San Diego's Convention Center has officially transformed into Gotham City to welcome the 2014 Comic-Con International, the largest convention dedicated to comic books, entertainment, gaming, and all things geeky to grace this planet. While doors opened to the public Thursday morning, our entertainment editor, Jase Peeples (pictured at left), was on hand Wednesday to take part in the exclusive Preview Night, where members of the press and a few select fans get to explore the Con before the masses.
Welcoming the estimated 130,000 attendees to the convention's official opening today were San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer and out city council president Todd Gloria, who swooped onto the scene in superhero style on a 150-foot zipline set against a Gotham City skyline, according to DiscoverSD.com. Gloria, who briefly served as the city's interim mayor after former Mayor Bob Filner resigned, told the local outlet that the ride was "exhilarating, a little unexpected, and a lot of fun."
Photographer, editor, and founder of the San Diego music blog Owl and Bear, T. Loper, captured the pair's dramatic entrance on his Twitter feed. Shortly after the photographer tweeted at Faulconer asking if the Republican would use Loper's zipline image as his Twitter avatar, the cochair of Mayors for the Freedom to Marry did just that.
Gloria followed suit, changing his Twitter avatar mere minutes later:
Check out the mayor's welcome remarks below.
With cosplayers, out creators, and LGBT-themed parties, there's plenty queer to be found here at the 45th annual pop-culture extravaganza. Prism Comics -- the nonprofit organization supporting LGBT comics, creators, and readers -- will once again be present, at Booth 2144 in Hall C. See a list of the LGBT geek must-hit panels and parties here.
And check out the photos from Preview Night below:
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