Every week from now until San Diego Comic-Con, we’re celebrating you: our readers! So let’s meet this week’s Attendee of the week:
James Binder & Kate Binder
Where are you traveling from?
Westmont IL (just west of Chicago)
How many years have you been attending?
4 in total 1 unofficial (2015 no badge and ended up in San Diego because of James’s work) 3 official including this year.
What was your favorite panel and why?
Favorite Panel (James) probably Timeless last year. It felt like the little show that could, the panel was fun, Malcom Barrett was hilarious, it was very well attended, and everyone there seemed to be there for Timeless not for some panel later. (Kate) Agents of Shield in 2016. We got right into ballroom 20 which was surprising since we had heard it was a room you needed to “campout” for. We got to see the announcement for them adding Ghost Rider which was very cool.
What is your favorite exhibitor or artist booth and why?
(James) Major exhibitor would be Mondo. I’m a fan of their artists and its like winning the lottery every time you get one of their extremely limited prints. My favorite artist though is Monkey Minion Press, Dane and his wife have amazing science-based creations and I highly recommend them.
What’s your favorite item you’ve ever taken home from the convention (swag, exclusive, merch, etc.)?
(James and Kate), probably the paperclip “action figure” given out by the CBS team to promote the new MacGyver in 2016. It’s hilarious and awesome all at the same time. It’s a carded orange paperclip that looks like it’s an action figure that you’d buy at target or Toys R Us (RIP).
What was your favorite autograph session and why?
(James) Man in the High Castle. It was our first autograph session we ever tried for at SDCC and after the hassle to draw a ticket for it, (lots of miscommunication by the staff about how to draw a second time after losing) finally drawing a winning ticket was a huge feeling of relief and success. (Kate) Once Upon a Time at the ABC booth in 2016. I had to go through the 15 minute “Designated Survivor” promo three times over two days and the line took at least an hour each time before finally on the last chance pulling the golden seal “post card” to get into the cast signing. I’ve always enjoyed that show and it was awesome meeting the stars. I even had James come through once to get an extra chance.
What is your favorite con snack?
(James) (does breakfast most mornings at the broken yoke count?) probably coffee though. The early mornings in the “everything else” line can get to you and the caffeine is needed. (Kate) We don’t really do a lot of “snacking” outside of what we bring ourselves. We usually stop at Ralph’s Wednesday morning and load up on granola bars and fruit snacks and carry them with us in a backpack. So, I’d agree with James coffee is probably the best.
Tell us about your most memorable celebrity encounter?
(Kate) Let’s see our first year in 2015 (the unofficial one) we had lots of almost encounters. James had Jessie Eisenberg run past him for the elevator, Ginnifer Goodwin got on the elevator as we were getting off and Molly Quinn was at the Manchester Hotel Lobby Bar 2 seats away from us, I wanted to say hi but James said no there was “no way a celebrity is out here amongst the unwashed”. Turns out yup it was her!, I still hold that over him lol. My most memorable was probably 2016 when I physically bumped into George Newbern in the lobby of the Omni late one night during the con. I had gone to the front desk at around midnight and as I turned around I physically bumped into him. He was kind enough to take a photo with me and when I sent it to James up in the room he texted back “who the hell is he?” (James doesn’t watch TV and movies like I do) (James) ok my turn. My most memorable was probably last year at the NerdNite party. I got to meet Bobak Ferdowsi aka “Mohawk Guy”. He’s a NASA JPL scientist and engineer who helped to land the Curiosity Rover on Mars back in 2012. For a space geek like me that was as awesome as if I had met one of the stars of the marvel movies.
What is (or was) your favorite offsite and why?
(James) Favorite offsite… hmm…. Well other than Enchantment under the SDCC/2 Blog 2 Furious Id have to say the “Blade Runner 2049” offsite last year was pretty amazing. Not “Westworld” amazing but darn close. (Kate) The “Agents of Shield” fan party that was on Sunday the past couple years was awesome. It was how we met our “Con Family” So I’d say that’s pretty special to us.
What is your favorite restaurant in downtown San Diego?
(James and Kate) Broken Yolk for sure. Food is great, not overly expensive and if you go at the right time the wait is pretty short.
What is your favorite Comic-Con memory/moment?
(James) hmmm that’s a tough one since we’ve had so many in a short amount of time. I’d have to say it’s meeting our “con family” in 2015 and becoming immersed in this wonderful world of Cons and SDCC in particular. We’ve made life long friendships in a short amount of time and each year it just gets better and better. (Kate) I’d agree with James. I’d have to say its pretty much the same. If things hadn’t gone the way they did at the “Agents of Shield Party” I’m not sure we’d of come back again or even figured out how to get Badges in 2016.
Do you have any advice for a first time attendee?
Plan, Plan, Plan. This is the “Super Bowl” of conventions, you can have an amazing time without doing any planning (which we did on our first unofficial time at SDCC) but if you do some planning and research you can have an unbelievable time. Using Twitter is key at the con, follow sites like the unofficial blog and have notifications turned on it will only help you in the long run and make your time that much better.
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