Friday in Ballroom 20 at SDCC: A TV Recap

I am all about TV, and SDCC is one of those cons that covers just about everything that I love. I was lucky enough to spend an entire day and a half in Ballroom 20 this year, which means I got attend TWELVE panels all dedicated to television, and I want to share with you some of what I experienced. This first post is all about Friday in Ballroom 20.

The 100

The 100 was the first panel that I saw on Friday at SDCC. I love this show! I am a bit behind, having only seen the first season, but I cannot wait to catch up, especially from all of the good things I have heard about Season Two. Plus, once you get spoiled at a con, you get super pumped to catch up on all the things you’ve missed. Let me just say that the cast of this show loves their fans, as shown by their standing ovation to the audience. In attendance for this panel were: Jason Rothenberg (Executive Producer), Eliza Taylor (Clarke), Bob Morley (Bellamy), Marie Avgeropoulos (Octavia), Lindsey Morgan (Raven), Isaiah Washington (Jaha), and Ricky Whittle (Lincoln). The fan questions in this panel were great, from a fan thanking the crew for choosing Vancouver to shoot the series, to another fan who was hugged and comforted by Ricky Whittle when she asked her question. Some of the highlights were Bob Morley shooting down those Bellarke rumors: “[I] don’t see Bellamy and Clarke romantically. Bellamy relies on her for leadership and confidence,” and Rothenberg explaining that the point of the show is to push boundaries “between characters doing good and bad.” It should be noted that the entire cast thinks that The 100 focuses on the adversity encountered by everyday people that makes them everyday heroes. There was no sizzle reel for this panel because they have not yet started filming Season Three, but I cannot wait to see where the storyline goes, and I have this show as a top priority on my DVR.

(Also check out our report from The 100 press room!)

Minority Report

The next panel on Friday in Ballroom 20 was Minority Report. This was a bit of preview panel for the upcoming television show premiering this fall on Fox Monday nights. The show is based on the book The Minority Report and subsequent 2002 film Minority Report. Not only did we get a panel featuring the main cast, but we were treated to an extended preview: the first half of the pilot episode. In attendance for the panel were Kevin Falls (Executive Producer), Darryl Frank (Executive Producer), Stark Sands (Dash), Meagan Good (Lara), Wilmer Valderrama (Will), and Laura Regan (Agatha). Without giving too much away, the show takes place in the future, and Dash is our main hero. He has the ability to see bits and pieces of crimes before they happen; he runs across Lara, a detective, and assists her in stopping, and avenging crime. The pilot, although a bit clunky, is adrenaline-inducing and has non-stop action. Plus, what is there not to love about a kick-ass female POC as the main protagonist? Come for the unique and compelling story, and stay for the cast chemistry.

Marvel TV

Of course, one of the big draws for me personally to Ballroom 20 on Friday was Marvel TV’s joint panel of Agent Carter and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. We got a lot of awesome teasers for the new seasons of both shows, including a huge list of panelists from Agent Carter: Tara Butters (Executive Producer), Michele Fazekas (Executive Producer), Chris Dingess (Executive Producer), Louis D’Esposito (Executive Producer), as well as stars Hayley Atwell (Peggy) and James D’Arcy (Jarvis), and from Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D: Clark Gregg (Coulson), Ming-Na Wen (Melinda May), Brett Dalton (Grant Ward), Chloe Bennet (Daisy Johnson/Skye/Quake), Iain de Caestecker (Fitz), Elizabeth Henstridge (Simmons), Henry Simmons (Mack), Adrianne Palicki (Bobbi Morse), Nick Blood (Lance Hunter), and Luke Mitchell (Lincoln Campbell). Needless to say, this was a huge panel, and also hugely popular.

We learned a lot about the second season of Agent Carter, including the fact that it will take place about six months after the end of Season One, it will take place in Hollywood, and will feature most of the cast…we might even get to meet Jarvis’ wife! There were many fan questions about feminism, and the fact that Peggy is a new feminist icon. Of course, Hayley Atwell obliged and admitted that Peggy’s “I know my value” line was one of the best ever for a show. I also love the fact that the showrunners are going to release an soundtrack later this year for all of our 40’s swing music needs. (See also: our report from the Agent Carter press room!)

The Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D portion of the panel did not include too many questions from the audience because they showed two reels: one was a gag reel from the past season, and the other was a funny reel featuring the writers trying to figure out what to write about next season (including a hilarious sequence where Jed Whedon was playing darts to figure out who to kill off next). Although I am a bit behind on this show, the sizzle reels definitely made me feel like I need to catch up because this cast clearly has a lot of fun filming. Plus, I am so excited to hear that Marvel has its first female superhuman in Daisy/Quake! I am looking forward to seeing what Chloe Bennett will do with the role coming up. (See also: our report from the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. press room!)

The Originals

After sitting near the back for the previous panels, a lot of people left after the Marvel TV panel which allowed me to move up to the front row for the last two TV panels on Friday. The CW series The Originals was up. I admittedly do not know a ton about this show having only watched a couple of episodes, but I do know that it is a spinoff of The Vampire Diaries, and has a huge fan following. Indeed, I loved the fact that there were just as many female castmembers on the panel as there were male: Danielle Campbell (Davina), Joseph Morgan (Klaus), Daniel Gillies (Elijah), Phoebe Tonkin (Hayley), Leah Pipes (Camille), Charles Michael Davis (Marcel), Yusuf Gatewood (Vincent), and Julie Plec (Creator/Producer).

A lot of the panel was focused on Hope, the baby in the center of the series at the moment. Most of the fan questions were surrounding Klaus’ ability to be a single parent, and Joseph Morgan joked a lot that Klaus would need to rely on and co-parent with Elijah. There was a lot of conversation from Leah Pipes and Phoebe Tonkin about the casting of Baby Hope and that pretty much everyone on set had baby fever. Unfortunately, we will have to wait until next season to see how everything shakes out.

iZombie

The main reason that I wanted to be sure to attend Ballroom 20 on Friday was for iZombie! This is by far my favorite new show from the past season, so having the chance to see everyone in person was completely thrilling, and sitting in the front row was just icing on the cake. In attendance for the panel were Rose McIver (Liv), Malcolm Goodwin (Clive), Rahul Kohli (Ravi), Robert Buckley (Major), David Anders (Blaine), Rob Thomas (Creator/Producer), and Diane Ruggiero-Wright (Producer). We also got a last-minute appearance from Aly Michalka (Peyton) as confirmation that she will be back next season!

Even though this is one of my favorite shows (okay, I might be biased), this was one of my favorite panels from SDCC 2015. We got a ton of spoilers, but also a lot of insight into the minds of the actors and what made them play the characters the way that they did. For example, David Anders, who is amazing at playing villains, admitted that Blaine is probably the most like him of any character he has ever played. This didn’t really surprise me for some reason.  We also heard an absolutely hilarious story from Rose McIver about why the set calls Rahul Kohli “Death Breath.” Let’s just say that it involves putting a prop in his mouth that wasn’t actually a prop. Probably the funniest part of the panel was when a fan challenged the cast to speak in a New Zealand accent, mimicking the one that star Rose McIver has. They all failed miserably, but it was hilarious. (Be sure to check out our interview with Rob Thomas and our report from the iZombie press room!)

Overall, I am super glad that I visited Ballroom 20 on Friday and stayed as long as I did. The panels hit on two shows that I never miss: Agent Carter and iZombie, re-introduced me to some shows that I need to catch up on, and got me excited for a brand new show that I am looking forward to checking out. I definitely recommend that you check out the panel videos from all of these shows because they were so much fun, and there was a lot of love to go around.

Author: Erin

Erin has reviewed many shows over the years including Orphan Black, iZombie, Penny Dreadful, and Killing Eve. She has a keen eye for on-screen chemistry, and loves to tackle the subject of casting. She is also our horror aficionado. She live tweets shows, and loves to share her feelings. Erin has a BA in History, and likes to analyze the lore behind historical fiction. She attends San Diego Comic Con every year and has also attended C2E2 and WonderCon.

Help support independent journalism. Subscribe to our Patreon.

Copyright © The Geekiary