{"id":5643,"date":"2012-11-05T15:45:55","date_gmt":"2012-11-05T23:45:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/?p=5643"},"modified":"2012-12-14T12:19:49","modified_gmt":"2012-12-14T20:19:49","slug":"long-beach-comic-con-2012-kind-of-a-dud","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/long-beach-comic-con-2012-kind-of-a-dud\/","title":{"rendered":"Long Beach Comic Con 2012, Kind of a Dud"},"content":{"rendered":"

Long Beach Comic & Horror Con hosted their fourth annual show this past weekend. 10\u2019s of thousands of attendees crowded the halls of the Long Beach Convention Center for the two day show. Cosplayers brought out their best costumes, convention center staff was well prepared to handle the Con attendees as well as the Gardening Expo people also in the building, and the California coastal weather created a picturesque weekend for a comic con. But this year\u2019s limited programming and overall mood on the exhibit hall floor made for a less than normal con-experience. Long Beach Comic Con felt like it was missing some elements. Fans still seemed to enjoy hanging out with old friends and making new ones, but will they come back next year?\"Cosplayers<\/a><\/p>\n

Some of the biggest highlights for the show were the incredible cosplay, famous car replicas, old & new comic book talent in Artist\u2019s Alley, and the Star Wars Origami panel. Lines for talent like Len Wein wrapped around the table and down the aisle both days. The Star Wars Origami panel hosted by author of the book by the same name gave attendees a chance to make paper light sabers and Bobo Fett masks (some of the best SWAG of the show too). There was no shortage of cosplayers and the diversity of characters was vast. Some costumes were silly and amateurish while others were very detailed and over the top. Overall the attending the con was fun, but it could have been done as a one day show rather than two, similar to the Long Beach Comic Expo the staff also puts on each Spring.
\n<\/a><\/p>\n

Long Beach Comic Con has always had a horror element to their convention and the time of year the con is held plays into the theme of being a horror show. Last year, John Carpenter made an appearance at the con; signing autographs and participating in panels. This year, cast members of Nightmare on Elm Street 3 were selling photos\/autographs in the exhibit hall, the Collection film had a booth and hosted a panel to show six minutes of footage, and a movie called the Red House did a screening (the cast laughed at the \u201cscary\u201d movie more than the audience did). There was not much else in the way of \u201chorror\u201d content at the convention center. That did not stop cosplayers from taking on the looks of Freddy Kreuger or Jason; some of them were pretty legitimate.\"Cosplay:<\/a><\/p>\n

In terms of comic books at Long Beach Comic Con, there was a clear participation of comic shops, talent, and a few comic book panels going on. In the past, big names like Stan Lee, Geoff Johns, and Jim Lee have led the list of talent in the hall and on panels. Publishers would offer big discounts and sales. Long Beach was one of the last shows of the year so most exhibitors wanted to sell off what was left at the end of \u201ccon season.\u201d Save for a few booths, the comic shops did not seem very enthusiastic to make sales or to have competitive prices. Nor did they have the spirit that one normally sees at a comic con. IDW, Aspen Comics, and Valiant had booths right inside the entrance but there was barely any noise coming from them to draw attendees to their booths. Is everyone just tired of \u201ccon season\u201d and ready to close out the year? Artists and writers were all wearing smiles on Saturday and happily greeting each other and fans as they settled in for the weekend. The energy on first half of Saturday was great, but as the crowd grew and fewer attendees were stopping by booths the enthusiasm dissipated. And by Sunday, everyone on the exhibit hall floor seemed eager to reach 5:00pm.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Even Hollywood seemed to have abandoned Long Beach Comic Con this year. Seth Green\u2019s Robot Chicken<\/em> and Felicia Day\u2019s The Guild<\/em> were big draws for fans in past years, but were no shows this year. A couple cast members from The Guild<\/em> were part of a new web show booth this weekend, Save the Supers<\/em>, but they received little attention. Thomas Jane who has been a star of the previous years\u2019 shows and once screened his movie, Dark Country (which was made into a graphic novel this year) at Long Beach Comic Con played down his presence this year.<\/p>\n

Interesting additions to the exhibit hall floor this year were Chevrolet promoting their Chevy Volt and WSS Shoes promoting their stores (not actually selling shoes on the floor). Gone was the wrestling ring and the 501st<\/sup> Legion\u2019s Laser Tag and NERF dart fundraisers were moved down to the exhibit hall from panel rooms. People were stopping at these booths but there was not a consistent amount of participation at any of them.<\/p>\n

\"Cosplay:<\/a>\"Cosplay:<\/a><\/p>\n

Again, the show was fun if the attendees wanted it to be but seemed like it fell short of its reputation. In the past, three day conventions in Long Beach were fun and something to look forward to around Halloween. That holiday added to the amount of costumes and horror that gave the event more oomph. This year, the spirit and energy was missing. Few of the exhibitors showed much excitement for being at the show. Comic book publishers and the talent\u2019s energy levels were hit and miss but most looked tired or disappointed by the show. The attendees still wondered the halls and floor with amusement, snapped photos, got items signed and some even bought some merchandise. Maybe it was an off year or just a long year, but how will that atmosphere get any word of mouth or other promotion for next year\u2019s event? It was announced this weekend that in 2013 the show is going to be pushed back to the end of November (11\/30-12\/1) when everyone will be preparing for Christmas and the end of the year. As the winter holidays are closer does that mean less attendees, talent and exhibitors will be present. On the positive side of thinking, maybe the holiday sales prices will be better!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Long Beach Comic & Horror Con hosted their fourth annual show this past weekend. 10\u2019s of thousands of attendees crowded the halls of the Long Beach Convention Center for the two day show. Cosplayers brought out their best costumes, convention center staff was well prepared to handle the Con attendees as well as the Gardening […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false},"categories":[73,5],"tags":[249,88,92],"class_list":["post-5643","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-comic-con","category-events","tag-comic-con","tag-cosplay","tag-valiant"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1opIU-1t1","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":5418,"url":"http:\/\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/comikaze-expo-2013-yes-or-no\/","url_meta":{"origin":5643,"position":0},"title":"Comikaze Expo 2013, Yes or No?","author":"Martin Bright","date":"September 19, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Stan Lee\u2019s Comikaze Expo 2012 has come and gone and I have had a few days to recover from two sunny days in downtown Los Angeles and think about my adventure. There were good times and bad times at the con. For a show in its second year, it was\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Comic Con"","block_context":{"text":"Comic Con","link":"http:\/\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/category\/comic-con\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":7246,"url":"http:\/\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/san-diego-comic-con-is-only-two-weeks-away\/","url_meta":{"origin":5643,"position":1},"title":"San Diego Comic Con is ONLY two weeks away!","author":"Martin Bright","date":"July 2, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"By Martin Bright * QUICK GLOSSARY OF COMMON COMIC CON TERMS POSTED AT THE BOTTOM OF THE PAGE According to the countdown clock on my mobile phone, Comic Con International in San Diego is just over 14 days away. My heart is beating a little faster in anxious anticipation of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Comic Con"","block_context":{"text":"Comic Con","link":"http:\/\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/category\/comic-con\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"san-diego-comic-con","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/07\/san-diego-comic-con.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":7299,"url":"http:\/\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/escape-plan-to-screen-at-comic-con\/","url_meta":{"origin":5643,"position":2},"title":"“Escape Plan” To Screen At Comic-Con","author":"Forbidden Panel","date":"July 9, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Summit Entertainment, a Lionsgate company, will debut the first lead pairing of action legends Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger in the film \"Escape Plan\" at Comic-Con 2013. Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger will host the screening at the Reading Cinemas Gaslamp 15 on Thursday July 18th. Passes for the screening\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"http:\/\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":4917,"url":"http:\/\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/best-and-worst-of-san-diego-comic-con-2012\/","url_meta":{"origin":5643,"position":3},"title":"Best of San Diego Comic Con 2012","author":"Martin Bright","date":"July 18, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"It has been three days since Comic Con International came to a close. My \"Con Hangover\" or \"Con-lag\" or whatever term you like to use has been fixed. But as I go through all the photos, SWAG, and exclusives I still have a strong \"high\" from walking the exhibit hall\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Comic Con"","block_context":{"text":"Comic Con","link":"http:\/\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/category\/comic-con\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/07\/P1050502-300x225.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":14840,"url":"http:\/\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/forbidden-panel-to-represent-at-comic-con-revolution\/","url_meta":{"origin":5643,"position":4},"title":"Forbidden Panel to Represent at Comic Con Revolution","author":"Andrea LaBartunek","date":"May 10, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"\u00a0 That's right folks, we have a comic convention happening right in our backyard.\u00a0 Comic Con Revolution is in its first year at the Ontario Convention Center and Forbidden Panel will be there with all of your favorite artists, writers and creators.\u00a0Everyone has been working hard to create new and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Events"","block_context":{"text":"Events","link":"http:\/\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/category\/events\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/Subject-242.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/Subject-242.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/Subject-242.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":6768,"url":"http:\/\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/wondercon-2013-day-1-sum-up-friday\/","url_meta":{"origin":5643,"position":5},"title":"WONDERCON 2013 – DAY 1 Sum Up: FRIDAY","author":"Martin Bright","date":"March 30, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"By Martin Bright Just by walking up to the Anaheim Convention Center it was apparent that WonderCon 2013 was going to be bigger than last year in Anaheim, and probably bigger than it ever has been. By 9:30am the line to get into the Exhibit Hall at 12pm was already\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Comic Con"","block_context":{"text":"Comic Con","link":"http:\/\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/category\/comic-con\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"20130329_165412","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/04\/20130329_165412-300x276.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5643","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5643"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"http:\/\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5643\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5941,"href":"http:\/\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5643\/revisions\/5941"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5643"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5643"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/forbiddenpanel.com\/PanelCast\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5643"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}