As the curtain falls on the 2009 San Diego Comic Con, we take a look at the highlights.

News this year was a little sparse, but this was more a result of numerous news leaks leading up to the event rather than lack of news. With box sets and series line ups cropping up on various websites before the event even kicked off, all of the Minimate goodness on display seemed a little underwhelming compared to the massive bombshells from years past. Still, there were a few nuggets that were only suspected leading into SDCC ’09, plus one or two that no one expected.

Sadly, most websites covering SDCC weren’t too interested in the Minimates on display, so your best for pictures is to check out Ivan’s post over at Minimate Multiverse.

New License

The biggest piece of news to come out of SDCC for Minimate collectors was the acquisition of a new license by DST. 80′s toy line Battle Beasts will be making the transition to Minimate form. An interesting aspect of this acquisition is that DST actually hold ownership of the brand rather than a licensing agreement, which opens the door to what they can do with the property. Expect to see your first Battle Beast in the previously announced Minimate Laboratory play set, due out later this year.

New Marvel Products

A few new items from the Marvel license debuted at SDCC. What was no surprise was the debut of Marvel series 31 and 32, which had previously been leaked in a posting on Marvelous News. Still, the line-up was great to see:

Marvel Series 31

X-Force Cable & X-Force X-23
Extremis Iron Man & Titanium Man
Yellow Jacket & Kree Soldier
Goliath & Kree Soldier

Marvel Series 32

Black Bolt & Captain Marvel
Captain Britain & Shadowcat w/Lockheed
Angel & Multiple Man
First Appearance Angel & Multiple Man

Also on display was the latest Marvel box set, featuring the classic X-Factor line-up:

X-Factor box set

Cyclops
Jean Grey
Beast
Ice Man

At the Minimate panel, another Marvel box set was unveiled, this one featuring the first appearance of the X-Men:

X-Men box set

Cyclops
Jean Grey
Beast
Ice Man

Action Figure Xpress confirms that these are AFX exclusives and that they’ll be available by year end 2009.

Finally, some of the sets from the next couple of series of Toys R Us exclusive Marvel figures were unveiled, featuring an assortment of characters from both the comics as well as X-Men Origins: Wolverine.

Marvel TRU Wolverine Series 2

Wolverine (movie) & Weapon XI (movie)
Wolverine (movie) & Gambit (movie)

Marvel TRU Series 4

X-Factor Angel & Warpath
Molecule Man & Spider-Woman

No word on what the rest of the line-up may be, but Multiverse member and sometimes X-Man storm 1:08 talked with some of the DST gang, who seemed to suggest that the rest of the Wolverine series will be rounded off with some of the sets from the first series.

New Website

Kicking off during SDCC was the new Minimates website, appropriately located at http://www.minimates.com. The site is geared more towards young collectors and is expected to have some fun and games coming soon. Also on the site are several checklists and posters of the various Marvel, Ghostbusters, and Terminator Minimates from past, present, and future. There’s even a Buy link that leads to DST’s website so the kiddies can rid their parents of those pesky low credit card balances. Overall, the website experience is a bit underwhelming to those hardcore collector veterans, but should prove to be a good jumping on point for those younger collectors who are being introduced to Minimates through Toys R Us stores.

License Updates

Rounding out the SDCC coverage, several of DSTs other licenses were on display. Nothing really new was shown, but it was nice to see them nevertheless.

Beverly Hills Cop box set

Axel Foley (with banana, badge, and hotel robe)
Detective Rosewood
Detective Taggart
Victor Maitland

The Beverly Hills Cop box set is scheduled for a November ’09 release.

Godfather box set

Don Vito Corleone
Michael Corleone
Sonny Corleone
Fredo Corleone

The Godfather box set is schedule for an August ’09 release.

Terminator 2 series 2

John Connor & Battle Damaged Sarah Connor
Combat T-800 & Motorcycle Cop T-1000
Asylum Assault T-1000 & Inmate Sarah Connor (Previews)
Silver T-1000 & Battle Damaged Endoskeleton (TRU)

Terminator 2 series 2 is expected to have an October ’09 release.

The BSG Mini flyers were also on display, and are slated for a fall ’09 release.

Also on display were the current run of Ghostbusters Minimates, which have proven to be a sellout hit. DST is planning on a third outing with the franchise, though character selection hasn’t been finished yet.

Final Thoughts

So, that’s it for SDCC ’09. A bit more subdued than years past, but that may just be from all the leaked news leading up to the event. Even with all the advanced notice, a few surprises managed to slip through, with the Battle Beasts license leaving a lot of people scratching their heads. It seems like a good license for a younger audience (or those fueled by nostalgia), if it can just find the right shelf space. The new Marvel stuff looked great, as always, though the verdict is out on whether we want more Wolverine ‘mates. And the rest of the licenses on display have definitely fueled the appetite for many collectors eagerly waiting upcoming release dates.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I must go mourn for my wallet as I await the eleventy billion exclusives from the show to arrive on my doorstep.