Just in case you weren’t aware, Comic-Con International: San Diego starts today, and The Beat is on the scene to report all sorts of amazing stuff!

While our team scour a large part of 92101, I’m ensconced in an undisclosed location in New York City, the designated survivor, babysitting a cute dachshund as my friend gets her geek on with the Insane Clown Posse at The Gathering of the Jugalos in Ohio. Fedora (the dachshund) will be my mascot this year for all my Watchtower posts, and in a blatant ploy for increased clicks and views, I’ll feature her in cosplay for each post.

Regular readers will know these Watchtower posts are a variation on The Beatrix’s “Kibbles and Bits” posts, collating quick items which generally get overlooked or ignored in the excitement. I’ll be checking my Facebook feed regularly, as well as Google News. If you’ve got something cool to share,

Follow the Beat’s coverage at #beatsdcc18 and our gossip hotline on Twitter @comicsbeatlive !


First, some more proof to refute the notion that female fans are new to fandom:

When I decided to make the X-Wing pilot costume for the Halloween party, there were no photo references available aside from one Star Wars trading card. The original movie had only opened in May, and was still playing in the theaters. There would be no VHS or Laser Disc release for at least a year, maybe longer. I took notes with a flashlight in the movie theater (the Uptown, in Washington DC) for at least four or five showings. My August Party friends and I would often go to the midnight Friday show when the place was practically empty. I found a standard military jumpsuit pattern and modified it to match the sketches I took during the movie. My mom helped me sew the jumpsuit and vest. I bought the pieces for the plastic control box and forearm remote at various art supply and hardware stores, and a friend of mine who worked in the plastics lab at UofMD built it based on my notes and sketches. Because I was small, I deliberately sized the box to be about 80% the size of the real ones so it wouldn’t look huge on me. The rocker switches and dials all worked! The webbing straps were constructed of duct tape (the universal costuming material!), and the rest was comprised of various random items from the hardware store that resembled the things I saw onscreen … I remember that the right shoulder pocket contained three chrome tire pressure gauges.

I modified my old hang gliding helmet, which had 3/4 coverage much like the pilot’s helmets, and I copied the rebel logos and symbols from the movie scenes. The ridge on top of the helmet was made from a Hot Wheels track. After I painted the whole thing, I bashed it up a bit to make it look used and more authentic.

The post goes further into her costuming fandom, via science fiction conventions in the 1970s and 80s. While Comic-Con has had a masquerade contest for decades, CCI has its origins via SF shows. Cosplay (known back then as “hall costumes”, and rarely seen, as fans would keep the good stuff for the costume contest) did not become popular until manga and anime became more prevalent at comic cons.


Entertainment Weekly has a livestream from their studio.

…and Kevin Smith captains IMDB’s yacht.


“Comic-Con 2018: Here’s what you need to know about our new marijuana laws”

The SDUT also goes behind the scenes, running numbers on the show, as well as how it all runs smoothly, and how CCI is organized.