Looking to avoid what happened when I arrived at the Javits Center the day before, I went to the trouble of arriving extra early. I arrived at 7:45am (I got off the 7 train at 34th St. and I was able to see the end of the line). I still had to go around from the back, but at least the line was moving and I got inside the Javits 
Center by 8:05am. I got on the queue line for the Main Stage Justice League: Dark panel. I had to wait over 1 1/2 hours before they started tapping badges (I finally sat down after a half hour and waited until the line finally started to move). Once my badge was tapped, I went up to the ReedPop merchandise line (I was fortunate to be there when there were only a few people on the line). My choices ended up being limited, and I ended up buying a NY Comic Con Halloween T-shirt. I then went over to where the Wonder Woman costumes (as well as the Lynda Carter Wonder Woman costume from the 1970s TV show) were and took some pics (as well as grabbed some free comics and buttons).
I then went down to where the Empire Stage usually is and encountered something called VR Con. It was mostly gaming and virtual reality stuff, but it was pretty cool. There was a backdrop promoting Kubo and the Two Strings 
and I got my picture taken with Kubo. I then bought a couple of half-priced graphic novels at a comic booth, then got my picture taken at the Con Edison booth (I was inserted into the Justice League lineup; I even got a physical copy of the picture). I also got my picture taken in front of a green screen at a Doctor Strange booth (there was a Doctor Strange-themed backdrop inserted behind me). I then tried out some samples from a flavored energy drink (I tried the green apple, grape, and pink lemonade flavors). After leaving the area, I went to get lunch and then went to the show floor.
I made a stop at the Nickelodeon booth first. I took pics of the Legends of the 
Hidden Temple statue, which was covered by life-sized versions of Angelica, Tommy, and Chucky (from Rugrats), Ren and Stimpy (from Ren and Stimpy), Catdog (from Catdog), and Rocko (from Rocko’s Modern Life). I thought I was on a line for a photo op with a Nickelodeon character but it actually turned out to be for the 
silver monkey challenge from Legends of the Hidden Temple. When I was finally up, I competed against the guy behind me. The objective was to be the first one to put the three pieces of the silver monkey together, and I completed it in 12 seconds, defeating my opponent. My prize was a three-piece silver monkey pin (which was pretty cool).
I then went up to the show floor and headed to the GKIDS booth. I bought three blu-rays (Only Yesterday, The Tale of the Princess Kaguya, and April and the Extraordinary World) and got a button and postcard for their upcoming release 
of Miss Hokusai. I then went to the booth featuring cosplayer Lisa Lou Who. I got to take a picture with her and bought three autographed cosplay prints from her (Harley Quinn, Poison Ivy, and Rogue). I then went to the Superheroes Stuff booth to see cosplayers LeeAnna Vamp and Kristen Hughey again (I got to take pics with them as well). I went over to the table with cosplayer Holly Wolf to say hi again and got my picture taken with her. I then went over to the Marvel booth to get in line for the Jim Starlin signing. I got him to sign my trade paperback of The Infinity Gauntlet and got my picture taken with him.
I then went over to the Tom Cook booth. We spoke briefly (he worked on many classic animated shows in the 1980s) and I bought three autographed prints 
from him (a He-Man and the Masters of the Universe/She-Ra: Princess of Power combination, the Super Friends, and a Filmation’s Ghostbusters). Afterward, I headed over to Artist Alley to see Ireland Reid’s new cosplay unveil. She wasn’t at her table, so I 
went to Klaus Janson’s table and got him to sign my graphic novels of The Dark Knight Returns and Batman/Spawn: War Devil. I then went to Louise Simonson and got her to sign my World Without A Superman graphic novel. I strolled by Ireland Reid’s table on my way out to check to see if she had shown up. She appeared a few minutes later with her newest Emma Frost unveil. She spoke about the process briefly and I got a picture with her.
After leaving Artist Alley, I went to the Main Stage waiting area to get in line for the Justice League: Dark panel. Once we finally went in, I managed to score a 
seat in the second row. The panelists came out one by one once the panel officially started: Phil Bourassa, director Jay Oliva, producer James Tucker, and actors Matt Smith (John Constantine) and Jason O’Mara (Batman). They showed three clips from the upcoming film (the one with Swamp Thing was a big tease; the 
clip cut off just as Swamp Thing was starting to rise out of the swamp). The panel was pretty entertaining (a lot of people wanted Matt Smith for more appearances as Constantine in live action and animation). Afterward, I headed over to Room 1A24 to get in line for the Brat Pack America: A Salute To ’80s Teen Movies and the Pioneering Directors of Fast Times At Ridgemont High and Real Genius panel.
Once we went in for that, I managed to get a decent seat. The panel was moderated by Kevin Smokler, the author of the newly released book Brat Pack America (which discusses teen cinema in the 1980s). The panelists were directors Amy Heckerling and Martha Coolidge, and the films discussed 
included Fast Times At Ridgemont High and to a lesser extent Clueless (Heckerling) and Valley Girl and Real Genius (Coolidge). My favorite story came from Coolidge, in which she recalled her attempts to cast Nicholas Cage in Valley Girl and how she eventually found out that he was related to Francis Ford Coppola (whose family she had mostly known when she worked at American Zoetrope). It was an enjoyable panel, and I stayed outside the room following the panel in the hope of meeting Heckerling. My patience was finally rewarded as I got to meet 
Heckerling after a roughly 15 minute wait. I got my picture taken with her and told her about the midnight showing of Fast Times At Ridgemont High that I attended last year. I also told her about my favorite scene of the film in which (spoiler alert!) Ray Walston’s character appears in Jeff Spicoli’s room (uninvited) on the last day of school and tries to teach him something as revenge for all of Walston’s time he wasted during the school year. I thanked her for her time and made my way out of the Javits Center after a great third day at this year’s NY Comic Con.
THE CINEMATIC FRONTIER 