If it were any other year, I would have woken up early, rode the Gold Line to Union Station, and hopped on the Amtrak to San Diego.

I would have walked from the train station down the street towards The Manchester Grand Hyatt, and as I made the walk, would start to see people in costume, advertisements for toys, shows, events and more, and a general buzz in the air, as a hundred thousand of us converge on downtown San Diego for Comic-Con.

I would have checked into my hotel, then made my way to El Pulpo for some tacos and a beer, as I waited for my friends to arrive in town. We would hang out and wait until 6:00 pm, when the convention floor opens for preview night of San Diego Comic-Con.

Then, the doors would open to the convention floor at San Diego Convention Center, and Comic-Con would begin. Wednesday night would be spent buying exclusives and wandering around to see the shape of this year’s convention.

Of course, it’s not any other year, and the Coronavirus has put a halt to Comic-Con, and every other event like it.

Instead, this year we have Comic-Con at home. Of course its not the same as being in San Diego. Of course its not the same as being surrounded by thousands of others that love the same things I do. Of course its not the same as seeing all my friends and the creators I have met over the years.

It’s not the same, but its what we have this year.

So, I say let’s enjoy what we can!

Comic-Con has scheduled a full schedule of panels for Comic-Con@Home, all of which will be streamed. This seems to be the main event of Comic-Con@Home, the programming looks just about as robust as it ever is at San Diego Comic-Con. Check out the full programming schedule here. The panels will stream at the scheduled time, and it appears that they will all be available for playback after the fact.

In fact, I am checking out the Conspiracy Theories and Propaganda Throughout Pop Culture panel on Youtube as I write this.

There is a PDF souvenir book for download, packed full of the usual articles. This year’s book features Ray Bradbury, Conan in comics, and Jack Kirby’s Fourth World. I flipped through it, and want to spend a little more time later digging into it.

There is a virtual convention floor that you can wander with your computer mouse, rather than slowly walk through with the herds of people.

There is even a template you can use to make your own attendee badge for this year’s Comic-Con. Make your own and grab a lanyard, if you are missing that feeling of the badge around your neck.

So, my plans for this years Comic-Con@Home?

I am going to check out as many panels as I can. I am going to wander the virtual convention hall, and see if any of the vendors or dealers have any deals I want to partake in. I am going to hang out with some of my Con friends in Zoom calls and talk about what we have seen and enjoyed.

And more than anything, see how the ComicCon@Home experience treats me.

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This post crossposted to OverthinkingComics.com