A new trailer for Rebels showed up in the middle of the night, because why not, I guess. This one contains some new footage in addition to what we’ve seen in the first few clips and trailers, plus a date of ‘October.’
We already knew there would be no dedicated Episode VII panel at San Diego Comic Con, but it is something of a surprise that Disney won’t be featuring any other upcoming films – aside from Marvel, which has their own panel and is expected to drop plenty of news. But Disney has several other upcoming films, like Big Hero Six, Tomorrowland, and Pixar’s Inside Out… And it’s not like they have a D23 this year.
They’re not the only ones sitting it out either – also absent is Lionsgate, who has The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 coming out in January. Is SDCC just not worth the trouble for studios anymore, or are they simply ceding this ground to the superheroes?
What does this mean for us? Well, not much. Some folks were hoping that StarWars.com saying Episode VII wouldn’t be ‘featured’ wouldn’t rule out a few moments at a general Disney film panel. I still think it’s a bit much to expect a bombshell like the title – hell, at this point, they could save that for Celebration – but something like a second video set report, perhaps something celebrating the results of A Force For Change? Of course, we just got word that deadline has moved back, so that’s not quite as feasible as it would have been a week ago. (Now? I’d be surprised if that doesn’t happen pre-SDCC, for a final bit of publicity push… But LFL does as LFL does, and we can only guess and hope… Hope, not expect.)
In any case, when in comes to Star Wars, Disney (and presumably Lionsgate) know they don’t need a con to whip their fandoms up into a frenzy… Who needs Hall H when you have the internet? Let Marvel (and Batman and Superman and Wonder Woman) have this one.
Del Rey is spearheading a tribute to author Aaron Allston, who passed away earlier this year, on Saturday, July 26, at San Diego Comic-Con. The Del Rey staff will be sporting Aloha/Hawaiian shirts and encouraging fans to do the same. (If you don’t have anything tropical-themed, tie-die is also a valid option.) They’ll also be giving away copies of Aaron’s novels throughout the day. If you’re not at SDCC, you can still dress up in something sufficiently bright, and Del Rey is encouraging fans to use the hashtag #AlohaAaron on social media.
DragonCon will be memorializing Aaron this year as well – stay tuned for details.
The Rebels panel is the highlight of SDCC for Star Wars fans, StarWars.com revealed this afternoon.
Producers Dave Filoni and Simon Kinberg, as well as most of the main cast, will be at ‘The Heroes of Star Wars Rebels‘ on Thursday at 6:00 p.m.. There’s rampant speculation that the villain’s voice (as rumored…) will be revealed, but as of yet that’s it… Hell, I’d settle for an actual release date at this point.
Episode VII is sitting it out yet again, but the rest of the slate includes a dedicated book panel (2:00 p.m. Friday) with John Jackson Miller, Shelly Shapiro, Frank Parisi, Jennifer Heddle , Pablo Hidalgo, Vanessa Marshall and Dave Filoni. Hopefully they reveal some books beyond the four we know about…
J.W. Rinzler is also moderating panels on Star Wars Storyboards (with Joe Johnston on Friday at 11:00 a.m.) and kid’s book The Adventures of Luke Skywalker, Jedi Knight (with author Tony DiTerlizzi n Friday at 3:00 p.m.)
Her Universe has announced the first wave of their new Marvel line! There’s more coming, including a Loki dress, Ashley Eckstein tells The Daily Dot. A Black Widow hoodie will be available at San Diego Comic Con. And Ashley herself will be voicing Dagger of Cloak and Dagger in the animated Ultimate Spider-Man.
The line is also part of Marvel’s own “Characters and Creators” initiative, which is targeting women and girls. (The new Ms. Marvel is an earlier example.)
Del Rey will be holding giveaways for special (paperback) advance editions of John Jackson Miller’s A New Dawn, the first of the new canon novels, at San Diego Comic-Con next month. Miller will also be on hand for signings.
The special edition of the book will also contain excerpts of the other forthcoming novels that have been announced so far: Tarkin, Heir to the Jedi, and Lords of the Sith.
A New Dawn will be out in hardcover/eBook on September 2, followed by James Luceno’s Tarkin on November 4.