Mr. Mercedes | Geekscape

SDCC 2018: I Lost My Mind At The Amazing ‘Mr. Mercedes’ Offsite!

by Derek KraneveldtAugust 1, 2018

Before last year’s SDCC, I had never heard of Mr. Mercedes.

The property is a trilogy of novels written by Stephen King, and last year a ten-episode TV series premiered on the America-only Audience Network. The series had a big presence at last year’s Wired Cafe, and the premise intrigued me immediately, but I somehow forgot all about the series once I returned to Canada.

Last month I finally decided to give the series a shot (the only place that you can see it in Canada is through iTunes), and I quickly became obsessed. I binged all ten episodes in just a few days, and have been talking about it constantly to pretty much anyone that will listen to me every since. The series is an incredibly dark and horrifically disturbing look into the mind of the insane (yet very human) villain that is Brady Hartsfelt, and a depressed, retired detective named Bill Hodges who simply seems to be trying to find his place in a world that doesn’t need him anymore. Every episode of the series impressed the hell out of me, and many featured scenes so disturbing that they stuck with me for days. My fiancé even began watching the show while I was away in San Diego this week, and this was her initial response when I ask her how it was going:

I was beyond excited to see that Mr. Mercedes would be returning to San Diego for this year’s Comic-Con. Not only was the series again a sponsor of the always-appreciated Wired Cafe (and was plastered in giant form across the face and elevators of the Omni hotel), but there was also an amazing offsite even being hosted just a few blocks away.

I was lucky enough to attend the offsite on Friday morning, and now that the convention is over I can absolutely say that it was a highlight of this year’s trip. Everything present was an absolute dream for fans of the show, whether it was the augmented reality game played on your own (or supplied) phone, the scavenger hunt that would net you swag ranging from Mr. Mercedes pins to unique San Diego themed t-shirts, the lithograph photo booth that morphs your face into the show’s logo, the multiple sets built up with screen-used props from the show, the screening room, or the VR escape room – every piece of this event felt fully realized, and as soon as it came to an end, all that I wanted to do was go through it all again.

I started with the VR escape room. Essentially, you’re locked in Brady’s lair with a bomb and a countdown timer, and have a few moments (I’m not sure exactly how long, but it all went pretty quickly) to explore the area in order to find clues to disarm it. The entire time, Brady is mocking you (using that creepy, computery voice used in the show), telling you that you’re going to fail, and the like. You’ll move around the lair looking for things that stand out (happy face tennis ball, Brady’s brother’s fire truck, etc) and slowly figure out the eight character password). I ran out of time just as I figured out what the word was (and kind of felt a dummy for not realizing it sooner), the bomb went off, and I lost. If you managed to beat escape the room, you’d earn a t-shirt that states “I Escaped Brady’s Lair” before moving on to the next section.

There were several sets from the series that were rebuilt for the convention, including Finder’s Keepers Investigative Services, Brady’s hospital room, Supreme Electronics, and fittingly in the basement of the offsite’s location, Brady’s lair. The coolest part of all of these sets were that they were dressed using actual props from the show – the gravestones in Brady’s lair are his family’s actual gravestones, the rock memorializing the victim’s of the Mercedes attack is the actual rock from the show, the desk in Finder’s Keepers is Holly’s actual desk, and the journal in Brady’s lair is the actual on-camera journal from the show as well. I was simply enthralled with all of this, and spent so much time in every room just exploring everything that I could.

Speaking of exploring, the Mr. Mercedes offsite also offered a pretty cool augmented reality game (as mentioned above). Outside of the building a QR code was posted that linked you to the app, and once inside there are 10 ‘tags’ hidden throughout the location. Point your phone’s camera at these tags, and augmented reality images of other significant items or props will pop up on your display, and you’ll even see bits of dialogue between Brady and Hodges. Pretty neat, and pretty different from anything I’d seen at one of these events before.

Inside of Finder’s Keepers, there was also a cool photo booth that ‘morphed’ your face with that of the Mr. Mercedes logo. You could email this to yourself, but it was also printed off on a neat 3D lenticular that changes the image depending on the angle you’re looking at it from. This quickly became one of my favourite pieces of swag from the entire convention.

After flowing through the basement and gawking at Brady’s lair for what felt like forever, we were taken into a connected screening room. Here we were shown a lengthy featurette showing us where the characters are as we come into season two, and it also discussed how the stakes will be set now that Brady is apparently brain-dead in a hospital bed. We were then treated to a striking scene that takes place in episode three of the upcoming season. Luckily I’d watched episodes one and two just a few days prior, because I’d have been left scratching my head otherwise, but with the context of the previous episodes I cannot freaking wait to see more.

Following the screening room, we were treated to some swag on our way to the exit (including an awesome SDCC-focussed t-shirt that says “I Lost My Mind In San Diego”). I had taken so long looking at all of the set pieces that there were only a few of us left at this point, and as we approached the exit doors our PR host kindly let us know that some of the cast was coming through the experience, and that we could come back around and check things out. Much of the cast had already made their way to the next section at this point, and I didn’t want to intrude (especially as this was likely one of their few times of mostly peace this entire week), but Justine Lupe (Holly) and director Jack Bender were hanging out in Finder’s Keepers, and when the super-nice PR guide asked if I wanted a photo with them I absolutely had to say yes. Jack’s episodes of Lost are pretty much my favourite episodes of TV ever, and to speak with him for a couple of minutes, and to get to tell him that (that same thing that he’s probably heard over, and over, and over again) felt important to me.

In any case, 1200 words later, you better believe that I had an amazing time at this offsite. The design and care that the team put into building this event was truly spectacular, and for a show that’s only available on one network they are pushing this thing hard. I think that Mr. Mercedes is one of the most criminally underrated shows currently on television, and I believed that this offsite must have put some eyes on the series.

Mr. Mercedes returns on August. 22 on the Audience Network.

https://youtu.be/79Px8KWEdMM

SDCC 2018: Derek’s Long-Winded SDCC Recap – Friday

by Derek KraneveldtJuly 20, 2018

Read pre-convention and preview night here.
Read my Thursday recap here.

What a freaking day.

Just when I thought I that things could not possibly be as cool today as they were yesterday (I’m still reeling about the WWE stuff at PetCo Park), this morning began with three awesome back to back offsite events.

The day began fairly early, as I had to be at the Amazon Fire TV to the Future offsite event for an 8AM start time. The event showed off all of the neat things that you could do with the FireTV product line (including the new FireTV Cube, which also acts as a smart-home hub). A lot of people seemed super impressed with the smart-home stuff, but as someone who has been using Philips Hue lights and an Alexa-enabled TV for some time, the Cube seemed a little slow to respond at times (I think it’s likely due to networking issues more than anything, seeings as this was as temporary building.

Employees demonstrated Dolby Atmos via a Vizio sound bar (Mikaela, I’m sorry but we need a new soundbar), showing off the newest trailer for Jack Ryan which premieres on Amazon Prime on August 31st and looks freaking awesome. I also feel like this thing has been in the works for freaking ever, as I’m pretty sure that there were buildings covered in Jack Ryan shit last year.

There were a number of photo ops throughout the exhibit as well, including Game of Thrones (the iron throne, of course), The Good Place, Westworld, Jack Ryan, and more, as well as a few neat installations like a ‘Backyard Cinema Club’, a giant overgrown remote that looked like something out of The Last of Us, and an area with themed cocktails.

It was fun, and it was air conditioned (which is pretty rare for some of these offsite events, and it was much. It’s also a little off the beaten path, so from what I’ve seen the line hasn’t even been that crazy. It’s open through Sunday, so you should probably check it out.

Next up was one of the events that I was most excited for coming into this week. Last year’s Mr. Mercedes sponsored Wired Cafe was the first I’d heard of the title (in book or television form), and I absolutely loved the series when I eventually watched it (and by watched I mean binged super quickly). I was lucky enough to see the fantastic first two episodes of the second season before I left for California last week, and I was beyond ready to see what AT&T and the Audience Network had in store for attendees.

The entire offsite was fantastic. There were rebuilds of some of the sets (including Brady’s coma room, Brady’s lair, Supreme Electronics, and more), a VR escape room that had you locked in Brady’s lair searching for clues before a bomb goes off (with Brady’s creepy, computerize voice talking in your ear the whole time and creeping the shit out of you). There was also a neat augmented reality application that you could download in order to partake in a scavenger hunt around the exhibit. You could find clues that would unlock dialog between Bill and Brady, and it was a super fun way to make the offsite more interactive. There was even a cool photo op that morphed you into the show’s poster – they even print it into one of those cool 3D lenticular things that were popular in the 90’s.

Attendees could also find physical clues throughout the exhibit that would earn them stamps, and at the end of the event you’d get some swag based on how many stamps you earned, ranging from pins to bags to some sweet San Diego exclusive t-shirts.

I was also there at the perfect time. As I was coming back up from Brady’s lair, the PR organizer let me know that some of the cast and crew was coming through if I wanted to check things out. I ended up grabbing a photo with Justine Lupe and director Jack Bender, and even had a (very brief) change to chat with Bender about Lost (which was mostly me telling him that his episodes are my very favourite episodes of TV).

https://instagram.com/p/Ble4–uh7WQ/

Look for my dedicated article about the in the next couple of days, but you should definitely be getting in line for this one (and yes, I realize that I’m just telling you to get in line for everything – it turns out that shit is cool at Comic-Con, okay?)

Following Mr. Mercedes, I walked just down the block again to the Purge City offsite (super convenient placement). I was inexpressibly excited to see this activation, simply because it looked fucking hilarious, and the premise is amazing. There’s a ten-episode The Purge TV series set to hit USA Network in September, and this was a fantastic way to advertise. Purge City has to be the most immersive offsite that I’ve been to in years, as every single actor in the venue was in full character 100% of the time. They often had creepy smiles, and were constantly asking patrons what they were doing for the Purge. When asked, I noted that I was from Canada so I wasn’t used to purging, and the employees were happy to offer suggestions.

Upon entry, you’re given 20 ‘Purge Bucks’ to spend on whatever you want. There are shirts available for 15 Purge Bucks, hats for 12, temporary tattoos, candles, energy drinks, and even more. You can grab a basket and fill up! I picked up a t-shirt, a replica of the 28th amendment to the constitution (which is when the purge was added), and a greeting card that said ‘Live, Laugh, Purge’ on it. This totalled 20 Purge Bucks, and I also received a helium balloon and a reusable ‘Purge City’ bag upon checkout.

I spent a long time in Purge City absorbing as much as I possibly could. Every single piece of merchendise (whether actually for sale or for display only) was totally believable, and so freaking well done. I also had a chance to spend some time in the Purge City ‘demo’ area, which had employees demoing some new products coming out for this year’s Purge.

Be sure to watch this demo of the ‘Purge Day Precision Cake Cutter’:

Take a look at some photos from Purge City below, and be on the lookout for even more in the next day or two. For SDCC attendees, Purge City is open tomorrow from 11AM to 7PM, and on Sunday from 11AM-4PM.

I packed a lot into my morning, and decided to keep things mostly relaxed for the rest of the day. I met up with Courtney and Shane at the Wired Cafe for a quick drink (thanks again, Wired) and to watch the rest of the vultures scramble for the donuts, sandwiches, and sliders that were coming out regularly.

We also saw our first protesters today, and Courtney got really mad at the one that said “Vaccines Cause Autism”. There are always some parody protesters as well though, which is always pretty hilarious.

Finally, I hit the show floor. Naturally, I b-lined it directly to the Mondo booth. Matt asked me to grab the Die Hard print for a friend of his (and then somehow did not know how big or expensive prints can be), and the Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom prints were also still in stock. I wandered around for a bit and tried to call Mikaela multiple times so that she could talk me out of buying things, but she didn’t pick up… so I bought the Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom Mondo print. I also scoped out a sweet Sea of Thieves shirt and replica coin that I haven’t bit the bullet on quite yet (but there are still two more days to do so). Next up, I went to the ABC booth to look for some Golden Girls items for Mikaela, and then I doubled back to Factory Entertainment to pick up the exclusive die-cast S.S. Georgie replica and an exclusive Goonies bottle opener (which was my second choice after seeing that the Jurassic Park raptor claw bottle opener was sold out). At checkout, when asked if I needed anything else, I joked “Not unless you have any more of those Jurassic Park bottle openers left,” to which they said “Actually we just found one.”

Safe to say, I bought it. I actually meant to grab it instead of the Goonies one, but there was a bit of a misunderstanding and somehow I ended up with both. Then Mikaela had to talk me off the ledge because I was freaking out about how much money I’d spent. She’s lovely and I don’t know what I would do without her.

I took a quick walk over to the Castle Rock exhibit, which had about a 120 minute line that I didn’t feel like standing in. I’m still super impressed with that house they built, and the car (and creepy kid) in the water make more some great photo ops. There were some Hulu representatives in the area giving out neat lightning/micro-USB powered fans (it’s hot out) in exchange for doing a survey about how you used Hulu. I said “I’m from Canada,” and they just said “Sorry,” and handed me the fan.

Shane, Courtney, and I grabbed some food – this was at like 5:30, and I’d intended to grab something small so I could eat with Matt at 8:30, but by the time we’d found something that didn’t have a super long wait it was after 7:00. I had delicious nachos.

At this point in the day, I’d been out and about for its entirety and I needed to get to work. We made a quick stop at the PetCo Interactive Zone to see Greg Grunberg, Adrian Pasdar, and friends ‘Band From TV’ play a few songs, and then we returned the hotel in order to get writing.

Writing was tough, but for good reasons. The room was full of dudes – Jonathan, Gui, Shane, and Matt were all in the room, and over the course of the night I learned that there were like 15 Puppet Master movies, that Shane didn’t know that Mamma Mia was based on the music of Abba, and a bunch of other shit.

But here we are. Today was a fun as hell, and then very odd day – of course I knew that things with Jon Schnepp were bad, but I hadn’t been online in hours and I only learned of his death from Geekscape Alumni Eric Diaz. I’d only met Jon a few times, but I truly enjoyed the conversations that we’d had over the years, and watching him and Jonathan talk about things at a way deeper level than I could ever hope to understand was always fascinating. Schnepp had the SDCC booth next to ours for the past few years, and it’s super weird and very sad to look at that booth and not see him. I cannot imagine the heartbreak that his partner Holly and his family are feeling right now. A ‘Get Better Jon Schnepp’ fund was set up last week, and is still ongoing at this time to help cover his medical expenses.

That’s Friday. Thanks so much for reading this far, and look for more tomorrow.