A tsunami of sci-fi, movie and comic fans and cosplay enthusiasts returns to Anaheim for the annual Wondercon, running at the Anaheim Convention Center Friday, April 3 through Sunday April 5. More than 60,000 people are expected to attend the three-day event – the younger sibling of San Diego’s Comic-Con that began in 1987 in Oakland as “The Wonderful World of Comics Convention.”
Wondercon was taken over by Comic-Con in 2002 and moved to Anaheim in 2012 and “has grown in all aspects over the years: more attendees, more exhibitors, more programming, and more fun. In its current Anaheim-based incarnation, WonderCon continues to be a must-attend event on the comic book convention schedule.”
While a great and growing event in its own right, Wondercon’s growth and success in Anaheim is also viewed in the context of the Anaheim/OC Visitor & Convention Bureau’s campaign to woo its larger sibling to relocate from its long-time San Diego home. Comic-Con draws more than twice the number of visitors and has become Ground Zero not only for comic fandom but as a venue for major media entertainment 
conglomerates to connect with fans, preview new movie franchises and the next iteration of existing favorites. Comic-Con has maxed out of San Diego’s Convention Center space, and with that venue’s expansion plans now in limbo while Anaheim’s move forward, a 90-mile move north is increasingly conceivable.
There’ll be panels and artists and stars and exhibitors galore. As an Orphan Black fan, I’m excited to see nearly all the major cast members will participate in a Saturday evening panel where Season 3 will be previewed.
According to the OC Register:
All weekend, Warner Bros. is rolling out previews and panels of “The Flash,” “Gotham” and “iZombie.” On Friday, “The Lego Movie” directors Chris Miller and Phil Lord are debuting an upcoming episode of “The Last Man on Earth.”
If you’re interested in going, better hurry: the 3-Day Passes are sold-out, as are the Saturday Passes. 1-Day Passess for Friday and Sunday are still available. Click here to buy them.
Season 3 of Orphan Black debuts April 18.
Did Diamond or Ward make it to WonderCon to see how packed it was?
No, I’m not much for cosplay. Why is it leaving for Los Angeles next year, despite the ACC expansion? Is it because usually any specific individual convention is NOT actually a reliable investment for any given venue, given that it’s so easy for them to move? (Oh well, what’s a half-billion dollars or so between friends?)
http://variety.com/2015/biz/news/wondercon-moving-los-angeles-2016-leaving-anaheim-1201466860/
WonderCon only signed a one-year agreement to go to LA – so restrain your glee, Greg.
The LA Convention Center already hosts Comikaze in October/November as well as Anime Expo in July so its a great place to land while the Anaheim Convention Center expansion takes place next year preventing WonderCon from making Anaheim its 2016 home. The ComicCon people love the Anaheim location Greg, and not everyone who attends the show dresses up. Although the thought of you in tights or a cape makes me laugh……