San Diego Comic-Con 2012, Day 4 – Batmobiles, Iron Man 3, Epic Mickey 2, LEGO, collectibles, and wrap-up

in Cosplay, Disney, Entertainment, Events, Video Games

The final day of San Diego Comic-Con is met with anticipation, anxiety, and a bit of sadness. Even after several highly-entertaining days packed with pop culture excitement, attendees are eager to cram as much into the final hours as possible, particularly with the show floor closing two hours earlier on this last day.

Sunday is the day to rapidly hop from booth to booth, exhibit to exhibit, seeing all the sights put off until “later.” There is no “later” and the commotion around the convention is noticeably higher as attendees try to fit it all in.

San Diego Comic-Con, Day 4 – Sunday, July 15, 2012

San Diego Comic-Con 2012
Our day began early, crowding around the not-yet-open convention halls with hundreds of others, including an Astromech droid roaming about. For some unknown reason, the doors to the show floor weren't going to open until close to 10 am, cutting a short day even shorter.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
Since we arrived before 9am, expecting earlier entry, I killed some time by finally making it over to the nearby Hilton lawn to see the Batmobiles from across the years that were on display together for the first time. Here's the vehicle from "The Dark Knight."
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
This camouflage "tumbler" from "The Dark Knight Rises" was shown off for the first time as well.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
But my favorite Batmobile will always be this one from Tim Burton's films. It's the one I grew up watching.

San Diego Comic-Con 2012
The later Joel Schumacher variations were cluttered with far too much bling.


San Diego Comic-Con 2012
Another Joel Schumacher monstrosity.

San Diego Comic-Con 2012
But you can't go wrong with the classic, from the much-beloved '60s TV show.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
Finally making it onto the show floor, I found my way to the giant Marvel booth, which had somehow eluded me for three days.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
The array of Iron Man costumes, including the debut of the new suit from "Iron Man 3," was impressive. Even Deadpool and Harley Quinn thought so. Or perhaps they were plotting something...
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
I continued down to the lower-numbered booths, as I hadn't sufficiently explored that area of the show floor yet. Much to my surprise, there stood a massive Power Ranger, at least 20-feet tall.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
The Profiles in History booth was displaying instantly-recognizable pieces of movie history.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
Come with me and you'll be in a world of pure imagination...
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
The prices on these Wonka items (and everything else) did not indicate what they were selling them for, but rather estimates of what they think they'll fetch when they soon auction them off.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
Joe Maddalena and his team were happy to meet with fans of their reality TV show "Hollywood Treasure."
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
Backtracking, I wanted to hit a few booths showing off new collectibles, like the always-impressive offerings from Sideshow.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
I'm not sure who actually buys these statues, but they are highly detailed.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
This series of Avengers statues was arranged to create that famous shot from the recent film circling around the main characters.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
Classic Tygra caught my eye.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
Sideshow also displayed life-sized statues, like this Star Wars baddie.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
And a "Terminator" T-800 Endoskeleton.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
And Han Solo encased in carbonite.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
Nearby I spotted a guy hand Wonderwoman his Wonderbaby to take a picture. Slightly awkward, but still fun.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
Continuing down my list of must-see booths, I hopped over to Diamond to check out a few more collectibles.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
I have a growing Street Fighter collection and that Ryu with a Hadouken fireball may be added to it soon.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
New Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles figures and vehicles are always tempting, particularly when it's a new Turtle Van. I already own two versions... why not a third?
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
These reimagined classic Turtles figures look amazing. I love the real metal chains on Michaelangelo's nunchucks.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
I'd walked by the LEGO booth many times but hadn't stopped there until now.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
No LEGO booth would be complete without a few life-sized LEGO sculptures, this one of Gandalf.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
Opposite Gandalf was Bilbo Baggins, both in promotion of "The Hobbit."
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
A massive Hulk LEGO sculpture didn't scare anyone, though this kid felt the need to pose with his head in a box.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
LEGO Darth Maul certainly looked menacing.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
Little Batman attracted attention when posing in front of the large(r) LEGO superheroes.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
Continuing to wander all the booths I hadn't yet seen, I stumbled across the Prop Store, featuring screen-used props from years of filmmaking.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
My favorite was the somewhat toasted Stay Puft Marshmallow Man head.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
All of the above was packed into the first couple hours of the day. I had a panel to get to by 1pm so it was time to head back out into the Gaslamp Quarter to find some lunch. While there, we came across some girls promoting Will Ferrel's upcoming film "The Campaign."
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
Also outside were characters from the upcoming movie "ParaNorman."
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
After grabbing a quick sandwich at The Old Spaghetti Factory, we headed back to the convention center, where Catwoman was playfully pawing at a San Diego Police car, though regularly looking around to make sure she wasn't caught.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
Inside, Playboy bunny Avengers turned heads as they walked by.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
My first panel of the day and last of the convention was for Epic Mickey 2, with surprise moderator Adam Sessler.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
The panel consisted of the same crowd I'd interviewed the day before: Marv Wolfman, Epic Mickey creator Warren Spector, Walt Disney Archives' Becky Cline, and Peter David. They not-so-subtly made the whole audience jealous by wearing their hard-to-get Oswald ear hats.

You can watch the full Epic Mickey 2 panel in the video below, also briefly touching on Epic Mickey: Power of Illusion for Nintendo 3DS:

San Diego Comic-Con 2012
Some outstanding artwork and clips from the game were shown off but it was clear from Q&A that many were concerned with how the group was improving on the first game, which suffered from control issues. They're convinced those issues have been solved and the addition of voices and songs will take the new game to a new level.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
Those who asked questions received special E-tickets. But no one received any Oswald ear hats, despite many hoping for a giveaway.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
After the panel, I was determined to photograph and video every interesting costume I came across in the little remaining time I had left at the convention. This girl not only had a good costume but also strongly reminded me of Kaley Cuoco, one of the stars of "The Big Bang Theory" and hugely popular among the geeks at Comic-Con. That should be this girl's costume next year.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
All throughout this last day, I was once again dressed as a character. This time it was Freddy Krueger - or at least mostly, minus the burnt face. Here I posed with The Walking Dead photo op, though I was told Michonne would likely win this battle.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
I headed over to "The Hobbit" booth from WETA to snap a decent shot of their huge trolls, including the costumed one in the bottom. Too bad the other photographer snuck into an otherwise excellent shot.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
Around the corner, Gollum was being very paranoid... as usual.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
Some of the upcoming toys for "The Hobbit" were on display.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
At first glance, it seemed props from "The Hobbit" were also being shown off, but they turned out to be replicas, despite being behind glass.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
Over at the Hasbro booth, "Clone Wars" voice actress Ashley Eckstein was signing autographs, always smiling.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
Different cars rotated out at this booth celebrating James Bond's 50th anniversary.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
Continuing through the collectibles, we briefly passed by Tonner's booth.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
I couldn't resist taking a peek at the "Tron: Legacy" dolls, though I can't say I have any desire to own them. Gem looks good and is tempting simply because there is very little merchandise of her available. But the other two... eh.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
Nearing the end of the convention, I stumbled across actress Mindy Robinson once again, who I didn't actually recognize in unicorn form until reviewing these photos later. She reluctantly but politely posed for this photo, quite tired at the end of the day. I was too.
San Diego Comic-Con 2012
Finally, this woman was spritzing attendees with Febreze to mask the unpleasant odors of 4.5 days spent at San Diego Comic-Con. It was over and while there was sadness in the air, there was also much relief, with a hint of anticipation for 2013.

San Diego Comic-Con 2012 Day-by-Day Photo Reports:

  • July 11 – Preview Night
  • July 12, Day 1 – Twilight, Walt Disney Studios, costumes, Walking Dead Escape, Dawn of the Con
  • July 13, Day 2 – Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Tron: Uprising, zombie walk, Con of the Dead
  • July 14, Day 3 – Marty McFly, Futurama, The Simpsons, Frankenweenie Electrifying Garden, True Blood
  • July 15, Day 4 – Batmobiles, Iron Man 3, Epic Mickey 2, LEGO, collectibles, and wrap-up
  • Also from Comic-Con 2012:

  • Best of Comic-Con Cosplay: Sexy and surprising costumes command attention during San Diego Comic-Con 2012
  • “Frankenweenie” touring exhibit electrifies San Diego Comic-Con as Disney producer Don Hahn explains its origins
  • Inside ‘The Walking Dead Escape’, unleashing zombies on San Diego Comic-Con with gruesome, grueling experience
  • “Wreck-It Ralph” retro excitement extends across San Diego Comic-Con with playable arcade game and panel presentations
  • More photos from San Diego Comic-Con, Day 4 – Sunday, July 15, 2012:

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