Ramon Guerra as the Mandalorian, right, stares at a death trooper Saturday during the first Comic Con Oakland, which concludes Sunday at the Oakland Convention Center.
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Animation fans visit vendor booths Saturday, the opening day of Comic Con Oakland.
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Stuart Ng of Stuart Ng Books, left, chats with Bishop O’Dowd High School art teachers Thien Pham and Briana Loewinsohn, who were promoting their comic books at the Oakland event Saturday.
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Illustrator and vendor Eric Cabbell of Raleigh, N.C., chats with an attendee at Comic Con Oakland, which concludes Sunday.
Yalonda M. James/S.F. Chronicle
Heroes and villains, some sidekicks and curious creatures, at least one Sailor Moon, a lone Strawberry Shortcake and the real “‘Breaking Bad’ baddie” descended on Oakland Saturday, putting the region’s long link to comics back on display.
Hundreds of kids and grown-up kids poured into the Oakland Convention Center for opening day of the city’s first Comic Con, an event featuring artists, voice actors, collectibles and rabid cosplaying fans dressed as their favorite animated character.
San Diego is known for the biggest Comic Con, but event producer Don Brisler has been re-creating the experience in other cities that have historically been “epicenters for zines or punk rock or really kind of indie scenes.”
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Oakland Comic Con, which began Saturday, drew hundreds of fans of fantasy, sci-fi and horror Saturday.
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Oakland has the music, an art culture and “a really ripe environment to bring back an art-focused show,” he said, adding that future years are already booked.
Antawn Bryant, one of the Sacramento creators of Impound Comics, stood at his booth and surveyed the crowd late in the morning, saying the scene already had the feel that it was going to be the place to go in the future.
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“It feels like Oakland,” he said, referring to the eclectic mix of ages, races and interests. “It feels all of that.”
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And, Bryant said, after all the sports teams leaving, “having something come back is meaningful for the city.”
Nearby, Tony Arieta was dressed as “Spaceballs” character Dark Helmet, while his wife, Ilia Arieta, as the movie spoof’s Barf, wore a red jumpsuit with cat ears. It was their first Comic Con, lured by their kids.
Jose Guerra (as Darth Jorath), left, his brother Ramon Guerra (as the Mandalorian) and Jose’s wife, Kaylia Guerra (as Rey), meet admirers during opening day of Comic Con Oakland.
Yalonda M. James/S.F. Chronicle
Their teens had wandered off, but the couple didn’t care. They’d been bitten by the comic bug.
Tony Arieta called the event “pretty cool,” which could only be described as effusive praise from the Sith dark lord from the “Star Wars” parody. His wife, meanwhile, was giddy about an artist who did a mash-up of the Cookie Monster and Godzilla.
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“I want to come every year,” she said.
While this was Oakland’s first official Comic Con, the city hosted nine WonderCons between 1987 and 2002 highlighting comics, sci-fi and films.
The convention center was lined with comic artists, several from Oakland and other local cities, as well as national notables, some with lengthy résumés featuring Batman, Deadpool, Gargoyles and Pixar.
The opening day of Oakland Comic Con drew hundreds of fans to the Oakland Convention Center on Saturday.
Jill Tucker/S.F. Chronicle
But at the back, the lines stretched the longest for the biggest names in the building —, Giancarlo Esposito of “Breaking Bad” and Luci Christian, a veteran voice actor with notable credits including Nami from the anime series “One Piece.”
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Both attend multiple Comic Cons and similar events across the country every year.
While Esposito might be best known for playing kingpin Gus Fring on “Breaking Bad” and “Better Call Saul,” he has played villains in the “Star Wars” TV series “The Mandalorian” and, this year, battled Captain America as the evil bad guy Sidewinder. He is also a voice actor for anime, gaming and animated series.
At 68, Esposito has seen his fame stretch across generations, with some thinking of him as the voice of Harley Quinn’s Lex Luther, others as Gus Fring or as characters in four Spike Lee films or, for the trivia buffs, as one of the kids singing the “Electric Company” theme from the 1970s.
“Breaking Bad” actor Giancarlo Esposito, left, takes a photo with fan Alan Todd of KeyComix during the first Comic Con Oakland.
Yalonda M. James/S.F. Chronicle
Those lining up Saturday for his autograph ($80) or a selfie ($90), were oblivious to the cost to spend a bit of time with Esposito.
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“He’s the greatest actor of all time,” said one starstruck man who got a selfie. “It’s worth it.”
Esposito also loves the Comic Con experiences. It’s not about the fame, he said.
His four daughters often tell him he has no idea how famous he is.
During his Comic Con Q&A’s, Esposito often tells fans that “if you love what you do, truly love it, you don’t stop doing it.”
“There’s the part of it where I have gushing fans and people coming up to me all the time and, oh, I’m a star and all that stuff,” he said. “Yeah, but then I gotta go, right? Because that’s lovely and I’m thankful and grateful, but I don’t live there. There are people who do.”
Next to Esposito, Christian signed autographs and took pictures with her fans, her line as long as her neighbor’s.
Voice actor Luci Christian meets fans as she signs autographs during the first day of Comic Con Oakland.
Yalonda M. James/S.F. Chronicle
She has been voicing anime characters for about 20 years, including Nami, a role she got in 2007. At the time, the industry was small in the U.S., with the shows hard to find on television and fans found only at smaller anime conventions.
That has changed with the advent of streaming and conventions like Comic Con merging comics, anime and animation.
While Christian and other voice actors perform their craft in isolation, their voices linger with those who watch the shows, becoming a part of their childhoods and remaining throughout their lives.
“It’s a very weird niche celebrity,” she said, adding that the manga show “One Piece” has long had a loyal following.
There’s a cred to being a part of this fandom, and the fandom is wonderful. They are generous and fun,” she said. “I think the overarching ideas (are) of found family and sort of this loyal band to the end.”
An attendee looks at artwork by illustrator and vendor Eric Cabbell of Raleigh, N.C., during opening day of Comic Con Oakland.
Yalonda M. James/S.F. Chronicle
As the convention center started to fill up with more attendees Saturday afternoon and the lines got longer for the two celebrities, Esposito stepped away for a few minutes from the signings and selfies.
There was no sign of the scary villain who stared down Walter White or who seethed as he said he’d happily kill Captain America for free.
“The reason I come to these cons is because I like to observe people being in wonder, enchantment, and joy,” he said. “I don’t see a lot of it in the world, and I think a lot of us have let go of our inner child and that wondrous feeling of being vulnerable, open to any situation because of our whatever circumstance.”
They get older, he said, less open, less goofy. And then, they walk through the Comic Con doors dressed as Darth Vader, Strawberry Shortcake or a hero’s sidekick.
“And so I love cons,” he said, “because it allows people to redefine themselves in a childish way that allows them to be more comfortable with who they probably really are.”