Comic-Con 2017

After teasing fans at last year's San Diego Comic-Con with an empty vinyl record of the Dazzler album featured in X-Men: Apocalypse, this year Fox Home Entertainment is delivering the goods. While a Dazzler record is still not a thing we'll actually be able to buy and listen to, Fox is bringing a collection of limited vinyls from Deadpool, Logan, the Planet of the Apes franchise, and Kingsman to Comic-Con. To make these packages even more impressive, they'll also come with the Blu-ray and DVD copies of the feature films.

Mattel has always had a fairly strong variety of items from its licensing partners at San Diego Comic-Con, but this year the toy company appears to be dialing things back a bit for a more focused show. While the standard Hot Wheels and Mega Construx sets will be available for purchase, it’s the Justice League and DC Super Hero Girls items that are likely going to draw the most attention. Not that there's anything wrong with that. Those properties deserve all the attention they can get.

The good thing about Funko having a hand in as many licenses as it does is that it gives properties that would otherwise be deemed too niche a chance to have some collectibles. As good as Westworld and Stranger Things are, there's just not a lot of market interest for a wide and diverse line of action figures or toys for those things. With its smaller, similarly styled collectibles however, Funko can dabble in just about every character in every property without much muss or fuss. It also means there can be some true deep cuts for San Diego Comic-Con exclusives.

It wouldn't be a San Diego Comic-Con without a massive booth from Funko full of all sorts of exclusives. The vinyl figure company has its hands in just about every single license on the planet, but some have proven to be much more popular than others. Case in point, the wide variety of Disney characters that disappear from shelves faster than milk and bread in a blizzard. It also helps that now Disney can count everyone from Star Wars under its umbrella, giving Funko a tremendous one-two punch when combined with the more animated side of the Mouse House. That goes double when it comes to SDCC exclusive items.

The San Diego Comic Con schedules have been rolling out all week, and Warner Bros. has a bunch of heavy hitters this year to possibly keep Marvel and Disney from stealing too much of the spotlight. Warners takes over Hall H on Saturday, July 22 at 11:30 AM, starting with a showcase of all their exciting upcoming releases, hosted by master of ceremonies Chris Hardwick.

For the past few years, Toys R Us and Entertainment Earth have teamed up to offer a select number of Comic-Con exclusives to the public that couldn't make it to the show itself. This year, the two retailers are again teaming up for a series of varied toys and collectibles that would otherwise be unavailable to anyone outside of San Diego. Mixing things up with Hasbro, Funko, Playmates and more, this year's offerings bring a very diverse grouping that collectors will more than be happy to snap up from the comforts of their own homes.

For the past few years, only a handful of merchandisers could rightfully lay claim to having one of the best San Diego Comic-Con exclusive items. With dozens of different companies all vying for that top spot, the competition was absolutely fierce. However, in that great big mix of exclusives, one company constantly found itself topping nearly every toy fanatic's list. NECA has been on a major roll as of late, and with this year's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle, Predator and Aliens offerings, its grip on the Comic-Con crown doesn't look like it will loosen.

Since exploding onto the scene, Funko has been one of the most dominant exclusive providers at just about every convention this side of our solar system. San Diego Comic-Con is still a special beast though, and is home to something like 100 different exclusives from the vinyl figure company this year. Of course, Funko has a range of collectible items these days, and both Marvel and DC Comics have a great bit of exposure across all of Funko's various items at this year's event.

San Diego Comic-Con, like life, comes at you fast. With just a couple of short weeks until SDCC 2017, the first panel and scheduling announcements have started to roll in — including, wonder of all wonders, a Twin Peaks panel in Hall H (unfortunately, David Lynch will not be giving us the mystifying pleasure of experiencing “David Lynch at Comic-Con”). Following that wild announcement, SDCC has unveiled their official Thursday film lineup, which includes panels from 20th Century Fox (hello, Deadpool!), the DCU and Netflix.

And now, that time is near, where we face San Diego's Comic-Con. Our friends, we'll say it clear, and reveal to you all the exclusives. There's no wrong way to enjoy San Diego Comic-Con, but for many, picking up rare artifacts from the world's foremost geeky manufacturers is an honored tradition. With that in mind, we've taken a long look at what Hasbro's got to offer its fans from the realms of Star Wars, Marvel, Transformers and beyond to help you in your quest to get what you so desire.