Banana Republic would like you to start off your weekend with a little bit of diversity. I mean, who doesn’t love a good plaid shirt?

File this under “Marketing Fail.”

Ellen DeGeneres has just announced that she’ll be leaving her judge position on American Idol, citing discomfort with the show’s harsh criticism aspect. With Simon Cowell’s departure and no replacement yet named, could Randy and Kara be far behind, and with them either a drastic reworking of the show or shuttering it entirely?

We can only hope.

A novelty in its first couple of years, the Idol formula has become stale and predictable, and each successive crop of star wannabes less and less interesting. The competition’s runners-up have often been the more talented and successful in their post-show careers, which begs the question of whether the show’s formula for selecting and voting for contestants is really dovetailing with what the public really wants from its stars. Intense voting campaigns from organized church groups and others who seem to be the most impressed by the blandest, least challenging contestants have been pushing those performers far beyond what their actual marketability is once the phone lines go dead, and that skewing of audience input is slowly chipping away at the show’s ability to be culturally relevant.

In the show’s history, it’s certainly produced some fine artists, as rather generic pop singers go. Early favorites Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood have gained considerable professional respect, and a few of the show’s subsequent contestants, notably Clay Aiken and Adam Lambert, have also continued to grow beyond their prefab talent show roots.

But as each new crop of hopefuls has arrived, a numbing sameness is coming up, making the show seem almost as if it’s entirely scripted, rather than a true culling of the nation’s best young talent. Every season, we get the rockers, the country singers, the folks with gospel backgrounds, the pop tarts and the wispy teen idols of ambiguous sexuality–all equally bland and interchangeable with their counterparts from previous seasons. It’s as if the show isn’t conducting group auditions but sending out casting calls for stock characters.

Not, of course, that the country will ever truly tire of generating an ongoing stream of bland young things who can sort of carry a tune, but the public’s fascination with the process of creating these stars, with all their short shelf life and lack of true sustainable musical gifts, is rapidly waning. Last season’s ratings were among the lowest in the show’s history.

TV audiences are undoubtedly still interested in reality competition shows, including those on the showbiz angle, but it may be time to pack this one in, and instead develop something else that might have broader appeal and thus discover real talent that won’t be yesterday’s news in two years.

Ellen DeGeneres just release this statement on her decision to leave her judging gig on ‘American Idol’ after just one season:

A couple months ago, I let FOX and the “American Idol” producers know that this didn’t feel like the right fit for me. I told them I wouldn’t leave them in a bind and that I would hold off on doing anything until they were able to figure out where they wanted to take the panel next. It was a difficult decision to make, but my work schedule became more than I bargained for. I also realized this season that while I love discovering, supporting and nurturing young talent, it was hard for me to judge people and sometimes hurt their feelings. I loved the experience working on “Idol” and I am very grateful for the year I had. I am a huge fan of the show and will continue to be.

Fans will remember that Ellen said to Simon Cowell, who is also leaving the show, that she was upset that as soon as she signed on for the show he decided to leave. Maybe having the Idol contestants being forced to visit the ‘Ellen’ show before any other wasn’t a big enough draw for DeGeneres.

So who will replace Simon and Ellen? Perez Hilton, Jessica Simpson, P Diddy or even Justin Timberlake? The possibilities are endless, but one thing is for sure the show is starting to go downhill, with this past season being criticized for being a bit predictable.

Yesterday, the final day of the 2010 Comic-Con drew to a close. Between the first footage of a non-Superman/Batman DC Hero and the announcement of the Avengers, between Zack Snyder and Edgar Wright demonstrating the depth of their visual imagination, between the appearances of Helen Mirren, Sylvester Stallone, Bruce Willis, and Harrison Ford, and of course the terrible stabbing incident in Hall H on Saturday, it certainly was an eventful year. However, Sunday drew to a quiet close.

This is essentially par-for-the-course for Comic-Con. Everyone wants to get back home on Sunday. It’s traditionally the day that everyone swarms to the Show Floor so they can get the best deals on products and I’m not ashamed to admit that I did so as well. And, despite the fact that my attempts to get to the Scott Pilgrim vs. Comic-Con experience ended in failure, I still managed to obtain a poster for Scott’s band. But before that, there was Glee. And before that, there was…other stuff.

I’d gotten into line for Glee a couple of hours early, anticipating a much longer wait to get into Ballroom 20, but I ended up sitting in on the Supernatural and American Dad panels. I had no clue what was going on during the Supernatural panel, but it was nice to see that Deadwood’s Jim Beaver is still working. As for American Dad, they attempted the Archer-route of showing a full episode, but it was much less successful. Of course, Archer is on another level entirely, but aside from some gags about Santa declaring war on the Smith family, it pretty much fell flat. And then it was time for Glee.

Ah, Glee. If there’s a show whose presence more perfectly indicates the Hollywood takeover of Comic-Con, I don’t know what it is. Assuredly, Glee can be a transcendent show when it hits its highs, but it’s also a show that veers wildly out of control tonally, and its’ quality can also range wildly, not just episode-to-episode, but moment-to-moment. Still, the screaming crowd who appeared for the panel (though, curiously, they were much less effusive than the Community crowd) ate up the too-long sizzle reel featuring some very odd moments (a friend said that, based on the reel, one would assume that Sue Sylvester was the hero) and the questions. It’s incredibly unclear whether Glee will court success or disaster in its next season. Within the panel, Ryan Murphy ranged from declaring the season would be more character-centric while espousing a Britney-centric episode and a Rocky Horror-based episode and confirming an apparent derailment of the Artie/Tina relationship (one of the few that’s really been built relatively cohesively in the show). Those cast members who were present were quite enthusiastic and honored, but the panel was essentially a fluff piece at a convention where it didn’t precisely fit.

After that, I wandered the show floor. It’s difficult to describe what the show floor is like: a mass of booths hawking their wears at maximum volume, displays showing off everything from the trailer to The Walking Dead (excellent) to giant sculpts of Bumblebee and Boba Fett to the Marvel panel pulling off reveal after reveal every day (including, of all things, the Infinity Gauntlet, which will be appearing in Thor…somehow). This is the heart of the Con – this is where celebrities can be spotted haggling over old reprints and where the costumed attendees will be the biggest stars. As I said, I finally picked up a Scott Pilgrim poster and a copy of O’Malley’s outstanding Lost at Sea. I didn’t get anything signed, though I apparently only missed Bill Willingham, creator of the fantastic Vertigo series Fables, at the Vertigo booth by a few minutes. Ah, well. Perhaps next time.

And then it was time for the final panel of Comic-Con: the traditional screening of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode “Once More, With Feeling” as a sing-along for charity in Ballroom 20. When I arrived, the place was about half-empty. But the crowd was wildly enthusiastic. About half sang along, and the rest cheered encouragement, or squealed with delight whenever the character Spike appeared, or booed the character of Dawn. As I was sitting there, I was struck by the remarkable feeling of community. Some of these people come here every year, and this is their ritual. In the end, Comic-Con closes with a celebration of the fans themselves and what brings them together. It’s not just the exclusive footage or merchandise that brings these people together year after year. Over the four days, I met people in virtually every line, and I know of people who’ve made good friends over the course of one or more Cons. Comic-Con is a celebration of the fandom community – the chance for them to unite and cheer on their favorite projects. And even though it can be manipulated, there are still moments then that community shines through.

Leandra Medine, The Man Repeller, is the anti-fashion blogger and quite possibly the best thing I have added to my Google Reader in months.

The self-labeled “Man Repeller” is obsessed with what she calls “man-repelling” fashion and took a moment to talk about how all of you ladies can also be Man Repellers.

With summer coming to an end, Medine could offer some valuable advice to shake off that dude you met at the bar last weekend whose number has been saved in your cell as “The White Shaquille O’Neal.” Oh wait, just me?

Anyways, a Q&A from The Man Repeller, relationship expert and fashion guru, after the jump.

I know you get asked this all the time, but what exactly is a Man Repeller?
Man Repelling is defined by a female’s choice to outfit herself in a sartorially offensive but equally fashion forward way. The laws of cause and effect lead said outfitting to repel members of the opposite sex. Garments include but are not limited to harem pants, shoulder pads, onesies, clogs, perhaps jewelry that resembles violent weaponry too (I’m a huge fan of Assad Mounser :)). Man Repelling garments can be found flooding the pages of your favorite e-commerce sites, think Opening Ceremony, Oak, Shopbop, even Net-a-porter.

Do you want to repel all men, or just the ones who don’t appreciate a good velour jumper?
I don’t necessarily WANT to repel men, but it inevitably happens when I’m wearing a pant that leaves a man confused about where my legs start and butt ends and I’m fine with that. I say if a man can see past my shoulder pads, he must be a keeper. If he can’t, he must be straight.

What are some of your favorite Man Repelling moments?
Return of the harem pant, TopShop’s entire 3rd floor in their Manhattan flagship, YSL’s smooth-as-butter leather overalls ca. Fall 2009, Miranda Kerr in iD Magazine’s summer issue, Sex and The City’s 5th season, Paris Fashion Week, Dior’s latest couture collection (women as floral arrangements, brilliant!)

You labeled the unitard as the perfect Women Repeller. What else would you add to the Women Repelling list?
Overalls, cargo shorts, capri pants, short-sleeved plaid button down shirts, crocs (see: human repelling), square toe dress shoes, ill fitting sport jackets, socializing in running sneakers, jeans worn baggy, extra repel points if you can see his freakin’ boxers and last: sunglasses after dark.

If Carrie Bradshaw were real, would she be a Man Repeller, or maybe THE Man Repeller?
Of course! A special Man Repelling through the ages piece is coming up on the blog and Carrie Bradshaw is at the forefront. Do you remember that time Berger took a jab at her bird’s nest inspired head gear? She got so offended and ran off yelling “my hat is fabulous.” Gosh, a true repeller, to say the least. Naturally, I adore her.

Do you have any advice for your fellow Man Repellers slash Carrie Bradshaw fans?
Who needs companionship when you can have amazing Proenza Shoulder cropped knits and high waisted geometric print pants, I always say.

Well, the bloom is off the rose.

But, then, that’s to be expected. There’s always going to be the panels you have to miss (having to skip Thursday’s composer panel was very irritating), but the latter half of Saturday was an exercise in frustration. Which is a shame, because it started off so well.

Today was framed by two lines for Hall H. One was filled with excited people that resulted in a very interesting show, while the other was an escalation in chaos that ended up helping no one. The first was for the Warner Brothers Panel which, in retrospect, seems lackluster compared to what happened at the later Marvel panel (the subject of the second line). Still, the first was a fun experience, while the latter I will always be frustrated on having to miss.

Even though I’m an admitted DC fan, Green Lantern isn’t always my cup of tea. Hal Jordan is an oddly formless character outside of a few works like Darwyn Cooke’s New Frontier, so every adaptation has to deal with that. The brief footage shown today was, really, too brief to fully judge. Still, the panel was enjoyable if only for Ryan Reynolds’ charming presence, especially when he recited the oath for a packed, screaming crowd of attendees. This was followed by an appearance by Harry Potter’s Tom Felton (Draco Malfoy), who was clearly delighted to be at the festival, and who briefly introduced an extended trailer for the last film. While it showed more than the current teaser, it didn’t really expand on the rest of the story (though the quick cameo from Bill Nighy as Rufus Scrimgeour was a fun surprise). The film looks promising.

Then it was time for Sucker Punch. And, honestly, I’m not even sure how to react to the bizarre footage that Zack Snyder debuted. Sucker Punch appears to be a film in the mind of a girl in an insane asylum, but we saw a stylized burlesque house, battles against dragons, giant robots, and zombie German soldiers (NOT Nazis, but WWI German soldiers, as Snyder pointed out in the panel). Absolutely wild stuff, and all executed with panache. However, what was an enjoyable panel was interrupted by the rudeness of a number of attendees who post-Potter decided to walk out. What Snyder and the cast had to show was pretty fascinating, and deserved their attention.

Then it was time for perhaps the most purely enjoyable panel of Comic-Con: Community. As moderated by MediaElites’ own Todd VanDerWerff (he of the TV on the Internet podcast), the cast and crew were treated like rockstars, with fans treating them to a prolonged standing ovation as they arrived, and generally cheering and laughing loudly at everything they said. The panel flowed well and, surprisingly for a panel with so many participants, generally everyone got to participate somewhat. The cast’s chemistry with and affection for each other and the show was obvious, and it was clear they were beyond thrilled to be there, and at the reception they were getting. All in all, a fantastic panel and one of the best I’ve seen here.

And then the day went awry. I’d intended to get on line for the Universal and Marvel panels immediately after Community and, in fact, got very far up the line until one fan decided to ruin it for everyone and stabbed another in a struggle over a seat inside Hall H. Those outside were given only limited, often contradictory information as the police handled the affair inside and the panels were delayed, ultimately to be informed at 6:45 after the Universal panel ended and Marvel was to begin that no one currently in line was to enter Hall H until the 8:15 show with Kevin Smith. The attacker’s actions were utterly beyond the pale (fortunately, the victim will recover), not only because of the appalling assault on another attendee over seating, but because it ended up hurting the experience of many of those in the line.. Certainly, the police case had to take precedent over everything else, but the way the affair was handled was deeply unfair to those in line, many of whom waited patiently through the entire ordeal. While, ultimately, the person responsible is the man who took it upon himself to stab another attendee (and he was loudly booed by those in line as he was escorted away by the police), it would have been nice to know earlier that we weren’t going to get an opportunity to see what was apparently one of the most thrilling panels of the convention.

From the highest of the highs to the lowest of the lows, today was the Comic-Con experience in toto. The festival is in a very odd place right now: it’s grown beyond its capacity, and the fans are the ones often left holding the bag. While the stabbing doesn’t threaten the future of Comic-Con, it does throw into sharp relief the organizational issues that have been looming. Something needs to change.

We’ve discussed Insomnia, Memento, The Prestige, and the two Batman films, now the journey is over and we’ve finally seen Inception (twice, in fact!). To borrow a phrase from a popular show…”Anything before is just progress.” I’m once again joined by Chris Dole.

BRYAN: Well, wow. Even after seeing it a second time, I’m not entirely sure where to begin or what to say about this film other than wow, but I’ll try my best.

To start with, the editing in this was unbelievably stunning. Best of the decade stunning, and we’re only half a year into the decade. I was worried that I might not like the editing as much the second time around, but the opposite was true. This was especially the case in the first 30-45 minutes of the film where I wasn’t as big a fan of the editing the first time around but on second viewing came to appreciate it a LOT more. But really, it’s the last hour of the film that features the out of this world editing. But we’ll get to that later.

For now, let’s talk about the setup. The film begins with Dom Cobb (DiCaprio) washing up on shore and being brought into an Asian inspired palace, of sorts. While I admired the art direction and the scope of this scene, I didn’t fully appreciate it until the second viewing. I think it’s because the film takes awhile to fully immerse the viewer into its world, despite all of the exposition in the first 45 minutes of the film. The look of the scene, however, is simply staggering. From the beautiful set design, to the lighting, to the costumes (Marion Cotillard looked stunning in that black dress)…all of it helped create a visually sumptuous setting.

The whole thing is just grand filmmaking at its very finest. It’s the type of ambitious filmmaking rarely seen in recent films. From the hallway fight scene, to the train racing down a city street, to the ending; all of it is filled with a grandiosity that I loved. And yet, while it was very serious, it was also very, very entertaining. The last hour of this might be the most sheer fun of anything Nolan has done outside of The Dark Knight.

Switching gears completely, there has been a lot of talk of Nolan both being inspired by, and wanting to make, a James Bond film. Watching this, I just couldn’t stop thinking about how insanely awesome that would be to watch. Even if that never happens, there’s enough in this film to make it seem almost like a high-minded, sci-fi Bond film. The opening scene with Mal (Cotillard) double-crossing Dom and the obvious fight scene at, could easily have been from a Bond film…alas, with all of MGM’s legal issues, this will likely remain a fan fantasy, but maybe that’s for the best.

CHRIS: Inception is nothing short of the culmination of everything Christopner Nolan has been working towards his entire career. And even though, due to its effect on pop culture, the film people will most associate with Nolan during this time is The Dark Knight, I think Inception is his finest work. It is nothing short of a magnum opus, laying bare Nolan’s process, demonstrating all his favorite tropes, and diving deep into the primary themes of his films, but doing it on a scale few directors in the history of film could achieve.

This is a film where the protagonist is driven BY the villain, who only exists in his own mind, a film where reality is shaky and the lead has to constantly remind himself of whether things are real or not. It’s a grandly metatheatrical statement on how a film comes together, with DiCaprio’s Dominick Cobb bearing a stunning resemblance to Nolan himself, while each member of the heist can easily be equated to various members of the cast and crew. And it’s all patterned into a heist film, but with an astonishing scope and invention that is genuinely awe-inspiring.

Awe. Now that’s a rare emotion you get from films these days. Often, when a big special effect is employed, you usually just assume that some guy on a computer did it. In Inception, not only do the effects add to rather than overwhelm the story, they are legitimately worthy of gasps. Whether it’s the city of Paris folding over on itself, the astonishing zero-g hallway fight (done with the same technology that allowed Kubrick to have his astronauts jog in 2001: A Space Odyssey, and with which Nolan shows up the entire Matrix trilogy in about five minutes), the train barreling down the streets of LA…these are moments that inspire genuine astonishment and delight. How fantastic is that?

BRYAN: To say that the film is awe-inspiring is, yes, probably a bit of an understatement, especially in the second half of the film in which Nolan is seemingly throwing everything he’s got at the audience (I’m assuming this is the most audacious thing he has for us, if he’s somehow able to top this in the future, God help us!). While most of the truly stunning stuff is in the second half of the film, I was still quite impressed with the first set-piece in which we get our first glimpse of a dream within a dream as Dom and Arthur (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) try and extract information from Saito (Ken Watanabe). The first “kick” in which Dom is pushed into a tub of water which brings him back from that dream…only to find that this too, is another dream. In reality they’re all on a train. While it’s a rather complex idea to throw at the audience right out of the gate, Nolan does a good job of streamlining the narrative so as to not completely lose the audience. It also helps when you have as much expositionary dialogue as this film did (arguably too much). Though, I do wonder if this could’ve even been made without the exposition…enough people seem to be thoroughly confused as is, I can’t imagine how lost they would be without all of the explanations given by the characters.

How fascinating that, in a film about ideas as viruses, the villain exists only as a nightmarish memory? It’s a tribute to both Nolan and Cotillard that the character of Mal (that spelling/pronunciation will never cease to annoy me.) is able to have a commanding presence and that she is able to strike fear in both Dom and his team, but also in the audience. And utlimately, her character is a tragic one. When we find out near the end of the film that she was the one that Dom had previously “Incepted” with an idea and that it is this idea that unintentionally lead to her committing suicide, that’s extremely tragic and the way that Cotillard and DiCaprio played this scene was brilliant.

We’ve commented previously on the various cast and crew-members that Nolan has used throughout several films and here he once again uses the same DP (Wally Pfister), Editor (Lee Smith), and Composer (Hans Zimmer) and all three put forth their best contributions and seem to be perfectly in-sync with Nolan’s vision. Pfister has gradually gotten better and better working with Nolan but he does himself here, creating iconic image after iconic image. His lensing during the opening scene and, especially, the hallway fight scene, is incredible. And the aforementioned editing by Smith is some of the best editing in an action film I’ve ever seen. The way in which Smith edits together the four different levels of dreams is truly something to be seen.

Then there is the cast. Watanabe, who was the stand-in Ra’s al Ghul at the beginning of Batman Begins is given a much bigger role as Saito, the man who is at first the target of Dom and his team and later the employer, turns in one of his best performances. Cillian Murphy, who was the Scarecrow in both Batman Begins and briefly in The Dark Knight, is this time given a much more down-to-earth character as Robert Fischer Jr. and he just about steals the show. Lastly, there is Michael Caine…and I have to be honest, I was somewhat disappointed in how little screen-time Caine had here. His role didn’t NEED anymore time, but I was expecting him to be something of a mentor for the team or something. Instead he shows up for about 2 minutes. The point is that Nolan has done a great job of collaborating with the same artists and this is indeed the culmination of all their offerings thus far.

CHRIS: As much as this is a heist film, I liked the fact that Nolan didn’t find it necessary to include a designated villain or, say, have one of the team turn out to be traitors. As you said, Mal is ultimately a tragic character (the reveal of what actually happened in Limbo is one of the most chilling moments in Nolan’s filmography), and Cotillard is able to bring an incredible amount of power to the role. And yes, the names in this film are hardly subtle, are they? Between Mal, Ariadne, the Fischers potentially reflecting the legend of the Fisher King, Yusuf, there’s more than enough material to provoke thought…which, of course, was the goal all along.

I’d been planning on discussing it later, but Lee Smith absolutely deserves every Editing award in existence, a healthy bonus, and a long vacation. In the last half of the film, he’s essentially cutting five different movies with their own paces, plots, emotional stakes – and they have to line up, and they all have ramifications with the other plots. And he pulls it off. The falling van is one of the most creative ticking clock devices I’ve ever seen in a film, and the moment when the “kicks” all line up is downright exhilarating as everything comes together. It’s utterly fantastic, bold work, and it marks Smith’s rise to the ranks of some of the great editors of all time. Similarly, Pfister is working on another level here. As you said, the hallway fight (not to mention all the zero-g material) is brilliant, but throughout he’s improving even on his work in The Prestige and The Dark Knight. The shot of the folding city is going to be the iconic shot of the year…unless it’s the final shot. As for Zimmer, I’ve had issues with some of his work before, but he certainly does a fine job here. I particularly like the music that plays during Ariadne’s discovery of her powers in the dreamworld: it’s appropriately filled with awe and grandeur.

As for the cast, the name that needs to be mentioned first and foremost is Leonardo DiCaprio. Sure, it may be similar to work he did earlier in Shutter Island, but while Cobb doesn’t have the strongest grasp on reality, he has a better sense of who he is. DiCaprio does a fantastic job of grounding the film. With a lesser actor in the role, the film would have collapsed entirely, but DiCaprio is a credible action hero and an appropriately tragic center. After all, the entire film is about Cobb’s issues, and DiCaprio makes them all believable. We’ve already discussed Cotillard (who is superb and a beautifully classical femme fatale), but the rest of the team are all fantastic. Ellen Page is terrific in a toned-down role as the moral center, while Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Tom Hardy have a fantastic rapport while providing the film’s most thrilling action beats. Gordon-Levitt in particular deserves credit for filming the zero-g sequences for real – it’s his physicality, as much as anything else, that sells that sequence. Meanwhile, Hardy is the comic relief and does it with style. Hardy is a star about to break out, and Inception provides him the opportunity to basically steal the show. Dileep Rao doesn’t have as much to do as the other team members, but he’s still a fun presence and provides two of the film’s biggest laughs. And then, of course, there are the three Nolan alumni: Watanabe, Murphy, and Caine. It’s an absolute delight to see Watanabe and Murphy get meatier roles than in Batman Begins, and they both do terrific work. It’s a credit to Murphy that his character’s catharsis is genuinely moving. Meanwhile, Watanabe is a fun presence even though he spends much of the movie dealing with his character’s injury. And while more Michael Caine is always a good thing, it feels as though he’s simply here to bless the film on behalf of Nolan’s other projects, and to wish it luck.

Inception is so jam-packed that it’s almost impossible to cover everything. But the way this film treats ideas is utterly fascinating. They are the most powerful force known to man. They are a virus that can overwhelm a person’s mind. One simple idea can transform the world itself. How refreshing is it, in today’s generally mindless entertainment, to see the idea itself given such reverence and power? And then Nolan affirms that by showing what his ideas can do. And, at the end, Nolan has incepted within us our own theories on what has happened, and what it means. Inception is a testament to the power of creativity, and it’s wonderful to see it pulled off so well.

BRYAN: I mentioned earlier about how this felt a lot like a Bond film (and Nolan has been nothing if not vocal about his love of Bond films), but I will give this credit for avoiding the genre cliche of having one of the group members betray the others. Yes, you could say that the opening scene in which Mal “double-crosses” them accomplishes this, but even then it is different than the typical “double-cross” in that it is done by the protagonist’s subconscious. It’s one of the many ways in which the film cleverly subverts the typical heist-movie tropes.

There are a handful of movie moments where I can remember literally sitting, mouth agape, in theaters staring in awe at what I was seeing on-screen. The Battle of Minas Tirith in The Return of the King, the convoy in The Dark Knight, etc. I can literally say that climax to the last action scene in this film (which is, like you said, closer to being 4-5 separate action scenes) one of the most amazing on-screen things I’ve ever witnessed. I told myself I’d lay off the hyperbole, but screw it, it’s just amazing to watch everything come together and yes, if Lee Smith doesn’t win the Editing Oscar, there is no justice in this world. The way in which he edits together the four different levels of dreams, constantly cuts back to the van (I nearly laughing at this and yes, this was a terrific device), and does it all in style is immensely impressive. I hope that the DVD has extensive behind-the-scenes extras because I’d really like to hear what he has to say about editing this film…

It’s interesting how prevalent the Shutter Island comparisons have been on the internet. Outside of the wife being a memory and Dom having a somewhat similar character journey as Teddy (in Shutter Island), I don’t see that many correlations between the two. I will say this, however: that they are both examples of great filmmakers doing great genre work. I’m just of the opinion that Nolan’s work is far superior. I do agree that Leonardo DiCaprio is best in show and, once again, I have to say his work here is better and certainly more understated than it was in Shutter Island (part of that is due to the accent in Shutter Island also a difference of tones/aims between the two films). While Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Tom Hardy get a majority of the “fun scenes”, DiCaprio, along with Cotillard, Page, and Murphy (all three of whom do standout work), is asked to carry the emotional weight of the film and he does so marvelously. Whether it is him telling his projection of his wife that he tried his best to “re-create” her but that even at his best she was still only a “shade” of the real Mal or his attempt to be reunited with his children, he does so with utmost sincerity and a genuine humanity that has at times been lacking in his performances.

I keep hearing complaints about the dream worlds being too “logical” and “restrained”…what are your thoughts on this? I personally wasn’t bothered at all about the look or feel of the dream worlds. I totally bought into the idea of these dream worlds being artificial creations of the architect and so, it never really bothered me. I mean, I guess I see where these criticisms are coming from and I don’t want to act as if they’re completely invalid. Some critics have gone so far as to say that Nolan simply doesn’t get how people dream and I have to wonder if they’re not getting entirely too caught up in the fact that this deals with dreams, yes, but a very specific area of dreams. As Dom says to Ariadne (God…that name), “Dreams feel real when we’re in them. It’s only when we wake up that we realize something was actually strange.” So it makes sense then, that the dream worlds would be fairly realistic as the intent of the architect is to make the dreams feel as real as possible so that the person whose subconscious they’re extracting from, doesn’t realize that it’s just a dream. Too, the “limbo” scenes are appropriately mundane in that Dom has broken his own rule and has used memories to create from. Now, I can understand having complaints about those explanations being too easy but beyond that, I think people are asking for a completely different film than the one they were given and at that point I believe we’ve stepped too far away from criticism into outright projection.

CHRIS: These worlds are created and guided towards a specific purpose: to get people to give up their secrets. How well would they do that if, suddenly, an army of orcs appeared or something? True, a little more could have been done with the paradoxical architecture that was set up, but going too weird would have defeated the purpose of the dream world, in my opinion.

Thus far, though, we’ve beaten around the primary bush of this film, but let’s get to it. Let’s talk about endings.

There are two schools of thought with regard to endings: the first is to let the audience gently fade to black after a soul-stirring climax. perhaps after a quick joke or something of the like. The second is to go out on the highest possible moment, to make the final transition to black as jaw-dropping as possible. Christopher Nolan is clearly of the second school. More than that, however, virtually every final scene in his films is, essentially, the point of the movie. You can reduce every Christopher Nolan film down to its last five minutes and get its message, loud and clear. Whether it’s The Dark Knight (“a silent guardian…a watchful protector”) or The Prestige (“It was the looks on their faces…”) or Memento (the burning of the photograph), the final scene is always the key to unraveling what we’re supposed to take away from the movie.

In Inception, Nolan leaves it to us to take away what we choose. Do we believe that the top fell? Do we believe that it was simply all a dream? How much was real, and how much was fantasy? Myself, I believe it ultimately doesn’t matter. Whatever the top does, Cobb has gone through the same emotional purge that Robert Fischer Jr. does. He has moved beyond his guilt and can finally allow himself to see the faces of his children again. Does it matter, then, if it’s real?

BRYAN: It’s true that Nolan is definitely of the second school of thought on endings and when it comes to jaw-dropping conclusions, Inception is his best. In a summer where movie after movie has disappointed (with the exception of Toy Story 3), it’s great to see a movie that has, not only a satisfying ending, but one that sparks has much in-depth discussion as has the ending of Inception. Is it real, is it unreal, does it really matter, does the top fall or keep spinning?

I’m of two minds on whether or not it “matters” when all is said and done. On the one hand, he has finally allowed himself to see his kids faces, as you say but (and this is a fairly large “but” in my view), he has just spent the last ten minutes leading up to this ending telling Mal that it DOES matter. If it really didn’t matter to him, wouldn’t he have just allowed himself to live his life with Mal AND the children? I don’t think that necessarily PROVES that it is real at the end but that tends to be how I view the ending. However, just as Dom subtly incepted Mal with doubt about her reality, so to has Nolan incepted doubt into us. It’s this little bit of doubt that makes the ending so exciting and is why the ending has sparked so much conversation.

That being said, I do think there are interesting possibilities if you consider it to not matter. It makes the character of Dom somewhat more tragic, I think, if you believe that he has moved to a place in life where he no longer cares whether or not it’s real or just a dream. I mean, that’s kind of sad to think about. Ultimately he lead to his wife’s suicide and now he’s content with seeing what are, potentially, projections of his children? That’s pretty sad, if you think about it. Though it’s not as if Nolan has been afraid of leading characters down dark and somewhat sad roads, so I wouldn’t be entirely surprised if that was the case here. I personally view it in a slightly more hopeful way and I think the “it’s definitely real” reading most completely confirms that view.

CHRIS: The ending is essentially Nolan’s incepted Rorschach test on us. How we view it depends on how we view the world. And Nolan injected just enough doubt and evidence to allow for all options. All are happy and sad in their own ways. Some may be happier or sadder than others, but they’re all entirely possible. I do think you have a point, though, that Cobb’s final confrontation with Mal reinforces that this is reality. But still, there’s just enough doubt…

With Inception, Nolan set out to achieve the impossible and surpassed it. It’s a deliriously exciting blockbuster that manages to provoke as much thought as the best indie films. It is created by a group of very talented people working at the height of their powers both on and off-screen. And, best of all, it’s a film that reminds us why we get excited about film. I can’t wait to see it again.

BRYAN: I think that’s a pretty accurate assessment of the ending and yes, even if it is “real”, there is still a certain sadness to the character. And I do agree that Nolan has left the ending ambiguous enough that three different people could come up with three different conclusions based on the ending and all love it (or hate it, I guess!) equally. Some tend to view ambiguity in filmmaking as lazy filmmaking, but I’d say it’s the opposite so long as the narrative supports the ambiguity and in this case, I’d say it certainly does. It’s the reason the ending packs the punch that it does. You know that it’s coming and you’re still left a little shell-shocked that it actually dared to go there.

Nolan attempted to create a visual spectacle that is not hollow, but rather supported by ideas and he was successful in nearly every way. It’s bold, virtuosic filmmaking at its finest and it’s a type of filmmaking that is becoming more and more rare. So, yes, it is both refreshing and exciting to see films like this not only be made, but also to see them be embraced by a wide audience. It’s nice to see, to say the very least. Perhaps it will bring forth a fresh wave of original blockbusters of high quality. I won’t hold my breath, but I can dream, right? In the mean time, I guess I’ll go see this again!

That concludes our write-up of Inception and also our Christopher Nolan project as a whole. Enjoy!

Today was officially Star Wars Day at Comic-Con, but the real stars today were zombies, vampires, and Batman.

Today, an interesting confluence of events (and lines, but we’ll get to that later) led me to, essentially, chart Batman’s course from TV show to comic to animated film. Alas, nothing new was announced for the live action Nolan Batman (perhaps tomorrow, but most likely not), but otherwise, today was a fascinating exercise in viewing a character across multiple mediums, from The Brave and the Bold to Batman Inc. to Under The Red Hood.

The Brave and the Bold is a deeply underrated and highly entertaining show, so it was unfortunate to hear at this morning’s panel that the upcoming 13 episodes would be the show’s last. Still, it was a genius move on the part of Warner Animation to create a show so deliberately antithetical to what the comics and films were showing at the time, and it allowed The Brave and the Bold to flower into its own, utterly delightful experience. While episodes could be grating, more often there were moments of wonderfully loony inspiration (as was evident in the episode shown to the panel, an adaptation of the Emperor Joker arc with…wait for it…a teaser featuring the Rainbow Batman. You gotta love it). It’s no wonder that Grant Morrison, of all people, speaks so highly of it.

Speaking of which, I’m fairly certain that Morrison officially overthrew Whedon and Stallone as the guy best suited to the Comic-Con crowd. His hourlong panel was an utter delight. Morrison was very funny (and a surprisingly good impressionist): his take on the Schumacher Batman was an absolute killer as he riffed for a few minutes on the specificity and care it would take to make a rubber, nippled batsuit. Too, his remarkable mind was on very effective display, namechecking everything from The Brave and the Bold to Pico della Mirandola’s “Oration on the Dignity of Man” (which he cites as an inspiration for the superlative All-Star Superman). He was very open and gracious, always saying “thank you” or “you’re welcome” (if thanked) to every questioner as well. He was more than willing to talk about everything from We3 to The Invisibles to The New Adventures of Hitler to Animal Man to Final Crisis to All-Star Superman. He is also, thus far, the only person I have seen who received a standing ovation. He certainly deserved it.

The following panel, called Batman: The Return, was less enjoyable, mostly because it suffered from the same problem a number of panels do: it was too crowded. Morrison, authors Gail Simone, Paul Cornell, Paul Dini, Scott Snider and Bryan Q. Miller, and artists David Finch, Dustin Nguyen, and Frazier Irving all squeezed onto the table in room 6DE to discuss the future of Batman. Very few people got to answer multiple questions, and most of the questioners in the audience asked for Morrison. The big news out of the panel was the next (and apparently final) chapter in Morrison’s huge Batman run: Batman, Inc., in which Morrison takes on the Brave and the Bold concept of teaming Batman with a supporting character. The question is, which Batman. Bruce Wayne is on his way back after struggling across time and space, and Dick Grayson is currently facing a bullet to the brain in Batman and Robin. However, solicits have alluded to Grayson’s presence in the months to come. Most of the panelists therefore played very coy about upcoming events, though there were some interesting teases, mostly about other characters like Batgirl and the upcoming Knight and Squire miniseries by Paul Cornell.

After that, it was off to combat what made Comic-Con today a mildly frustrating experience: lines. The lines for virtually every panel were enormous. The most shocking (to me personally) came later with Archer, but I ended up being unable to get into the Scott Pilgrim vs. Comic-Con area. I will try again at some point – that T-shirt will be mine!

However, the lines are partially enormous because Comic-Con does not clear out its rooms at the end of each panel. And this can lead to a problem. For instance, today Ballroom 20 saw a panel for True Blood, one of the biggest panels of the festival. Fans started lining up at 7:00 this morning, and probably earlier. However, the fans who got in often stayed in, even for panels they didn’t care about, simply so they could get seats. This led to little turnover for, say, the Joss Whedon panel prior to the True Blood panel, where many Whedonites were left in the cold. Not to judge True Blood fans: heck, I did the same thing myself in Hall H yesterday. But logistically, the convention does often run into trouble with the sheer volume of people coming through. Tomorrow, with the big Warner Brothers and Marvel panels on their way, will possibly be even worse.

Still, I was able to get into one of the most unexpectedly popular and highly entertaining panels of the day: Archer. FX’s spy-film-as-dirty-office-comedy-animated-show was a sleeper success last season: a delightfully profane take on the genre elevated by great voice work, especially from Emmy nominee (!) H. Jon Benjamin as the pompously dickish Archer and Jessica Walter as his overbearing mother/boss. And tonight proved that Archer will continue into season 2 strongly, as they debuted an utterly hilarious episode in which Archer has to protect an underage debutante who keeps trying to have sex with him (despite his own wishes and horror at the prospect), only for Archer to be caught at precisely the wrong moment and get blamed for everything. Without spoilers, I can safely say that Archer looks to be just as funny as it was before, except with even nuttier action sequences (though creator Adam Reed joked that they broke the budget on one sequence in this episode). The panel (which consisted of the cast save Jessica Walter, plus Reed) was highly entertaining, as it’s clear that the cast really enjoys working on the show. Aisha Tyler was particularly effusive in her support for Archer, and the crowd devoured it. Indeed, this may be the most rapturous crowd I’ve seen at Comic-Con thus far. Archer certainly deserves such a positive response.

Then, as it began, the day closed with Warner Animation and Batman. Tonight saw the official premiere of the made-for-DVD animated film Under The Red Hood, an adaptation of the DC arc which brings Jason Todd back from the dead. It’s not the greatest story in the world, but strong voice work, particularly from Bruce Greenwood as Batman (who did such a great job that he will reprise the role in the upcoming show Young Justice) and a terrifyingly effective John DiMaggio as the Joker. Who knew that the voice of Bender and Aquaman had THIS in him?

Ultimately, Day 2 at Comic-Con was a less immersive experience than Day One, but tomorrow sees the arrival of the biggest panels of all: Warner Brothers and Marvel. It’s going to be one hell of a day.

“When would it be convenient for you to die?”

So the astonishing Scott Pilgrim Vs. The Universe ended one year ago, as Bryan Lee O’Malley brought his ebullient hero Scott Pilgrim to the depths of despair and beyond, shattering the series’ premise and going far deeper into character than anyone would’ve guessed at the beginning. And now, the final words taunting him, Scott must prepare to face the final, terrifying evil ex-boyfriend for a girl who may not even love him and who has certainly abandoned him. Fans desperately prayed that the final result – whatever it was – would not disappoint.

It is very safe to say that, whatever else, Scott Pilgrim’s Finest Hour is not a hyperbolic title.

Bryan Lee O’Malley’s epic series about a young man who must fight his girlfriend’s seven evil exes to win the right to date her seems too out there for the genuine pop culture phenomenon it seems to be morphing into, but its somewhat twee, hipsterish exterior reveals an intelligent and uncompromising heart: one that is generous to its characters, but also completely willing to show them, warts and all. Too, O’Malley superbly juxtaposes the manga-ish art and the video game-esque fights with the thematic structure of two people trying to escape the past and make it work. The evil exes are nothing if not Ramona Flowers’ demons made literal, and having Scott fight them is a wonderful conceit.

Scott Pilgrim’s Finest Hour delivers on that and more. On a surface level, Gideon Gordon Graves – the last ex, and their leader – is by far the most terrifying and intimidating of all the exes. While previous characters like Lucas Lee and Roxy Richter were charming in their villainy, Gideon is a complete monster, and O’Malley writes the hell out of him. Certainly, the build-up to his arrival does not disappoint.

But more importantly, the book functions as a catharsis for both Scott and Ramona. Scott’s titular finest hour is not merely his final battle with Gideon, but his acceptance of how much he is like Gideon, and how that allows him to overcome it. For all Scott’s hammy ebullience, he can be an incredibly callous character, and O’Malley turns the final conflict into a prolonged apotheosis as first Scott and then Ramona purge their demons. It’s a resolution that feels absolutely earned and does not sugarcoat who these people are. But they’re willing to work on that. That’s what makes them heroes.

Too, O’Malley shows off the rich supporting cast to a great extent. Unfortunately, Sex Bob-Omb leader Stephen Stills only really appears for a brief (if goofily unexpected) payoff at the end, but he manages to do justice to the rest. Kim Pine appears for a showstopping sequence in the middle that shows why she’s arguably the best character in the series, while old standbys like Knives Chau, Envy Adams, Stacey Pilgrim, and Scott’s gay ex-roommate Wallace Wells (still Scott Pilgrim’s biggest scene-stealer) all get some fantastic moments. Even as Scott is realizing he’s not exactly the hero he thought he was, O’Malley doesn’t forget the humor. Scott Pilgrim has always been a wickedly funny series, and Finest Hour has some of the most humorous moments in the entire run.

Not only that, O’Malley’s art has improved tremendously over the course of the run. The amount of emotion he can mine out of a simple manga-esque face is nothing short of astounding. The action art is incredibly dynamic (especially in Scott’s faceoff with NegaScott and the final showdown with Gideon), as is the background work, whether it’s a spiraling checkboard or a vast crowd at Envy Adams’ latest concert. There are pages that are just stunningly good (I genuinely gasped at a couple, which may not be the best thing to do when you’re in line with a bunch of SP fans around you), which, given where the series’ art began, is hugely impressive.

Scott Pilgrim isn’t for everyone. The first volume is somewhat slow and doesn’t quite display the character depth the series shows later, and the video game-ish conceit may be a turn-off to some. But for me, from the third volume on, it turned into one of the finest comic series I’ve ever read. And now, Scott Pilgrim’s Finest Hour delivers on that title and more. It’s dazzlingly entertaining, utterly hilarious, and genuinely moving. What more could you possibly want?

Conventions are a funny thing.

There’s always a push-pull between the big ticket attractions – the huge guest stars, the exclusive announcements – and the quieter, more unique aspects: the fan panels, the one-on-ones, the autograph alley. And when you take a convention that’s the size of Comic-Con, the struggle between the two can be pulled to outrageous proportion.

I have not attended a convention since I spent a half-day at the Star Wars Celebration in 1999, back in the heady pre-Episode One days. To arrive, then, at Comic-Con 2010 is in itself an experience. What impresses one immediately is the sheer scope of the thing. That this is a convention which can contain panels on everything from the state of the DCU to films such as The Expendables, The Other Guys, and Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World, to events where voice-over actors read from old-time radio scripts and Stan Freberg appears to an appreciative audience (the latter covered wonderfully by MediaElites editor Todd VanDerWerff over at the AV Club).

For my first day, I decided to take in some of this year’s big ticket events. And that meant daring the line to Hall H, the biggest Hall, and the home of the big movie panels (which today included Salt, Red, The Expendables, and the belle of the ball Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World). But first, as this is a comic book convention, and I am an unabashed DCU fanboy, I decided to hit up the DCU Nation: a panel where publishers Dan Didio and Jim Lee lead a group of writers and artists (which today included VP of Sales Bob Wayne, artist Nicola Scott, and authors J.T. Krul, James Robinson, Jeff Lemiere and, briefly, Bill Willingham) in a talkback session where they evaluate what the audience thinks of the current direction of the DCU. This time around, two big subjects were on the audience’s mind: the brutal treatment that certain characters – most especially Roy “Arsenal” Harper – have received, and the redesigned Wonder Woman costume. Lee, the costume’s designer, joked that it was part one of a very slow, long-term plan to redesign the entire DCU. Still, while the costume received some applause (including from me, because HONESTLY, give the woman some pants), it also was the source of concern. The jacket, in particular, was questioned by one participant, who asked when it was coming off. Lee replied that, as it was in fact attached to her back, NEVER. Other questions focused on whether Aquaman would be receiving an ongoing title anytime soon (No), the reprinting of cofeatures and old comics, and some discussion of Fables #100, a one-hundred page comic featuring everything from celebrity Fables questions to a 60-page primary storyline. The appearance of Neil Gaiman’s Death in the DCU was also noted, as it is a major break in the line DC and Vertigo usually draws between its works. In this case, however, Didio noted, it was an agreement between Gaiman and Paul Cornell that brought it about, and it is unlikely to be repeated.

Still, despite the sometimes heated Internet rhetoric, the panel was generally congenial. Didio asked a fan dressed as Hawkgirl to be the panel’s “enforcer”, and all involved exchanged jokes back and forth with the audience. The mood was far more relaxed than I’d expected, which was a pleasant surprise. All in all, Comic-Con was off to a good start.

After that, I decided to head down to the floor in search of the sixth volume of Scott Pilgrim, which debuted this week. As an avowed Pilgrimite, I was eagerly anticipating the opportunity to read it while waiting on line for Hall H, which my Con-veteran friends had warned me would be incredibly long. As it turned out, it was long enough that I was able to read the book twice. I’ll be reviewing it shortly after this goes up, but I can say that I was incredibly satisfied by it.

Eventually, however, I got into Hall H and stayed there for four panels, which could not have been more different. The first was for Summit Entertainment’s Red, which featured comic book author Warren Ellis, artist Cully Hamner, producer Lorenzo Di Bonaventura, and actors Bruce WIllis, Helen Mirren (who came in wearing an In Memoriam shirt for the late Harvey Pekar), Karl Urban, and Mary Louise Parker. While this was a film whose arrival at Comic-Con made sense (it’s based on a graphic novel), it was a fairly bland affair, reeking of an attempt to cash in on the event. The cast mostly talked about how much they enjoyed working with each other, while it demonstrated the normal pattern of panels to a discouraging extent: a few questions from a moderator to the group, then a number of audience questions primarily directed towards the most popular members of the panel (in this case, Willis and Urban). It was an enjoyable enough panel, but never really sparked with the audience.

Fortuantely, this was remedied by the very next panel: the Visionaries panel with Joss Whedon and J.J. Abrams. While most coverage of the event has focused on the fact that Whedon confirmed that he is directing The Avengers, I was far more struck by how intelligent and articulate both men were. It was an extremely lively discussion, ranging from such topics as Whedon’s apparent embarrassment over Dollhouse, how Abrams’ first encounter with Steven Spielberg revolved around editing Spielberg’s home movies after winning a Super 8 competition, 3D (in which Abrams came out strongly against the current technology, while Whedon is more interested in it), and the subject of writers’ notes. It was also revealed that Whedon claims to only write one draft – a fact that visibly shocked Abrams. The mood between both was extremely jovial, and the audience was game. Whedon, in particular, knows how to play to an audience, and had great fun with jokes about how he has an Alien egg, but that he “had to ruin the franchise to get it,” and how Abrams’ Star Trek makes him “throw up in terror,” because he has to achieve something similar on The Avengers. It was in this discussion that the best Comic-Con has to offer was displayed: a huge canvas for people like Abrams and Whedon to speak about what they do to a receptive audience. It’s unlikely that those two will find a more supportive group anywhere in the world, and it’s a unique opportunity as well. It’s in these moments where Comic-Con lives up to what it offers.

Next on the list was one of the hottest tickets of the festival: Sylvester Stallone’s The Expendables. This was an utterly fascinating panel, though sometimes for the wrong reasons (most notably, moderator Harry Knowles’ very bizarre introduction being followed by star Terry Crews appearing shirtless), but was also a showcase for Stallone, who in an event like this comes off as a far more articulate and fascinating person than I had guessed. The man knows how to work a crowd brilliantly, and whether it was joking about how badly costar Steve Austin injured him in a fight or talking about how much he loves directing, the panel achieved something similar to the Whedon/Abrams panel. It was punctuated by two clips, both of which were achieved with rapture worthy of the Second Coming. Truth be told, the clips were too brief to really judge (though the editing was horrifying in the first), but the audience was so happy to see a 2D film with real stunts that they ate it up. Still, Stallone kept things moving, and the brief appearances by Bruce Willis and, later, an editor of the Guinness Book of World Records giving Stallone an award for the Rocky series being the most successful sports series of all time made this an “only at Comic-Con” experience.

After that, it was time for today’s biggest star of the 2010 Comic-Con: Scott Pilgrim. And Universal has taken over the convention in an enormously impressive way. Between an area where, among other things, the films’ stars hand out personalized t-shirts (which I will definitely obtain before the weekend is out), the perfectly timed release of the last volume (and its coming panel this weekend), and the announcement that came at the end of the panel, it was clear that Scott Pilgrim was out to dominate the buzz this time around. Unfortunately, the panel didn’t quite deliver on that promise. Essentially, it was a case of “too much”. No less than 13 members of the cast and crew appeared: Edgar Wright (moderating the panel himself), author Bryan Lee O’Malley, and most of the cast, including Michael Cera (who, in a hilarious reference to costar Chris Evans’ upcoming performance as Captain America, spent the entire panel in an oversized, raggedy Captain America costume). Much of the panel was given over to audience questions, most of which were directed towards Cera, which he answered graciously even when they dealt with such subjects as the Arrested Development movie and how he “maintained his trademark figure” while training for this film. Much of the cast was only given the opportunity to speak when Wright himself directed a question to the panel, which given the remarkable talent level involved was quite disappointing. Too, the clips shown were not the most representative of the film. At the end, Wright (who makes a terrifically energetic and entertaining moderator – one wishes that he was the host of all the panels) announced that those given special buttons could follow him and the cast over to a nearby theater for a special preview of Scott Pilgrim, which will play the convention for the rest of the weekend. Certainly, if the goal was to get people talking, they succeeded. But still, it was a disappointment compared to what it could have been.

The night’s final event wasn’t officially Comic-Con sanctioned. Piranha 3D, an upcoming horror film from Alexandre Aja, had been dubbed too hot for the event. And certainly, having seen the footage, I can understand why. It’s not exaggerating to say I have never seen anything quite like it. But, this too has an appreciative audience here. Comic-Con is out to create as in-depth an experience in geek pop culture as it can, and the gorehound segment will be deeply satisfied by what’s coming. And while it doesn’t appeal to me personally, there’s more than enough here that does. It’s a hell of a place to be.

TOMORROW: I head for some of the smaller panels and hit up the Scott Pilgrim vs. Comic-Con experience. Should be pretty wild!