn pilgrimage.  Rick and Carl make it to the barn while everyone else sets up on the front porch or drives around in the vehicles, shooting whatever they can.  Rick takes out a bunch of them by luring them inside and lighting the barn on fire.

Lori's freaking out because she can't find Carl.  Yeah, idiot - you never keep an eye on him.  Now shut the eff up and shoot some goddamn zombies!!!!  The zombies make off with a couple of the random members of the farm family.  It's total chaos and a freaking invasion and no one knows who's alive and who's dead and people still think Shane is alive and with Rick and I LOVE IT! Until they leave Andrea behind.  Then I'm screaming at the TV.  Seriously, everyone drove off in their separate vehicles... and left her behind.  Die, people.  Die.

Everyone reunites on the highway.  Except, you know, ANDREA.  She's running through the woods, killing zombies.  Yeah, she is!!  Go Andrea!!!

Rick tells everyone that they're all infected with the zombie virus.  That's what the dude told him at the CDC last year.  OK now I have a real problem -- why wouldn't Rick tell people that right away?  It's kind of important to know that when someone drops dead they're going to be zombified no matter what.  The kind of detail you want to know when living in close quarters.  I would've been happier if they had said you could catch it through scratches.  And now this means Shane wasn't turning recently, he was just crazy and murderous?  Eh, I don't buy that either. I'll stick with my theory.

Rick tells everyone the whole saga of Zombie!Shane, and now Lori wants no part of him.  Jesus, woman.  Make up your stupid mind.  Rick also declares that it's not a democracy anymore; so I guess he's the King now.

Andrea's still on the run, killing more zombies, out of ammo, but stabbing them in the face and what not.  And just when she's about to get it, she's saved.  A hooded figure (did I see boobs on this figure?) slices off the zombie's head.  This hooded figure is also walking 2 arm-less zombies on chains.

It was a killer finale with a nice setup of what's to come.  I wish this show lived up to its promise.  I'll hope for the best!