What started as a gathering of comic book and science fiction enthusiasts in 1970 at the US Grant Hotel in San Diego, California, the San Diego Comic Con would transform in its over 50 year run into the mecca of all things pop culture. More than 125,000 travel from around the globe to downtown San Diego and the San Diego Convention Center to celebrate any and every thing that entertained the masses. From comic books to animation to movies to television to video games to music, it had since become the near absolute epicenter of geekdom.

There was a great deal of anticipation going into Comic Con for 2024. The previous year was impacted by the combined writers and actors strikes that were ongoing, resulting in the Hollywood presence being downplayed quite heavily. Nevertheless, there was still a lot to enjoy that made the experience just as good as it would’ve been otherwise. In comparison, 2024 would run concurrent with the first days of the Summer Olympics. It wasn’t seen as having any detrimental affect as folks in San Diego were more interested in the Comic Con festivities.

If anything, the event from July 24 through July 28, 2024 was seen as a return to form for the convention and its attendees. There were a great many programs and activities happening both within the confines of the convention center and outside of it that offered something attractive for everyone. Well-known talents across every entertainment medium swung by to promote their latest projects. And fans were treated to exclusive experiences that would continue to make the San Diego Comic Con one of the premiere events to attend year after year.

There were a lot of varying reactions when Marvel Studios announced that one of their first animated projects would be the revival of the classic X-Men animated series from 1992. But when X-Men ’97 launched on Disney+ in March of 2024, it was a tremendous critical and commercial success that cemented the series as a whole as one of the finest programs produced. Maintaining as much of the original aesthetic while pushing forward with some of the most daring stories to date made for quality television that viewers savored.

There was little doubt that there would be some presence celebrating X-Men ’97. Making sure of that would be online comic book retailer Unknown Comics. They made the bold move in bringing more than ten of the voice actors for meet and greets through nearly the entirety of the convention. This was a huge undertaking and that the voice actors were up to the task was astonishing. Furthermore, Unknown Comics would be doing this not only at their booth on the exhibit floor, but also at their public pop-up store at The Wine Bank on 5th Ave and J St.

Of the voice actors, four were willing to be present through almost the entirety of all five days: Cal Dodd (Wolverine), Lenore Zann (Rogue), Alison Sealy-Smith (Storm), and Alyson Court (Abscissa, original Jubilee). They went well above and beyond to offer each and every fan a delightful experience. Not even feeling under the weather on Saturday morning would stop Zann from continuing to meet attendees. All four had healthy lines of folks eager to interact with them from beginning to end, with Dodd in particular having his lines capped often.

Also present were Catherine Disher (Valerie Cooper, original Jean Grey), AJ LoCascio (Gambit), Holly Chou (Jubilee), Gui Agustini (Sunspot), JP Karliak (Morph), and Isaac Robinson-Smith (Bishop). They would appear on various days at the Unknown Comics booth on the exhibit floor as well as a couple appearing at the pop-up store. The pop-up store would also see appearances from Morla Gorrondona (Lilandra), David Errigo Jr (Mojo), and Christine Uhebe (Nina de Costa). There were even surprise appearances from original series showrunners Eric and Julia Lewald.

Having been a big fan of both the original and new series, it became priority one for me to meet at least the main ten. I definitely wanted to meet Court and Chou as the shows were responsible for my being a big fan of the Jubilee character. They were as wonderful as I had hoped, in particular Chou and I got a chance to gush over the X-Terminators comic. Through some of the brief conversations I had, the highly acclaimed episode “Remember It” remained the most impactful to folks and was the top subject of discussion, notably for Zann and LoCascio.

Kudos and appreciation should be given to Unknown Comics as well as all the Comic Con staff. They managed to keep everything as clear and as organized as could be given where they were on the exhibit floor and how easily things could get out of hand for these events. It appeared to me, during the various times I was at the booth and the one time I was at the pop-up store, that they kept things under control. Everyone involved were real troopers for doing this the entire weekend and they pulled it off magnificently. A fantastic experience to be had.

In June of 2021, Janet Varney (Korra) and Dante Basco (Zuko) launched Avatar: Braving the Elements, an online podcast that featured the two rewatching and reflecting on each episode of Avatar: The Last Airbender. The podcast would feature various guests and provide unique insights in the development of the show with fun behind-the-scenes factoids. It had garnered a large following within the franchise fanbase and, as a result, had recorded episodes live before an audience at conventions. Comic Con was an ideal setting for such a recording.

I wasn’t able to get in until about twenty minutes in, so there were some things I missed. Nevertheless, I was still able to see a good amount of what they had to offer. Varney and Basco would lead their guests Greg Baldwin (Uncle Iroh), Michaela Jill Murphy (Toph), and Cara O’Neil (Dark Horse Comics senior director of marketing) into doing live readings of sections from the episode “Sozin’s Comet, Part 2: The Old Masters”. This was a lot of fun to hear, even with how goofy Varney was in trying to voice other characters in the scenes they read.

When they were done with the script readings, they brought up Isabella Boettcher, creative executive of Avatar Studios. To the disappointment of fans, she admitted that she still couldn’t reveal what they were working on, just the assurance that things were moving along. To compensate, they roped her into reading a page from the standalone graphic novel The Bounter Hunter and The Tea Brewer. They closed out the program with arguably the toughest trivia contest as they challenged fans to answer some very hard questions for prizes.

While I may have missed a good chunk of the start, I still had a pretty good time with what I saw. It’s a pleasure to listen to the voice actors perform as well as witness fans get enthralled in experiencing these moments. The trivia contest was an enjoyable moment, seeing the audience struggle in their attempts to answer some seriously difficult questions that the real hardcore fans would know the answers to. I will say though that this sort of presentation would be a bit hard for non-fans to get into. Otherwise, there were fun times to be had.

For 45 years, the Gundam franchise had set the standard for the “real robot” mecha anime. Its continuing influence upon the genre was undeniable as each generation would produce a series that would revolutionize the industry. As such, the franchise had the freedom to experiment with telling bold stories that tackled some very serious subjects. Coming off the heels of the highly successful The Witch From Mercury, the Gundam franchise looked to explore new territory with two new titles: Requiem for Vengeance and Silver Phantom.

The panel would be made up of producer Naohiro Ogata, executive producer Ken Iyadomi, Requiem for Vengeance animation producer Hiroaki Yura, Requiem for Vengeance writer Gavin Hignight, Look North World founder and CEO Alex Seropian, toys and collectible executive Kotaro Nauchi, and brand development director Antonio Herbst. Serving as moderator would be actor Christopher Sean (Ultraman: Rising). Their preview of Silver Phantom was brief, showing off a trailer for the virtual reality feature that would be participating in the Venice Film Festival.

Much of the discussion was on the Netflix limited series Requiem for Vengeance, the second Gundam production that would be fully animated in CG and the first to utilize Unreal Engine 5. They highlighted wanting to tell a story from the perspective of ground troops and the horror of encountering a Gundam, a premise Hignight described as making “a left turn when you are expecting a right.” There was a sprint near the end of announcing video game collaborations with Fortnite and Call of Duty as well as showcasing the impressive Gunpla models coming soon.

A fairly informative panel, though I did find it rather curious that the preview of Silver Phantom was brief. Certainly in comparison to how much time was used to discuss Requiem for Vengeance. Nevertheless, what was showcased was fascinating and interesting enough for any Gundam fan to want to check out. The panel played their parts well in hyping up Requiem for Vengeance and selling it on being a unique entry in the franchise. Not quite at the level of the introduction to The Witch From Mercury, but a nice presentation all things considered.

The Beatles appearing on The Ed Sullivan Show on February 9, 1964 would do more than just bring about Beatlemania into America. It would be the catalyst for the Fab Four becoming a global phenomenon. A firestorm of products that merely had the faces of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr were released and became hot sellers. Something that didn’t go unnoticed by the comic book and animation industries. From an animated series to the impact of Yellow Submarine, the Beatles would leave their own legacy upon both mediums.

Danny Fingeroth (Spider-Man writer and editor) was to have been the moderator, but he fell ill suddenly and pulled out at the last second. Panelists Jerry Beck (animation historian), Charles Kochman (Diary of a Wimpy Kid editor), Bill Morrison (Yellow Submarine graphic novel author), and Grant Geissman (musician, Mad Magazine writer) were left to run the panel themselves. This was made chaotic with them not having Fingeroth’s notes and the microphone volumes being so low folks in the back couldn’t hear. And yet it was still entertaining.

After screening the “I’m a Loser” episode of the animated series, the panelists discussed some interesting factoids, a lot being about Yellow Submarine. Morrison noted how his graphic novel adapted the final film while the first comic had worked off the first draft of the script, thus having scenes not in the film. Beck brought up the film was released the same month the MPAA ratings went into affect and getting a G-rating. Geissman, who had played with Starr, added how Starr jokingly blamed the animated series for the general perception of him as daft.

The charm of the panel was how the panelists managed to come up with some fascinating stories and trivia that added to the influence of the Beatles on even geekdom. From McCartney being a huge comic book fan, in particular of Jack Kirby, that he named a Wings song “Magneto and Titanium Man” after the Marvel characters to how a painting of Starr for Mad Magazine would help launch Frank Frazetta’s art career. It was quite fun to hear about the Fab Four having a hand in shaping mediums like comic books and animation just by putting their faces on them.

On July 29, 1989, Studio Ghibli would produce Kiki’s Delivery Service directed by Hayao Miyazaki. Adapted from the novel by Eiko Kadono, it told the story of a young witch moving out on her own and settling in a new town as part of her journey of self-discovery. The film was a critical and commercial success and over the years since would go on to have a lasting legacy among the most popular Miyazaki films, from being the first film released under Disney’s global distribution deal to being adapted into stage musicals in England and Japan.

I was interested in attending another panel beforehand, but wanted to check how long it would take to get from one room to the next. In doing so, I managed to catch sight of a line already forming for the Kiki’s Delivery Service panel 90 minutes ahead and jumped in. This was fortunate for me as the line would get extremely long very quickly. Furthermore, it was not going to be held in one of the larger rooms, meaning a lot of people were definitely going to miss out. Those of us who were able to get in were treated to a delightful presentation.

Running the panel was former Studio Ghibli production coordinator Hirokatsu Kihara. Through a translator, he related some neat stories about the making of the film as well as physically showing off animation cels. This was demonstrated in presenting all seven layers used for the opening scene introducing Kiki, three of them for clouds alone. He also displayed a sample of Studio Ghibli’s in-house color chart as they would create original colors that were specific to their films. Kihara would even hilariously reenact how he was told to “fly” for reference.

It said a lot about the respect and appreciation fans had for Studio Ghibli. Everyone was hooked on the fascinating stories being told that offered a small glimpse into how films like Kiki’s Delivery Service were made. Be it the intricacies of Kiki’s dress continuing to move right when she stopped spinning to how a street scene design was an inspired mix of backgrounds from Zurich with roads and cars from San Francisco. All were engrossed in the level of detail they were presented and really wanted Kihara to keep going long after the one hour length ended.

Since first being introduced by Fleischer Studios in 1930, Betty Boop had been a cultural icon of entertainment and one of the first major female figures in animation. Featured in roughly 90 cartoons throughout the 1930s, the character would endure a lasting legacy that remained to this day, such as a stage musical heading to Broadway in 2025. The cartoons themselves were regarded as influential in their own right, leading to efforts to restore and preserve them alongside the wider library of titles that had been produced by Fleischer Studios.

I was introduced to the restoration efforts of the Fleischer Studios cartoons at Comic Con last year. It was spearheaded Jane Fleischer Reid, granddaughter of the pioneering Max Fleischer, along with restoration producer Mauricio Alvarado and historian Ray Pointer. Over the years, they had done heroic work in restoring the cartoons and showcasing them around the country. They returned this year with news that Paramount Pictures had given them access to their vault, thus access to many of the original negatives of the Fleischer Studios cartoons.

The panel portion itself was relatively brief, as the majority was spent on screening a short documentary on Betty Boop followed by three cartoons that had been restored: Bimbo’s Express, Betty in Blunderland, and Betty Boop and Grampy. When they were able to talk, they noted that the access to the Paramount Pictures vault helped in restoring about 90 cartoons over the past year with 40 done in the previous eight months. Many of the cartoons were Betty Boop and the group was really excited to show off their work. And what beautiful work they presented.

This was a nice program to go to, and it seemed like I wasn’t the only one thinking that way as the room was nearly full. Varying generations of interested fans dropped in to learn about the restoration efforts and behold the dazzling work on display in the cartoons screened. Even with the room located right above Hall H as it played Deadpool & Wolverine, resulting in some serious rumbling throughout, everyone managed to have a good time watching some classic cartoons. This might become a recurring program for me with how lovely it was overall.

Anime song, or anison for short, was recognized as a proper musical category in Japan in the 1970s and would grow over the decades into a popular genre. Among the artists to emerge as a headliner was LiSA. Since making her major debut in Angel Beats! in 2010, her anime themes would quickly become best selling hits with more than a dozen singles being certified gold or platinum. She was already one of Japan’s top artists when her popularity went global thanks to her Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba themes, in particular the first opening theme “Gurenge”.

After hosting a successful pair of anime-related concerts during Comic Con in 2022 at The Rady Shell in Jacobs Park behind the convention center, anime distributor Crunchyroll looked to do it again in 2024. Though it was primarily designed around celebrating the 25th anniversary of the One Piece anime, they also wanted to promote their screening theatrically the latest LiSA concert film. To do this, Crunchyroll would host an actual LiSA concert free to Comic Con attendees. This floored the anime fan community and would instantly be the must-attend event.

The Rady Shell could hold a maximum capacity of 10,000. But while that was a fairly high number to meet, along with the added restriction that only Comic Con badge holders could attend, I was among those concerned this could be done in a short amount of time. So I lined up at around noon with a couple dozen already ahead of me. It took a couple hours, but the line would be long enough to justify arriving so early. And we were rewarded by being able to listen in on LiSA and her band doing some lovely sound checks that got attendees excited.

When the Rady Shell opened at 5pm, attendees were played in by popular anime and video game remix composers Hyper Potions, James Landino, and VGR. The trio served as disc jockeys, playing nonstop backing music for two hours as folks filled the venue. Opening for LiSA would be Chinese experimental performer Alice Longyu Gao. Gao’s music could certainly be an acquired taste compared to anything else heard that evening. Nevertheless, her hour-long set was hypnotic and a couple songs nicely related to the influence the anime NANA had on her life.

By the time LiSA would perform at 8:15pm, the Rady Shell was very nearly at the 10,000 maximum capacity. And with it being an open-air venue, there were sure to be a couple dozen who were looking to watch from the sides. Comic Con would serve as LiSA’s third ever US performance. Her first was in 2012 at Anime Expo in Los Angeles, right as she was breaking through. Her second was in 2015 at Anime Boston, when she was starting to sell out concerts. In the ten years since Boston, she had become a global performer headlining huge concerts worldwide.

The concert was stupendous, to say the least. Everyone was on their feet rocking out to the bangers LiSA and her band performed. And while all the songs were in Japanese, LiSA showed she had a pretty good grasp of English during brief pauses. As she was more of a rocker than a J-Pop idol as one would figure most anison performers to be, she was more into banging along with the rhythms instead of having any sort of choreographed routine. She did dress up in a kimono for the section consisting of slow ballads, but otherwise stuck to a punk rock persona.

“Gurenge” from Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba was the main song everyone looked forward to, and when she sang it, it was as exciting as hoped and fans even got to sing-along. Building up to “Gurenge”, she sang other hit songs such as “Homura” from Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Mugen Train, “ADAMAS” from Sword Art Online, and “REALiZE” from the Japanese release of Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. She also performed for the first time live “Black Box” from NieR:Automata Ver1.1a, which had just been release weeks prior.

LiSA had put on a phenomenal performance for the almost 10,000 fans in attendance. Everyone was rocking out from start to finish and were fully engrossed in getting to hear her sing some of her popular anime songs live. LiSA herself looked to be having a fantastic time performing before an American audience for the first time in ten years. It was one of the must-attend events of this year’s Comic Con and established an excitement and atmosphere for the rest of the convention to follow along and match. Indeed, a special night to be had for anime fans.

In the last couple of decades, the popularization of anime outside of Japan had skyrocketed to new heights. Now more than ever, audiences of differing cultures and generations were experiencing the wonders of Japanese animation on a global scale. This would allow for retrospective examinations at the history of anime prior to the 21st century boom to be made. Offering a chance for trailblazing figures to be recognized. Animators and voice actors whose work would shape and define anime into the massive entertainment industry that it was today.

The Ronin Club Collectibles had been emerging as a source for high-end anime memorabilia and autographs. Wanting to make a big splash for their debut at Comic Con, they arranged for three pioneers to be brought in: animators Hidetoshi Omori (animation director of the original Final Fantasy VII) and Gen Sato (creator of the chibi style of design) as well as voice actor Katsuji Mori (Go Mifune/Speed Racer, Ken the Eagle in Gatchaman). Recognizing the rarity of having all three present, Comic Con put together a panel for them to talk about their careers.

Many generations of anime fans almost filled the room as they were intrigued to see these legendary figures. What attendees didn’t expect was that this would be a full blown Q&A session from start to finish. As most folks were not used to asking questions right away, I jumped in to be the first. I asked about their work on the Gundam franchise, given this year marked the 45th anniversary. Mori did a special saying to me as his character Garma Zabi from the first series. Sato and Omori expressed gratitude to being part of a flourishing legacy.

It did take a moment for everyone to acclimate to how the panel would go. Be it attendees trying to figure out questions to ask or the translaters adjusting to their roles in speaking. The translator for Mori got stumped a couple times that he turned to the translator for Omori and Sato to help. But once everyone was able to settle in, it was pleasant to hear the fascinating stories told. From Sato explaining how he came up with the chibi style to how meeting Todd McFarlane earlier made Omori feel like a kid, I thought it turned out nice.

For 25 years, Seth MacFarlane would reinvigorate the prime time animation landscape with Family Guy. Even after a period in which it was cancelled, the show would set a new benchmark for popular animation mature in tone and spawn a plethora of envelope-pushing shows. Among them a follow-up series from MacFarlane in American Dad! Both shows had managed to weather the storm of criticism, increased competition, network change for American Dad!, and last year’s strikes to maintain their popularity and continue producing new episodes.

I didn’t get into the American Dad! panel until halfway through as they were wrapping up doing a silly script reading. On the panel were executive producers Matt Witzman and Nic Wegener and cast members Wendy Schaal (Francine), Scott Grimes (Steve), Rachael MacFarlane (Hayley), Dee Bradley Baker (Klaus), and Jeff Fischer (Jeff). Fortunately, they devoted lots of time to audience questions, from which we got to hear the cast picking their characters’ catchphrases, ideas for parodies/crossovers, and the inevitability of seeing Roger’s home planet.

For the Family Guy panel, they were loaded with executive producers Alec Sulkin, Rich Appel, Steve Callaghan, and Kara Vallow and cast members Alex Borstein (Lois), Mike Henry (Herbert), Gary Cole (Principal Shepherd), Jennifer Tilly (Bonnie), and Seth Green (Chris). Following a sizzle reel of the show’s 25-year history, they played a teaser of what the next season will offer, adding that there will be Hulu exclusive specials beginning with this year’s Halloween episode. The audience questions seemed standard enough that I couldn’t recall what they were.

It appeared that both panels looked to be getting back to their presentation formats from before the pandemic and not rely on full episode screenings. While I missed out on the first half of the American Dad! panel, there was still some neat things that came out of the audience questions. That may not have been the case for Family Guy, but they did have some neat moments in their first half, like Borstein singing a crowd-pleasing parody to the Barbie song “What Was I Made For”. So a better outing overall than the last couple years, I felt.

What started as a group of animation voice actors getting together to play Dungeons & Dragons had turned into a pop culture phenomenon that would continue to reach new heights. Since 2015, Critical Role had helped launch a renaissance of tabletop role-playing games and pioneer the live play into a popular form of entertainment. Furthermore, it would expand into a production company with animated shows, video games, and the development of their own original role-playing game system. It would seem that the sky’s the limit for Critical Role.

Moderating this year’s panel would be Krystina Arielle, who had been participating in many live play programs including playing a few one-shot games for Critical Role. The available cast members for this year were Travis Willingham (Chetney), Marisha Ray (Laudna), Ashley Johnson (Fearne), Liam O’Brien (Orym), Laura Bailey (Imogen), and Matthew Mercer (Dungeon Master). Despite how humble they were, they and the Critical Role fanbase seemed to have settled quite nicely with the panels being in Ballroom 20 over the past few years.

Before going into audience questions, they took the time to update fans on their animated programs. There were previews for the third season of The Legend of Vox Machina, the series adapting their first campaign, and even showed off animatics for the upcoming adaptation of their second campaign, the Mighty Nein. A fan question later would have the cast discuss jumping from voicing for Vox Machina to voicing for Mighty Nein to currently playing for Bell’s Hells. Bailey noted how challenging it was to shift between differing character personalities.

One of the great appeals to the Critical Role panel at Comic Con was how the cast answered fan questions. They’re clearly having as much fun as the attendees while often managing to provide insight into their creativity, be it for their games of Dungeons & Dragons or even for adapting their stories into animation. It further strengthened the delightful atmosphere that would be in the air all throughout from fans being able to interact with the cast. And it would be this sense of joy that made it a panel that was well worth coming back to year after year.

DreamWorks Animation previously had a presence at Comic Con. From bringing in Will Ferrell and Tina Fey to talk about Megamind in Hall H to the overwhelming positive response to the first public footage of How to Train Your Dragon 2, it was a great platform to attract audiences to their films. Yet since the acquisition by Universal Pictures, the studio’s presence had been quiet. So it was to be quite the occasion that they would return after eight years for a look at The Wild Robot, adapted from the Peter Brown book that would be directed by Chris Sanders.

Anthony Breznican of Vanity Fair served as moderator with the panel initially consisting of Sanders and stars Lupita Nyong’o (Roz) and Kit Connor (Brightbill). Sanders was a Comic Con regular, having his own booth in the exhibit hall every year, and this was one of the rare times he was participating in a panel. He explained a lot about wanting to visualize a hand-painted look to the film and that recent advances in CG animation allowed for that to be realized. Many would feel the beautiful footage shown would bolster this point wonderfully.

Nyong’o and Connor discussed one of the core plots in Roz adopting the orphaned Brightbill and their shared experience of learning together. Nyong’o would also explain the challenge of developing a personality in a robot that would be organic. Towards the end of the panel, Breznican brought out a surprise guest in Mark Hamill (Thorn). Hamill noted that he immediately picked up the book after being cast and was excited to participate in the film. He amusingly played along with the notion that he based his grizzy bear voice on Harrison Ford.

The Wild Robot turned into an informative panel that garnered the interest and fascination of the audience. The packed room enjoyed the footage that was shown and enjoyed hearing from the cast, in particular the inclusion of Hamill. To put an exclamation point on the presentation, all attendees received a ticket that when taken to the redemption room would enable each of them to receive an exclusive poster. It was a delightful return to the Comic Con stage for DreamWorks Animation, in light of what would be happening to the studio going forward.

Adapted from the manga series by Koyoharu Gotouge, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba would premiere on Tokyo MX in April 2019. It wouldn’t be long before it would become a global phenomenon. With incredible storytelling, outstanding animation bolstered by exciting action sequences, and wonderful characters voiced by a talented cast both in Japanese and English, audiences were enthralled as it grew in recognition and popularity. Five years later, the series would only get bigger and better, becoming a true hallmark of Japanese animation.

The panel would serve as a fifth anniversary celebration of the series through the experience of the main English language cast: Zach Aguilar (Tanjiro), Abby Trott (Nezuko), Aleks Le (Zenitsu) and Bryce Papenbrook (Inosuke). Serving as moderator would be Aiko Makino from distributor Aniplex of America. Makino would showcase a particular scene or moment from the series, at least one from each of the four seasons that had aired to date, and the actors would discuss the impact they had to a room completely packed with a dedicated fanbase.

The scenes and moments chosen went through a wide range of emotions to examine. From the excitement of the thrilling battle with Rui in the first season to the silliness of Inosuke’s dream in the second season to the heartbreak of the finale to the Mugen Train feature film, they were recognized as having had a cumulative affect in the show’s increasing popularity. I felt the few moments that centered on Nezuko received the greatest interest, with Trott noting the delight she had in helping showcase the intriguing development of her character.

This presentation was indeed a celebration of Demon Slayer. The actors looked back fondly on their work with great admiration for how the final results came out and the positive reception they received. The fans hung to every word with fascination and were extremely pumped when a teaser trailer for the next story arc screened, revealing that Infinity Castle would be presented as a trilogy of theatrical films. All in all, this was a delightful panel that further bolstered the ever growing appeal and popularity of the anime.

Since the release of the pilot episode on October 28, 2019, Hazbin Hotel would usher a revolution in independent animation. Primarily financed through Patreon, its beautiful animation, delightful characters, and intriguing premise would grow from internet sensation to pop culture phenomenon. Less than five years later, A24 and Amazon Prime would bring to fruition Hazbin Hotel as a full series. The first season would kick off 2024 and become a tremendous success that only enhanced Vivienne Medrano’s passion project on a global scale.

There was a policy at Comic Con where panelists had to do their best to be mindful of what they said as there was a good chance a few attendees in the audience would be underage. This policy would seemingly be thrown out the window for the very few presentations that occurred as late as 10pm. An ideal time to hold a panel for Hazbin Hotel, as demonstrated by moderator and SpindleHorse Toons brand manager Morgana Ignis casually dropping F-bombs to fire up the already ruckus fans before bringing out Medrano along with star Erika Henningsen (Charlie).

The three initially talked about the recent partnership with Hot Topic, with the store set to release a line of officially licensed clothing. But it wasn’t long before discussion focused on the show’s success with the first season. Medrano continued to express awe and wonderment at her characters becoming recognized worldwide and Henningsen was elated at being part of such a growing cultural spectacle. They would also showed off animatics of a new character to be introduced in season two in Baxter, who would be voiced by Richard Horvitz.

Overall, though, the panel was loads of fun. Ignis, Medrano, and Henningsen were indeed having a good time. But what brought it over the top was the passionate fanbase present. Attendees savored every word spoken and relished every visual shown. This was exemplified by a post-panel screening of the first episode. During which, Henningsen jumped back in to sing “Happy Day in Hell” for the overjoyed audience, who in turn went off on speaking and singing along to the rest of the screening as though they were attending The Rocky Horror Picture Show.

After premiering on Halloween Day in 1992, X-Men: The Animated Series helped usher a boom in quality television animation alongside Batman: The Animated Series and the Disney Afternoon programs. X-Men offered a unique approach in staying faithful to the original source material by not holding back on addressing serious subjects despite being a children’s show, even adapting some of the popular and daring stories in the comics to equal acclaim. Its legacy would be honored and celebrated in turn with the revival series X-Men ’97.

The success of X-Men ’97 had allowed for a new retrospective look at the original series and its impact in animation. Producer/Director Larry Houston would serve more as ring leader than moderator to a panel that included composer Ron Wasserman, episode writers Brooks Wachtel and Len Uhley, and X-Men ’97 director Jake Castorena with one of Houston’s original partners Rick Hoberg joining later. The absolutely packed room expressed their excitement by singing along to the original series opening theme, which Wasserman seemed to enjoy and appreciate.

Houston focused the discussion on how the original series was bold in their approach to developing the show intended for children. Credit was given to Margaret Loesch, who was head of Fox Children’s Programming, and even their appointed standards and practices executive Avery Colburn, as they believed in the team and were attuned to risky material being used in the right way. Uhley noted how this kind of support enabled him to write episodes like “Nightcrawler” with confidence even though talking about faith in a children’s show was taboo.

Attendees were very smitten with all the stories being told. But one could argue that Castorena was seen as the biggest fan in the room. Having grown up on the original series, he talked about how he and the X-Men ’97 team would often look back on the original series and even communicate with available members of the production team to guide them in staying faithful while pushing it forward. It was a wonderful panel that was as informative as it was celebratory for the original pioneering series. A proud moment for all that were involved.

Following the look back at X-Men: The Animated Series, virtually every attendee remained as the X-Men Fandom Panel followed. For the last few years, X-Reads Podcast hosts Chandler Poling and Chris Riley would get together with fans, many of whom familiar faces in entertainment, to explore their interest the Marvel mutants originally started by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in 1963. This year’s presentation would be a little different as, instead of covering numerous aspects of the X-Men franchise, they focused on one subject: the voice cast of X-Men ’97.

Poling and Riley were just as excited as the fans as they introduced their panelists: Alyson Court (Abscissa, original Jubilee), Catherine Disher (Valerie Cooper, original Jean Grey), Gui Agustini (Sunspot), JP Karliak (Morph), Isaac Robinson-Smith (Bishop), Holly Chou (Jubilee), Alison Sealy-Smith (Storm), Lenore Zann (Rogue), and Cal Dodd (Wolverine). The cast were clearly enjoying the love that was being expressed to them, even with many of them having spent most of, if not the whole weekend meeting fans and signing autographs on the show floor.

The elder cast who got to reprise their characters expressed excitement at being able to return despite the near 30 year gap since the original series ended. They brought up that coming to gatherings like Comic Con the last several years were the catalyst for their interest in playing the characters again. Many of the younger cast noted they had grown up on the original series and evoked memories of hearing the characters they where now voicing. Court, in particular, expressed joy at hearing how Chou’s Jubilee sounded just like her’s.

The presentation was all kinds of fun as the cast were clearly having a good time being about to talk about their work that was as beloved as X-Men ’97 was. When each of the actors were asked to name a favorite scene or moment, everyone from the fans to the panelists themselves were equally delighted at virtually every scene and moment mentioned. A favorite being Karliak explaining how he got to say “Morph Smash!” This was a delightful panel as there was love and appreciation for the actors that went beyond just their being the voices to the X-Men.

Music would become a defining aspect in storytelling. It could often be a key component in bolstering the mood and atmosphere of the scene, be it dramatic or comedic or thrilling or romantic. Melodies that evoked feelings one would feel in the moment that was happening. This would be no different for animation, often becoming an essential part of the narrative. Whether it would be a musical score or singing songs, they would guide audiences into experiencing the emotions conveyed, further elevating the impact of any given scene shown.

While the room wasn’t packed, there were a lot of interested attendees sitting in to hear about how music for some of their favorite animated projects were developed. Chandler Poling returned to moderate in his role as co-founder of White Bear PR, who specialize in representing musicians. The panel consisted of X-Men ’97 composers The Newton Brothers, Star Wars animation composers Kevin Kiner and his children Sean and Deana, Arcane songwriter Alex Seaver, Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai composer Sherri Chung, and WondLa composer Joy Ngiaw.

Each of the composers got to talk about their varying approach in developing the melodies. Ngiaw explained how, with regards to WondLa, she was afforded some creative freedom as she was working on a new IP compared to the others. Chung noted the challenge of exploring a new direction for Gremlins different from the films. The Newton Brothers and the Kiners had the task of creating new themes while working off of established melodies. Seaver was challenged to write songs that differed in style while still working with the scenes they were used in.

The panel was quite informative and fascinating. The Kiners ended up being the ones spoken to the most, as they were more descriptive about their process and often highlighting specific instruments, like the organ being key in characterizing Thrawn. At times they would play a scene or two for each of the composers’ work and the final scene of Star Wars: The Bad Batch made Sean Kiner emotional given his and his family’s part in shaping Omega into the character she became. It was quite the moment and highlighted what the panel looked to explored.

This being Comic Con, I always tried to make an effort to attend at least one proper comic book panel. This year, it would be That 70’s Panel, in which a few established creators from that decade got to talk about developing comics back then. The most notable name to me was Gerry Conway, a top Spider-Man writer best known for writing the death of Gwen Stacy. Conway’s tale of how he got his first story sold before he was 16 was great to hear, as were fellow panelists Al Milgrom, Jo Duffy, Marv Wolfman, Mike Friedrich, and moderator Mark Evanier.

A practice of mine would be to stay in one room for most of the day if a lot of panels I wanted to attend took place there. This happened in Room 6BCF, the third largest room at the convention center, through Saturday and Sunday. As such, I would sit through other panels that fell in-between. After The Wild Robot was a look at the Alien: Rogue Incursion VR Game. An interesting presentation exploring the potential of utilizing virtual reality for survival horror games. They also gave out redemption tickets, netting folks a free oversized lithograph and T-shirt.

Prior to Hazbin Hotel was Shueisha, Toho, Bandai Filmworks and BNTCA: Screening of Sand Land. It was another screening of the feature film version of Sand Land that was no different from last year’s world premiere aside from not having the presser. By all accounts, this came off as filler to have something scheduled before Hazbin Hotel. With that in mind, it’s still a good movie to watch. And I was curious to see how the incoming Hazbin Hotel fanbase would take to watching an anime feature like Sand Land and it seemed like they genuinely enjoyed it.

Scheduled ahead of the X-Men panels was Dial the Gate’s Stargate 30th Anniversary Fan Celebration. Dial the Gate was a podcast that celebrated the fandom of the Stargate franchise. Aside from a video message from star Erick Avari (Kasuf), it seemed to me the panel was less about the original film and it’s 30th anniversary and more on the television series. It would’ve been interesting for them to explore their thoughts on the film and look back on it through the eyes of those who started with the TV show, which they touched upon. It was fine enough for what it was.

What would any convention, whether it be Comic Con or any other, be without cosplay? A key component of the spectacle would be fans showing up in impressively crafted costumes looking like their favorite characters. A great many spent time, money, and resources to express their fandom through makeup and elaborate clothes they would wear. It would not be outside the realm of possibility for more than half of any convention’s attendees to be made up of cosplayers. Cosplay was, and perhaps would forever be, a Comic Con tradition.

Generally not one to dress up myself, if only because I need to carry things around and I’ve felt cosplaying would be too cumbersome, I am impressed to see those walking around in costume. I would keep an eye out for characters I liked, but I could also appreciate exquisite craftsmanship. And there was one cosplayer in particular who pulled that off with their costume of the Hazbin Hotel character Vox. The amount of work that went into developing a headpiece that managed to be a functioning television set was magnificent, to say the least.

The outstanding Vox costume definitely stood out from what I would discover to be an extremely huge horde of Hazbin Hotel and Helluva Boss cosplayers. And they were not only confined to attending the Hazbin Hotel panel: they were all over the place. It was just during the panel that I really grasped the enormity of the Hellverse legion in attendance. I imagine they were more than double the amount of Critical Role cosplayers I would normally see. And there were plenty of those that showed up for the Critical Role panel, as usual and as expected.

Others that caught my eye this year included a pretty hefty number of X-Men costumes, no doubt looking to meet the X-Men ’97 cast. A pair that really blew my mind dressed up as Pee-Wee Herman and Ed Grimley! I was not expecting those, Ed Grimley in particular, and made sure I got their picture. One of the more delightful ones were a pair dressed up as Ash and Brock from Pokémon walking around with their dog dressed up as Arcanine. I happened to catch them as they ran into a pair dressed as Jessie and James, leading to some great interactive moments.

As noted, The Ronin Club were looking to make a mark. So in addition to being brought in, Hideotshi Omori and Gen Sato would also do commissions throughout the weekend. Given that it was rare enough for either to have been in the US, getting illustrations from them was a must for me. I made straight for the booth first thing on Preview Night and secured spots in getting sketches from them later that day. Omori illustrated Aerith Gainsborough (Final Fantasy VII) while Sato did a chibi sketch of Sailor Moon. I was beyond ecstatic to get drawings from them.

Popular comic book artist J. Scott Campbell always had a booth at Comic Con, selling convention exclusive variant covers to numerous ongoing comic books. He had a lot for this year, with the one attracting me being a fourth variant cover his did for Ultimate Spider-Man #4. Campbell happened to swing by his booth during Preview Night unannounced and chatted with folks who were in line to buy his work. And while there were pre-signed copies of the exclusives for sale, he was down for briefly signing a couple folks who had books in hand.

Also a regular at Comic Con, as mentioned, was Chris Sanders. His booth were comparatively smaller than Campbell’s, but it was no less popular. Sanders would generally sell prints, pins, and stickers, while every once in a while add something special like a sketchbook or a figurine. This year, he was selling a new book From Pitch to Stitch. The book contained his original pitch draft of Lilo & Stitch as well as a chapter that lightly covered the development of his Disney classic. That made it an automatic pick up for me and others.

I did manage to make a little bit of time to just walk around the exhibit hall to check out booths. A couple of the more elaborate booths included Crunchyroll, which they turned into a giant photo op display of the deck of the Going Merry from One Piece. Bandai Namco had numerous booths, one of which designed around Mobile Suit Gundam: Requiem For Vengeance with scaled models of the mechs. The most intriguing one, though, was a booth for AMC Theatres. That’s right, the movie theater chain had a Comic Con booth. Seemed popular, from what I saw.

I managed to get word ahead of time that Alejandra Reynoso (Sypha Belnades, Castlevania) would be signing in the exhibit hall. I just couldn’t find a schedule. Luckily, swinging over to the booth she would be in on the first day, she happened to be there. We got to talking of Castlevania, specifically the third video game upon which the animated series was based on. She mentioned that she actually tried to play Castlevania III, though made the mistake of trying to play as just Trevor Belmont and not switching between characters. Very fun to meet.

On the subject of voice actors playing video games, I overheared Catherine Disher talk about it while I waited to meet her. Though primarily there for X-Men, she and the other actors were down for signing anything else they did. Disher had voiced Jill Valentine in the original Resident Evil 3: Nemesis. While meeting a Resident Evil fan, she noted being in a podcast with Alyson Court, who was the original voice of Claire Redfield in the series, where the two were asked to play the games. Disher called the experience stress-inducing how scary it was.

In addition to running the Rady Shell at Jacobs Park for the concerts, Crunchyroll would essentially take over the additional areas that make up Jacobs Park. As such, they would set up some attractions and displays that connected with the One Piece 25th anniversary celebration they were holding. This included a self-playing piano that would play “Binks’ Sake” and a themed boxing punch arcade. There was, of course, a merchandise stand, which got crowded real fast. I was able to get in early enough to nab a LiSA concert tour T-shirt.

It was on the last day that I was able to find time to get an autograph from Katsuji Mori at The Ronin Club booth. They were selling a convention exclusive foil cover for the new Gatchaman comic being published. The book was limited to 100 copies and I think I nabbed the very last one, which Mori happily signed. Also at the booth on the last day was Zach Aguilar. There was an opening that I took advantage of and we expressed our shared excitement for the Infinity Castle film trilogy. He also commandeered my phone so he could take the selfies.

A watery display promoting the 25th anniversary of SpongeBob SquarePants across the street from the convention center.

The Wine Bank on 5th Ave and J St served as the pop-up store for Unknown Comics open to the pubic.

Cal Dodd (Wolverine) among the X-Men ’97 signing autographs at the Unknown Comics pop-store before Comic Con officially opened.

Hidetoshi Omori (animation director of the original Final Fantasy VII) took commissions throughout the weekend, including Preview Night.

Comic book artist J. Scott Campbell (Spider-Man) would drop by his popular booth and interacted with fans.

Costumes from Captain America: Brave New World were displayed at the Marvel booth.

Gui Agustini (Sunspot) surprised by fans by joing the X-Men ’97 cast signings at the Unknown Comics booth ahead of schedule on Preview Night.

Among the many Bandai Namco booths was one dedicated to Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, which displayed life-size recreations of the show’s weapons and objects.

Fans packed the Sails Pavilion waiting for the Exhibit Hall to open on Day One.

When not patrolling the streets of Hell’s Kitchen, Elektra and Daredevil were patrolling the halls of the convention center.

“The world keeps spinning, and the tales keep turning, and people come and people go, but they’re never forgotten.” (La Muerte, The Book of Life)

J. Scott Campbell’s booth was consistently crowded. all weekend with convention exclusives selling out as early as Preview Night.

Yes, AMC Theatres did have a booth at Comic Con and it was surprising packed with exclusive merchandise selling out fast.

There’s no greater rite of passage for Astrid than to spend time with her future father-in-law Stoick within the halls of Comic Con (How to Train Your Dragon).

Riley’s emotions celebrated becoming the highest grossing animated feature of all-time by letting loose at Comic Con (Inside Out 2).

Janet Varney (Korra) and Dante Bosco (Zuko) challenged fans with some difficult trivia questions in the finale of the Avatar: Braving the Elements podcast live recording.

Jack Sparrow (Pirates of the Caribbean) might want to be careful as Esmeralda (The Hunchback of Notre Dame) could be quite the handful.

“The continuity matters. The care matters.” (Gavin Hignight, Mobile Suit Gundam: Requiem for Vengeance)

Nezuko and Gyomei made quite the formidable duo for any demon to encounter (Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba).

Another Bandai Namco booth was dedicated to Mobile Suit Gundam: Requiem For Vengeance and featured scaled models of the mechs displayed.

A family of One Piece cosplayers getting their picture taken on the Going Merry deck display at the Crunchyroll booth.

“I must say!” Only at Comic Con could you find a pair of wonderful cosplayers dressed as Pee-eee Herman (Pee-wee’s Playhouse) and Ed Grimley (The Completely Mental Misadventures of Ed Grimley)!

It would take a good boi like Arcanine to bring Ash, Brock, and Team Rocket together peacefully (Pokémon).

Bill Morrison drawing The Chief Blue Meanie (Yellow Submarine) for a fan following the 60 Years of Beatles Comics and Animation panel.

“Call me ‘wench’ again, and we’ll be planning a burial at sea!” (Shego, Kim Possible)

The line for the 35th Anniversary Kiki’s Delivery Service presentation 90 minutes beforehand.

“We wanted to make a movie that would be something that would be a source of support for all of the Kikis around the world who are about to go off on their journey. (Hirokatsu Kihara, Kiki’s Delivery Service)

Hirokatsu Kihara showed off a sample of Studio Ghibli’s color chart made up of colors created specifically for their films during the 35th Anniversary Kiki’s Delivery Service presentation.

Hirokatsu Kihara would breakdown the usage of color and their emotional and narrative meaning to each cel displayed during the 35th Anniversary Kiki’s Delivery Service presentation.

“[At age 15] I switched over to pitching to Dick [Giordano, then-editor of Hawkman]. And I did this every week during a school year and I started coming in [to the DC Comics offices] in the summer. … Murray [Boltinoff, then-editor of The House of Secrets] saw me going in to talk to Dick, they shared an office, and he assumed that I was working [for Dick]. … Murray asked me if I would be willing to write a story for him. ‘Sure!'” (Gerry Conway, former Marvel Editor-in-Chief)

Isaac Robinson-Smith (Bishop) might have been signing at the Unknown Comics booth with the other X-Men ’97 on Day Two only, he nonethless had a busy Comic Con schedule with numerous panel appearances throughout.

A fan cosplaying as Rogue overjoyed at getting to meet Lenore Zann (Rogue), who was among the few members of the X-Men ’97 cast signing every day at the Unknown Comics booth.

Aside from X-Men related content, the X-Men ’97 cast signed anything associated with them like Catherine Disher (Valerie Cooper, original Jean Grey) signing a promo sheet of Jill Valentine, who she voiced in the original Resident Evil 3: Nemesis video game.

The line for the LiSA concert grew longer and longer throughout the day and early arrivals were treated to getting to listen to her sound checks.

Hyper Potions, James Landino, and VGR entertained attendees ahead of the LiSA concert with nonstop backing music accompanied by some pyrotechnics and pyro.

Alice Longyu Gao intrigued and enchanted audiences with her experimental music opening for LiSA.

LiSA kicked off her first US concert in nearly ten years with “Shouted Serenade” from The Irregular at Magic High School.

LiSA and her band gathering as they performed “Datte Atashino Hero” from My Hero Academia.

LiSA performed “Black Box” from NieR:Automata Ver1.1a live for the first time.

LiSA leading the audience into harmonizing as she performed “ADAMAS” from Sword Art Online.

Nearly 10,000 fans gathered to experience LiSA’s concert at The Rady Shell in Jacobs Park behind the convention center.

LiSA played acoustic guitar to start her encore as she performed original song “NEW ME”.

Hazbin Hotel was among the many shows that dressed up the trolley cars that ran through San Diego all weekend.

Aerith, Aerith, and “Ms. Cloud” were ready for a “girl’s” night out in Wall Market (Final Fantasy VII).

“My name’s Sir Pentious, I like to build, and, despite my stupid Egg Boiz, I think I’m very skilled.” (Sir Pentious, Hazbin Hotel)

Katsuji Mori (Ken The Eagle) was very impressed with the craftsmanship of a trio of Gatchaman cosplayers and personally asked for a picture with them.

“Do not be a staff member [of your favorite anime]. It’s better to watch than be involved.” (Gen Sato, creator of the chibi style)

AJ LoCascio (Gambit) dressed in the beloved kitchen T-shirt as he took pictures with fans during his signing with the other X-Men ’97 cast at the Unknown Comics booth.

Alison Sealy-Smith (Storm) enjoyed herself as she took a picture with a fan cosplaying as her character during her signing with the other X-Men ’97 cast at the Unknown Comics booth.

A Jubilee fan since the original series first broadcast, Dan was exploding with delight meeting Holly Chou (Jubilee) and Alyson Court (Abscissa, original Jubilee) during their signing with the other X-Men ’97 cast at the Unknown Comics booth.

Should Jasmine (Aladdin) and Elsa (Frozen) fall to the dark side, the winds of Agrabah and Arendelle would blow cold.

TJeff Fischer (Jeff), Dee Bradley Baker (Klaus), Rachael MacFarlane (Hayley), Scott Grimes (Steve), Wendy Schaal (Francine), Matt Witzman (Executive Producer), and Nic Wegener (Executive Producer, Moderator) answered some fun fan questions during the American Dad! panel in Ballroom 20.

Jennifer Tilly (Bonnie) didn’t say much during the Family Guy panel, but once in a while managed to throw in something that got the Ballroom 20 attendees chuckling.

Not one, not two, but THREE Jesters joining forces with Ashton sounded like a disastrous recipe for chaos (Critical Role).

Obi-Wan was merely accompanying Duchess Satine, not like they were on a date or anything… (Star Wars: The Clone Wars)

“One of the aspects of the book and the movie is that all these disparate animals are thrown into this situation where, you know, they have to restrain themselves. Obviously, a bear is a predator. But they have to work for the greater good. So they peacefully coexist with animals that would ordinarily be their dinner.” (Mark Hamill, The Wild Robot)

Coy Jandreau (Moderator), TQ Jefferson (Survios chief product officer), Alex White (Writer), Sara Barone (Composer), Eugene Elkin (Survios lead software engineer), Tate Mosesian (Survios studio art director), and Andia Winslow (Zula) explained the terrifying posibilities of the Alien: Rogue Incursion VR Game.

A hefty great many Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba cosplayers were recognized during the packed panel.

“My first impression [of Akari Kitō, Japanese voice of Nezuko] was she’s incredibly stylish. She’s so cool. Yeah, she’s really sweet. She’s just, like, such a presence.” (Abby Trott, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba)

“The last laugh, you know I love it!” (Beetlejuice)

“I tried to think of, like, almost too, like, what [merchandise] I would want. And I would go, ‘We should do that.’ Because I feel like, since I’m a fan of my own show, someone would like it. Someone will probably want it.” (Vivienne Medrano, Hazbin Hotel)

The Vees: Valentino, Velvette, and Vox, ready to take over the show. (Hazbin Hotel)

Dial the Gate’s Stargate 30th Anniversary Fan Celebration panelists Dean Newbury, Remington Phillips, Linda Furey, and Colin Bowman admired the craftsmanship of the Stargate cosplayers present.

“I was never guaranteed a season two. But because [the fans] made it number one for the whole [first] season, they were forced to give me a second season.” (Larry Houston, X-Men: The Animated Series)

“Finding a character that is exploring their gender in the 90s just resonated so hard with me. I was like, ‘Well, this is Morph’s voice. I’m not playing anybody, I’m just being me.'” (JP Karliak, X-Men ’97)

Sean Kiner got emotional after the final scene of Star Wars: The Bad Batch played to sample the effectiveness of his family’s music score.

Katsuji Mori signing what was perhaps the last copy of the virgin foil edition of the Gatchaman #1 San Diego Comic Con exclusive variant.

Zach Aguilar (Tanjiro, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba) commandeered Dan’s phone to take selfies.

Kida had some questions for Milo and he was not leaving Comic Con until they were answered (Atlantis: The Lost Empire).

The Google Play Wheel of Champions ferris wheel sponsoring the Marvel Contest of Champions mobile game was set up across the street from the convention center and open to the public.

The Wild Robot San Diego Comic Con Exclusive Poster

Alien: Rogue Incursion San Diego Comic Con Exclusive Lithograph and T-shirt

Sypha Belnades Promo signed by Alejandra Reynoso

Ultimate Spider-Man #4 San Diego Comic Con Exclusive Variant Cover Virgin Edition signed by J. Scott Campbell

X-Terminators #1 Unknown Comics Execlusive Variant Cover Virgin Edition signed by Alyson Court and Holly Chou (Left); Gatchaman #1 San Diego Comic Con Exclusive Variant Cover Virgin Foil Edition signed by Katsuji Mori (Right)

X-Men ’97 poster signed by Lenore Zann (Rogue), Cal Dodd (Wolverine), Alison Sealy-Smith (Storm), Alyson Court (Abscissa, original Jubilee), Gui Agustini (Sunspot), JP Karliak (Morph), Isaac Robinson-Smith (Bishop), Catherine Disher (Valerie Cooper, original Jean Grey), AJ LoCascio (Gambit), and Holly Chou (Jubilee)