New York Comic Con 2017 was, in a word, deceptive. While NYCC lacks the behemoth announcements and reveals that come out of San Diego every year, it continues to build a strong and diverse schedule that has attracted thousands for the last twelve years. It somehow flies under the mainstream radar while also generating a great deal of news and excitement among fans and major news outlets. In my second year attending for Skewed and Reviewed I made it my goal to try my best to sample everything NYCC has to offer and failed miserably. It is truly difficult to get to everything, but that’s why there’s always next year.
Thursday I attended the Stan Against Evil (IFC) and SuperMansion (Crackle) panels and roundtables. Stan’s second season premieres on November 1 at 10pm. Fans were treated to episode 3, “The Curse of the Were-pony”, a delightfully absurd love letter to films like An American Werewolf in London. Season two promises more comedy, a stronger connection between the characters, specifically Evie and Stan, and more of the emotional core that grounds the story of this cursed town in reality. SuperMansion’s Halloween special Drag Me to Halloween is now streaming for free on Crackle. This was my second year covering the animated series at comic con and it may be one of the most underrated shows going. Case in point, their excellent special, which I’ll be reviewing soon. The show’s panel included executive producer Seth Green who was also there in support of the Robot Chicken Walking Dead special. Panel attendees got a behind the scenes look at the series via a video hosted by star Bryan Cranston.
Other Thursday highlights included hours with Robert Kirkman, Michael Rooker, and Tara Strong, panels for ongoing shows, American Gods, Steven Universe, and Comic Book Men, and a highly anticipated panel for Amazon Prime’s new show Lore, based on the popular podcast (a review of the first season is forthcoming). Keanu Reeves was also in attendance for his new film, Replicas, and Neil deGrasse Tyson hosted an episode of Star Talk Live on the Main Stage with guest, Adam Savage.
Friday gave me the opportunity to explore some of the interactive experiences brought by Amazon Prime for fans to enjoy. First up was the Museum of Lore, three rooms created to bring stories from the podcast, and now the show, to life. Each room included an actor to usher you in and set the tone, walking that fine line between creepy and cheesy with a deft touch. Possessed dolls, ghostly mirrors, and werewolves were all present and ready to scare fans who walked away with a gif, notebook, and flashlight. Next I took a walk over to Dangerboat from The Tick. A vessel with artificial intelligence, Dangerboat is both a headquarters and sidekick. Once inside, I was able to create a profile for myself, obtain a can of Fo-Ham (containing pins), create my own video, and interact with Dangerboat himself. Amazon really gave fans a lot to do this year with their well executed experiences, more exciting than the Justice League and The Last Jedi costumes and props brought by DC and Disney/Lucasfilm.
In addition, I attended the panel for Hulu’s new series Future Man executive produced by Seth Rogen, and starring Josh Hutcherson and Haley Joel Osment just to name a few of the very strong cast. Melding sci-fi and the raunchy comedy Rogen is known for, it’s safe to say that the pilot went over like gangbusters with the crowd. It’s an incredibly strong pilot that I will be reviewing shortly for the site. Elsewhere throughout the con Pacific Rim: Uprising debuted its first trailer, BBC America brought the cast of Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency to talk season 2, and Peter Capaldi to begin his Doctor Who farewell tour, and Comedy Central talked new series The President Show and the ongoing, Drunk History.
If fans only come for one day, they come Saturday, and big things were happening throughout NYCC this past Saturday. While Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Star Trek: Discovery, and The Walking Dead took over Madison Square Garden, I mostly kept to the Javits Center to experience some panels on the main stage that differ from your average cast talking about a new film or season. I checked out An Hour with Adam Savage first, which was a tribute to fans, film, cosplay, and science. Savage took the stage by himself and answered as many questions as he could, sharing stories, photos, and video along the way. As charming and gracious as you always knew he’d be, it was an inspiring and very funny hour with a person who appreciates NYCC just as much as everyone in the room and expressed gratitude for getting to be there because we fill the room for him. After Adam’s hour, was Twisted Toonz. Anyone who is a fan of animation and especially the cartoons we grew up with as kids, had a murder’s row of voice actors available for autographs and photo ops this past weekend. At the Twisted Toonz panel, those legends (Rob Paulsen, Jess Harnell, Tress MacNeille, Jim Cummings, Nolan North, and Troy Baker) took the stage to do a live reading of the Ghostbusters script as their famous characters and using their best celebrity impressions. It was a funnier hour than any comedy you’ll see at the theater and the closest I’ve come to actually peeing my pants as an adult. You can check it out on YouTube and I suggest you do, but it’s worth coming to a con just to see them perform.
I finished Friday in Hammerstein Ballroom with a raucous crowd for a screening of Archer: Danger Island’s first episode which is about 90% complete according to executive producer Matt Thompson. Taking place on a French territory in the Pacific with a talking parrot named Crackers, a princess, and of course, the danger promised in the title, it was an incredible first episode and promises to be a wonderfully messed up and hilarious ninth season of the ever evolving show.
Despite being the last day of NYCC, Sunday had quite a bit to offer. There was the premiere of Batman vs. Two Face and a celebration of Batman: The Animated Series’ 25th anniversary. Fox showed 15 minutes of the second episode of new Marvel series Gifted about a mutant family on the run, and promised that the show would not sugar coat or gloss over the more complex aspects of their characters, dealing with things like mental illness head on. Finally, I spent my afternoon with Gillian Anderson, David Duchovny, Mitch Pileggi, Chris Carter, and a standing room only crowd of rabid X-Files fans. We got a look at season 11, which will be comprised of ten episodes this time instead of the last season’s six. Creator Chris Carter promised an overall arc that will run through eight stand alone monster of the week episodes and two mythology based installments. He also promised a lot of action, that Mulder and Scully will get “kissin’ close”, and that “there’s a lot of life left in this show,” which leaves the door open for more X-Files should Fox and the stars be on board. Gillian Anderson said she was surprised by her own answer in coming back for season eleven so she may be the biggest question mark for future seasons.
I’m just one person covering a very small cross-section of what NYCC has to offer. New York Comic Con is rapidly expanding outward from the Javits Center into Hammerstein Ballroom, Madison Square Garden, book stores, and more. After hours events are spread out all over the city including Brooklyn and Long Island. The major studios, who roll out their biggest properties at San Diego every July, could stand to take notice and save something besides costumes for the east coast. It’s a large, devoted market that shows up every year with equal enthusiasm for the panels at the theater at MSG and in the smallest conference room at the Javits. 2017 was another great year at NYCC and I can’t wait to see what 2018 has to offer.
