The time we went to Comic-Con 2012

Last year, we got up at 3am and waited in line for 6 hours to buy our 2012 CC passes when they were still doing onsite ticketing. I can't complain because we ended up meeting Matt Smith in the middle of the road and he was super nice and took pictures with us.

Anyhoo.

We weren't super excited about it right away. We've been every year for 16 years or so and while it's been interesting watching the growth and popularity, it's also been a downer at how commercial and assholey it's gotten.  For the first time, I actually looked through the schedule and made a note of the panels I wanted to see.

Thursday

I knew Heather Brewer was going to be signing on Thursday. We went to Penguin YR right away to ask about when Heather would be there and just happened to get there right before Marie Lu was signing the special edition copy of Legend. I also *finally* met Christine and Caitlin who were both in line for Marie Lu as well.

From Marie, we headed to the BBC America booth to get the CC edition Doctor Who shirt. The line ran all across the wall and they had to walk people over 20 at a time. It took us about 20 minutes to get up to the booth, but I was able to get my hands on a couple of shirts. And the best lanyard ever.

From there, we had nothing but time. The panel I wanted to go to was at 1:15, but due to the Walking Dead being right after it, the hall it was being held in was already full.

We walked around a bit and then went to scope out where the after-panel-autograph area would be.  There was still a panel signing going on [the topic was "Books in Hollywood"] and Margaret Stohl was there.  I was given a Beautiful Creatures shirt that she signed.

I bought a copy of When You Were Mine by Rebecca Serle.  I'm a total sucker for anything Romeo and Juliet related.  She was adorable.  And just so so so nice.  Her marker started to run out when she went to sign my book, so I asked her if she wanted a new one.  She said yes, because she didn't want to "sign it in Fifty Shades of Grey." She started laughing and remarked that she knew it was a bad joke, but couldn't resist. 

We chatted about how the author of Fifty Shades was going to be signing later and how we were all just amazed by it.  Rebecca was lovely enough to take a picture with me... And then asked Hubs to take another one with her camera.

I was handed a few other free books as I walked down the panel line, but only one other one was signed.  The author, Mark Frost, was really friendly.  The Paladin Prophecy sounds amazing too.  Apparently, there's going to be a movie coming out in 2014 based on the book...

After getting through that panel, we sat around for a while and just watched people.  Eventually, I noticed that people were getting in line for the signing from the "Not With a Bang, but a Bite" panel, so I went to get in line. 

And then this happened.

Yes.  You're looking at that right.  The Disney Princesses had an impromptu photo shoot right where the signing was going to take place.  And apparently, I was the photographer, using Rapunzel's camera, and the phones of Ariel and Merida.

At 2:30, the authors from the panel came over. 

Max Brooks was first for me.  Basically, just a hi, nice to see you, thank you, bye type of situation. He was smiley and nice, though.

Stephen Blackmoore is a riot on Twitter.  We've been having an ongoing conversation about CC involving tasers, matching Sailor Moon costumes and our mutual awkwardness in real life.  He made me promise that I would identify myself when I got to him... And I sort of did, in the form of my name on a post-it note in the book.

We chatted for a few minutes before he signed my book and took a picture with me.  Seriously, go follow him now.  Now.  Now.  NOW.

Last, but certainly not least, was Susan Dennard.  I just happened to see that she was going to be on the panel as well and I almost died when I saw that Something Strange and Deadly was going to be available to buy before the signing [and before the release date].

Susan is super friendly on Twitter and in person.  She had a bunch of trading cards of the characters in front of her, along with a sticker that said "aim for the knees".  When I commented on it, Susan said that one of her characters uses her parasol to knock down zombies.  LOVE IT.  She was also more than willing to take pictures!

As I was walking out of the signature line, Sarah J Maas was there. [squee!!] Because I've repeatedly flailed over her, I was going to try and play it cool. Again. Well, that didn't work out.

She said hi to me and I actually did the I'm-shielding-myself-from-you-because-if-I-can't-see-you-then-you-can't-see-me-and-I-won't-make-an-ass-of-myself. Did that work?

No.

I had some ridiculous word vomit about how I wasn't really stalking her, it was just a coincidence and not to be afraid. She said words back, but I have no fucking clue what they were. It could have been any combination of:

"Nice to see you" to "Okay, I'm scared now" to "Get the fuck away from me" to "I'm calling the cops"

After making a complete ass of myself with Sarah, we decided to call it a day.  And what a first day it was...

Friday

I had been bugging Heather Brewer on Twitter about her CC schedule for about a week before.  She was signing ARCs of Second Chance at Penguin on Thursday at 5 and having gotten First Kill last year, I really really really wanted it.  However, Hubs couldn't miss school, so I was unable to go.

Thankfully, Caitlin and Michelle were available to get to Penguin for me.  And apparently, Heather recognized my name and told them I was a liar since I didn't show up.  After Michelle text me to tell me about it, I tweeted Heather again and thanked her for signing the book for me, even though I wasn't there.  I also said that I'd be seeing her on Friday. Her answer? "You better be".

So. That brings us to Friday morning.

The line across from Hall H, for Hall H

We were walking down the sidewalk in front of the convention center, trying to get down to the section that we wanted to enter at.  As we were walking in, Heather Brewer and her son were walking out.  Hubs noticed her and we spun around to talk to her.  Hubs told her who I was [namely, that I was the one who didn't show up Thursday].  She started laughing, telling me the story of what happened and how she called me a liar. 

Afterwards, she was awesome and took a picture, but not before jumping up and down with me. I promised her that I would see her at the Penguin booth at 10.

We got right into the convention center and headed to Penguin.  I wanted to confirm that they didn't mind that I had my own books for Heather to sign.  The ladies they had working were so nice.  I told them I wasn't going to take the copy of Legacy of Tril they were giving away and they had no problem with my request.

Heather got there just after 10.  When we got up to her, she said "YAY!!!" I was able to get my ARC of Legacy of Tril signed as well as my Dear Bully and four of the Vlad Tod books.  Heather was thrilled to see that I had Dear Bully and we had a discussion about how I was trying to get everyone to sign their entries.

We thanked Heather for taking the time to sign all of the books and Penguin for letting me do it and went on our way down the aisles, just to wander around...

And then we ran into the some of the cast members of season 2 of The Glee Project.  Aylin, Charlie, Blake and Abraham were walking around with Samuel [who was one of the winners from season 1] and Robert [the mentor/Glee casting director].  They were all super friendly and willing to take pictures with me. 

After walking around for a couple of hours, we headed upstairs to where Heather's panel was being held.  It was scheduled to start at 3:30 and by 2pm, they had already cut off the line and we were unable to get into the room.

Walking through the autograph area, we saw Kiersten White interviewing Rae Carson for Epic Reads.  I told her the secret phrase she posted on her blog ["So, how are you preparing for the unicorn apocalypse?"] and was given some signed bookmarks.

Bookmarks and bumper stickers

As we walked out, I saw Stephanie Perkins on her panel, but I didn't have my Nook for her to sign and didn't want to buy more books [or wait in line], so we decided to call it a day.

Saturday

Saturday morning had us sleeping in.  On the drive home Friday, we had discussed attending at all on Saturday.  The conclusion we came to was no.  After waking up late and having breakfast, we decided to head down to the convention center.  We got there around 1 [after having to make a stop at my work to print the parking pass because I forgot it] and just headed into the exhibit hall.

Earlier, Lish McBride had tweeted that she was going to be signing at 3:00.  After telling her that I would try to come by, she said she would save me a shirt... We went to find the booth and Leigh Bardugo was there signing!

I stopped to say hi and finally get a bottle of the super cool Shadow and Bone nail polish she has.  She said that I needed to paint everything in the house.  I said I would paint the dog and Hubs' nails. Leigh signed my badge and ever so nicely signed some bookmarks for Jennifer.

Now.  As I said at the beginning of the post, we met Matt Smith and Karen Gillan last year.  The two of them and Arthur Darvill were going to be on panels over the weekend, so we were hoping to run into them again.  Knowing that Matt was on a specific panel that was about to be over, we took a chance and ran over to the side of the Hilton to see if we could catch any of them.

After about 20 minutes, Matt came out of the hotel without security and signed.

 And I even got him to sign my Tardis bag...

After being out for about 5 minutes, security told Matt he had to leave and escorted him to the limo across the street.  Security got really thick and then all of a sudden, Karen and Arthur were whisked by us right into the limo.

We hung out by the side of the Hilton for a little longer and ended up seeing Joel McHale, Will Ferrell, Zach Galifianakis, Naya Rivera, Darren Criss, Jenna Ushkowitz, Kevin McHale, Lea Michelle, Cory Monteith, William H. Macy, Emmy Rossum, Don Cheadle, Robert Downey Jr, Ian McKellen, Peter Jackson, Martin Freeman, Sean Hayes, Nina Dobrev, Ian Somerhalder, Paul Wesley and Robert Downey Jr [again!!].  There were tons of other people, but I had no idea who they were. 

We left just around 3 [much to Hubs' dismay, he was happy to stay there] and headed to Lish.  I introduced myself to her [per our Twitter conversation] as the person who would avenge her if she didn't show up after going with the crazy cab/shuttle drivers. 

Lish signed my badge and I told her that I would have her books on Sunday.  We took a picture and she gave me an awesome shirt. We also all compared our Doctor Who phone cases...

Hubs wanted to go back to the hotel to see who else would be walking out, but once we saw the crowd, we decided to leave.

Sunday

We got to the convention center around 6:30 because Hubs wanted to try and get a wristband for the Sons of Anarchy autograph panel.  When we got to where the line was, it really wasn't bad.  Hubs got in line, I went to a table across the way and contemplated if the table top was clean enough for me to sleep on.

After about 2 hours of waiting and snacking, the line started moving.  We had thought that it was just a let's-go-up-to-the-table-and-tell-them-what-we-want sort of thing, but it was a drawing.  Hubs went first, they only allowed one person at the table at a time.  He pulled a ticket out and while it was a white one that didn't count for the signing, there were also several other white ones and one green one stuck to the palm of his hand.  According to him, the girl told him to take it.

I was at the door and started teasing him, saying he was a cheater.  Then I went to pull a ticket.  I had one in between my fingers and shook off the others.  Or so I thought.  I had a white one between my fingers and a green one stuck to my palm.  The girl told me to take it.  I think they were all just so tired of being there and dealing with it...

After we had our tickets, we went to the room where the YA panel was going to be held.  It started filling up quickly and I debated whether or not I was going to even stay for it.  After my girl, Ava, got there, Hubs left to go wander around the exhibition floor.  I started getting pictures of the cast of  Criminal Minds. They were doing a signing and security let him stand there and take pictures.

Love love love Matthew Gray Gubler

After the first panel was finished, Ava and I got up to the front row.  And with about 20 minutes before the YA panel started, Ava left to go to the restroom.  She came back into the room all giddy, happily whispering to me how all of the authors were outside and she met Myra McEntire and hugged her eleventy billion times.  She encouraged me to go out into the hallway as well.

I left to also use the restroom before the panel and as I walked back to the room, I wasn't going to say anything.  I had no intention to jump into any conversations... And then Lauren spotted me.  After some of the best hugs from her and Christina, Lauren brought over Myra.  I'm pretty sure she said, "I hope you're a hugger" before she latched on.  It was perfection.

Now.  Of course there's a backstory.  Lauren had confirmed that Myra was coming to Comic-Con when I saw her in April at the Spring Into the Future event.  Since it was super secret news, I couldn't say anything, but I did take to bugging Myra on Twitter about it.  It started out as a general question and then became a game.  Her answer every time was to use shouty caps and say "DAVID TENNANT".  Sometimes, it was "MATT SMITH".  And on one very rare occasion, I got a "DAVID TENNANT. MATT SMITH. EXTERMINATE. AMYRIVERRORY"

When the panel started and the authors were introduced, Ava and I shouted "DAVID TENNANT", to which Myra leaned forward and into the microphone answered with a "Matt Smith".

The panel was phenomenal.  Of course I didn't take any sort of notes, so I won't even attempt to recap.  Just know that all of the authors were amazing and thoughtful with their answers.  They had excellent rapport with each other and all were equal in their awesome.

I ended up leaving the panel after about 30 minutes.  The room was filled with people and I wanted to be sure I was going to be able to get into the signing line.  Turns out, Hubs was already there. And at the front of the line.

Luckily, the authors got there early, so Hubs was able to stay with me to help me juggling the backpack full of books before going to the SoA autograph panel that was starting at the same time.

Scott Westerfeld and Melina Marchetta were first.  Unfortunately, because we were trying to hurry, there wasn't a lot of time with either author.  We both said hi and thank you to both Melina and Scott, but not much more.

From there, Lish McBride was next.  She laughed when I handed her the books, saying that she had already signed everything for me.  I reminded her that I didn't have the books with me and she started laughing. 

And finally... Myra.

I had brought her a David Tennant action figure. For that I got more hugs and a fantastic picture with her, where she's holding it.  She was the only one I chatted with for a brief minute.  I wanted to make sure she knew just how happy I was that she came out here. 

Pictures courtesy of my girl, Ava.

She told me where she was going to put the DT figure [near her computer!!] and while she was signing my books, her marker ran out.  I had pulled a gold one out [thank you, Michelle] for her to sign my Nook with and told her she could keep it.  Myra said that she would send it back to me with some prizes... I'm probably going to hold her to that.

After saying a quick hi and bye to Tahereh Mafi, Veronica Rossi and Kami Garcia, we ran off to the Fox booth to get in line for the SoA signing. 

Apparently, word had spread that the booth was allowing people to "stand by" for the signing in case there was extra time after the ticketed people went through the line.  Due to that rumor, there was a shitload of people just hovering around.  When security and the Fox booth people finally convinced those people the rumor wasn't true, everyone cleared out.

Hubs had ended up giving away one of our tickets.  I asked the two girls working the line if I would be able to just walk through the line with him if I agreed not to take anything.  They both said yes.  When the ticket was exchanged for a laminated number, we were led 10 at a time over to the booth.  Security initially told me that I wasn't allowed to go through, but once I assured everyone I wasn't going to get anything signed, they all said it wasn't a problem.

We got up to the Fox booth girl who was handing out the posters.  She tried to give me one.  I told her that I promised not to take anything.  She said I could take it if I wanted and I still said no.  Kurt Sutter, the creator of Sons of Anarchy was sitting at the first position and I got a little nod [of respect? agreement?]. 

Hubs went through the line and every one of the 11 cast members was engaging and so so so friendly.  Lots of handshakes, eye contact and smiles.  It was a lot of fun and definitely not what I was expecting.  Somehow, when we got to the end of the line, there was an extra poster and one of the actors handed it to me and said since it was just sitting there, I should take it.

After the autograph panel, we tried getting into Hall H to see if there was room to see the SoA panel.  There was.  We sat through The Cleaveland Show panel [where Seth MacFarlane was eerily quiet] before we were shown 7 minutes of the first episode of Sons and a 45 minute panel. 

The last panel of CC became the last thing we did as well.  We left as the last question was being asked and headed off to the Karen Thompson Walker signing at Warwick's. 

Every year we say it's going to be our last and after 16 years, it hasn't happened yet.  2012 was definitely the best CC I can remember. And I definitely plan on going in 2013.