Convention season processes a pace with San Francisco’s WonderCon 2010. There were the normal DC Nation and Editorial panels are well as a Spotlight panel on JLA writer James Robinson and a special Brightest Day panel.

Spoilers for Blackest Night #8 follow…

The Brightest Day panel talked about the 12 heroes and villains that had been resurrected in Blackest Night #8 and where they would end up in the DC Universe. Aquaman and Deadman will play a large part in the actual Brightest Day series while the manhunt for Maxwell Lord (as covered earlier and in the round of interviews with Judd Winick) will be the focus for Justice League: Generation Lost. Jade, Alan Scott’s daughter, will appear in Justice League.

The James Robinson spotlight panel was hosted by Eddie Berganza (JLA editor) and focused almost entirely on the Justice League. It opened with a discussion on how Cry For Justice came about and how, at one stage, DC had wanted to remove all their lower level fictional cities. However, it looks like they asked the wrong writer as James Robinson dug his heals in limiting the damage to Star City – and has become a plot device to establish JT Krul’s new Green Arrow series.

The size of the new League was also addressed. Robinson said that he had realised only after he’d started that he couldn’t “do it like Geoff [Johns] with JSA” and juggle a massive roster. The JLA team seen in JLA #41-43 will be slimmed down. The core team will be Batman (Dick Grayson), Supergirl, Donna Troy, Jade, Starman (Mikaal Thomas), Congorilla and Jesse Quick. Gypsy and Dr Light will show up at some point. Vixen has left to set-up her own superhero team in Africa – that story was originally to have been told in JLA #41, but it will now be told sometime after the JLA/JSA crossover.

CBR’s coverage included details of Robinson’s plans for Congorilla:

Mikaal and Congorilla are the new “Blue and Gold” of the DC Universe, and Robinson mentioned that he has decided to make Congorilla Scottish. “Just picture a giant golden gorilla with Sean Connery’s accent.” He further described Congorilla as being born in 1898, is the son of a Scottish gamekeeper and was once a member of the IRA.

[…]

The writer next explained Congorilla’s power set, having decided to give the character a healing factor to make him a more formidable opponent. Also, after “Cry For Justice,” the character has the ability to grow larger, especially when he gets emotional. The growing power came about because the artist on “Cry For Justice” accidently drew Congorilla at different sizes in certain panels. “The art was beautiful, but every once in a while the scale was off; sometimes he was the same height as everyone else and sometimes he was a giant,” Robinson explained. The writer likes the power, and likes the idea of a “King Kong-like” Congorilla fighting on the Empire State Building.

Issues #44 and #45 are a prequel to the JSA/JLA crossover and feature Donna getting a new lasso (with a power different that Wonder Woman’s lasso) and a guest appearance by the Demon Etrigan. Issues #46-48 are the JLA/JSA crossover and will feature Alan Scott’s Starheart. Jade and Donna will become room-mates in San Francisco. Mark Bagley takes a break for #49 and then he’s back for the double-sized #50.

One single comment by Geoff John’s has been echoed around the internet. Newsrama’s coverage described it as:

Next fan asked if DC’s film side was planning on anything similar to Marvel’s plans for an Avengers movie—specifically, Justice League. “Ask me in San Diego,” Johns replied.

That has been taken to mean that a Justice League movie will be announced at San Diego. However, I’m not so sure that a specific Justice League film will be announced. It seems more likely to me that DC Entertainment will lay out their entire movie strategy at San Diego Comic Con.