NYCC 2024: Bright Spots in Dark Places
Josh B.
I’ve been going to New York Comic Con since 2010. That’s Fourteen years. I’ve had a lot of great experiences at this convention, many of which I’ve shared with you all thanks to my partnership with RGN99. That’s why what I’m about to say isn’t easy. 2024 was a mixed bag, as it was one of the worst years I’ve had at New York Comic Con in my fourteen years of attendance, with some good moments at best.
I was initially excited to attend this year’s NYCC due to one very special guest: Takashi Yamazaki, the director of Godzilla Minus One! Getting his autograph and getting to see his panel on the 70th anniversary of the Godzilla franchise became my entire reason for going. Naturally, you can imagine my frustration when at 10:30 in the morning, as my friends and I were walking to the Jacob Javits Center, I received a notification that the line for Takashi Yamazaki had been capped, and there would be no standby line. This absolutely ruined my morning and killed most of my enthusiasm for the day. I later learned of the mismanagement surrounding Yamazaki’s autograph line – people had swarmed the autographing area since 10:00 AM, and they had to move his autographing session to a different area entirely.
New York Comic Con completely underestimated the draw of the Oscar-winning director. Not only that, but in the single timeslot given for Yamazaki’s autographs, only 75 people were allowed to get his autograph. Let me put that into perspective for you – New York Comic Con 2024 had recorded 200,000 attendees this year. That means that of the people attending NYCC, only 0.0375 percent got a chance to get Takashi Yamazaki’s autograph and speak with him. The rest of us were left insulted and frustrated. I was angry, and my day felt like it was ruined, but at least I had the Godzilla 70th Anniversary Panel to look forward to, right? Wrong!
Godzilla: Minus 1
Even though my friends and I lined up 45 minutes in advance (after attending a different panel), we were shut out again, as the room was filled to capacity! I once again lay the blame squarely at the feet of the NYCC organizers, who put Takashi Yamazaki in one of the smaller panel rooms, when clearly a man of his accolades and a property as popular as Godzilla deserved to be put on the Empire Stage, the largest possible venue for this panel. Shame on ReedPop for not giving our guest the same care and attention they give everyone else at their convention. SHAME.
Having gotten that off of my chest, there were still some enjoyable aspects of this year’s New York Comic Con. After missing out on meeting him years prior, I finally got to meet one of my favorite voice actors, Billy West. I was lucky enough to have the chance to speak with him and tell him how much his work meant to me. Futurama is my favorite American animated series, and I’ve loved it for decades, in no small part due to West’s performances as Fry, Zoidberg, Professor Farnsworth and Zapp Brannigan.
Joshua Brafman (JB): So, what was it like returning to Futurama again for the Hulu revival?
Billy West (BW): Well, if you told me years ago that I’d still have to work at 72… [laughs] No, I love it! Really, it was like coming home again.
JB: So, do you have a favorite character you play as on the show?
BW: Oh, I could never choose! I love everyone, except Zoidberg!
JB: I love Zoidberg!
BW [as Zoidberg]: No, you don’t!
JB: Yes I do! [laughs] So, do you have a favorite episode of the series?
BW: Oh, gotta be “The Devil’s Hands [Are Idle Playthings].” It was such an honor to work alongside Dan Castellaneta, who played the Robot Devil. [as Fry] Now, shut up and take my autograph!
I was grateful to be able to talk to Mr. West about the show I hold so dear to my heart. His joy and energy talking about his work and hearing the voices I adore live and in person really lifted my spirits. I did manage to attend one panel this year; DC Studios’ upcoming animated series, Creature Commandos. James Gunn and nearly all of the principal voice cast for the series were there, including David Harbour, Alan Tudyk, Steve Agee, Zoe Chav, Sean Gunn, and Frank Grillo. There was a brief trailer, and then the cast discussed the show as a whole. James Gunn revealed that he had written Creature Commandos before he became the head of DC Studios, and after he was promoted, he personally greenlit the project. Gunn also said that Creature Commandos is the best thing he’s ever written. The cast also shared some tidbits about their characters. David Harbour explained that Creature Commandos’ version of Frankenstein is more in-line with the original Mary Shelley version. For those unaware, the original Frankenstein’s monster was a far more intelligent and introspective creature than the brute we see portrayed by Boris Karloff in the classic film. Sean Gunn told us that his character Weasel (previously seen in The Suicide Squad) has a character arc this time around. Frank Grillo revealed that his character, Rick Flag, Sr., would be appearing in the upcoming Superman film and Peacemaker season two.
Speaking to the overall content of the series, James Gunn described it as Guardians of the Galaxy with the morality stripped away, a much darker story than he’s ever told before. He also explained that Creature Commandos takes cues from LOST, insofar as every episode explores one character’s backstory. Finally, James Gunn gave updates on other DC projects still in the works. The 2025 Superman film is currently deep in editing, and we will see a trailer “soon, but not too soon.” The Supergirl film begins shooting in London in January and is based on Tom King’s Woman of Tomorrow story.
Overall, the Creature Commandos panel was enjoyable, but in hindsight, I probably would have rather just lined up early for the Godzilla 70th Anniversary Panel. Nothing that was said at the Creature Commandos panel was anything mind-blowing or revolutionary, or something that wasn’t posted online soon after the panel let out. While I am excited for Creature Commandos now, I really would have rather seen Takashi Yamazaki’s panel. Thankfully, Kaiju YouTuber Luminous, AKA “Heisenberg” was at the Godzilla panel, and recorded the whole thing for everyone to see.
Honestly, I feel like this is a practice that NYCC themselves should employ for attendees. After all, if there’s one thing I’ve learned from this years’ experience at New York Comic Con, it’s that you can’t always make it to every event, and with the price people pay to come out to this convention, the idea of missing out on what you’re attending for can be soul-crushing. NYCC should offer video recordings of all panels to all attendees via a website they can access using their badges, to avoid people missing out on the people they want to see. We pay a premium every year for this experience, and every year the experience feels less premium.
Finally, there was one last thing I did at New York Comic Con that I’d like to talk about. I got to fulfill a childhood dream of mine: I got to hug Godzilla. In addition to having some Godzilla suit parts on display, the Bandai Namco booth had a professional cosplayer in a screen-accurate 2002 Godzilla suit. I know that the person inside the suit never worked on the films. I know the suit was not used in the films. But ever since I was four years old and watched Godzilla VS. Mechagodzilla, I’ve wanted to hug Godzilla, and I wasn’t about to miss my chance – especially after the middling experience I had at this year’s convention. So, with the staff’s consent, I hugged Godzilla. And, for a moment, everything felt right. It was this one, perfect, beautiful shining moment that I’ll remember for the rest of my life. I know it sounds silly, but that’s how I feel. I only wish the rest of this year’s New York Comic Con could have lived up to the rest of those brief seconds with Godzilla. Here’s hoping next year brings more moments like my time with the Big G, and less like… well, every other Godzilla event there that I almost got to attend.
