__twocolumncontent.jpg)
1. Virtual Reality Rules
The ability to don a nerdy headset and see things in 3D was all the rage this year. TBS proved that point with cardboard devices shaped like a Conan O’Brien Pop! Vinyl figure, but USA’s Mr. Robot experience was perhaps the best example of how to harness the marketing power of VR.
The network immersed fans with a 12-minute VR film that cast the viewer as Elliot Alderson’s “imaginary friend”—tying the experience into a major plot point from the hacker drama—featured content that built upon the existing story, and took things beyond Comic-Con by extending the experience to everyone, not just those at the convention. USA broadcast the VR film via the Within app, timed to the event at 10:45 a.m. in Petco Park on Thursday, in what they dubbed “the largest VR experience in the world” before the content disappeared.
RELATED: USA Network Offers Fans Chance to Join ‘Mr. Robot’ VR Experience
Other networks that took advantage of 360-degree technology included Amazon’s The Man in the High Castle VR experience, where fans got to become Resistance spy Juliana Crain (Alexa Davalos) and tried to retrieve a clue within the dangerous Pacific States of America; Adult Swim’s Rick and Morty 360-degree mind-altering escapade in the air-conditioned Meatwad Dome entitled “Six Minutes Of Your Life That You’ll Never Get Back;” FX’s American Horror Story VR experience that threw you into a dark silo, landed you on a medical table, and took you through several creepy death scenarios, and Nickelodeon’s Legends of the Hidden Temple VR experience featuring a Mayan temple maze that on-show teams explored to try to find lost treasure. Speaking of …
2. The ‘90s Called, They Want Their Shows Back
If you didn’t get the memo when Netflix’s Fuller House launched; if you haven’t yet caught a Charizard, Comic-Con should have driven home the point that nostalgia is all that and a bag of chips right now.
Nickelodeon was front and center with a huge display on the convention floor full of throwbacks from its vault, like props from the retro game show Double Dare, a life-sized replica of the Hey Arnold! Stoop, and of course a giant visage of Legends of the Hidden Temple idol Olmec before the release of a live-action TV movie, announced earlier this year.
Amazon also showcased its upcoming reboot of The Tick, and there was a sneak peek of the 2017 Power Rangers movie and display cases packed with old toys from the series.
3. Green Screens Are Social Gold
Opportunities were aplenty for Comic-Con fans to superimpose themselves onto all sorts of backgrounds for a wide range of made-for-social activations.
At Amazon Village, Weta Workshop created a miniature of downtown San Diego, showing how the series Thunderbirds Are Go is shot, allowing attendees to take a shareable green screen photo. NBC used green screens to generate gifs of visitors traveling through time and turning themselves into Emerald City characters.
And Fox had makeup artists on hand to transform people’s lips into pouts suitable for the Rocky Horror Picture Show, and topped it off with a green screen photo booth featuring an image promoting the network’s upcoming reboot.
4. The Right Way to Ring in an Anniversary
Anniversaries are always worth celebrating, and both South Park and Star Trek did not let that opportunity slide by.
After a five-year absence from the convention, South Park returned with the “South Park 20 Experience” to mark its 20th season by allowing fans to interact with 20 of the most iconic scenes from the show.
Comedy Central went all out with activations that included replicas of backdrops, a booth where visitors could take an animated gif with characters, an avatar creator where fans could create South Park characters of themselves, a South Park app providing anyone with access into the brains of creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker, previews of the new video game South Park: The Fractured But Whole coming out in December, a Hulu Viewing Lounge with a continuous streaming of episodes and more. South Park‘s 20th season premieres at 10 p.m. ET/PT on September 14.
RELATED: ‘South Park’ Celebrates 20 Years at Comic-Con
Meanwhile, Star Trek kicked off a year-long celebration of its 50th anniversary—on the heels of J.J. Abrams’ movie Star Trek Beyond, which hit theaters over the weekend, and before the premiere of Bryan Fuller’s new Star Trek TV series coming to CBS All Access in January.
The highlight came Saturday when William Shatner, Scott Bakula, Michael Dorn, Jeri Ryan and Brent Spiner united on stage for a panel that reflected upon the last half-century of the series. Comic-Con also served as the worldwide debut of the art exhibit “50 Artists. 50 Year,” before it makes a global tour through Canada, the UK, France, and the Star Trek Cruise.
RELATED: ‘50th Anniversary of ‘Star Trek’ Celebration Kicks off at Comic-Con’
5. Everyone Likes to Play
Comic-Con doesn’t exactly have its work cut out in appealing to the inner child, and tons of TV marketing strategies tapped into that playful spirit.
truTV took over Petco Park with an Impractical Jokers block party with food, drinks and activities where visitors could participate in dares from the series—from walking a 20-foot-high tightrope, to showing off their sumo wrestling skills.
RELATED: Fans Take on ‘Impractical Jokers’ Dares During Massive Block Party
It was also giveaways and games galore at the “Adult Swim on the Green” psychedelic adults only (18+) carnival, which include a gonzo thoroughfare with Adult Swim-themed carnival games and rides, a free T-shirt printing stand where fans could pick their design and color shirt on the spot, and special evening events on Thursday during “Nighttime on the Green.”
RELATED: For Adult Swim, Comic-Con Is Just About Having a Good Time
Fox also erected a mighty Son of Zorn rock wall and three-story free fall, while NBC brought a Gravitron for a Timeless “time travel” experience during the network’s takeover of GasLamp Square.
Tags: