Comic-Con 2016: Biggest Winners and Losers (Photos)
We’ve arrived at everybody’s favorite part of the San Diego Comic-Con festivities — where we argue about the best and worst of it! Strap in and prepare to fight, as TheWrap’s on-site contingent run down the winners and losers of Comic-Con 2016.
Winner: Netflix
All of the footage from the upcoming Marvel series “Luke Cage” got a big reaction from the crowd, especially the trailer featuring O.D.B’s “Shimmy Shimmy Ya.” No wonder showrunner Cheo Coker referred to the show as the “Wu-Tangification of the Marvel universe.”
Netflix also released the first teasers for their next Marvel show, “Iron Fist,” and the crossover event series “The Defenders.”
Add to that the fact that the streaming service also officially acquired the new season of “Mystery Science Theater 3000,” and their Comic-Con experience was pretty memorable.
Winner: The Walking Dead
After all the animosity stemming from the Season 6 finale cliffhanger, one had to wonder how the AMC series’ panel would go.
But fans seemed to have moved past the heartache. The first trailer for Season 7 went over huge, particularly the first footage of King Ezekiel and his pet tiger Shiva.
The cast also reminded us why we enjoy watching them: they have great chemistry. From Andrew Lincoln‘s semi-successful glitter bombing of Norman Reedus, to Ross Marquand and Michael Cudlitz carrying on a conversation as Mick and Rocky respectively, everyone was clearly having fun.
Loser: Game of Thrones
Of course the show needs to stay visible in the Emmy race, but this panel seemed ill-timed.
Considering that Season 6 just ended, there was nothing to share about Season 7. We did get a blooper reel and a teaser showing the start of production, but nothing mindblowing.
In addition, most of the main cast was absent. No doubt they are all working on other projects before filming for the new season commences, but given the monumental storyline shifts for characters like Jon Snow, Cersei, and Daenerys, it would have been a real treat for Kit Harington, Lena Headey, and Emilia Clarke to be there.
Winner: Bryan Fuller
Bryan Fuller is having a banner year. Not only is he the showrunner on the highly anticipated Starz series “American Gods,” but also on the newly-named CBS All Access series “Star Trek: Discovery.”
Both shows had panels at this year’s Comic-Con and both got the internet buzzing when they released first look footage.
Loser: Pirates
Back in April, 20th Century Fox announced they would not return to Hall H to showcase footage from their upcoming releases due to concerns over piracy.
Perhaps in reaction to this, all of the big footage reveals this year went up on YouTube and social media almost immediately after their panels concluded.
That means no more shaky cell phone footage of a screen 100 feet away for some fans. Instead, we all get to see the first looks at some huge projects in their hi-def glory.
