What a day! It's so awesome to be back in San Diego, quite possibly the prettiest city in the United States. The weather is perfect and breezy, the town bedecked with ComicCon banners, and even the light rail is decorated with the girls of The Spirit. It's mecca for geeks and movie lovers alike. I'm absolutely wiped, though. This is the first Preview Night I've ever attended and surprise, surprise, it's the craziest one on record! As always, the Exhibit Hall is a dizzying wonder.
I toured with two con newbies (one of whom is my fangirl mom) and their bewilderment is hilarious. "I just -- wow. I never thought it was this huge! And so many people!" The hall was already packed, some of whom are already in costume which is a dedication I can't even muster. Every booth had an enormous line and for nothing in particular -- when you ask those waiting so patiently, all you get is "NECA." "Mezco." "Mattel." When you ask what hot exclusive they're waiting for, they just shrug and say "Whatever they've got. It's exclusive." Ah, the collectibles market!

Archie, Nite Owl's adorable (I mean, er, badass and awesome) ship is definitely the big hit of the floor. People were literally gathered around worshipping it. "It's Archie!" I had left my camera behind, as I didn't expect to actually be touring the hall so soon, but Erik got some great photos of it. Check those out if you haven't already, and marvel at the fully functional interior. I want to climb inside and sit down so badly!

I had my first crushing disappointment -- NECA's Watchmen t-shirts are not, in fact, free swag (as was touted online) but a pricey $30.00. Sure, they come with a lithograph, but I inevitably lose or bend those, and for $30.00 a pop, a t-shirt would have to actually be woven with the sweat of Hugh Jackman for me to buy it. Gross, I know, but there it is. The people in line may have been lying to me, so I will check back and see if they relent and start handing them out. I doubt it, though.

BUT, I had a total geeky girl thrill! Stylin' Enterprises has several booths here, and they actually have girl size t-shirts -- a whole wall of them, in fact! (By the way, hi Stylin Enterprises guys! You were really cool!) The lack of tiny shirts is something I've lamented previously, and you don't know what a breakthrough this is. I even photographed it (I had to use my mom's Blackberry, so I apologize for the quality) so other girls could share my amazement. You could choose from a plethora of heroes, including Batman, Green Lantern, Wonder Woman, and the Flash. Of course, the one character they lacked was Wolverine, so I had to make do with the Jayne Cobb shirt pictured above. (It looks bigger than it is. I still had to make do with a medium, but hey, it's a girl's medium!) Not even the guy Wolverine shirts tickled my fancy, so this will probably be my one nerdy t-shirt of the con. You have to get at least one.



Erik already photographed the contents of our grab bag, but I've photographed our favorite grabs so far. (I know, Bones is tv, but I love that show.) Isn't that Skrull mask just delightful? My mom tried to turn it down, much to the hilarity of Marvel, who made her take one anyway. We're already making a pretty good start when it comes to the badge pins. That's how you measure your geek cred in this place.

Tomorrow, the con begins in earnest, and it kicks off in big style for Cinematical with Erik Davis on that Masters of Web panel. If you're attending, stop by and say hi to both of us!