Badges for this year's Comic-Con International in San Diego went on sale this morning and were all gone in about the time it takes The Flash to blink twice after being maced. As usual, the number of available badges was much smaller than the number who wanted them so we have some angry and/or desperate folks around who didn't snag one.
Some will find other ways to get in. One source is that in a few months, there should be a sale of whatever badges were purchased today and are then returned to the con for refunds by people who find themselves unable to attend. Others find ways of getting badges from exhibitors.
Some will simply not get in. Others will decide that while they may not be able to gain admission to the convention hall, they can have a great time in the street fair that surrounds the con every year.
One thing you should not do: Do not purchase badges from any source but the convention itself. Badges are non-transferable and sometimes they are counterfeit.
One other thing you should not do: Do not contact me to ask if I can get you in. I am a Special Guest, not a member of the staff there, no matter how many panels I host.
As the above-linked article suggests, dickering is still going on about keeping the Comic-Con in San Diego after its current contract expires, which it will following the 2016 shindig. Even though the convention center may not get its long-promised expansion for some time, I believe the con will remain in San Diego. Why do I think this? Because the folks in San Diego who operate the convention center and nearby businesses would have to have the brains of a glue-sniffing gerbil to let the con get away. A particularly stupid glue-sniffing gerbil.
In the meantime: Badges are still available for WonderCon Anaheim, which is run by the same folks and which takes place at the Anaheim Convention Center from April 3 to April 5. It's kind of like Comic-Con Lite and while it does have only about a third the attendance, it also has an exhibit hall too large to fully explore and it has panels (five of them hosted by me) and a lot of the same magic, including all the parking difficulties you love so much at Comic-Con. I'll tell you more about WonderCon as we near its dates. I always have a good time there and you can, too.