While making the rounds at LA Comic Con, I stopped by the Trailer Park 2.0 panel hoping to gauge fan reactions to some upcoming blockbusters, and see if they fit with my own thoughts on the big movies coming soon to theaters. Fortunately for me, the panel did not disappoint. In a smaller panel with lots of audience participation, we discussed the trailers to upcoming films (and some TV shows) and whether or not they were going to get people to those coveted opening weekend seats or whether the studios were somehow missing the point.
On the Marvel side of things, fans seemed very excited for ‘Doctor Strange,‘ and it did not hurt that the early reviews praise the trippy visual effects and need to see the film in 3D. The ‘Guardians of the Galaxy 2‘ teaser was shown and the moderators could not stop gushing over how much they love this franchise, and that the trailer showed that there was still plenty to love about the Guardians and the filmmakers. We also viewed the ‘Iron Fist‘ trailer for the Netflix series, and while everyone agreed not much was revealed, and the trailer was a little on the minimal side, the track record of Netflix’s collaboration with Marvel makes it a show that most fans will give a chance, especially if they release another trailer in the near future that does a better job of setting up the character and his story. We also saw the trailer for FX’s ‘Legion,’ and while the moderators made some jokes about how it’s the ‘X-Men’ TV show that nobody was waiting for (implying no one really wanted to see it), they admitted that Noah Hawley (who is also being FX’s ‘Fargo) being a creative force behind the show makes it intriguing, and something they might just end up checking out. And lastly, for Marvel, they showed the ‘Logan‘ trailer (sadly, not the international Red Band one), which one crowd member claimed gave him the chills. However, fans of the ‘Old Man Logan’ comic in the audience pointed out they were disappointed that it feels very little like the source material, and the moderators showed some skepticism, pointing out that he has never been a fan of how 20th Century Fox has strayed so far from the source comic material. It was also pointed out that there was mainly music in the trailer, which could be a bad thing, as sometimes trailer makers put the whole trailer to a good song to cover up the fact that there is not much plot or decent dialogue in the film (see the amazing ‘Suicide Squad‘ trailers), so the end feeling in the room was that everyone was “cautiously optimistic.”
As for DC, we tried to watch the ‘Wonder Woman‘ trailer, but it would not download, and there were many jokes about how symbolic that was. So we moved past DC and onto the ‘Arrival’ trailer with Amy Adams, which the moderators seemed genuinely excited about, especially as the director is known for making great movies and Amy Adams is especially proud of the film.
Following that we watched the ‘Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them’ trailer which the audience, in particular,seemed very excited about, even if the moderators were worried that the film was just JK Rowling and Warner Bros trying to keep the ‘Harry Potter’ money train moving. The setting of early 20th century America seemed to intrigue a lot of people, as well as the idea of the film being “adult” ‘Harry Potter.’
Lastly, we watched the ‘Rogue One‘ trailer, which of course, everyone loved, and could not say enough great things about. People especially loved the diversity of the cast and the drama of knowing many of these characters will most likely die by the end of the film since we do not see them in ‘Star Wars’ continuity again. The only downside was the ever-present issue of the re-shoots, made the moderators, in particular, worried that the studio changing things to be a bit more lighthearted and less “war-movie” might negatively affect the final product.
All in all, it was pretty fascinating to watch the fan reactions to these trailers, especially for someone like me who usually watches them on my computer while prepping articles about them. Do you agree with any of the sentiments shared at the panel? Disagree? Feels free to share your thoughts below!
