By Jon K and Michael ABURAS

Now in its 12th year, LA hosted its most diverse Comic Con ever at the Convention Center on Dec. 1-3. Devotees of comics, anime, sci-fi, cosplay and pop culture gathered for the area’s largest nerd lovefest. Can 122,300 fans be wrong? That was this year’s attendance figure. Among the highlights was a record 10,000-person turnout for the “Lord of the Rings” panel. And that’s just for starters.

About 1,000 artists and vendors shared their work plus over 250 panels and programming events celebrated these fans’ favorite stories, creators, games and art. “Artist Alley” may have featured the best collection of creators ever seen at any convention. There were a variety of writers for the Cape and Cowl crowd of DC and Marvel, but also indy stars like Lady Mechanika promoting her supernatural action-adventure series. Mark A. Sable was signing and selling copies of his “War on Terror: GodKillers” from the AfterShock Comics label. This graphic novel draws directly from the HP Lovecraft Cthulhu mythos planted in the context of U.S. foreign policy replete with the Great Old Ones being summoned by Middle East insurgents.

Also popular were artists associated with the iconic Saturday morning “X-Men” cartoon from the ’90s. Voice-over actress Lenore Zann (“Rogue”) was signing as was Larry F. Houston, producer and director of “X-Men.” Houston’s long lines of patient fans seemed never-ending. A re-boot of the series, titled “X-Men 97,” is scheduled for release next year.

Featured in a separate wing of the convention was anime and gaming. Vendors selling Pokémon and Mario could be seen throughout the entire hall, with a big stage set-up for the gaming competition.

Celebrity guests include a mix of actors from popular recent shows such as Jaime Campbell Bower from “Stranger Things” and Matt Smith of “Doctor Who.” Noticeably absent were stars associated with heritage or classic series pre-2000s. However, the Hobbits from the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy more than made up for that.

To make plans for attending next year’s love-in on Oct. 4-6, visit https://comicconla.com.