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:
Erick Corzo
Where are you traveling from?
I’m traveling to SDCC from Mexico City.
How many years have you been attending?
This will be my fourth time attending (I have attended in 2013, 2014 and 2018).
What was your favorite panel and why?
Choosing a favorite panel is kind of hard, I’m torn between The Amazing Spider-Man 2 panel at Hall H in 2013 when Andrew Garfield busted into Hall H fully dressed as Spider-Man or the My Hero Academia panel with Kohei Horikoshi in 2018.
What is your favorite exhibitor or artist booth and why?
I’d say my favorite booth tends to be the Star Wars booth, it’s always huge with many screens displaying different moments from the saga, though I always enjoy looking at the Lego and Gentle Giant booths too.
What’s your favorite item you’ve ever taken home from the convention (swag, exclusive, merch, etc.)?
Probably my favorite bought item would be the first Lego Delorean back in 2013, I think it ended up not being an exclusive but It still holds a place in my heart since it’s the first thing I bought at a Comic Con.
What was your favorite autograph session and why?
I think my favorite autograph session was Wilfred’s, my brother and I were just in line seeing if we could get any session at all, and suddenly we overheard two guys talking about that session, they were super excited because Elijah Wood was in that cast, and they were like “We are going to see the freaking Frodo, man”, so my brother and I were like oh right, that’s super cool. In the end we got into that session, we got a poster signed by every actor on the show, except Frodo, since he didn’t go. I must say it was kind of disappointing but then again when we got in the line we were not expecting anything at all.
Tell us about your most memorable celebrity encounter at the convention.
My favorite celebrity encounter was in 2018, I was super excited about Kohei Horikoshi’s (the creator of My Hero Academia) and I decided to attend to every single Viz media panel. I took my Deku Cosplay to a couple of them, and after the second panel, which was the first one that had Horikoshi, my brother and I were walking towards the Hilton to see the Dragon Ball tour when we saw Horikoshi and his crew crossing the opposite street. They saw us and since Horikoshi’s got social anxiety there were a couple of tense seconds where we were just staring at each other, I thought if people saw a Deku cosplayer running towards the Viz media crew some fans might realize who he was, and unluckily I didn’t have anything for him to sign, and I knew he didn’t like pictures. So all I did was wave my hand excitedly and he replied in the same way. The next day I attended the My Hero Academia panel and he waved at me excitedly again, and then in the panel I got to ask him a question that the guys at Viz media liked so much they gave me some free stuff.
What is (or was) your favorite offsite and why?
The best offsite event that I’ve attended was a Fox Q&A back in 2013. I was attempting to get into the Fox panel in Hall H with my brother, when we saw that Hugh Jackman had tweeted that he would be in a cinema conducting a Fox Q&A later that evening. We got out of the Hall H line and went straight to the movie theater, we waited a couple of hours, and something that surprised us was that they asked us to deliver our phones in the cinema, we obeyed, and when Hugh arrived he answered a few questions. He said it was amazing to work with James Mangold in The Wolverine, and then they gave us a private screening of The Wolverine about a week before its premiere.
Where is your favorite place to eat during the con?
Though there are so many places to eat during the con, my personal favorite is the Subway located in Gaslamp Quarter, they always have a huge line but somehow they manage to sort every order super fast.
What is your favorite thing about San Diego Comic-Con?
I think that my favorite aspect about SDCC is how surreal it is, there is so much happening all through the Gaslamp Quarter, and there is something for everyone whether you like video games, comic books, movies, TV shows, anime, you will find something to do.
What is your tip to a good con?
I’d recommend two things to anyone attending the con. The first one would be to plan ahead, it is always great to know what are the things you couldn’t forgive yourself for missing, but at the same time when things don’t go according to plan you just need to roll with the con, because the coolest things happen when you run late for the panel you wanted to see, or when you are moving from a ballroom to another. My second recommendation is the more the merrier. The first two times I went it was only my brother and me, but the third time a friend joined us, and the whole logistics of the con became way easier.
What made you interested in attending SDCC the first time?
I first heard of SDCC as a kid because of Star Wars. There used to be a Star Wars collectible’s store in my city where they sold SDCC’s exclusives, that made me aware of its existence, but what really made me decide to go for the first time was Spider-Man, I was super obsessed with the character back in 2013, and I wanted to see The Amazing Spider-Man 2 panel, so I convinced my brother to ask for our parents permission to go. My father was skeptical and told us if we got tickets we could go, and well the odds were in our favor.
How would you describe SDCC to someone who has never been before?
To me San Diego Comic Con is a magical place and time where you can parade proudly showcasing the things you love, and instead of being judged like you would be any other place or day, you will find people that are as excited as you are, and that might actually join you in your tomfoolery.
Want to be featured as our Attendee of the Week? Find out how!
