Today’s guest article comes from Chris Castagnetto who shares his experience visiting San Diego Comic-Con over the years.
San Diego Comic-Con, one of the largest fan events in the world, was hosted from July 24th to 28th. In classic form, LEGO showed up with a collection of fan activations and experiences for AFOLs of all ages. As a fan of pop culture and an attendee of Comic-Con since 2002, I have been lucky enough to have been witness to LEGO and their fan experiences and activations over the years.
Today I’m going to share my LEGO Comic-Con experience in 2024 while also reflecting on LEGO’s Comic-Con experiences over the years and how they have evolved and grown to what we see today. From fights for exclusive minifigs and sets to a more community-based approach, these are the good and the bad of LEGO at Comic-Con.
LEGO Panels: Ninjago Dragons Rising and LEGO Masters
The weekend kicked off in style when LEGO hosted their traditional LEGO animation panel on Thursday—and it was great. The line, thankfully, was not too crazy, and the room was about 50% full, which for Room 6BCF is saying something as that room is huge. The panel featured Pamela Keller (LEGO/exec producer), Chris "Doc" Wyatt and Kevin Burke (head writers), Ryan Burns (LEGO/exec producer), Deven Mack (voice of Arin), and Sabrina Pitre (voice of Sora).
There was some great discussion and sneak peeks into Ninjago: Dragons Rising Season 2, as well as some trailers and clips shown for the upcoming second half of the season. The crowd loved the trailer, and the season is looking to be jam-packed with excitement and adventure with the introduction of the “Tournament of Sources.”
Following the clips, the panel opened up to some Q&A, and there were a number of fans who had an opportunity to ask the panel some fun and interesting questions. One of the most memorable questions that was asked was regarding Dareth and the Elemental Power of Brown, where it was confirmed that he will be returning this season, but we will not be seeing the Source Dragon for the Power of Brown. Following that question, the fan presented the panelists with a micro build of toilet paper to remember the Power of Brown, and the crowd went wild. (The panelists continued to fidget with the toilet paper for the rest of the panel, as seen below, which was hilarious.)
They also mentioned that previous elemental powers will return this season, and new powers will be introduced during the tournament. It was great seeing fans of all ages engage with the writers and witness the passion and energy the writers had for the project in their answers.
Lastly, they also announced Season 3 of Dragons Rising, which is pretty great to know there is more coming. It was a fun panel, and everyone left excited for the new season. There was also a panel about LEGO Masters and the upcoming Season 5, where panelists discussed the show, its challenges, and the process and thought that goes into it. Winners of past shows were present, and there was a fun and engaging Q&A as well, which was a fun moment for the community.
LEGO Space Booth
LEGO’s main show floor presence this year was space-themed, reflecting this year’s super theme. Four distinct sections of the booth were available for attendees to explore. The front of the booth had its traditional counter where brand ambassadors informed attendees of what was going on, and it was also the location where special signings and meet-and-greet activities would take place throughout the weekend.
The middle of the booth was host to two distinct areas displaying upcoming sets from many popular LEGO themes, including Mario, Fortnite, Minecraft, DreamZzz, Dungeons & Dragons, Sonic, Star Wars, Zelda, and more, many of which can be seen here and a giant display of all the 2024 Space themed sets across all the main LEGO themes.
The back of the booth was very exciting, with a giant area for attendees to build and create their very own spaceship or alien, attach them to a wall of LEGO planets, or display them in front of a giant LEGO Space-themed LED screen. I think the booth showcased the imagination and creativity that Space can bring to the community. Finally, outside of the booth, there were numerous brick-built characters like a moving R2D2 and a White Vader, along with special Star Wars set displays and a giant wall that fans could build on.
Overall, the booth was very well designed and featured numerous Photo Opportunities and showcases. The traffic flow was consistent, and there was not a lot of crowding other than when there was a signing. The booth activity line was short, and the overall experience was very low-stress and creative while showcasing all the new releases.
LEGO Partner Booths
One new approach to Comic-Con this year from LEGO was working with select partners to host LEGO-focused sections in the partners' booths. First, LEGO revealed the new Minecraft Crafting table at the Minecraft booth for fans to see up close. Second, LEGO had a giant display within the Star Wars booth showcasing 25 years' worth of Star Wars minifigs. The display showcased every Star Wars minifig ever made, and boy, was it impressive.
Third, LEGO worked with Marvel to display all the upcoming Marvel sets along with two fun Photo Opportunities. Fans could take a picture next to a brick-built Spider-Man or put on a pair of Wolverine’s claws. These experiences were nice as they provided LEGO the opportunity to focus on specific themes in areas of the convention where it made sense and didn’t take away from the main Space theme of the main booth.
LEGO Swag and Booth Activities
When it comes to swag, this year was very different than past years. The core focus of LEGO this year was showcasing the sets and creating fun moments, not giving out exclusives and swag (which is a good thing, but I’ll talk about that later). The first piece of swag that you could earn this year was a high-quality white spaceman patch by visiting the LEGO Space Booth and building a spaceship. This was very fast and easy to do, and everyone was able to participate, which was amazing. There was no running out of stock or complaining and crying kids, which really made this fun. (We have a few to give away, so check the BrickNerd social pages for more info.)
The second type of swag was a LEGO comic book, which you could earn by taking a photo at the Marvel booth and sharing it. This was fun for kids but, in general, wasn’t a big missed opportunity if you were unable to wait in line for your photo, as this did normally have a line, unlike the space build due to its limited capacity. There were a few different comics you could collect if you went back multiple times as well for the collectors.
The third type of swag was posters from the booth signings. There was a Star Wars Rebuild the Galaxy poster signed by the cast, a Ninjago signing, and a LEGO Masters poster signed by previous winners and judges, in addition to a Piece by Piece poster given out at the booth for passers-by. The experiences were a lot of fun so this was great for those who were able to make it.
The fourth type of swag was an exclusive minifig torso, pen, and patches for attendees of the LEGO Masters signing at the booth; these were very rare and not earnable by the general attendees.
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Photos via Denny Miyashiro.
The fifth and final swag was a swag bundle pack, which 20 people per day could earn by coming to the booth, scanning a QR code, completing a collection of photo-related tasks in the web app, and then showing the booth workers. These ran out super-fast each day as people were rushing around to try to get the web app to work while taking photos and trying to complete the quest. The swag was a collection of the above swag as well as a signed Jedi Bob Starfighter set which was pretty cool. But all in all, the swag this year was a lot more fair and equal for attendees in the past (which again, is a good thing).
The Good and The Bad of LEGO Comic-Con Experiences
This year was very different for LEGO when it comes to Comic-Con which was a welcome change in direction. Previous years had booths that were focused on selling products with massive lines and people pushing and fighting for exclusives to giant multi-hour lines outside in the heat to click an iPad for a 30% chance to get a minifig. This year really changed the presentation and experience for the better. Here are some of my thoughts in summary:
The Good
Not having exclusive minifigs is a good thing. People are not wasting hours in line for a chance to get something, only to walk away with a crying child or upset with the LEGO brand.
Not having sets to purchase is a good thing because we can go buy them online or at the store, fans want more experiences and showcases that we can’t get at home or online.
Focusing on massive multi-person experiences like the ship build where everyone wins is a good thing because it gives a small exclusive item to everyone, not only to a select few.
The panels are fun, and there are generally no exclusives, so if you come late or sit in the back, you won't lose out or get mad because the prizes ran out; you can still enjoy the experience.
Having multiple mini-experiences around the convention is great for providing multiple LEGO-branded experiences.
The Bad
The web app raffle is NOT a good thing because not all phones or internet connections are made the same. There were a lot of upset people around the booth in the mornings because their “phone didn’t work.” If you're going to do a raffle, they could give everyone a ticket or tie it to something easy to manage, like your LEGO Insiders card or email. They could ensure that everyone can feel like they have a chance, which is part of the fun.
The LEGO Masters limited torsos were way too limited, and the line was capped. Now, people are selling them for about $1k—which is nuts. If you're going to do something like a limited torso, they should find another way to limit it to one per person and empower more people to receive or earn it. The Comic-Con badges have scanners for this exact reason; maybe there is a way you can do that.
Comic-Con Here and Now
Overall, San Diego Comic-Con 2024 was a great change of pace from past years' LEGO experiences. The panels were exciting and full of energy, the booth was very display-focused, there were interactive meet-and-greet experiences, fun building moments, unique photo-op experiences, and lastly, the giveaway was fair for all to enjoy.
Without so many exclusives, LEGO kept their activities focused on the community and ensured that people had an enjoyable time, rather than turning everyone into stressed consumers trying to score a fig. I really hope future years follow this same pattern!
I hope you can experience a LEGO activation in the future at Comic-Con or other community events. In the meantime, keep an eye on BrickNerd’s Facebook and Instagram pages for a Comic-Con swag giveaway!
Would you rather have experiences or exclusives from Comic-Con? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.
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