Is the writer’s strike going to break the back of SDCC? 3 3

[Robot Man]

I doubt this will impact them much this year attendance wise. Tickets were on sale long before this happened. There might be a lot of real disapointed fans though.

SDCC has a “vibe” that no other con I’ve ever been to has. The whole town goes “comic crazy”. It is, by far, the biggest convention of the year in that town. The media has contributed a lot to it.

When it comes back to the time that you can buy tickets at the door like their sister con WonderCon has had to do, they might be in trouble…

[NewWorldOrder]

The last thing I want to see happen is for SDCC is go back to pre-2008.

There is nothing more boring than that happening, nor does the economy of San Diego.

I know some people want SDCC to go back to the basement of the El Cortez , but rest assured that thought logic is bad for the hobby.

[Bumble Kitty]

"Is the writer's strike going to break the back of SDCC?"

Answer:  No.

It will still be crowded, there will be many cosplayers in the Gaslamp District, restaurants will be crowded during peak times, there will be an occasional homeless person intermingled in the crowds, and the bathrooms will be   .

Harley will have nice stuff priced to the moon, deodorant will be scarcely used, there will be too many panels that I want to attend, Comic Heaven will have one book that I can't afford, someone will step on my foot, and I will eat breakfast every morning at Cafe 222.

I will want a Mrs. Field's cookie, but the price will deter me, I will again spend too little time in the artist's alley, I will not get enough sleep, I will be dead tired on the drive home, I will have spent way too much, and I will not miss Mile High Comics.

So in other words, I can't wait to have a great time!

 

Edited July 1, 2023 by Bumble Kitty

[lordbyroncomics]

On 6/29/2023 at 10:43 AM, Robot Man said:

Doesn’t look good for the granddaddy of comic cons.

Vintage comic book buying and selling has been diminishing for years. Most large corporate sponsors like Marvel, DC, Dark Horse, Mattel, Hasbro have given up the show. And now this.

It costs a LOT just to attend this show. With all of this gone, what is the motivation?

This show was built on buying and selling vintage comics. Over the years, SDCC has slowly squeezed it out. Relying on big business and Hollywood to attract the crowds.

Sad to see…

https://sdccblog.com/2023/06/strike-talk-how-the-strike-is-affecting-san-diego-comic-con-2023/

I know the logistics have changed (as you said, it costs so much just to attend and Rozanski has blogged at length in the past of how uphill it is for comic sellers these past few years) but maybe, just maybe this will make a return to focus on comics actually. Fingers crossed.

[Robot Man]

On 6/30/2023 at 11:34 PM, Bumble Kitty said:

"Is the writer's strike going to break the back of SDCC?"

Answer:  No.

It will still be crowded, there will be many cosplayers in the Gaslamp District, restaurants will be crowded during peak times, there will be an occasional homeless person intermingled in the crowds, and the bathrooms will be   .

Harley will have nice stuff priced to the moon, deodorant will be scarcely used, there will be too many panels that I want to attend, Comic Heaven will have one book that I can't afford, someone will step on my foot, and I will eat breakfast every morning at Cafe 222.

I will want a Mrs. Field's cookie, but the price will deter me, I will again spend too little time in the artist's alley, I will not get enough sleep, I will be dead tired on the drive home, I will have spent way too much, and I will not miss Mile High Comics.

So in other words, I can't wait to have a great time!

 

Indeed. I fully agree. SDCC is the granddaddy of cons. It is a wonderful experience and a magical week for everyone who loves the medium and all it has spawned.

But for those of us who don’t live in town, the expense of travel, accommodations, meals, parking ect. Not to mention long waits, the crowds and very diminished opportunities to just buy old comics just isn’t worth it anymore. I really used to miss it but those times are in the past and I’m over it.

Really hope you have a great time. I will just have to be there in spirit…

[Robot Man]

On 6/30/2023 at 9:28 AM, NewWorldOrder said:

The last thing I want to see happen is for SDCC is go back to pre-2008.

There is nothing more boring than that happening, nor does the economy of San Diego.

I know some people want SDCC to go back to the basement of the El Cortez , but rest assured that thought logic is bad for the hobby.

Why is that bad for the hobby? That is if you are speaking about the hobby of collecting comic books?

In the days of the El Cortez, we were buying and selling comic books. The room was packed with quality dealers and mom and pop sellers offering everything a collector could dream of. Not to mention the greats of the GA /SA sitting at tables or around the pool. Being able to talk to and get a few free signatures on books you loved.

I for one, would love a show like that again. Free of “fluff” and thousands of folks who have probably never opened the cover of an actual comic book.

And frankly, why should I be concerned about the “economy” of San Diego? A city that exploits the heck out of us with with jacked up prices for one week out of the year?

[DougC]

"Is the writer's strike going to break the back of SDCC?"

No, but it should be a wake-up call to the organizers to diversify and grow alternative means of entertainment and perceived customer value.

SDCC shifted from comics, to pop culture, then went all in on comic movies/tv. While doing this they priced out the average consumer and presented a more exclusive event, you were no longer just going to "convention". You going to the SDCC to have an experience where big studio's announce privileged unreleased information, actors go on stage and talk to the plebs regaling them with funny anecdotes... and you where there when it happened!

The tickets are all pre-sold for both vendors and attendees so 2023 will be fine. The first sign of problems will be if the studios also do not show in 2024 or have a very reduced appearance, especially if studios pull an E3 and decide to host their own multi-house "showcase". 2025 would be the first year where how fast tickets pre-sale would be a sign of trouble.

At most SDCC might slim down and shift focus to a more general entertainment convention but it would take some monumental short sided management for the convention to actually fail.

 

 

 

[NewWorldOrder]

On 7/1/2023 at 8:54 AM, Robot Man said:

Why is that bad for the hobby? That is if you are speaking about the hobby of collecting comic books?

In the days of the El Cortez, we were buying and selling comic books. The room was packed with quality dealers and mom and pop sellers offering everything a collector could dream of. Not to mention the greats of the GA /SA sitting at tables or around the pool. Being able to talk to and get a few free signatures on books you loved.

I for one, would love a show like that again. Free of “fluff” and thousands of folks who have probably never opened the cover of an actual comic book.

And frankly, why should I be concerned about the “economy” of San Diego? A city that exploits the heck out of us with with jacked up prices for one week out of the year?

Whether anyone likes it or not the driving force for the comic book hobby has been the movies.  I agree a lot people attending comic con are not there to buy comics, but some are now buying comic (or vintage) because the movies were the gateway drug into the hobby.

SDCC will never go back to selling environment of the El Cortez those days are long gone.  SDCC will always be mixed bag of pop culture with bright lights, and for me that makes it make it fun.  I see more comics friends at SDCC (since I am an east coast transplant) than at any other California show so what you miss is what I currently feel SDCC provides actually.  Terry's show is also one of favorite shows of the year, I even bought my 1st appearance of Sgt rock from you years ago at one of his shows when you set-up if you remember.

There are plenty of shows you attend that are EL Cortez in nature, number one being Terry's/Short Box show in January, and I am assume the LA show this weekend. 

I too wish there were more shows that had local dealers who still had raw GA and more SA available, those days are also long gone, sadly. Soon even seeing a Hulk #181 or GSX #1 "raw" at a show will be a rarity.

When it comes to the economy of SD, I feel for the local workers who for years got extra work/income that week, and since COVID downtown SD has not come back to it's full capacity, but that is more of an off topic which we can chat about in person at the next show I see you at.

[Robot Man]

I do remember. You really loved that book. I always love selling books to those who truly love them. Sometimes, things end up where they really belong. 

I have no aspirations that SDCC will ever go backwards even a little. It was epic in its day in its pure form but times have changed and that is OK. I’m happy for those who like it better now. It has a lot of great memories for me but I’ve pretty much put it behind me.

So glad to have CalCon and the Torpedo show to actually look at comics and buy them. Always, great to catch up with old friends. As good as they are for that, they do lack the “vibe” of SDCC. I really hope they stay small and a short duration. There is such an urgency at CalCon. If you pass in a good book, it is snapped up quickly by the next person  Great for the dealers. 

As far as the local folks in SD. I’m glad they get the extra work. Times are tough for those folks. Unfortunately, most of that money doesn’t trickle down enough to them. Big business milks the heck out of the fans who arrive for the week. I get it, it’s business. Just such a blatant money grab. 

[wiparker824]

On 6/29/2023 at 8:38 AM, aardvark88 said:

Agreed. Folks suffering from Superhero overdose. e.g. Eternals, Morbius, The Flash, Thor: Love and Blunder, Secret Invasion tv.

Those are all bad movies though. I think if they weren’t, they would have done fine at the box office. Into the Spiderverse is the biggest movie of the summer. GOTG3 was also a success, box office passed GOTG1 and very close to passing GOTG2. Because those movies were actually good…

[batman_fan]

The writers are on strike?  

[theCapraAegagrus]

On 7/11/2023 at 9:42 AM, wiparker824 said:

...GOTG2. Because those movies were actually good…

[wiparker824]

On 7/11/2023 at 7:39 AM, theCapraAegagrus said:

My statement wasn’t a critique on GOTG2, so I’m not sure why you chopped my quote like that, it was that GOTG3 is performing well because it was well received, and its already surpassed GOTG1 in box office and will probably surpass GOTG2 in a few days since it’s still playing in theaters and is close. GOTG3 and Into the Spideverse came out in 2023, and show the market for superhero movies is still there, but you can’t put out trash like The Flash or Morbius and expect people to waste their money on it.

[theCapraAegagrus]

On 7/11/2023 at 11:27 AM, wiparker824 said:

My statement wasn’t a critique on GOTG2, so I’m not sure why you chopped my quote like that...

You claimed that GotG Vol. 2 is "actually good".

[wiparker824]

On 7/11/2023 at 8:31 AM, theCapraAegagrus said:

You claimed that GotG Vol. 2 is "actually good".

No I didn’t, you just misread it. I claimed GOTG3 and Into the Spideverse were actually good, and evidence that the market is still strong in 2023. Why would I use GOTG2 as an example of that? That movie came out 6 years ago. All I was doing was providing a reference point to box office sales for how GOTG3 is doing in comparison to it’s predecessors.

Edited July 11, 2023 by wiparker824
A word

[theCapraAegagrus]

On 7/11/2023 at 12:08 PM, wiparker824 said:

No I didn’t, you just misread it. I claimed GOTG3 and Into the Spideverse were actually good, and evidence that the market is still strong in 2023. Why would I use GOTG2 as an example of that? That movie came out 6 years ago. All I was doing was providing a reference point to box office sales for how GOTG3 is doing in comparison to it’s predecessors.

If you're using GotG Vol. 2 as a frame of reference, and in doing so refer to these new movies as "good", what are you labeling the former?

[wiparker824]

On 7/11/2023 at 9:15 AM, theCapraAegagrus said:

If you're using GotG Vol. 2 as a frame of reference, and in doing so refer to these new movies as "good", what are you labeling the former?

A frame of reference for box office sales. Which were good, and soon to be surpassed by GOTG3. Indicating the appetite for superhero movies isn’t fading, as long as the movies are good, which IMO GOTG3 was, unlike the movies listed by the comment I replied to like Flash and Morbius.

So, again my comment wasn’t about what Marvel used to be able to get away with when they were at their peak hype of MCU (when GOTG2 came out), they could put out mediocre films and still turn out numbers. That’s no longer the case, but GOTG3 and Into the Spiderverse are evidence that if you make a quality film, even in the superhero genre, people aren’t “fatigued” and they will show up, as much or even more so than they did when the MCU was in that peak.

[theCapraAegagrus]

On 7/11/2023 at 12:29 PM, wiparker824 said:

A frame of reference for box office sales. Which were good, and soon to be surpassed by GOTG3. Indicating the appetite for superhero movies isn’t fading, as long as the movies are good, which IMO GOTG3 was, unlike the movies listed by the comment I replied to like Flash and Morbius.

So, again my comment wasn’t about what Marvel used to be able to get away with when they were at their peak hype of MCU (when GOTG2 came out), they could put out mediocre films and still turn out numbers. That’s no longer the case, but GOTG3 and Into the Spiderverse are evidence that if you make a quality film, even in the superhero genre, people aren’t “fatigued” and they will show up, as much or even more so than they did when the MCU was in that peak.

Well, that's one way to strip all nuance and context from a subject. BO ≠ Good.

[wiparker824]

On 7/11/2023 at 9:32 AM, theCapraAegagrus said:

Well, that's one way to strip all nuance and context from a subject. BO ≠ Good.

The subject at hand was whether people were fatigued by superhero movies, and box office is in fact a way to show that. And in my opinion the reason GOTG3 and Into the Spiderverse are doing better in the BO compared to Morbius and the Flash is largely because those films were significantly better. I don’t think that’s really that controversial of a take but if you do okay. 

[theCapraAegagrus]

On 7/11/2023 at 12:38 PM, wiparker824 said:

The subject at hand was whether people were fatigued by superhero movies, and box office is in fact a way to show that. And in my opinion the reason GOTG3 and Into the Spiderverse are doing better in the BO compared to Morbius and the Flash is largely because those films were significantly better. I don’t think that’s really that controversial of a take but if you do okay. 

Like I said, stripping all nuance and context from the discussion.