sdcc 2016

Lando Calrissian is finally coming to the Star Wars Black Series. Sure, it's with a sculpted cape, but hot damn, we are getting the smoothest son of a gun to ever fly the starry skies. Hasbro may not have had many reveals for the Star Wars Black Series at Star Wars Celebration the week before San Diego Comic-Con, but there were more than a fair share of new items on display this past weekend across the entire Star Wars brand. From Rogue One to Rebels, to the original trilogy and prequels, Hasbro has got you covered when it comes to Star Wars. Joining Lando in the wave --- which follows the one with Jyn Erso, Sabine, Revan and the rest --- will be a Royal Guard, Tusken Raider, Qui-Gon Jinn, and Hera Syndulla. All five figures are characters fans have been asking after since the Black Series launched, but Lando in particular has been on wishlists almost since the line was first revealed. The Royal Guard and Tusken Raider make some nice use of fabric elements, which makes it all the more puzzling that Lando does not. His cape isn't as small as Captain Phasma's, nor does it need to hang in any particular way off his shoulders like hers does. It's not a deal-breaker, but it will make Lando a bit harder to pose with the cape on.

Captain America: Civil War introduced two more Marvel heroes: Tom Holland’s new Spider-Man, and Chadwick Boseman’s Black Panther — both of whom will hit the big screen in their own solo films over the next couple of years. We know a little about Spider-Man: Homecoming, but not very much at all about Black Panther, aside from the fact that it has a great cast and director. And thanks to one of those actors, we now have our first plot details for the upcoming film.

Ah yes, it's time once again to be regaled by the magnificence that is Mezco's One:12 Collective. If you thought the Toy Fair showings were eye opening, then San Diego Comic-Con's reveals may well just blow. your. mind. I don't know quite how Mezco does it. One day, out of the blue, they have a cool mixed-media one-twelfth scale figure of Batman made as a special piece. The next, Mezco is blowing down the doors of what you thought was possible at this scale, and dropping some seriously amazing Marvel, DC, and television and movie characters in the One:12 brand. It's probably the fastest growing specialty figure line, and while that's a double-edged sword for collectors, the positives of getting the bossest Darkseid figure ever far outweigh the negatives.

Are you currently fulfilled with the amount of comics starring sharks in your life? I didn't think so. Thankfully, that void in your soul is going to be filled this December with the revival of the cult British series Hookjaw by Titan Comics. The series once deemed too controversial for British newsagents is getting a 21st-century makeover later this year, courtesy of Si Spurrier, Conor Boyle, Giulia Brusco and Rob Steen.

For the better part of the last decade, Kotobukiya has been releasing statues in its Bishoujo line based on a number of licenses. The Marvel and DC versions might get the most attention, but fighting games like Tekken and Street Fighter, and even films like Ghostbusters and Star Wars have had dalliances with Koto's "beautiful girl" series. While there were indeed more Bishoujo on hand at this year's San Diego Comic-Con, and some rather nice ones at that, the surprise of the show was Kotobukiya's announcement of a new statue series that shows the opposite side of the "beautiful" coin. Yes, after eight years, Koto is finally giving us a "beautiful man" series, and it all starts with comic's most handsome acrobat, Nightwing.

The addition of Ghost Rider seemingly confirmed that Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. intended to skew darker with Season 4's timeslot move to 10:00 P.M., though one has to wonder what a more adult version of the show looks like. According to the cast and crew, Season 4 will very much have an “after dark” feel, apparently with a heaping helping of sideboob.

If there's one thing we can count on at San Diego Comic-Con, it's getting an update on the next batch of characters to be immortalized by Hasbro in the Marvel Legends action figure line. Still kicking strong after all these years, the Marvel Legends brand has been home to a number of outstanding releases as of late, but this SDCC may have taken the cake as the best for reveals yet. Don't believe me? Feast your eyes on this gallery showing of the latest additions from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, some deep cuts from the comics, and if you can believe it, more X-Men!

Ever since I first saw Pizzazz, Roxy, and Stormer enter this world by literally crashing through a wall on motorcycles shaped like guitars, I knew they were destined for bigger things. Sure, they're a little villainous, and they're definitely antagonistic, but there's no way that they were going to spend all of their times playing second fiddle to Little Miss Pink-Hair and the Singalongs, right? Now, the time in the spotlight has finally come for everyone's favorite mischief-makers: At San Diego Comic-Con, IDW announced an upcoming Misfits series, spinning out of the events of the ongoing Jem and the Holograms comic, written by Kelly Thompson with covers by M. Victoria Robado, and interiors by an artist to be announced later.

Since it was announced, we've been keeping a close eye on Riverdale, the CW's updated take on Archie comics. Different from the modernization of the characters over in the main series from creators like Mark Waid, Fiona Staples, Chip Zdarsky, Veronica Fish and Derek Charm, Riverdale is going for high drama with lots of stakes under the guidance of Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa. The characters you know and love from the books are all still there, but this Riverdale has a somber undercurrent, as the first season will play host to a murder mystery, secret romances, and tense friendships. The intrigue doesn't stop there though, as the cast of the show can attest. We caught up with KJ Apa (Archie), Cole Sprouse (Jughead), Lili Reinhart (Betty), Camila Mendes (Veronia), Madelaine Petsch (Cheryl) and Ashleigh Murray (Josie) at San Diego Comic-Con to talk about Riverdale's first season, and what makes this version of America's icon so fascinating.

Assassin's Creed has proved to be a very dependable franchise for Titan Comics, and as announced at San Diego Comic Con this past weekend, the publisher will be adding another title to its growing slate of comics based on the Ubisoft video game franchise. However, rather than an all-new original story, Assassin's Creed: Awakening is a translation of Yano Takashi and Oiwa Kenji's manga.