'Allo, 'Arry!

YES!!! (Photo credit: my friend Hal)

Oooh, so I just got back from vacation in London and Malta last week. Malta will be a later post. (If you're wondering where Malta is, it's an island south of Sicily in the middle of the Mediterranean and it is awesome.)

But before Malta, I stayed the weekend in London. Please. Don't be surprised. I try to finagle a visit there every year, obvs. The first thing that came to mind for this trip was Warner Bros.' Harry Potter Studio Tour. Which was amazing and wonderful and everything I wanted it to be. If you're an HP geek, you should head out there. Tons of sets, props, tech -- everything they used in the making of the film. And you can take photos of it all. Like, seriously, I took them up on that offer. Want to knock on the Dursleys' door? You can. Want to stand in Dumbledore's office or the Gryffindor Common Room? Yup. Want to buy Hermione's Yule Ball dress? You can do that too.

I just watched all the movies to prep for this visit, so one thing that surprised me was how small many of the sets seemed. The exceptions were maybe the Great Hall and the Potions classroom. Even Diagon Alley seemed smallish. But that was my favorite part ... until we saw the 1:24 scale model of Hogwarts they built for the movies. I think there's a collective gasp when you come upon it.  Here are some photos from the tour. I highly recommend a visit.

(By the by, the rest of the short visit in London was awesome as well: A visit to the Shard to see London from superduper high up, "Book of Mormon" in previews and the fabulous Underground poster exhibit at the London Transport Museum. Less than 72 hours in London, and we did a lot!)

The Great Hall with costumes from the different houses. (Photo credit: ME)

The ice sculpture from the Yule Ball in HP4.  (Photo credit: ME)

Hermione's, Viktor's, Harry's and Cho's costumes from the Yule Ball.  (Photo credit: ME)

Ron's bed from the dorm room. The beds were made to fit the boys when they were 11 and never changed -- so when they got older the boys had to curl up their legs to fit in them!  (Photo credit: ME)

The mirror of Erised!  (Photo credit: ME)

Hangin' with Ron's mannequin in the Gryffindor Common Room.  (Photo credit: ME)

On the way to Dumbledore's office? (Photo credit: My friend Hal)

Dumbledore's office!  (Photo credit: ME)

Potions class. Ruh-roh, I think I see the Half-Blood Prince's textbook.  (Photo credit: ME)

The Burrow! Press a button and the knitting needles move.  (Photo credit: ME)

I am NOT the heir of Slytherin. (Photo credit: Hal) 

Aww, the Potters' house in Godric's Hollow.  (Photo credit: ME)

Gross Voldemort doll. Press a button and his chest rises and falls and he squirms a bit. Like I said: GROSS.  (Photo credit: ME)

In Diagon Alley!  (Photo credit: ME)

I like this sign in the potions store window.  (Photo credit: ME)

Ollivander's!  (Photo credit: ME)

The huge model of the castle. It has lights inside that make it look like torches are lit and students are walking by! The light changes from night to say and the score plays as you walk around it.  (Photo credit: ME)

I'm on the top of two levels here -- that's how big it is. (Photo credit: Hal)

The castle at "day."  (Photo credit: ME)

The last room is a room of wand boxes with the names of cast and crew. A docent points out the names if you tell them the character. I thought this one was funny.  (Photo credit: ME)

Awww.  (Photo credit: ME)

"That's wizard's chess!" (tm Ron)  (Photo credit: ME)

I bought tons of stuff at the store: gloves for my sister, keychains, Gryffindor scarf (although we pretty much decided I am a Hufflepuff), magnets. My friend got a Timeturner. I'm kinda jealous that I didn't buy one too. Oh well. I'll have to go back! You can def spend a whole day there if you're a hardcore Potter nerd. For serious. You should go.

A comic-con grows in Baltimore

If you're amazed there's not a T-shirt
in my haul from the Baltimore con,
I am too. (Credit: Me)

Yesterday I went to the Baltimore Comic-Con -- a first for me, which is weird since I live just an hour away and it's relatively easy to get to, even without a car. You'd think I would've gone years ago as a primer, building up to the mega-huge one in San Diego and the biggish one in New York. But true to my nature, if I really like something, I'm not one to dip my toe in, so I jumped into the deep end first and am only just now going to the smaller shows.

Now in Baltimore I did see Stan Lee, heretofore known as my nerd grandpa, when he passed us on the floor, with a lone guard as his escort. But there was no crowd chasing him. And besides him, there were no A-list celebrities. No must-see TV/movie panels or exclusive clips or previews or screenings. There were no corporate publicity stunts or huge booths, such as Marvel's, with all the different Iron Man suits or Odin's throne. There was no flashy swag.

But I could stand on the convention floor, stretch my arms out wide and not hit anyone. I didn't have to get there at dawn to fall in line to just get in the building. No opening multiple browsers on my computer  -- months before the actual con -- and waiting breathlessly and praying to the Comic-Con gods to get passes. I bought my ticket for the Baltimore con on Thursday night for $20. My friend just walked up to the window when we got there and bought hers.

Heck, we didn't even have actual badges, although I saw a Stan Lee VIP passholder who had a badge (for $200, you should get a badge). No, we got a blue paper wristband -- not even branded! *clutches pearls* -- which I promptly tore. Can you imagine what would happen in San Diego if people just had easily breakable wristbands? Chaos would reign. Thousands would wangle their way inside with a bracelet they found lying in the street. (It's a good thing we didn't have a badge anyway, because I didn't bring a supercool lanyard to go with it.)

Sometimes in San Diego you walk by the comics vendors and there aren't that many people there, which makes me feel guilty. At this one it was sometimes hard (relatively speaking) to get through people to browse through boxes of comics. Yay! I always tend to go to the trade paperbacks instead of individual issues, so I bagged "The Walking Dead" vols 1 and 2. Discount copies of "Locke & Key" -- a series I enjoy lots -- eluded me again.

Closer look at my treasures. The pins, from left: K-9;
a deer head that says "Expecto patronum";
a gas mask says "Are you my Mummy?"
(Credit: Me)

I also got a bracelet made from a comic book page, (at a museum before the con, I got a pendant with comics in it: one side says "Zoink!"; the other, "Voo-vroom!"), fun decals and buttons. And NO T-shirts. That in itself is a major milestone for me. Now there were many, many shirts I wanted, but I restrained myself. A "Eureka"-themed one called out to me like a siren, but alas, it was made for tiny people.

Anyway, the vibe was just as cool and accepting as at San Diego -- without all the hassles of lines or jostling for space or the exorbitant travel costs. People weren't shy about asking to stop a Dalek cosplayer to take a photo or where you got your cool shirt or just how many times an artist watched "Doctor Who" (the Ten years) to make that awesome pixel art poster showing every character who appeared in those seasons -- in chronological episode order. Basically, you're just free to be a geek without judgment, which is the best thing about any convention.

Washington is getting its own con in April. You can bet I'll be going.

Comic-Con 2012: Mission accomplished, baby!

So, Comic-Con 2012 is over and done with, and all that's left is catching up on the panels/interviews I missed there and reading recaps of the ones I did see. I will say this: That previous post about my Plan A? Totally checked 'em all off my list, and then some. I couldn't ask for a better (last?) Con. I won't go through it day by day because that's boring, so here's a long list of superlatives:

A teary-eyed "Firefly" reunion: Nathan Fillion, Joss Whedon,
Summer Glau, Sean Maher. (Credit: Me)

Best panel: The "Firefly" 10th anniversary panel was worth getting in line at 5 a.m. In fact we should've gotten there earlier, because Joss Whedon came out to see fans and we missed it and I don't want to talk about it. I'm fine. I'm FINE. Anyway, the panel itself was fantastic: teary, funny, sweet. After all these years, the cast members still have chemistry. The SDCC folks seriously must've underestimated interest in this panel the line was unbelievably long -- and deservedly so. 


Most revelatory panel: Psych at Nerd HQ. (Click the link to watch the full panel.) I didn't realize it last year, but in an intimate setting this year, it seemed like Dule Hill was the funny one and James Roday was the straight man, when it's the other way around on the show. 


Most feel-good panel: Nathan Fillion at Nerd HQ. (Click the link to watch the full panel.) He brought up Adam Baldwin to join him, and the two were obviously enjoying themselves. Also seeing them kiss Zachary Levi for $1,000 donation to Operation Smile was pretty funny too. (Side note: Had my sister not been there, I might've coughed up the money to kiss Zac, too. Cooler heads prevailed.)

RUN!!! (Credit: Me)

Scariest moment: I hate heights, so at Petco Park during the Walking Dead Escape obstacle course, the rope net we had to climb down while watching for zombies below was not fun. Not. Fun. At. All. ...


Superhero moment: ... However, the rest of the obstacle course was pretty awesome. I can say that now that I'm not wheezing my way through it. Seriously hard, folks. Seriously. But I did surprise myself by vaulting -- vaulting! -- over a zombie's hands to escape contamination. Watching the video it's not all that superheroic, but it was in my head.

Rockin' the Fringe swag.
 (Credit: Joy)

Coolest swag: At the final "Fringe" panel (the show ends this season), they gave out pretty sweet gray fedoras like the ones the show's creepy Observers wear. Neato!


Coolest souvenir bought: Tie. A super cute limited-edition Comic-Con Domo T-shirt. Also an equally super cute limited-edition canvas Nerd messenger bag at Nerd HQ. 


Biggest regret: See first item about missing Joss Whedon. I'm FINE.

My boyfriend Richard Armitage. (Credit: Me)

My Beatles moment: Seeing Richard Armitage on stage for the Hobbit panel. Not only is he handsome (DUH), but I'm so happy he'll be getting more press in America in the coming months. Comic-Con is just the start, y'all. Get on board.


Cutest guy (besides Richard Armitage): Zachary Levi (see last item below). Runner-up: Henry Cavill is quite a looker, and I'm psyched to see "Man of Steel." 


Coolest panel: No one could top the rock-star entrance by Robert Downey Jr., who IS Tony Stark at this point. And the Marvel presentation in general -- in which they announced film titles and dates for "Thor: The Dark World," "Captain America: The Winter Soldier" and "Guardians of the Galaxy" -- made me geek out completely.

Me and Colin Ferguson. (Credit: I honestly
can't remember if it was Joy or
Erika, I was so excited.)

Best random celeb moment: Seeing Colin Ferguson chillin' out, checking his phone outside Rock Bottom Brewery. So I calmly introduced myself and told him how much I love "Eureka" and will miss it. And then he graciously offered to take a photo with me. And I squeed quietly to myself inside. I did not chase him like the fangirls who ran after Misha Collins from "Supernatural" (FF to 3:03 to see the silliness).


Best food: If you're in San Diego, please partake of the breakfast items at Richard Walker's Pancake House. Also their coffee. Which is THE BEST EVER. I'm serious. THE BEST EVER.


Worst food: I am so over granola bars right now.


Best moderator: It's so funny, I follow so many entertainment journalists/personalities on Twitter that seeing them mod a panel is as exciting as seeing the cast. The best mod by far was Chris Hardwick (aka the Nerdist guy of podcast/geek fame). Funny, charming, knowledgeable about the subject matter, he's really engaging. Now if he could drop his sidekicks on his podcast, I'd love him even more.

Ladies and gentlemen, the King of the Con for the second year
in a row -- at least for me: Zachary Levi. (Credit: Me)

King of the Con: Drumrolllllllllllll. Zachary Levi! And his Nerd HQ. My raison d'etre for going to Comic-Con was Richard Armitage, and I did and it was amazing. But the biggest highlight was sitting in the front row for three Nerd HQ panels and having Zachary Levi right there in front too (and high-fiving me!!! And Scott Porter showing up! And Aisha Tyler!). I know actors are good at acting nice, but I want to believe that Zac is as genuinely down-to-earth and sweet as he seems. And I can't not love a guy who says he loves my color-coded Comic-Con schedule! 

Said color-coded schedule and "Tangled"
DVD -- both signed! Squee! (Credit: Me)

Okay, that's it for Comic-Con 2012. Now I've got to back into the swing of real life. On the bright side: Hopefully less geeky posts in the future. 

Let's geek it out!

Welcome to Geeky Town! (Credit: Me)

So since I'm starting a blog (we'll see how long it lasts), I thought this topic would be as good as any. I mean, we might as well get my geeky-ness out of the way.

Next month is Comic-Con in San Diego -- when geeks make the annual pilgrimage to sunny California to worship superheroes, movies/TV/video games and cool graphic T-shirts. I've gone the last three years and I'm about 60% sure this is my last time. It's expensive, it's crowded, it's overwhelming.

But it's very, very fun. Half the fun is going, of course. The other half is planning for it. I love working out schedules and alternative schedules and alternative schedules to the alternative schedules.

Anyway, at Comic-Con, it's not about what you can see, because you won't see everything. That's just a given. It's about what you can live without seeing. So you prioritize; you set your must-sees and plan around those. A "Game of Thrones" panel the same afternoon as a Joss Whedon panel? Choose which to wait in line for all day, because you for damn sure won't see both.  

My priorities for this year:

Back off, girls.
(Credit: Project magazine July 2011)

1. Richard Armitage, otherwise known as my raison d'etre for going this year. Chances are, you don't know this man, but you should. He's in "The Hobbit," which I couldn't care less about (sorry, LOTR fans), but he's my favorite actor. If you haven't seen the BBC's (not ABC's) "North & South," go do it now. I'll wait. ....

Back? Okay. See? He's hot, right? Anyway, he's a TV star on the other side of the pond, but boyfriend is about to go global. Because, really, Look. At. Him. A "Hobbit" panel hasn't been confirmed, so if he's not there, I'm gonna cry. And if he is there, I'm gonna be a nervous Nelly until I'm in a seat in Hall H and he's on stage. Then I'll be able to breathe easy. And swoon.

2. Richard Armitage. I am so excited that he's listed twice.

3. Nathan Fillion. Apparently there may be a 10th anniversary panel for "Firefly." Huzzah! I saw Nathan Fillion at a panel in 2010, but he wasn't the main focus of it. And he was supposed to be at a Nerd HQ (see No. 4) panel last year with other "Firefly" cast mates, but had to pull out, so I missed him. So I really want to go to this one if there is one! But only if it doesn't conflict with priorities 1 & 2.

I was thisclose to him! (Credit: Me)

4. Nerd HQ and, therefore, Zachary Levi. Levi is a priority of mine every year it seems. Tall, dark and dorky, right? He's my nerd boyfriend. The off-site Nerd HQ panels are great because they're small, they include an autograph session (or did last year), and they're for charity. Also, during one panel I was seated close enough to Levi that I could see his phone background -- which looked a little like the little Nerd Herd icon from his now-defunct show "Chuck."

5. Walking Dead Escape. An obstacle course through Petco Park, where zombies -- er, "walkers" -- chase you. C'mon, how many times in your life can you say you were literally chased by zombies? (Okay, the "literally" there refers to the chased part; no actual zombies are taking part.) I'm a slightly-more-than-casual fan of the show, but I really love interactive show experiences. (If you're in Cardiff, Wales, check out the Doctor Who Experience -- in which you get to fly the TARDIS.)

So that's it. We'll see if all my Comic-Con dreams come true next month. No. 5 will, at least, since we have tickets. Now, let's all cross fingers for 1 & 2, okay?