Pop culture fans of all ages will gather at New York Comic Con, which kicks off on Thursday at the Javits Center. A fresh lineup of guest speakers, merchandise and surprise drops await attendees and cosplayers looking to snap photos with celebrities and immerse themselves in their favorite comics, TV shows, anime and movies.

Event organizer ReedPop's Brien McDonald, vice president of content, recently gave CNET a preview of what to expect and some of the most exciting reveals to look forward to. As someone who's deeply involved on the TV and film side of things for NYCC (and a fan himself), McDonald notes that studios like Netflix and Paramount have big things planned. 

McDonald is personally excited about The Simpsons and Apple TV Plus appearing at the event for the first time. "Apple TV has staked out a really cool spot in the streaming space where they're bringing prestige, high-quality TV series, and it's not genre. But I think something like Shrinking, or Elsbeth or even something like Ghosts -- it's cool that studios and producers are bringing this to New York Comic Con because it shows that this event is deep into the pop culture now." He also acknowledged that panels for genre programming such as Dune: Prophecy and The Penguin "will blow people's minds."

If you can't attend in person, you can still catch the panels on the event's Main and Empire stages. Viewers at home can livestream for free via ReedPop's YouTube channel and NYCC's social media accounts.

So, what exactly should TV and movie buffs check out? Be on the lookout for everything from animation to celebrations to guest panels and hot new trailers this year. Count on Max, Blumhouse, SpongeBob, Sony, Netflix and a ton of anime.

Anime at New York Comic Con

McDonald said there will be a "big anime kickoff on Thursday." Dragon Ball will host a panel that day for the new series, Dragon Ball Daima, on the Empire stage. The presentation lines up with the series' 40th anniversary in November. Fairy Tail creator Hiro Mashima will hit the Main stage to discuss his series on Friday, and on Saturday, fans will get an exclusive preview of Overlord: The Sacred Kingdom.

One Piece fans should check out Friday's panel on the Empire stage, where McDonald says they'll have a "big presentation." Viz Media, Crunchyroll and Toei Animation are hosting various presentations to share what's going on with their latest projects, too.

And with Bleach celebrating its 20th anniversary, anime geeks will want to catch the panel for Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War on Saturday at 12:45 p.m. ET. Fans will get treated to a peek at an upcoming episode and hear from voice actors Masakazu Morita and Noriaki Sugiyama. 

Nickelodeon's SpongeBob party

Did you hear that SpongeBob Squarepants hit a milestone this year? In honor of the show's 25th anniversary, Nickelodeon will celebrate at NYCC with a dedicated booth. "If you're a fan and you grew up with the series and you want to walk down Memory Lane, then see what's ahead, definitely check in on that," said McDonald. 

The setup will include AR, 3D animation and large models of Bikini Bottom's Krusty Kab and SpongeBob's famous pineapple house. On Friday at 11 a.m., there will also be a panel for the show at the Empire stage, featuring voice actors Tom Kenny, Bill Fagerbakke, Rodger Bumpass, Mr. Lawrence, Clancy Brown and Carolyn Lawrence.

Can't miss trailers galore from Sony, Netflix, Blumhouse and more

"We're going to see so many new trailers," said McDonald. Max will have a showing for Creature Commandos from DC and some other surprises for releases like Dune: Prophecy. 

McDonald also hinted that Netflix will drop a trailer for The Electric State, a new film starring Millie Bobby Brown and Chris Pratt. Both actors are scheduled to be at the movie's panel on Friday with the Russo Brothers. "There's going to be a lot of sizzle around what they do in that panel. That'll be an exciting one," he shared. 

You'll also want to see the Sony panel featuring sneak peeks and talent from Venom: The Last Dance, Karate Kid: Legends and Kraven the Hunter. Could that mean appearances from Tom Hardy, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Russell Crowe or Jackie Chan? Don't miss the event on Friday at 7 p.m. on the Empire stage. 

"If you're brave enough and like the scary, Blumhouse is really bringing it," McDonald said. "I know what's in there. It's big, it's scary, it's big names. That one's going to be a lot of fun." Jason Blum will be on deck to reveal what's new and to celebrate 15 years of horror for BlumFest. Stream the panel on Friday at 2:30 p.m. from the Empire stage.

5 things fans don't want to miss

I asked McDonald if there are five things he'd recommend for superfans to see, and he narrowed down some of the biggest highlights to put on your schedule:

• Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim (Friday at 11 a.m., Main stage) -- "I'm expecting that one to knock everybody's socks off," said McDonald.
• BlumFest NYCC (Friday, 2:30 p.m., Empire stage)
• The Simpsons (Saturday, 11:30 a.m. Main stage)
• Star Trek Universe panel (Saturday, 2:30 p.m., Empire stage)
• Outlander season 7, part 2 preview (Thursday, 6:30 p.m. on Empire stage) 

Advice for first-time attendees

If you're going to the convention in person as a first-timer, McDonald offered up a few tips. "The deal is -- you have to plan, you have to make your panel reservations, even sketch out where you want to be and the time it takes to get there." He adds, "Don't show up willy-nilly," trying to wing it. Keep these things in mind:

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