No Paramount at Comic-Con ‘08!?!? – UPDATED

You’ve got to be freaking kidding me, Paramount.

Variety reports that Paramount will have virtually no presence at Comic-Con this year, most notably with no preview-and-star-laden mega panel in Hall H. According to a spokesperson, “the timing was off this year.”

Is that so? What timing are they referring to, exactly? CCI happens the same week every year, so it can’t be chalked up to the Con. Paramount’s timing, as in they have nothing to show? Right, ’cause the fans have absolutely no desire to see anything about Transformers 2, G.I. Joe, or JJ Abrams’ Star Trek. (Off the top of my head, that means there will be no CCI campaigning for at least the two biggest of those titles, since they both release next summer before CCI ‘09.) What on earth are they thinking?

Last year, Paramount’s panel was the talk of the Con, with all the Iron Man goodwill, Cloverfield, Star Trek, Indiana Jones 4, and more. It could be argued that Iron Man owes its overwhelmingly positive buzz to Comic-Con, as that’s unquestionably where all the positive buzz began. Does Paramount really value that kind of viral publicity so little, not to mention all of its fans?

This just pain sucks.

Here’s hoping this is all just a nasty misunderstanding. If it’s not… There’s still time to reconsider, Paramount.

UPDATE 6/27/08 – Variety is now reporting that Paramount will have a panel at Comic-Con this year, though they won’t be hosting a booth as in previous years. According to a Paramount spokesman, “We have a vibrant and exciting schedule of activities planned for Comic-Con.” Anybody else wondering what the heck is going on with the PR department at Paramount? One spokesman says no, another says yes… Do either of them know what they’re talking about? Is Paramount really in danger of not showing at CCI, or is this the next big publicity scheme from the same folks that refused to unveil the title of Cloverfield for months on end?