Issue Date: July 19, 2009

Where you'll see hits first

USA WEEKEND is headed to the biggest pop-culture convention on the planet, Comic-Con,for a look at all the hottest entertainment of the next year. Tag along with us.

By Brian Truitt

Comic-Con International, arguably the world's biggest annual pop-culture extravaganza, kicks off on Thursday, with more than 125,000 people expected to converge on the San Diego Convention Center to get sneak peeks at the movies, games, TV shows, comic books and more that fans will be buzzing about for the next year.

And just when you think a poor economy might be the convention's Kryptonite, the journey to this geek mecca is more popular than ever. For the first time in Comic-Con's 40-year history, the four-day event sold out months in advance.

"People are looking for a little escape from the everyday world," says David Glanzer, the event's director of marketing and public relations. "Comic-Con is a great place to do that."

Last year, standing-room-only audiences packed the large, 6,500-capacity exhibit hall to watch previews of new movies such as "Twilight" and Watchmen. What will be the talk of Comic-Con 2009? Here's a look at the best it has to offer:

Thousands -- mostly teenage girls --camped out overnight for 2008's "Twilight" panel discussion, so the sequel's director, Chris Weitz, expects lots more screaming for the cast of "The Twilight Saga: New Moon" (out in November), the second in the movie series based on the popular Stephenie Meyer books. "The enthusiasm is so genuine and endearing, and the fans really want it to go well," Weitz says.

The public got its first taste of "Iron Man" at 2007's Comic-Con, and "Iron Man 2," due in May 2010, will have a huge presence at this year's event.

One of the more intriguing stars of Comic-Con could be Dante Alighieri -- yes, the Italian poet from the Middle Ages. Dante's Inferno is a video-game adaptation of Alighieri's work coming out next year, and Electronic Arts will be revealing plans for tie-in comics, an animated film and a Hollywood project. The company also will be promoting hot autumn games, including "Brutal Legend," featuring a heavy-metal story line and Jack Black.

Iconic filmmakers Peter Jackson and James Cameron will be there with their new productions -- the sci-fi "District 9" (August) and 3-D epic "Avatar" (December), respectively -- and are doing a panel together on the future of filmmaking.

Two shows will host exclusive screenings at Comic-Con. ABC's V, a revamp of the 1980s alien invasion series, will show its entire pilot before it premieres on TV early next year, and the Fox drama "Dollhouse" will screen a never-before-seen episode, "Epitaph One," before a Q&A session with creator Joss Whedon and star Eliza Dushku.

Children of the 1980s are always a favorite of the Comic-Con vendors. This year, Shout! Factory is releasing the complete cartoon TV series of both "G.I. Joe" and "Transformers" on DVD exclusively at the event, months before they hit retail shelves.