The big difference between my San Diego Comic-Con experience year to year is that I covered many more movie panels this year, compared to the year before. Last year I covered about three movie panels and covered seven television panels (I actually sat through ten but only covered seven of the main ones for the site). Two of the shows that I sat through last year were Riverdale and Legion, both of which were coming off of buzzworthy first seasons. The reception for both shows was huge but both were in much smaller rooms last year. Riverdale was actually a part of the CW block so it wasn’t given as much time because it was lumped in with the DCTV series’ such as Arrow and The Flash.
This year, both shows, which have increased in popularity, were given the Hall H treatment and they had no problem filling the room. These panels marked a first for me as they were the only ones I saw this year that I had previous experience with from the year before. Both shows definitely showed their confidence this year and provided for a memorable experience to close my panel experience for the weekend.
Riverdale was on deck first and arguably had the most high-profile moderator of the weekend. Kelly Ripa was in charge of moving things along and what I found particularly interesting was that the younger kids who were seated near me had no idea who she was. Of course, most of us know that she is one half of Live! With Kelly & Ryan but her presence there had everything to do with her husband, Mark Consuelos, who stars as Hiram Lodge on the series. The connection between husband and wife made for some fun moments as the panel began.
Kelly begins the panel by bringing out our participants which included cast members K.J. Apa, Lili Reinhart, Camila Mendes, Cole Sprouse, Marisol Nichols, Madelaine Petsch, Ashleigh Murray, Mark Consuelos, Casey Cott, Skeet Ulrich, Mädchen Amick, Luke Perry and Vanessa Morgan, along with producers Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, Sarah Schechter and Jon Goldwater. What I’m struck by immediately, much like I was last year, was that the cast and crew have genuine chemistry with one another. You can tell that they really like working together and the sense of camaraderie is the main reason why the show has become such a fixture on The CW. Even though I feel like there was a shift in quality during season 2, mostly due to many more filler episodes due to a longer season compared to the first, I still think that it has one of the better casts on television and their confidence allowed them to really own the room in Hall H.
The panel kicked off with a bit of new footage, which included some fun lake time for Veronica, Archie, Betty, and Jughead — but it ended on a darker note, with a shot of Alice and Polly participating in some cult-like activities with the Farm. In reference to the footage that we saw actress Mädchen Amick said about The Farm, “It heals you,” before teasing a “really handsome cult leader.” As for what Alice’s involvement with the Farm means for Betty, Lili Reinhart said, “Alice and Polly kind of attack [Betty], and their new weird spirituality with the Farm makes them tell her that she needs to listen to her soul and really confront her problems, and so Betty wants to stay far, far away from them.”
The panel then wasted no time by giving “Bughead” fans a sigh of relieve. Riverdale’s favorite couple, at least at the start of season 3, seems to be in a very good spot. “Right now, I think they’re rock solid,” Lili Reinhart (Betty) said during the panel. Betty and Jughead “start off Season 3 as the investigative duo that they were in Season 1,” and dive into a new mystery. Plus, Betty is “owning her title” of “Serpent Queen” alongside the newly crowned gang leader. The news of Betty and Jughead seemingly being happy this season made everyone in the room cheer and maybe it’s the added effect that Lili Reinhart and Cole Sprouse, who portrays Jughead, actually date in real life. Their occasional looks of affection during the panel were very noticed by all those in the room.
The couple news wasn’t as kind to “Varchie” (a couple nickname I heard for the first time in Hall H). With Archie on trial for murder when Season 3 picks up three months after the May finale, it looks like the stress will weigh on the couple. “I think they’re going to run into some problems,” Camila Mendes, aka Veronica, teased. Added star KJ Apa: “The distance and separation, if he goes away, is going to be tough.” The young fans in the room seemed deeply disappointed by this news but the panel did point out that what show isn’t complete without obstacles for some of your favorite couples? It may look dire at the start, but “Varchie” could pull through. It was also revealed here that Penelope Ann Miller (The Artist, Carlito’s Way) will join the cast as district attorney Ms. Wright, the prosecuting attorney in charge of handling Archie’s case.
Veronica will also have something new to focus on to distract her from the drama surrounding Archie. “She’ll be running a speakeasy in Pop’s,” Mendes said. Additionally, Veronica will be working at Pop’s to make money now that her father (Mark Consuelos) has cut her off. Expect to see some emotional growth for the character in season 3: “We’ll show that she’s not a spoiled, rich girl. She’s trying to prove herself to everybody.”
In other romantic developments, Kevin and Moose are “going to be a thing,” actor Casey Cott shared. Meanwhile, Reggie — who starts working at Veronica’s speakeasy — will get “an unlikely romance,” executive producer Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa revealed.
There will also be more of a focus on high school life now that the characters are entering their junior year. It won’t become some teen angst drama but it will showcase the characters focusing a bit more on their futures, which will give the main young cast more growth moving forward.
Madelaine Petsch offered up some tidbits about where Cheryl will be headed in season 3. Now that Cheryl is emancipated and has made it official with Toni (Vanessa Morgan), she’s riding high. “She’s going to start making power grabs, left, right and center,” which won’t go so great, according to Madelaine Petsch.
One of the better aspects of Riverdale is that the adults also play a big role on the show. It was teased that this season we will get a flashback episode that will give us some insight into their early lives. The Riverdale teens will be playing the younger versions of the adults in the episode but it wasn’t fully revealed who will be playing who.
Another special episode in the works is another go-round with a musical. The Carrie! musical episode was well-received by fans and they promised that we will definitely be getting another one in season three which seemed to get an exuberant response from the cast and fans in Hall H.
One of the last bit of news we got was that Gladys and Jellybean Jones will be making their way to Riverdale around episode 8 or 9, which will give Jughead more family ties on the series.
Before the panel wrapped up, we were shown a video highlight reel of Season 2 — and a fresh sneak peek at Season 3, with Archie taking his pals for a Labor Day lake vacation in his newly souped-up jalopy, and Betty catching a glimpse of a creepy ceremony at Alice and Polly’s cult-like community, expanding on the scene we saw earlier in the panel.
Judging from my year to year experience with Riverdale at Comic-Con, their showing in Hall H was quite impressive and it showed how much the show has grown in popularity in just a year. They definitely earned their right to grace the room at Hall H.
In a much more different experience, Legion also made the move to Hall H, and while the fanbases of the shows are much different, the cerebral Marvel drama created its own raucous in Hall H. It’s noticeable from that start that the show has a very loyal following and they were eagerly anticipating the cast and crew to take the stage.
The Legion panel had a lot riding on it this year. It was a vote of confidence that the show was given a much larger platform compared to last year but it was also the final panel of Hall H at this year’s Comic-Con. To say it needed to go out with a bang is an understatement, but the crew assembled was more than ready for the challenge.
The panel included producer and writer Nathaniel Halpern, executive producer and director John Cameron, Marvel Television’s Jeph Loeb, and cast members Dan Stevens, Rachel Keller, Aubrey Plaza, Bill Irwin, Amber Midthunder, Jeremie Harris, Jean Smart, and Farouk himself, Navid Negahban. One person noticeably missing was show creator Noah Hawley, who, according to the Comic-Con schedule, was supposed to be a panelist. This was a tad disappointing because he offered up a lot of insight at last year’s panel and I was looking forward to hearing his thoughts on season 2 and beyond.
With a show that is visually intriguing, but sometimes, extremely complicated. There was a lot to talk about. Before the cast and crew shared their thoughts, we were shown a ten-minute recap video of season 2, which actually proved to be quite helpful as it reminded me of some key points that I had forgotten. If anything it made me about 75% sure I actually got everything I saw during season 2.
As it turns out, the cast and crew were often just as confused as the audience when it came to the show. As Cameron explains:
“We’ll often read the script, get confused, go make the episode and make believe we understood it…and then we’ll see the final cut [that Hawley does] and it’s often quite radically different but always better.”
Other members of the cast voiced things that initially (or still) confused them as well. Smart mentioned that the idea of the astral plane was a difficult concept to her at first, and Stevens said that often the whole cast was often collectively confused in season 1. It garnered a lot of laughs from the audience in Hall H, mostly because it made us feel like we weren’t alone when it came to viewing the series.
In addition to talking about being confused from time to time, the cast also discussed the fan-favorite dance numbers from previous seasons. “This year we really stepped it up,” Stevens explained, referring to Season 2’s opening dance number. “It was all brought together by Bill Irwin, one of the greatest dancers in America.” Fellow actor Aubrey Plaza was less enthusiastic about the dancing and admitted she found it challenging. “I’ll never forget it,” she deadpanned. “I have nightmares about it every night…but I think it made me a better person.” Aubrey Plaza, much like last year, was a panel highlight. She’s funny and her delivery always registers but what she also conveys is that she takes the show and her performance seriously. Plaza’s trepidations aside, no one ruled out the potential for future dance numbers. The possibility of a musical episode was even suggested, much to the excitement of the audience.
When it came to what we will see in season 3, we didn’t learn too much. Partly because the show is pretty tight on plot details in order to surprise fans but also because those involved in the panel, were mostly left in the dark about it. Will things remain a bit complex and perplexing? Probably, but that’s part of the beauty of the show. Many panelists expressed admiration for Hawley’s genius, with Bill Irwin going as far as to say “I would want to be Noah Hawley,” when he was asked what superhero he would want to be in real life. So whatever Hawley cooks up for next year, it will likely be as dazzling and odd as the two seasons before it.
One thing we’re unlikely to see in Season 3, however, are characters like ‘David’s Dad’ making a cameo. “We never want to do Easter eggs like we’re running an Easter egg farm,” Loeb explained. “We want to be able to do things that Noah feels are right for the story.” Loeb went on to add that adding such cameos would be challenging given the number of players that would have to be involved to make that happen.
The exec also talked about Marvel Television’s relationship with the X-Men. That relationship may change with Marvel parent Disney’s pending acquisition of 21st Century Fox, which holds the rights to the franchise. Marvel’s relationship with shows based on X-Men, he said, is thus different than it is for shows that the studio produces itself, such as Defenders:
“It is different as a basic rule of thumb in that the shows that are currently at Fox and the X-Men characters are really under their control. It’s fun in our point of view, because it gets sort of birthed out there, and then we get to be the proud grandparents.”
The show has plenty of characters of its own to play with, however. And if the season follows the trajectory of the first two, one other thing we can expect is that everyone will change. A lot. David perhaps had the biggest change in season 2, where he swung from being the show’s hero to the show’s villain. All the characters, however, have changed significantly. Syd, for example, has stepped into the hero role, Lenny commandeered a new body and Melanie now lives in an ice cube with Oliver (I know it sounds silly but it’s brilliant, I assure you).
The one solid bit of season 3 news is that the show will return to dazzle and confuse us in 2019 and all involved on the panel seemed very confident that the show will continue to be a critical favorite and a different breed of the comic book show that has made it a fan favorite.
Confidence seems to be the theme for both shows that got to move into Hall H this year. They were no longer the new kids on the block, they have paved their own path and they definitely both owned the room their own right. I wouldn’t be surprised to see both shows featured in the room next year and I’m sure the response will be just as enthusiastic.
