Surviving Yet Another Wonder Con

Every year I look forward to several TV-related events.

The first is the annual Paley Fest that is sponsored by the Paley Center for Media (formerly the Museum of Television and Radio). For the last few years that event has been held at the Dolby Theatre (where the Oscar’s are held) in the heart of Hollywood.

The second event is WonderCon, which for the last few years has been held in Anaheim (California) [otherwise known as the home of Disneyland], but was transplanted to the Los Angeles Convention Center this past weekend.

The third is the annual San Diego Comic Con for which I have been attending nearly every single year since 2001. But seeing as how this particular event isn’t until July, I will – of course – focus on all that took place at this past weekend’s WonderCon.

The first day started off with having to stand in line to pick up my badge, but once that process was complete – which only took a few minutes when all was said and done – I was off to the nearby Microsoft Theatre (where the Emmy’s are held) for moderated panels with the cast and creative minds behind the FreeForm series Stitchers and Shadowhunters.

I must say both of those panels were entertaining as the audience was treated to sneak peeks at upcoming scenes from both show’s next new episodes (which will air tonight I might add).

The rest of my day was spent traversing around the Exhibition Hall, looking at all the wares sold by the vendors – picking up some collectibles that were on my wish list (Outlander Funko Pop figurines of Jamie and Claire) and one item that wasn’t on my list at all, but for which I simply could not pass up (an amazing drawing of the entire Arrow cast by my favorite artist Jason Palmer). Once my purchases were made, I simply had fun walking the floor and checking out all the cool costumes.

The second day of the convention was a long day filled with TV panels where I sat in the same room for nearly 10 hours, but it was well worth it because the cast and creative minds behind shows like The Last Ship, Wayward Pines, Scorpion, Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Sleepy Hollow and Orphan Black all took the stage to talk about their shows and, in some instances, give us a sneak peek at their next new episodes.

There was also a panel held by TV Guide saluting showrunners – those crazy busy people who guide every little aspect of your favorite shows – that featured Damon Lindelof (The Leftovers and formerly Lost), Melissa Rosenberg (Marvel’s Jessica Jones and formerly the Twilight movie franchise) and Ali Adler (Supergirl and formerly Chuck) [among others]. It’s always to listen to these talented folks talk about how their shows work.

The final day of the convention found me once again back in the Exhibition Hall (before and after the panels I attended) in order to make a quick purchase for a dear friend and to snap more pictures of the awesome costumes worn by attendees.

As for the panels I attended, The CW brought the cast and creatives minds behind The 100 and DC’s Legends of Tomorrow to talk about both of their shows. The audience was treated to the first 13 minutes of this week’s new episode of The 100 and a really cool teaser trailer for what is upcoming on Legends of Tomorrow besides the typical moderated panels.

Needless to say, the three days of the convention were busy and action-packed. Most of all, I had fun seeing all these panels and spending some time with friends who enjoy attending this event as much as I do.

Please be on the look-out for my write-up on the Stitchers and Shadowhunters panels as soon as possible. And, I’ll also try to share some photos soon too.