What UP, Nerds! On this special edition of the Weekly Round-Up: SDCC Panel Edition we’re taking a deeper look at the panel programming for San Diego Comic Con and sharing some of our top picks for panels with representation, inclusion, and diversity in fandom in mind. First, we’re taking a dive into Wednesday and Thursday…

Wednesday

Preview Night is really the pregame of the Con, a soft entry point to ease into the Loki-level chaos of the rest of the weekend with special screenings and world premieres from some of our favorite small-screen networks. 

The World Premiere of Batwoman  | 6:00pm – 10:00pm Ballroom 20

Warner Brothers Television Group will be debuting the world premiere of the hotly anticipated, live-action Batwoman. The CW show will focus on Kate Kane, played by Ruby Rose, who was introduced in last year’s Arrowverse crossover event Elseworlds. Kane will be picking up the mantle after Batman has left Gotham, potentially for good. The CW is no stranger to lifting up marginalized voices, particularly those in the LGBTQIA+ community, Batwoman will be the first to center on a queer superhero. 

Source: The CW

Thursday

While the full thrust of Comic-Con doesn’t really begin until Friday, Thursday is still a day full of gems–plus the crowds tend to be a little easier to navigate!  

They Look Like Me: Bodies in Nerd Culture | 10:00am – 11:00am Grand 10 & 11, Marriott Marquis San Diego Marina

The media we love affect how we view ourselves and how we feel about our bodies. Sam de Leve (Callisto 6) moderates a panel of creators and fitness experts from across the nerd world, including Sarah Kuhn(Heroine Complex, I Love You So Mochi), Christy Black (Hero’s Journey Fitness), B. Dave Walters(Dungeons & Dragons: A Darkened Wish), and Mairghread Scott (Netflix’s Magic: The Gathering, Marvel Rising), in a discussion of body image in geeky media. Where are we doing well? Where do we need to improve? And, how does seeing ourselves reflected in the books, movies, cartoons, and comics we cherish change the nature of our fandom and our feelings about ourselves?

Hollywood Game Changers: A Conversation with the Creative Women Behind Popular Films and TV Projects | 11:00am – 12:00pm Room 25ABC

Meet the talented women changing the status quo in film and television projects like Game of Thrones, The OA Part II, Watchmen, Space Jam 2, Clueless, Santa Clarita Diet, Unikitty!, Enchanted, BoJack Horseman, Black Monday, Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, Fahrenheit 451, War for the Planet of the Apes, Rampage, and more! Get insight from famed composers, costume, production, and sound designers on how they use their craft to champion for women empowerment, diversity, and inclusion in entertainment. These fearless women are revolutionizing Hollywood and they’re here to stay. Part 1 of 2 from Impact24’s “Behind-the-Camera Superblock” panel series. Panelists include Paula Fairfield (Game of Thrones), Mona May (Clueless, Enchanted, Santa Clarita Diet), Meghan Kasperlik (The OA Part II, Watchmen), Melissa Bruning (Space Jam 2, War for the Planet of the Apes), Anna Drubich (Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark), Anna Hollingsworth (Unikitty!, BoJack Horseman), and more panelists to be announced. Moderated by Chandra Feltus (partner and director at Neer Motion) and Fiorella Occhipinti (cinematographer). Introduction by Impact24 PR’s Andrea Resnick.

Superhero IRL: Avengers of Injustice | 11:00am – 12:00pm Room 7AB

Got your own personal Thanos? Come avenge injustice with Impractical Jokers’ Joe Gatto—he’ll tell you how and leave you ROFL! He’ll be joined by celebs Adam Bouska and Jeff Parshley (founders, NOH8 Campaign) to show why Birth, Movies, Death called this panel, “one of the most beautiful conversations we’ve ever had the opportunity to listen to.” Featuring Dr. Janina Scarlet (author, Superhero Therapy; Therapy Quest), curriculum creators Brandon Matsalia and Vanée Matsalia (Black Girl Nerds), Bettina Hausmann (executive director, United Nations Association San Diego), and Coalition founder Chase Masterson (Star Trek DS9, Doctor Who Big Finish). Join the conversation on how you can be a superhero against bullying, racism, misogyny, LGBTQI-bullying, cyberbullying, and other forms of injustice!

 Afro-futurism, “Black to the Future Too”: The Revenge (This Time, It’s Personal) | 11:30am – 12:30pm Room 24ABC

For decades, Daffy Duck was the only black actor getting any consistent work in Hollywood. Hiring practices that even Daffy would describe as, “Deth-picable!” A year after the Marvel-U.S. debut of the Black Panther movie, has anything really changed? What do you want to see next out of Hollywood? Can we truly go black to the future . . . before we go black to the past? Right on, brothers and sisters! Panelists include Denys Cowan (Milestone Media, The Boondocks), Kevin Grevioux (Underworld, I, Frankenstein), Professor Ajani Brown (San Diego State University), La Quia Howard (Kemet, I Choose 2 Be Me), and Rico Anderson (The Orville, Star Trek: Renegades). Moderated by Jimmy Diggs (Star Trek: Voyager, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine).

Diversity in Manga | 12:00pm – 1:00pm Room 29AB

Many people love manga but sometimes don’t see themselves represented as often as they’d like—or even at all. TOKYOPOP will host a discussion about the importance of increasing diversity in manga titles and give attendees a preview of upcoming International Women of Manga releases. Plus giveaways!

Source: TOKYOPOP

The Most Dangerous Women at Comic-Con: The Next Frontier | 2:00pm – 3:00pm Grand 12 & 13, Marriott Marquis San Diego Marina

Glass ceilings have been shattered and shows and films such as Star Trek Discovery, Captain Marvel, Steven Universe, and Avengers: Endgame are major entries in terms of women’s representation—but is it enough? What comes next on the journey to see more women and more types of women represented in pop culture? Tamara Brooks (DCComics.com, Geek & Sundry), Valerie Complex (film critic, screenwriter), Dani Fernandez (Nerdist, writer for Comedy Central), Jennifer Kretchmer (D&D Beyond’s Heroes of the Vale, Veronica Mars), Toni Sanchez (writer/host, That Hashtag Show), and Jessica Tseang (Little Geek Girls, comic book historian) discuss recent breakthroughs and look toward the future for women’s representation in the nerdy frontier.

Games Changers: Women Entrepreneurs Rewriting the Rules of the Games Industry | 5:00pm – 6:00pm  Room 5AB

Video games have changed a lot over the past decade, affecting platforms, playstyles, socialization, and many other areas. But the games industry and studio culture have been slow to change. This panel presents several women, each with years of experience working on successful game titles, who have decided to shape their own careers and reshape the industry they love. Leah Hoyer (Level Headed Games, Telltale, Xbox), Jessie Quinn (Leaftail Labs, Xbox, Bungie), Genese Davis (Omensight, The Holder’s Dominion), and others talk about working in games and the future they see for the industry.

Prism Awards: Diversity and Recognition in Comics | 5:00pm – 6:00pm Room 28DE

The winners of the Third Annual Prism Awards will be revealed in this part panel discussion and part awards ceremony full of fabulous fun! Founders Maia Kobabe (Gender Queer: A Memoir), Ted Abenheim (Prism Comics), and Nina L. Taylor Kester (Cartoon Art Museum/Queer Comics Expo), and judges Heidi McDonald (Comics Beat) and Mey Rude will discuss the awards and their emerging role in recognizing, promoting, and celebrating diversity and excellence in the field of queer comics and present the handcrafted Prism Awards to the winning creators. Plus, you never know what queer icons just might show up!

Source: Prism Comics

Recovering Indigenous History Through Comics | 5:30pm – 6:30pm Room 4

This year is the 500th anniversary of Spain’s conquest of Mexico and the 250th anniversary of San Diego’s founding. Since those events, and others related and similar, were near-apocalyptic for the indigenous peoples of North America, it’s an appropriate time to reflect on their histories and how they experienced these events. Unfortunately, indigenous history in North America has often been distorted, ignored, or even lost. Can comics be a tool to help recover this history? Panelists Paul Guinan (Aztec Empire graphic novel), Shannon Martin (Anishnaabe Center Director, NAGPRA comics), Stan Rodriguez (Kumeyaay cultural leader), Jen Shannon (cultural anthropology professor, NAGPRA comics), Kate Spilde (cultural anthropology professor), John Swogger (archaeologist and Illustrator, NAGPRA comics) will answer this question and discuss their current comic projects to recover indigenous history.

Nerd Strong: Living, Working, and Enjoying the Fandom and Entertainment Industry with Invisible Illnesses | 6:00pm – 7:00pm  Grand 12 & 13, Marriott Marquis San Diego Marina)

Melissa Howland (film critic with multiple sclerosis/epilepsy) discusses enjoying life while working in or being a fan of the entertainment/fandom community when having invisible (and visible) illnesses with Austin Basis (Spellbound, Type 1 diabetes), Jessie Pridemore (cosplayer, endometriosis), Crix Lee (actor, rheumatoid arthritis), and Marlon Reynoso (owner of Nerdcoolture, multiple sclerosis).

Marginalized Voices in Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror   | 6:30pm – 7:30pm  Room 4)

Authors Rebecca Roanhorse (Trail of Lightning) and Wesley Chu (The Lives of Tao) explore the underrepresented experiences of the Navajo Nation and mainland China through their works of speculative fiction. Listen to them and other authors discuss the widening scope of voices, perspectives, and representation in SFF literature.

#WeAreAllHeroes: The Changing Landscape of Geek and Fanboy Culture | 7:00pm – 8:00pm Grand 12 & 13, Marriott Marquis San Diego Marina)

Cashmere Agency returns to Comic-Con to continue the very important conversation on the evolving landscape of fanboy culture and its growing mainstream popularity amongst a new diverse audience—specifically African Americans, women, the LGTBQ+, and other minorities. #WeAreAllHeroes is a curated discussion featuring some of the leading and prolific African American female thought leaders and influencers from media and Hollywood who are fangirls of the video gaming and comics industry. These trailblazers of color will showcase how this culture and their passion have impacted the work they do as creatives, journalists, writers, directors, show runners, actresses, and more. They will explore this pivotal turn in the tide and what it means to both break through and be represented in this specific space. This panel will give us all the opportunity to challenge what words like “diversity” and “inclusion” mean in the first place, as well as its importance in today’s entertainment zeitgeist.

Did we miss anything you think we absolutely need to share, post in the comments!