San Diego Comic-Con 2026 Recap, Part 1

Message Dan and MikeWe're back from our first San Diego Comic-Con with press credentials, and this episode kicks off a two-part recap of the entire experience. Part one covers our arrival, the scramble to find the convention center on San Diego's trolley system, and the reality check that comes with picking up press badges for the first time. We also take a detour to Seaport Village for tacos and a beer with a view of the harbor, then head north to UC San Diego for a surprise highlight of the trip: Shredding the Multiverse, a concert reimagining television and film scores from shows like Cobra Kai, Spider-Man, and The Penguin with a full orchestra and rock energy.From there we walk through preview night, our first real taste of the exhibit hall, complete with two-hour lines, an ocean of vendors, and a candid discussion about what press credentials do and don't actually get you at a con this size. We get into a few Comic-Con-brain moments (yes, we coin the term), some sibling bickering about San Diego weather, and a genuinely strange arcade cabinet encounter that turns into its own little subplot.The back half of the episode dives into two of our favorite panels from day one. First, a look at the upcoming Lucas Museum of Narrative Art, opening in Los Angeles this September, and why it's a celebration of storytelling and visual art far beyond just Star Wars. Then we sit in on Brad Bird's career retrospective panel, tracing his path from The Iron Giant and The Incredibles to Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol and his surprising, nearly two-hundred-episode history with The Simpsons. Bird also previews his new animated sci-fi noir series Ray Gun and drops a small but exciting update on the status of Incredibles 3.It's an exhausting, funny, occasionally chaotic first day, and we haven't even gotten to Hall H yet. That's coming in part two, along with days two and three of the convention. Thanks for riding along with us on our first Comic-Con as press, sore feet and all.Support the showOh Brother Podcast:Support the Show! (Be The First to Listen with Early Access)Listen on all podcast platformsSubscribe on YouTubeFollow us on Instagram