Alan Ball (American Beauty, Six Feet Under) thought he was going to make a move back to the big screen. After years of Six Feet Under, he said jokingly that he was tired of people talking about their problems and relationships and dealing with death. He was ready for something fun. Ball discovered the books while waiting for a dentist appointment.  He wandered over to the book store and came across a book with the tag line: "Maybe having a vampire for a boyfriend isn't such a bright idea." The book is Charlaine Harris' Dead Until Dark, the first of nine Sookie Stackhouse books.

I'm not a comic book guy anymore. I used to be. Now I'm on the floor for swag, toys, t-shirts, and people watching. I go to the panels for TV shows and movies.  I've scoured the panel schedule and this is what I've come up with for the television panels that should not be missed this year:

1.    Lost.  Too obvious? Too bad. Lost is probably the best show on television. The modern day Gilligan's Island, except with a plane crash. Bring on season 5.  Panel: Sat 12pm, Hall H

2.    Fringe J.J. Abrams showed the pilot of Lost at Comic-Con four years ago and it was awesome. I'm not going to miss the chance to see his newest TV show.  This one starts with a plane landing in Boston... but everyone on board has died some sort of gruesome death. It sounds like the introductory mystery alerting our cast that the world is weirder than we thought... do I smell a Lost crossover? (Maybe he'll have a Star Trek clip too.) Pilot Screening: Wed 6pm and 7:30pm, Ballroom 20 Panel: Sat 4:45, Ballroom 20