I can’t believe San Diego Comic Con 2023 has come and gone. This year might have looked a little different to those who might be newer to Comic-Con, but it truly felt like the show returned to its roots! There was a lot to see, regardless of the lack of major celebrities and actors, because there were still a lot of amazing guests in attendance. There are a million hot takes out there about Comic Con returning to its comics roots, but that’s not what this article is going to be.
This is the Three If By Space round-up of all things San Diego Comic Con 2023 including everything we saw!
San Diego Comic-Con 2023 Exhibit Hall Highlights
Enso Rings
As usual, there were a ton of amazing booths this year at SDCC. One of the first booths we stopped into on Wednesday was the Enso Rings booth. For those who are unfamiliar, Enso Rings are rings that are made out of silicone and are safe for people who work with heavy machinery and/or don’t want metal on their fingers. They have an amazing lineup of DC, Disney, and LOTR rings, but this year at SDCC Star Wars was the main focus! They debuted the Salacious B. Crumb ring and it was awesome! Check it out below and learn more here:
Bandai Namco Collectibles of America
Bandai Namco always has amazing booths and this year was no different. They brought Mobile Suit Gundam, Studio Ghibli, Sandland, and more! Here’s our booth tour of the Studio Ghibli and Mobile Suit Gundam booths.
Lego: Brickbuster Video
My “Best of the Convention” booth goes to the Lego Brickbuster Video booth. It was a major nostalgia blast! The booth was set up like a Blockbuster and they had little Lego movie covers throughout the booth. They were also handing out pins and letting people build their own movie cover box throughout the con. Here’s our little tour of it:
@threeifbyspace The #Lego booth is so cool this year! It looks like a Blockbuster! Plus, a first look at the just announced 2,300-piece Chewbacca set! Available later this fall. #ComicCon #SanDiegoComicCon #SDCC #Brickbuster #Blockbuster #chewbacca #StarWars
Viz Media
Viz had a lot of fun things to see, like a Zom100 photo op, and a massive wall dedicated to the master of horror Junji Ito. Junji Ito was a big draw this year during the con, and even though we didn’t make it to his panels apparently they were jam-packed every day!
Funkoville
As always, the Funko section of the convention center was always insanely packed. We ventured over there on Sunday when it was not terribly busy and lucked out getting the only thing I wanted from that area! Here’s a little overview of what it looked like this year:
@threeifbyspace Anyone else wishing they were back in San Diego? Missing San Diego Comic Con! Funkoville was fantastic! Can’t wait for 2024! #SDCC #SanDiegoComicCon #ComicCon #ExhibitHall #FunkoPop #Funkoville
We wrapped up our convention by walking up and down every aisle of the Exhibit Hall…
@threeifbyspace Sundays at San Diego Comic Con #SanDiegoComicCon #SDCC #ComicCon #ExhibitHall
…and then going out to my favorite quiet area of the convention and watching the bay:
Offsites:
The activations and offsites this year were pretty good! The Her Universe Fashion Show was amazing and I highly suggest you go next year if you can. An entire video is being put together for it too!
There were so many different things happening that we only made it out to a few offsites and activities. My favorite activation this year was the Quantum Leap activation:
@threeifbyspace The Quantum Leap Activation was a blast! Warning, flashing lights!! #SDCC #sdcc2023 #SanDiegoComicCon #QuantumLeap
Hulu Animayhem
The Hulu Animayhem was fun, but the line was incredibly long for just a few photo ops. You walked through different settings from shows like Bob’s Burgers, Futurama, and Great North. During random hours they had free burgers in the Bob’s Burgers section, but we missed out on that by like five minutes. They did give out some really cool swag, but I definitely don’t think it would be worth the wait for just those items.
@threeifbyspace Walk through Hulu’s Animayhem with us! #SanDiegoComicCon #SDCC #Hulu #HuluAnimayhem #Futurama #BobsBurgers #AmericanDad #TheGreatNorth #SolarOpposites
Box Lunch X Ew
The Box Lunch X EW truck was amazing and they were giving out some incredible merch. We got to interview the VP of marketing, who explained the partnership between the two.
@threeifbyspace A huge thank you to VP of Marketing for Box Lunch Rick Vargas for telling us all about the Box Lunch X EW partnership! Visit the Box Lunch X EW Treat Truck this weekend at SDCC! They’re offering some sweet swag! #BoxLunchXEW #SDCC #SanDiegoComicCon
Roseanne and FX
Some other offsites we attended were the Roseanne Carnival activation (which was…weird) and the FX Lawn. The Roseanne one was very far away from the convention center and offered your standard carnival games. The prizes were also pretty standard and they did have free lunch but we didn’t have time to stick around for it to start. I don’t really know why it was there or why they’re pushing this show right now but we got a pretty cute picture on the couch.
I was pretty disappointed in FX’s activations this year. Compared to last year this felt really awkwardly put together and the sections felt strangely separated from each other. Last year they told a cohesive story and you went through all of the areas and got to see everything on a comfortable and clear path. This year the entrance spit you out into a wide-open field and from there you had to figure out which photo op you cared to wait in the blazing hot sun for.
There were a few others that we didn’t make it to, like Interview with a Vampire, the glorious return of Adult Swim on the Lawn, and the Voodoo Ranger Pirate Ship, but I heard the Interview with a Vampire one was a lot of fun. There are also fun photo ops like the That 70’s Show photo op and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles photo op that were out near the Gaslamp area. The biggest issue I have with all of these activations is the lack of shade they have. Put up some pop-up tents over the lines, please!
Parties During San Diego Comic Con 2023
The parties this year were amazing! My favorite party is always the Nat Geo party, but this year the Neopets party was pretty close to stealing that title. The Neopets party had some amazing swag, one free drink, and completely free tasty food. Plus, they also announced the new era of Neopets! I will be doing an entire article covering that, so stay tuned!
@threeifbyspace Super thankful to the Neopets Team for having us out to their New Era party! There were some really exciting announcements made and a story will be out shortly with the news!! #Neopets #NeopetsSDCC2023 #SDCC #SanDiegoComicCon
A major letdown was the Jury Duty party. The line was extremely long the entire time and according to a friend, that waited an hour and 15 minutes to get in, it was just your standard party that wasn’t very themed to Jury Duty. I’m not sure if there was swag, but they did offer two free drink tickets to guests.
We made our way over to the IGN party, which is close to being my favorite! The DJ at this party is always so good, the food they have is pretty solid for finger food, and the drinks are completely free the entire time. If you’re attending SDCC next year, I highly suggest lining up for the IGN party early and checking it out. If you’re into partying with like-minded people it’s the place to be!
Interviews:
We had some awesome interviews this year! You can check out our entire playlist below:
It’s still being updated, as I have a ton of footage to edit still, so keep an eye out for more!
Overall Thoughts of San Diego Comic Con 2023
Overall San Diego Comic Con 2023 was an amazing experience. We love being able to experience so much and we love being able to share it with those who can’t attend. I’m already looking forward to next year!
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