DAY 1: San Diego Comic Con 2010: Charlaine Harris, Dexter & More
July 23rd, 2010
As you all know, I am in San Diego for Comic Con. Last night was preview night, or as I shall call it: Freebie Night. I got a bunch of awesome bags, some tee shirts, and other fun swag. Comic Con isn’t just about comic books any more, it has become the nation’s premiere arts and entertainment convention. Yesterday marked the beginning of events, and I started my day off with Charlaine Harris. She is the author of the Sookie Stackhouse novels which were turned into True Blood. I am a big fan of the books, so I was excited to see her.
Spotlight on Charlaine Harris: The event started with Harris being presented the Ink Blot award for Achievement in Sci-Fi and Fantasy, which is so well deserved. The woman who walked out on stage didn’t seem anything like the sultry heroines she writes about. She is demure, humble, and very sweet. The first words out of her mouth were thanking us for being here, because she knows Angelina Jolie is at the convention as well. She began by talking about how originally a lot of editors didn’t get the mix of blood, sex and tears in the Sookie Stackhouse books as well as the humor mixed in. She reveres Anne Rice, who she said is so original and innovative. Harris eventually signed up for Facebook and got a message from Anne Rice saying she was a big fan of the show. Harris quite fittingly told her she should read the books, and now they message each other from time to time. Vampire writer love! For those wondering, her grandmothers’s best friend’s nickname was Sookie, and she didn’t realize how hard it would be for people with fangs to say. She even has a pair herself! Someone asked her if she was ever going to intergrate anything Alan Ball wrote into her books and she quite appropriately answered no, they are separate entertainment vehicles. She did however concede that she loves the character Jessica and wishes she thought of her first. When asked about Alan Ball, she said she had total control over picking the person she gave her book rights to, and she knows she made the right decision. Her next Sookie book is due out in May and there will be a short story in another book with Sookie, Pam and a stripper pole that is due out in August. (Alan Ball, I’d be totally cool if you wanted to take this idea!) She also has a contract for three more Sookie books. When asked about if there were any characters on True Blood that looked exactly like she pictured, she said that Kristin Bauer van Straten (Pam) and Chris Bauer (Andy Bellefleur) look like she wrote them. She said that she loves Anna Paquin, but Sookie is curvier. She didn’t meet Anna Paquin until after they were done filming the first season. Throughout the whole panel, her genuine, down to earth nature along with her infectious personality truly shined. You could tell she was very touched by all her fans and loved what she did and talking about her writing. She was a pleasure to listen to!
Dexter Panel: The cast and Executive Producers of Dexter were out in full force, and Michael C. Hall looked fantastic. He is clearly as one fan astutely pointed “f”-ing cancer. They screened the new Dexter animated webisode (see below) and showed clips from the upcoming season. The moderator started by asking if Rita’s death frees the show up creatively, which was met with an overwhelming yes. Michael C. Hall talked about Julie Benz and how he loved working with her, and now she is on a new show with Michael C. Hicklis (ha!). She was such a huge part of the team and moved Dexter towards having human emotions. Jennifer Carpenter said that Deb will step up but might not be great at it. She admitted she hasn’t dropped the baby yet…on camera. Hall said it was a testament to the writing staff that Dexter finds new ways to go to uncharted territories. Someone in the crowd asked him if Dexter can be compared to Batman, and he said he was reminded of the scene in Batman Begins when Batman surrenders to all the bats. Dexter and his ways surrender to his darkness which is sort of like Batman in that way. I thought that was a clever and interesting comparison. When asked about their favorite twist, Michael C. Hall said the end of last season. Jennifer Carpenter said the twist hasn’t happened yet: it’s how Deb is going to react to finding out about Dexter. The producers then talked about the guest stars they have lined up for this season: Julia Stiles (who apparently is making her TV debut), Johnny Lee Miller, and Peter Weller. When asked about their favorite guest stars, Michael C Hall said “I’ve enjoyed everyone that I’ve killed.” Jennifer Carpenter said “Keith Carradine.” Another crowd question was about the rationale behind killing of Rita. Sara Colleton (EP) replied that it wasn’t necessarily a rationale but the question if Dexter can have it all. He was playing fast and loose, and the moment he thinks he has it all is when punishment comes. When asked if Julie Benz would ever come back (in a dream or conscious), the answer was no. I was a little surprised at how short the moderated portion of the panel was compared to the audience questions, but as I was reminded by my traveling companion and partner in crime, it is a fan convention. I thought the cast provided interesting insights into the show and the upcoming season. I am looking forward to a lot more panels in the upcoming days!
I was planning on going to the panel for White Collar but the line was so long that it seemed like an impossibility. I did however chat with the whole cast (Tiffani Thiessen was there and I was so thrilled to meet Kelly Kapowski!) and will be posting the interviews in the upcoming weeks. Tomorrow, I will be at The Walking Dead, The Cape, possibly The Big Bang Theory and True Blood. I am excited, if not a bit tired from the full day. Onward and upward as they say, I’m excited for what’s to come!
In the meantime, check out the clip from Dark Echo, the animated webisode from Dexter:
