Article by LBPOSTSports.com managing editor Mike Guardabascio
Photos by Mike Guardabascio and Mike Palotta

When you're trying to create a new tradition, it can sometimes take years to get something off the ground—but sometimes it happens in a flash. The Long Beach Comic Con, in its first year, was an unqualified success, with a good crowd packing the convention floor, great guests and panels, and of course, a perfect setting in the LBC.

From Berkeley Breathed making a rare appearance to promote the new Complete Bloom County collection on Saturday, to Stan Lee cutting the red ribbon, it was certainly a great way to get things kicked off. The biggest coup for promoters was that Marvel and DC not only held panels, but a few announcements were made, which had Long Beach Comic Con in the ears of comics fans across the nation.

The biggest news was the announcement that DC editor-in-chief Dan Didio will be writing a new Outsiders series—apparently a job he appointed himself to. Marvel's Jeph Loeb also hosted a panel for his company, joking with fans about the recent purchase of Marvel by Disney. He gave a speech that should put some paranoid fans at ease: "From what I understand, it won't affect publishing," he said. "Pixar is its own company. Marvel is its own little company. On the other side of it, you're talking about Disney, which is probably the best licensing company in the world. I think ultimately what it'll mean to you guys is that those brands will be in a lot more places." Loeb also assured fans that he and Tim Sale's new series, Captain America: White (which has taken a lot longer to go to press than anticipated) will definitely be out before the movie.

Other personal highlights were the appearance of big names like Geoff Johns, and a sneak screening of Trick-R-Treat, a new rated-R horror anthology coming on Tuesday from writer/director Michael Dougherty. All in all, it was a great weekend, and we hope you enjoyed our coverage (click here for an exclusive interview with comic writer Mark Waid, here for an interview with Comic Con director Martha Donato and here for a feature on Hung star Thomas Jane about his new 3D movie). But, certainly, not as much as we hope you'll enjoy our coverage of next year's convention!

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