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Wizard World Minneapolis Color Cover
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The third and final Wizard World Minneapolis Comic Con day three wrapped up on Sunday. Like Friday, Sunday's show was somewhat limited compared to Saturday's show. The panels were very limited and I found myself on the vendor floors for about an hour before I got tired of looking at the same things over and over. There's only so much you can do within the vendors' booths.
I did all my shopping this date, buying things that I knew would be hard to find and keeping within a price range that I can feel comfortable with. I'm a bargain hunter, and it was hard to find any gems at the show. Most of the titles that I bought were basically for the value, not necessary what is hot at the moment. I like old comics, and the deluxe reprints are decently priced. There was a particular dealer that was selling three hardcovers for $25, which was a good deal... but the selection wasn't that great.
As a big Nightmare on Elm Street fan, I was first in line to see Robert Englund for his Q&A session. Fan, after fan, confessed how Englund's Freddy Krueger scared the living daylights out of them, and, of course, Englund, loved it. "Get 'em while they're young," he would gleefully say.
When asked about the recent re-make of Nightmare on Elm Street, Englund said that it was just too soon. He said that we have technology now (referring to Bluray), that looked and sounded much better than the dimly lit theater or drive through that played when they originally came out. Fans are still "discovering" these films, so there's really no need to remake a classic at this moment.
Regarding influences on his life, he talks about his childhood of looking at old monster movie books and noticing a bra-less vampire. He suddenly exclaimed, "I think I see vampire nipples!!" That got a huge laugh, and the vampire nipples would be a call back several questions later in his panel.
As for films he's into, he confessed that 'Rom Com' (Romantic Comedy) are not his thing. He does enjoy horror movies, but recently, the one film that defies any conventional genre, was a film he saw called Blue Ruin. I've actually see this film, it's pretty great. The first twenty or thirty minutes of the film, there's literally no dialogues - all the story-telling is done through acting and respecting the audience's intelligence to put it together.
I ended up missing Dean Cain's panel, but that was fine, considering that Matt Smith's panel started nearly fifteen minutes earlier than schedule! Smith spoke in the main room, which was massive and every seat in the house was used. So many people showed up to Smith's Q&A that fans were standing outside the doorway just to get a glimpse of the 11th Doctor.
I've mentioned this before, but I was never a Doctor Who fan, but it was incredible to see that so many Who fans came out this Sunday just to see the star. Some people came as far as South Dakota and Idaho to get an opportunity to take their photo with him and his TV star companion Karen Gillan.
The question line was so massive that the convention divided it up into two area, where fans took turn on the mic to ask questions one after another.
The biggest news (at least to me), was that Smith confirmed a rumor that he will be involved in the upcoming Terminator movie. Contractually he cannot give any details, but he is very excited about the franchise.
Many of the questions involved his companions and Smith did the best to not play any favorites.
To be honest, it did not matter what Smith said, the guy is incredible charismatic. He really did have the audience in the palm of his hands.
I went over to check out Manu Bennett, mostly because I love the Spartacus series and his reoccurring role on Arrow as the villain Deathstroke (incidentally created by Marv Wolfman and George Perez).
Bennett's answers were often really long, and actually cut the question line more than one half. Still, despite the disappointed fans awaiting to ask questions, we learned a lot about the New Zealand filming crew vs the Canadian crew.
One enjoyable story was on the set of Xena, in order to get the most realistic shots, Bennett asked the stunt guys to actually hit themselves with the rubber swords for maximum effect. Years later, word got around and when he was hired for Spartacus, they stressed that he cannot hit actor/star Andy Whitfield.
Bennett is a lot of fun, and you can tell that he takes every role given to me as a gift and will do his absolute best. Check out the video clip to see what I mean.
The Boondock Saints' Sean Patrick Flanery and David Della Rocco came in strong and super excited.... but the tone was quickly taken down several notches when a fan shouted out that Flanery's friend Billy Connolly had cancer. Way to start off on a downer.
Rocco, on the other hand, was recovering from drinking all night to celebrate his birthday. He was quite laid back, compared to Flanery's loud tone.
Looking at the fans, you quickly understand why the original film had such a cult status that it demanded a sequel to be made - based on sales on the DVD market.
I tried heading back to see the kids costume contest, but that ended earlier than scheduled, so I basically spent the rest of my time shopping on the floor. There were the usual cosplayers and I noticed some additional vendors that I did not see on Friday... perhaps they were always there but I missed them the first time around.
For the very first Wizard World Comic Con, I think it was incredibly well-organized; from ticket booths to knowledgeable and friendly (at least the volunteers I ran into) staff. Panels usually ran on time and equipment/mics were working for the most part. However, that's not without saying that scheduling Wizard World it over the Free Comic Book Day and only weeks away from the local non-profit Springcon did not have its problem. There are only so many comic book fans to go around... but again, I'm not sure if the same audience for Wizard World will also be at Springcon, who expressed that they're only interested in just comic books and not celebrities.
Personally, I do believe that both convention can co-exist together, both conventions are very different from one another. Wizard World is geared towards popular culture and celebrities, and, like it or not, people want this. Midwest Comic Book Association, which organize Springcon and Fallcon, have no desire to enter this market, but the good thing is that they continue to serve its loyal fanbase and keep ticket prices affordable.
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Mortal Kombat
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Robert Englund
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When asked about the recent re-make of Nightmare on Elm Street, Englund said that it was just too soon. He said that we have technology now (referring to Bluray), that looked and sounded much better than the dimly lit theater or drive through that played when they originally came out. Fans are still "discovering" these films, so there's really no need to remake a classic at this moment.
Regarding influences on his life, he talks about his childhood of looking at old monster movie books and noticing a bra-less vampire. He suddenly exclaimed, "I think I see vampire nipples!!" That got a huge laugh, and the vampire nipples would be a call back several questions later in his panel.
As for films he's into, he confessed that 'Rom Com' (Romantic Comedy) are not his thing. He does enjoy horror movies, but recently, the one film that defies any conventional genre, was a film he saw called Blue Ruin. I've actually see this film, it's pretty great. The first twenty or thirty minutes of the film, there's literally no dialogues - all the story-telling is done through acting and respecting the audience's intelligence to put it together.
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Matt Smith
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I've mentioned this before, but I was never a Doctor Who fan, but it was incredible to see that so many Who fans came out this Sunday just to see the star. Some people came as far as South Dakota and Idaho to get an opportunity to take their photo with him and his TV star companion Karen Gillan.
The question line was so massive that the convention divided it up into two area, where fans took turn on the mic to ask questions one after another.
The biggest news (at least to me), was that Smith confirmed a rumor that he will be involved in the upcoming Terminator movie. Contractually he cannot give any details, but he is very excited about the franchise.
Many of the questions involved his companions and Smith did the best to not play any favorites.
To be honest, it did not matter what Smith said, the guy is incredible charismatic. He really did have the audience in the palm of his hands.
|
Manu Bennett
|
Bennett's answers were often really long, and actually cut the question line more than one half. Still, despite the disappointed fans awaiting to ask questions, we learned a lot about the New Zealand filming crew vs the Canadian crew.
One enjoyable story was on the set of Xena, in order to get the most realistic shots, Bennett asked the stunt guys to actually hit themselves with the rubber swords for maximum effect. Years later, word got around and when he was hired for Spartacus, they stressed that he cannot hit actor/star Andy Whitfield.
Bennett is a lot of fun, and you can tell that he takes every role given to me as a gift and will do his absolute best. Check out the video clip to see what I mean.
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Sean Patrick Flanery and David Della Rocco
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Rocco, on the other hand, was recovering from drinking all night to celebrate his birthday. He was quite laid back, compared to Flanery's loud tone.
Looking at the fans, you quickly understand why the original film had such a cult status that it demanded a sequel to be made - based on sales on the DVD market.
|
When in Rome...
|
For the very first Wizard World Comic Con, I think it was incredibly well-organized; from ticket booths to knowledgeable and friendly (at least the volunteers I ran into) staff. Panels usually ran on time and equipment/mics were working for the most part. However, that's not without saying that scheduling Wizard World it over the Free Comic Book Day and only weeks away from the local non-profit Springcon did not have its problem. There are only so many comic book fans to go around... but again, I'm not sure if the same audience for Wizard World will also be at Springcon, who expressed that they're only interested in just comic books and not celebrities.
Personally, I do believe that both convention can co-exist together, both conventions are very different from one another. Wizard World is geared towards popular culture and celebrities, and, like it or not, people want this. Midwest Comic Book Association, which organize Springcon and Fallcon, have no desire to enter this market, but the good thing is that they continue to serve its loyal fanbase and keep ticket prices affordable.
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Wizard World Minneapolis 2014 Video Clips |
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