Comic-Con returned to San Diego this week, attracting thousands of attendees to its panels and entertainment activities.

Comic-Con is best understood as a reflection of the ongoing evolution of nerd culture and fandom. This year, those changes were evident in the famed Hall H.

Cena, Frank Grillo, Tim Meadows, Freddie Stroma, Sol Rodriguez, Steve Agee, Jennifer Holland, James Gunn at the HBO Max "Peacemaker" panel; Phil Lord, Ryan Gosling, and Andy Weir speak onstage at Amazon MGM Studios "Project Hail Mary" Panel and cosplayers dressed as Green Ranger,

Con, and this year cosplayers stole the show. Trekkies were out in full force for a “Star Trek Universe” panel featuring “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds” and “Star Trek: Starfleet Academy” cast and creators.

Comic-Con International kicks off Thursday, drawing tens of thousands of fans, many in costume. The four-day pop culture event will spotlight updates on the new “Predator” movie and “Alien: Earth” series.

This year, I will be doing programming highlights broken up by day and by category. So for each day, you can find themes on comics, cosplay or film-related programming grouped together.

Artist showcase: The second event in Now or Never Comics’ series throughout the duration of Comic-Con is an artist showcase that is free and open to the public, featuring artists Juston Mckee, Larissa Galarza, Rachel Dukes and Michael Sweater. 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. July 23. Now or Never Comics (1055 F Street). No tickets needed.