We’re wrapping up our coverage of San Diego Comic-Con with a few observations, and a final round of photos from Saturday, the peak day.

Comic-Con International makes incremental improvements year after year, one reason why after 40 years the show has reached its current heights, and 2017 was no exception.  The show instituted RFID badges this year, which cut the potential for counterfeiting and eliminated exhibitor badge-sharing, both potential sources of crowding.

Another improvement was a higher level of security, with what seemed like more careful cosplay weapons checks, and more visible police officers and K-9 units.  But San Diego Comic-Con still lags the Reed shows (at least New York Comic Con and C2E2) in perimeter security, with no bag checks for attendees.  With the recent close call involving a heavily armed man arrested at Phoenix Comicon (see "Armed Suspect Arrested at Phoenix Comicon"), we hope and expect the level of security to continue to improve.

We’re not sure if the number of offsite locations with brand activations and other related installations was up this year, but it definitely seemed so to us.  As you’ve seen from some of our Comic-Con photos, around every corner in the Gaslamp was some new cool surprise, from a Laika display to a Star Trek:  Discovery activation.  With an entertainment district across the street from the San Diego Convention Center, there’s a unique opportunity for sprawl, and the many companies that want a piece of the audience and press at the greatest (geek) show on earth are taking advantage of it.  This is great, but it’s now way beyond impossible for an attendee to see everything that’s going on in and around Comic-Con.

It was sad to note that 44-year exhibitor Mile High Comics was not at the show this year.  Owner Chuck Rozanski announced before the show in his newsletter that Mile High was not exhibiting due to increasing costs, the changing composition of the foot traffic, and a problem with load-in last year.  This isn’t the first time Rozanski expressed dissatisfaction with his results at the show; back in 2014 he raised the issue of publisher exclusives as one factor he saw harming his sales there (see "Mile High’s Rozanski Decries Publisher Exclusives").

Rozanski’s space along the front wall was devoted to the “International” part of the official name of the event, Comic-Con International, with booths representing comic publishing from other countries.

The Hall H line-waiters seemed to get more like campers this year, with significant equipment to help them get through the long period waiting to get into the hall.  The hardship and discomfort the fans go through works to the studios’ advantage; only the most devoted fans, the ones most likely to react positively, are willing to go through it.

Despite the RFID implementation and what seemed like more attractions than ever outside the Convention Center, the exhibit floor seemed busier to us throughout the week.  We wonder if Comic-Con ratcheted up ticket sales to take advantage of tighter controls on badges, or if the flow of traffic just moved back to the exhibit hall from elsewhere last year.

There were definitely some cranky fans in the crowds even early in the week.  On Thursday, we saw an exchange between a 20-something and an older man shuffling behind him through the crowd.  "Get your head out of your phone and keep walking," the older man urged the younger, apparently a stranger to him.

Looking at the density of the crowd, the younger man asked, "What do you want me to do, shove the guy in front of me?"

“Just get your head out of your phone and keep walking,” the older man said emphatically without acknowledging the impossibility of moving any faster.

That’s an exception, though.  The overall vibe at San Diego Comic-Con remains very chill compared to almost any other show, in the midst of the most incredible levels of stimulation and excitement.  Every year, we think about the amount of work to prepare, the expense and physical toll of attending, and wonder if San Diego Comic-Con is worth it.  And every year we come away inspired and energized by the granddaddy of them all.

Click the Gallery below for San Diego Comic-Con photos from Saturday.
See also Part 1.
See also Part 2.
See also Part 3.
See also Part 4.
See also Part 5.
See also Part 6.
See also Part 7.
See also "San Diego Comic-Con 2017 Photos – Games"