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No nerd's paradise: Comic-Con sets the scene for studios

By Sandy Cohen
AP, SAN DIEGO
Sunday, Jul 29, 2007, Page 12

A statue of Star Wars villain Jabba the Hutt presides over the crowd at the 38th annual Comic-Con in San Diego, California, on Thursday. PHOTO: NY TIMES NEWS SERVICE

At Comic-Con, fantasy reigns.

It comes in the form of comic books and video games, anime and art. It comes in the form of major Hollywood productions filled with fantastic elements. And it comes in human form, too, as hundreds of fans converged on the pop-culture convention on Thursday clad as their favorite superheroes, video game icons and anime characters.

"You get all these crazy people in all these wacky costumes," said Samuel Stewart, 20, who was dressed as a banana. "You've got from ninjas to pirates and everything in between."

Colin Wheelock, who traveled from Northern California to "partake in the awesomeness" of Comic-Con, crafted his own costume to look like Axl from the Kingdom Hearts II video game. He ordered his floor-length black pleather robe, black gloves and silver chain from e-Bay, then styled his own bright red wig with "glue and lots of Aqua Net."

Wearing a costume enhances the convention experience, said the 18-year-old: "You get all kinds of random people asking for your photo."

He came to check out the latest video games and trading cards, concluding after one afternoon that the festival is "amazing."

"This is like a nerd's paradise," he said.

Wayne Sullivan traveled all the way from Albuquerque to show off his beloved Batman suit. The 43-year-old university staffer said he spent "a couple years" getting the outfit just right. He refurbished the rubberized pants himself and ordered a custom-made cowl from Australia. He carried a golden grappling gun (really a "cut and painted Nerf gun") and hand-cut pointy bats to throw at villains.

He brought different costumes for each day of the event, including Mandalorian Warrior and Republic Commando outfits inspired by Star Wars.

More than costumes, though, movies are a major draw at Comic-Con, which fills the San Diego convention center for four days. Fans come for exclusive previews of upcoming films and a chance to see their favorite stars.

Paramount showed early footage from Beowulf, set for release in November, as well as this summer's Stardust. Fans of the Indiana Jones franchise learned that Karen Allen would reprise her role as Marion Ravenwood in the film's fourth installment. Warner Bros planned to feature five movies, including Get Smart, due next summer. Lionsgate had four films on the docket. The Walt Disney Co was set to screen first-look footage of its new Narnia film and the latest Pixar project, Wall-E. New Line and Universal were also on hand, as were a slew of TV networks touting new shows.

Celebrities slated to appear included Jessica Alba, Nicolas Cage, Edward Norton, Clive Owen, Josh Hartnett, Robert Downey Jr, Dane Cook, cast members from TV's Lost and Heroes, and Matt Groening, creator of The Simpsons.
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