31 JULY 2024
Some Cons need a few days to settle before you can see them clearly. SDCC 2024 is not one of them. It snapped into clarity right away for me and thousands of others: we were having the best Con we'd had in years.
I know it wasn't perfect (but that's impossible anyhow) and I agree with the many observations of the general rudeness of some attendees and security. And yes, it inevitably became a super spreader event with many people testing positive for COVID by Sunday. Oh, and there were the repulsive sex trafficking arrests. But let's focus on the good things right now.
We had some great panels.
Aside from one panel which was clearly a marketing campaign for the dude's business, every panel I attended was good - ranging from enjoyable to remarkable. NASA jazzed up their Artemis panel with snazzier visuals than they usually have, Interview with the Vampire and other Saturday Ballroom 20 panels delivered as expected, and of course, the Alien panel in Hall H was pure old-school SDCC - from video messages from Ridley Scott and Guillermo del Toro to the staged alien "attack" and actor with a chestburster to the amazing face-hugger and movie tickets swag. I also attended some good horror and comics panels that introduced me to new titles (always my ultimate goal at SDCC.) And so on. Of course, you probably attended completely different panels - but if you're like the people I know, you probably enjoyed them too.
Other special touches that got praised include:
The drone show. This was a fun and beautiful way to glimpse Marvel's future.
Crunchyroll concert. I didn't go to this but I heard it was great.
Deadpool and Wolverine's Celebration of Life. I know. If you're one of the cheated, you probably don't want to hear this praised in any way. But the people who did get in said it was a classic SDCC experience they'd remember forever. (And if you're one of the liars who scammed your way in? Shame on you.)
Swag. Some people complained theirs wasn't great but I must have been in the right place at the right time because boy howdy did I score. It was great to see studios bring back actual merchandise like shirts and toys instead of cheap trinkets that belonged at the bottom of a cereal box. Some creatives ideas were in play, like FX offering umbrellas that graphic artists would mark up at your request. On the whole, I think people who did panels came away with items they truly wanted to bring home.
The guest energy. I can't remember which year it was - 2022? - when almost every panel guest I saw seemed bored, contemptuous, or sunk in existential despair. While I recognize the humanity of each player in the SDCC machine and their right to be authentic, it still seemed a little insulting to convey, "I am only here because I have to be" to thousands of fans who moved heaven and earth to see them. This year was different; I observed lots of enthusiasm and audience engagement and cast members and creators who seemed genuinely appreciative of their audiences.
What wasn't so great...
The rudeness. I know everyone complained about arrogant and even threatening security staff, but I encountered some wretched attendees too. I currently have a dark half-moon bruise on my arm and a massive dark bruise on my thigh from being violently pushed out of the way and shoved over a chair in Ballroom 20. Honestly, I could write an entire blog post on the melee that transpired over 90 seconds in Ballroom 20 - absolute villainy. I know attendees are increasingly ruthless but when did we start physically hurting people to get the seat we want? Another woman about my height commiserated with me over tall/large people simply pushing us aside to take things from us. Compared to some hardcore punk shows I've been to, where even the roughest people obey an honor code, SDCC really has some assholes in the mix. And I haven't even touched yet on the reports of fat-shaming cosplayers, scolding people on scooters, and actual threats.
Staffwise - I didn't tangle with any rude officials but I observed it and heard even worse stories. I know this was a big focus at the Talk Back panel. We can only hope for better training next year. But the workers supplied by the booth companies are wild cards - and they were some of the worst ones. Someone told me (take it with a grain of salt) that some local volunteers simply didn't show up because they were part of the San Diego COVID wave.
Some offsites. I actually think most of the offsites were okay - it was the expectations that were out of whack. But I do understand that it's disappointing to wait 3 hours in the sun only to be whisked through a boring room and be handed a bandana. It's also annoying to have a ticket, get into the offsite, and realize everything their press release advertised is actually capped off and unavailable to you. Either people have access or they don't.
The volume of announcements. Robert Downey Jr. is Dr. Doom! Keanu won the Inkpot Award! Dexter is back! The announcements we got were fine, so no frown on that account - we just didn't get the fertile bonanza of new shows and films that we used to get. I understand why so no blame, but to me that deficit was felt by many.
The amount of cosplay. Same principle here - what I saw was good, but I just didn't see that much of it. Maybe I just didn't spend enough time on the street?
Line management. Obviously Deadpool was a debacle that will live in SDCC infamy. But some of the other lines were poorly managed too - and some of the ADA decisions were mind-boggling. What's frustrating is that there are ways that could reduce a lot of this. Why weren't there wristbands for Deadpool winners to pick up - and why weren't there more scanners available when admitting people? Why can't some of the bigger booths on the floor with long lines like Funko move to hotel space? Artists Alley looked like it could barely breathe.
There's been a perceptible inexperience in the air since the pandemic - not coming from the top CCI leadership, I think, but from other people making decisions. Strategies and processes were implemented that simply didn't work in real life. Sometimes, it's understandable. At the Alien panel, they intended to pass out face huggers to us all and then take a photo of all 6500 of us with them over our face. Cute social media idea, but they didn't realize just how many people you'd need to pass out enough items in such a short time, so only the front rows were in the photo while everyone else scrambled to pass them out/pick them up. SDCC logistics are tough to grasp. That said...
Primitive processes. It's 2024, we have automation and LLMs at our fingertips. We have experts in large event management and omnichannel communication and onboarding. I love SDCC but sometimes it seems that they aren't fully aware of their options in terms of improving efficiencies. I hate to go corporate but a few consultants in tech, management, customer service, and comms could make things easier, faster, smoother, and more satisfying for everyone. Creating automated/LLM chatbots (and I hate chatbots but they'd offer some help) to answer attendee questions on the go, more interactive maps, onboarding campaigns and immersive instruction for first-timers, utilizing our RFID badges for line and admission control - there are a lot of options for innovation here.
And yes, I'm aware CCI is a non-profit. But they've got options for fundraising, grants - their commitment to keeping the Con affordable is highly commendable and would play well in a funding proposal - that I hope they're exploring.
But maybe all of this is on the way. Apparently people complained about the new website (I think some of it is good but the UX is not, especially on mobile) and apparently CCI is going to address it. Maybe an overhaul with new talent is coming.
For now, we can put 2024 to bed and move forward. What did you think - was the juice worth the squeeze? And will we see you in the waiting room on September 21?
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