What I learned at Comic Con 2018 Part 1

What I Learned at Comic Con 2018 Part 1

This is part 1 of 3 part series highlighting my experience at this year's San Diego Comic Convention. I'll briefly cover panels, exhibition hall and happenings from Thursday through Sunday. 

Thursday
I made the decision to prioritize panels above all else this year. I kept a strict schedule and attended as many panels as I could throughout the weekend. I wish I had time to talk about every single panel but instead I'll highlight my favorite moments and announcements.

My favorite panels for Thursday were a storytelling panel, a Mega Man panel and two Transformers panels.




First up, the storytelling panel. I learned a lot during this panel in particular how to tell a story visually within limited comic book frames. Lots of notes were taken as we were taught the 3 Act structure and most importantly keeping in mind the story you're trying to tell. Obvious but solid advice.

Next came the Mega Man panel.
The two big takeaways from this panel were two new games being released, Mega Man X Legacy Collection 1 & 2 and Mega Man 11. Mega Man X Legacy Collection contains all the old X games in one with added features including facing off against 2 bosses at once! As for Mega Man 11, it had a fresh look to it and an innovative double gear system. I can't give it enough credit and really can't explain it better than this trailer! Also take a look at the new boss Torch Man, he fights like he belongs in a Street Fighter game.

In addition to the announcements, there were two guest speakers, producers Kazuhiro Tsuchiya (Mega Man 11) and Nonaka Daizo (Mega Man X Legacy Collection 1 + 2). It was interesting to hear their thoughts on the past and future of Mega Man. They both agreed that the key things that made Mega Man so everlasting were the game play and the idea that you gained abilities when you beat bosses.




The last thing I'll mention are the two Transformers panels I went to. They were back to back on Thursday morning. The 1st panel was the Transformers & G.I. Joe comics panel put on by IDW publishing. The 2nd panel was the Transformers toys panel put on by Hasbro. I enjoyed both panels. Each one had good things to offer and were never boring.

The IDW panel showcased new Transformers and GI Joe comics. I was especially excited about the Unicron and Beyond storyline coming out soon. Supposedly, this could be the end of the current Transformers universe. The art was amazing and super detailed and seemed like a solid story.




G.I. Joe Special Missions were the new comics being introduced. These comics were one shot missions featuring a character in each comic. Later that day I picked up the Baroness alternate cover issue.





The Hasbro panel showcased products from the Bumblebee movie, mostly just different sizes of Bumblebee. In addition, GI Joe toys were returning to Walmart, a Bumblebee helmet with sounds and voice changer and War for Cybertron toys would be out soon (see Hound above). The War for Cybertron toys would include Hound, Ironhide and Sideswipe among others. I really was impressed by these toys as they had a gritty/dirty look to them. The additional weaponry made sure they had lots of firepower.




The biggest news, according to the response in the room, was the announcement of G1 Transformers coming to stores. These toys would have the original packaging like in the 80s! The first series would include Rodimus, Starscream and Devastator. I wasn't too impressed as the models aren't nearly as good as what we have today but I'm sure they'll be a good addition to the collection.

These last two panels not only evoked a bunch of nostalgia but also rekindled my love for all things Transformers. I will definitely keep up with the Transformers comics and even go back and read older issues. The Mega Man panel made me want to beat all the Mega Man games from beginning to end. And the storytelling panel made me want to create comics. All these panels inspired me in one way or another. These are the types of panels I want to attend during comic con.

That's all until the next part, see you soon!