Comic-Con 2013: We've Seen Predator in 3D

As soon as I got to San Diego for Comic-Con, I saw an e-mail from my Fox Home Entertainment reps to come to the Predator booth on preview night to see their Predator 3D experience. So my first official business at Comic-Con was Predator 3D. At booth #3528 you can see scenes from the 3D conversion of Predator, take a photo with the Predator and pre-order the Blu-ray with a 3D printed figuring of the Predator ripping your own head off. I’ll get to that.

If models hired to shill at PR booths are “booth babes,” would the guy in the Predator costume be a “booth beast?” That guy’s a trooper. But while fans were taking photos with Predator, I put on the exclusive Predator 3D glasses to see the scenes from the film in 3D.

The 3D looked great, and the transfer itself looked superior to the standard Blu-ray editions, more clear, less grain. Granted, they were showing it on a top of the line JVC 3D TV so the conditions were optimal. In the closeup of the Predator unmasked, I’ve got to believe his little tendrils poked out of the screen a little, but maybe that’s just because I wanted them to.

Most of the 3D scenes showing at the Predator booth followed the James Cameron “inward depth” rule rather than the sticky outty kind of 3D that I like. You can definitely see all the layers in the jungle. Highlight included the descent into the jungle, the attack on the guerilla camp and the night fight between Dutch (Arnold Schwarzenegger) and Predator. The night scenes looked particularly great for being low light and converted into full depth.

If the Predator 3D scenes convince you that you must own Predator in 3D, you can pre-order the Blu-ray at the booth. It’s out in December, but if you order now, they will scan your face and make a figurine of Predator holding your decapitated head in victory. It will be your actual face, which you scan at the booth, and you get to pick your hair style and color. I wasn’t trying to cheat, but they didn’t have a default hair style that’s receding like mine, so I automatically get more hair when Predator rips my head off. It’s $49,99 for the 3D Blu-ray with the personalized figure, or $129.99 for all that but the Blu-ray comes in a Predator head.

Then you can take your own photo with the Predator and tweet it with the hashtag #Huntthepredator. Not a bad first night at Comic-Con to sample a 3D conversion that actually makes sense, and have the Predator rip my actual head off.

Fred Topel is a staff writer at CraveOnline and the man behind Shelf Space Weekly. Follow him on Twitter at @FredTopel.