As Seen on TV

When so many movies and TV shows are based on comic books, graphic novels, and manga, it makes sense to showcase coming attractions for this group of fans. This year I didn’t see a Walking Dead character on my badge and immediately wanted to know what was on everyone else’s badges. In fact, the first thing I said to Jose after, “It’s so quiet” was “There’s really no Walking Dead posters anywhere?”

Between Reed Pop planning to reduce attendance and interactions, it makes sense so many companies would skip the Show. But it still makes it feel a lot less like New York Comic Con when SyFy doesn’t create a fan lounge with their logo plastered everywhere. It’s strange to not see cars Chevy had artists decorate specifically for the Show. I miss seeing people take advantage of Geico’s mega photobooth. Walking from the Crystal Palace to the North Concourse shouldn’t be so easy.

Some activations we missed

OLD & NEW NBC Not only were vendors shouting out they had Golden Girls merchandise, but The Golden Gays had a booth. NBC can only hope La Brea is as popular one day.

SOLO MISSION Paramount+ has multiple Star Trek series coming, but Prodigy was the only one advertised along the fence, on a billboard, and with an activation.

The banners clearly advertised CG-animated aliens which Paramount+ is hoping will be family fun. Prodigy is about a motley crew of young outcasts who must figure out how to work together because they know nothing about the ship they have commandeered. While navigating a greater galaxy, they will be introduced to the Starfleet and the ideals it represents. There was a panel to preview the series and hear a conversation with voice cast members and producers.

At first I thought the 34th Street station was decorated for Batman, but that’s a promotion for Hulu’s Wu-Tang: An American Saga. More yellow on black logos kept popping up at the Javits Center, like everyone was in on it.

Audible was back at the Show with an activation to preview Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman: Act II and offer pictures on two backgrounds (“Barbie’s Dreamworld” and “Hell”). This set up was nothing compared to the pensieve they installed one year to promote Harry Potter on Audible, but who needs to be that fancy? Being here is special enough.

The tent and ambulance served as a centerpiece for Green North. If you’ve never heard of Doom Patrol, there’s a lot to catch up on. The original comic series was supposed to be an absurdist take on X-Men, introducing characters like Flex Mentallo (below center), a metahuman with powers to manipulate reality, Danny Street (below), a sentient piece of urban geography, and Negative Man (below), who wears special bandages to protect bystanders from his radioactivity. Luis read the original volume and later runs by Grant Morrison and John Byrne. He describes Doom Patrol as a little family of outcasts doing good. —MV

Hearing Luis explain why it makes sense for drag queens to be at the Doom Patrol activation, I was suddenly disappointed Umbrella Academy was missing from the Show. Luis, however, wondered why HBO Max wasn’t promoting more of their line up, like the new Aquaman: King of Atlantis.

Funimation, a site with 15,000 hours of ad-free anime ready to stream, had multiple stations plus staff who roamed the Show to hand out freebies. The indoor garden looked so relaxed while the outdoor tent usually had a thumping beat. The purple straps look like lanyards but actually grip the tops of water bottles. When I saw a woman loading up an armful of free straps, I wondered if she’s in charge of a kids sports team or something.

Big Gay Ice Cream The size small T-shirts sold out quickly and there was always a line at the truck.

Two halves One side of the inner roadway is devoted to food trucks, the other to photographers.