We were never ones to stick to the script. We’re [adult swim] Fandom/News/Info/etc. by name, but we’ve always appreciated and celebrated the AS-adjacent animation and comedy that came from, influenced, or was influenced by the network — and this year’s San Diego Comic-Con might be the most stacked adjacent lineup we’ve seen in a while.
We’ve already covered Adult Swim’s official SDCC 2026 plans for the week — the panels, the Green, the RAMbler (yes, the ride you enter through a giant Rick head) — but if you’re looking beyond the [as] bubble, or you’re following along from home like some of us, here’s what else deserves your attention:
(Note: This is a handful of goings-on at SDCC — check the official programming schedule for the full picture. As always, shout out to our friends at Toddland, holding it down at booth #4229 with Bob’s Burgers, King of the Hill, and Futurama exclusives we will absolutely not be able to resist — and to hometown heroes Mega64 over at booth #1435. Still one of the reasons The Swimcast exists.)
Weirder Together: Meow Wolf + Titmouse
Thursday, July 23 • 4:00pm – 5:00pm — Room 25ABC
Immersive art weirdos Meow Wolf and Emmy-winning studio Titmouse are unveiling their new multi-year partnership — co-developed animated series set in the Meow Wolf universe, plus Titmouse animating Meow Wolf’s Los Angeles exhibition opening later this year. Titmouse CEO Chris Prynoski will be on hand, there’s a sneak peek, and there are giveaways. Two artist-founded operations built on beautiful nonsense, teaming up: this is the panel equivalent of a crossover episode.
(Fun [as] Fact: Titmouse’s fingerprints are all over [adult swim] history — Metalocalypse, The Venture Bros., Superjail!, Black Dynamite, and beyond. If you’ve laughed at something animated on the network in the last 20 years, decent odds Prynoski’s crew drew it.)
Hulu Animayhem: Fandom Fuel Up
Thursday–Sunday — MLK Promenade / Gaslamp
The Planet Express building returns, this time joined by Bobby Hill’s Robata Chane — an actual yakitori venture inspired by the new King of the Hill season, serving skewers alongside Fry’s “100 Days of Cold Brew.” We are once again asking why every convention activation can’t be a restaurant run by Bobby Hill.
The Friday Indigo Ballroom Marathon
Friday, July 24 • 11:00am – 5:00pm — Indigo Ballroom, Hilton San Diego Bayfront
Let’s just say it: Friday’s Indigo Ballroom is quietly the best day of animation programming at the entire con. It opens with Adventure Time: Side Quests at 11am, rolls straight into Adult Swim’s four-hour panel block (Common Side Effects, President Curtis, Rick and Morty, My Adventures with Superman), and closes with King of the Hill at 4pm — Mike Judge, Greg Daniels, showrunner Saladin Patterson, and the core Arlen crew talking the show’s new era fresh off its Hulu premiere. Six hours of alt-animation history in one room. Camp accordingly.
(Fun [as] Fact: Adventure Time’s last big SDCC moment before this? The Fionna and Cake world premiere on Preview Night 2023 — which we covered in this very column’s previous installment.)
Buddy
Friday, July 24 • 1:45pm – 2:45pm — Ballroom 20
From the deranged mind of Casper Kelly — the [as] visionary behind Too Many Cooks — comes Buddy, the Sundance Midnight sensation about a beloved orange unicorn from a ’90s kids’ show and the children trapped inside his program. Produced by the folks behind Barbarian and Weapons, in theaters August 28. Adult Swim energy officially crossing over into the multiplex. Fair warning: this one overlaps with the Adult Swim block over at Indigo, which is the one scheduling tragedy of the day. Choose wisely.
(Fun [as] Fact: Star Cristin Milioti is already family — she voiced Sirena Ong in The Venture Bros. and Juggsaw on Teenage Euthanasia. From Williams Street to final girl.)
Bonus for the early risers: Dread Central is hosting two breakfast screenings of Buddy on Friday — 10:00am and 12:00pm at Digital Gym (1100 Market St.) — with breakfast, the film itself, and a meet-and-greet with Casper Kelly and star Delaney Quinn. First come, first served, RSVP via Dread Central. Seeing the movie and meeting the Too Many Cooks guy before lunch? That’s a con day well spent.
(Fun [asc] Fact: Expect our full review when Buddy releases next month. We have Thoughts pre-loaded.)
Animation Domination Block
Saturday, July 25 • 10:00am – 2:15pm — Ballroom 20
Back-to-back panels for Bob’s Burgers, Futurama, The Simpsons, American Dad, and Family Guy. The headline within the headline: Matt Groening presenting world-premiere Futurama footage ahead of the new season’s August 3 return — and with nothing officially ordered beyond it, this panel is the place any “good news, everyone” would drop. Meanwhile, American Dad is teasing first details on its upcoming 400th episode.
(Fun Fact: Futurama has now been revived more times than some of us have renewed our gym memberships. May it never stop.)
SpongeBob Before It Was Iconic
Saturday, July 25 • 6:30pm – 7:30pm — Room 5AB
Derek Drymon in conversation with the man himself, Tom Kenny, on the origins of the sponge.
(Fun [as] Fact: Kenny’s fingerprints are all over Williams Street history — if you know, you know. Come for SpongeBob, stay for one of the great voices in [adult swim] lore.)
More from the con as it happens — including whatever falls out of Ballroom 20 on Saturday. Follow us on Threads and Bluesky for the play-by-play.
