All of my experience with San Diego Comic-Con has been as a member of the press. This means the majority of my time when I’m not elbowing my way through crowds, I’m sitting at press panels, doing roundtable interviews and taking photographs. I’ve never attended just as a fan, and as a member of the press, I’ve had to tamp down the fangirl inside to avoid getting dumbstruck and/or squealing when circumstances put me in arms’s reach of the star of one of my favorite shows.
But to avoid burning out on Comic-Con, you have to give yourself time to just be a fan, so I had a goal to finally make some time for panels and mix with other fanatics. I knew I wasn’t getting into Hall H unless I wanted to spend a good deal of my weekend waiting in the lawn queue, so my eyes were set on Ballroom 20. Ballroom 20 is Hall H’s waiting room, where shows go in anticipation of eventually getting big enough to garner a block of time in Hall H. Honestly, I selfishly hope my favorite shows never get Hall H popular, but I won’t begrudge them their success.
Oddly enough on Thursday, Day 1 of our Comic-Con adventure, as I was returning to the Convention Center from an interview at the Bayside Hilton, I noticed there wasn’t a line for Hall H. So I followed the tail end into the revered Hall H and found myself in a dark cavern full of large screens. It was the Trailer Park hour where attendees are treated to an hour of trailers of upcoming movies. Honestly I was just so awed by the fact I was in Hall H, I didn’t pay much attention to the trailers. I believe one was the newest Matt Damon flick. Another one entitled, “The Visit” started out creepily enough, but when the trailer flashed “From the director of Sixth Sense…” it was evident from the groans from the audience that they didn’t think much of M. Night Shyamalan’s attempt to make a visit to the grandparents a frightening experience, true as it may be for some.
I stayed for the Dr. Who panel. Honestly, I have never watched an episode of Dr. Who, but my next appointment was in a couple of hours, and as much as I love to people-watch, I’m also not a fan of crowds. So when my options are sit in a cool, darkened room and listen to actors with British accents, or fight my way through a crush of humanity, I kept my butt in my seat. It was the first Comic-Con and Hall H appearance for Peter Capaldi, the Series 9 Doctor. He shared the dais with Jenna Coleman, Michelle Gomez and Steven Moffatt, grilled by the Nerdist’s own Chris Hardwick. I was as entranced by the panelists’ accents as I was by their charm and humor. Gruff, cranky-looking Capaldi was quite poignant when he said, “It’s the only show that’s in my bones very deeply.” Hearing him say it with his Scotish accent made it that much better.
Series 9 looks intriguingly dark, creepy and suspenseful. May have to start watching it. Wonder how much I can binge-watch before Series 9 begins on September 19. Check out the Official Doctor Who Season 9 Trailer from BBC:
