Autograph Hound's Blah Blah Blog

Friday, September 23, 2016

SDCC 2016 recap and random thoughts


2016 was going to be THE year. The year that we were going to ‘jump the shark’ and get in line SO early that we could easily queue through the WB line twice and possibly be in the front of the Fox line.  This was the year we were going into get ALL of the premier autographs.  This year we were going to rival the ‘Pros’ with our autograph haul.

This year, SDCC offered at LOT of bright shiny treasures for the bold and adventurous.  Cast signings from Suicide Squad, Wonder Women, Luke Cage, Game of Thrones, Walking Dead, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, and a Deadpool DVD signed by Ryan Reynolds

With such a source of wealth, it was hard to keep expectations low.  We HAD to score 1 or more of these highly sought after prizes. We flew into San Diego salivating and hungry.  We were already mentally framing some of these posters on our walls.

My friends and I struck out on all counts. ComicCon chewed us up and spit us out like soggy sunflower seeds with all of the salt sucked off.

I’ve mentioned before that SDCC is an emotional rollercoaster.  Between my friends and I, I like to think I’m the even keel one.  I try to roll with the punches. I try to remain positive and provide support.  I try to keep in mind the successes and the failures. I know that ComicCon is a marathon and as I get older, it’s tougher to keep pace with the young ones.   I have compensated in several ways to help me reach my goals.  I rarely attend panels. I don’t spend time tracking down swag. I’ll actually sit to rest and have a ‘real’ lunch.

I must admit, this year, I was quickly disillusioned and actually said ‘no mas’.  By Friday morning, I announced ‘never again’ to my friends and wife. 

While I learned that my shoes (covered with a towel borrowed from the hotel) makes a decent pillow while I slept on the sidewalk, I also learned that there were more than a 1000 people in front of me when I put my weary head to rest on those worn loafers.

When we entered the WB line so far back that the ‘good stuff’ was already gone before we reached the end of the line, I realized we didn’t jump the shark.  In fact, we didn’t even get close to jumping the shark. We might not have kept pace with last year.  I lowered my head in defeat. I asked myself what we needed to do to really jump the shark. I did not like that answer.

The rest of my SDCC weekend was tainted. I was exhausted and defeated and lamenting the fact I was not coming back. I had some highlights but I kept focusing on the failures instead of the successes.

Over the years, I have met a few people at ComicCon I see regularly. Some of them I know their names and we have long chats. Others are nodding acquaintances and we exchange a few words.  As I was ran into these people, I was saying good bye. I was mentally divorcing myself from SDCC.  When I got home, I told my non-SDCC friends that it was time to move on.

As I was working on my blog and reliving the week through my posts, I started to realize, the week wasn’t so bad.  I had more successes than I remembered.  While I did not score HUGE, I did have 3 very memorable and very exciting encounters:  American Gods, Fear the Walking Dead, and the Trimbles and the Star Trek Concordance. 

So I have mentally moved from ‘no mas’ to ‘hmm, I wonder how we can game plan this better next year’.  I can’t claim I will be disappointed if ComicCon rejects me and I don’t get a badge but I won’t be disappointed if I do go.

Just a few more months before badges are on sale. I’m sure I’ll be fully committed on attending by then.

AH

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