Under the Tents: Bandai, The Meltdown, Diggnation, Yu-Gi-Oh!, TFAW, Felix Comic Art

If it seems like we’ve been busy, it’s because we have – and we’ve rounded up all the best Comic-Con news for you. What could Bandai be bringing to San Diego Comic-Con? What popular LA offsite is headed to San Diego? What podcast is bringing the band back together for a Comic-Con show? We look at the answers to those and more in today’s Under the Tents.

Here’s a look at the news you might have missed:

Artist Sarah Schmidtty showed off some sketches via Instagram that she’s busy working on for Comic-Con.

Christie Shinn, an anime artist, announced on Twitter that she’ll be signing at Bare Bones Studio at Booth #E7 during SDCC, and also selling her Personal Monsters.

SEE YOU AT SDCC!!!! I'll be with Bare Bones Studios at E7 signing their anthology and selling Personal Monsters! https://t.co/7Iib4lhfjL

— HoraToraStudios @ WE CON 4/15 (@HoraToraStudios) June 2, 2015

Felix Comic Arts, which represents several artists, announced that SDCC commissions are open now for Chris Mooneyham, Ramon Villalobos, Riley Rossmo, Garry Boom, and Nick Pitarra.
Artist Des Taylor will also be opening up his commission schedule next week – so keep an eye on his Twitter for updates.

Getting ready for SDCC with some sketch covers etc.
My Commission schedule is open next week for San Diego Con!

— DESPOP (Des Taylor) (@DESPOPART) June 2, 2015

Good news for fans of Funko POP’s: Things From Another World (TFAW) is headed back to Comic-Con at Booth #5625, and they’re bringing back their special $10 for regular Funko POP! figures or three for $27 deal. They’ll also have graphic novels, toys, collectibles, and more.

Geeky Hooker, the maker of the most adorable crocheted critter that she hides randomly around the convention center for attendees to find, has unveiled two more critters for this year: Batman and Scarecrow. If you want to join the hunt for crocheted critters at San Diego Comic-Con this year, follow her on either Twitter or Facebook to track the drops.

Curio & Company, which has been unveiling their SDCC tarot card deck over Twitter for the last several weeks, got their test proofs in for the set. You can grab the full set at Booth #1217.

@CurioandCompany #tarot deck – Today we got the test proofs for the cards. Looking good! See you at #sdcc booth 1217 pic.twitter.com/I9PV1CRM2G

— Cesare Asaro (@imonkeyaround) June 2, 2015

Inkpot Award winning artist Mark Brooks showed off a sneak piece of a piece that will be debuting at San Diego Comic-Con, with more information to come in the next few weeks.

Bandai exclusives are coming – and sooner than you might think. The company, which is responsible for all your favorite Power Rangers figures and more – showed off a teaser image of four SDCC exclusives, and promised the first reveal will be this week.

Although Silicon Valley won’t be making the trek to San Diego Comic-Con, star Kumail Nanjiani looks like he will, with his popular weekly show The Meltdown with Jonah and Kumail, along with co-host Jonah Ray. More details soon.

Carry On My Wayward Cocktail, the Supernatural fan event, made some big announcements this week. First, due to demand, they’ve been able to double the size of the event to take over all of the Analog Bar. They’ve also added Hannah Hindi and Hilly Hindi of The Hillywood Show as guests at the end.

And we've doubled the size of the event so we're now taking over all of @AnalogBar on July 9 for #SDCC & #SPNFamily https://t.co/IXVwF2FrTA

— Heidi Tandy (my tweets are not legal advice) 💫 (@travelingheidi) June 3, 2015

The brilliant @hannahhindi & @hillyhindi of @hillywoodshow will be at #waywardcocktails at #sdcc! Come #shakeitoff! http://t.co/y48BN9Awdi

— TheWinchestersWiki (@SuperWiki) June 3, 2015

Celeste Madrigal and her Haus of Curious artwork will be headed to Comic-Con, along with this adorable Ewok piece.

One of our readers was able to confirm that author Brandon Sanderson will be at San Diego Comic-Con this summer, although his exact schedule is still TBA.

@SD_Comic_Con FYI, I asked author Brandon Sanderson if he'll be at SDCC and his editorial assistant confirmed it: pic.twitter.com/aSy6ty6WHx

— Michael Pomaro (@MPomaro) June 3, 2015

The boys of Diggnation, a video podcast hosted by Kevin Rose and Alex Albrecht, are trying to reunite for a show at SDCC on Friday, July 10 – but they need your help to do it. They’re currently running a Kickstarter, with livestream options starting at $15, tickets starting at $25, and much more. You can find out more on their Kickstarter page.

We should be hearing official word on this year’s Comic-Con International Film Festival entries soon enough, but it looks like artist Adina Cohen’s short Fork and Knife will be screened there. There will also be a 15 minute panel after the screening.
Yu-Gi-Oh’s creator was already announced as one of this year’s Special Guests at the convention, making a rare public appearance. But there’s better news: According to YuGiOh.com, creator Kazuki Takahashi will also be doing a rare autograph signing.

Attendees can stop by the PSA Booth #5617 to win a free photo autographed by four of the stars of Star Wars: Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, and Peter Mayhew. Visitors can enter either by getting their barcode scanned at the PSA booth, by visiting PSA online, or by mailing in a 3×5 piece of paper with your information. PSA will also have free samples of PSA-certified Star Wars trading cards and complimentary copies of a special Comic-Con edition of SMR magazine while supplies last.