Comicpalooza’s fourth year has been dubbed the “Year of the Zombie” and for good reason. It already started off with a Zombie Pub Crawl last weekend and is continuing this Friday through Sunday with costume contests, panels about the undead and survival guides.

The George R. Brown Convention Center doors open at 11 a.m. Friday for registration and the convention runs full speed all the way through Sunday evening. We have dwindled down the list of 250 hours of sessions into the truly “must-not miss” events:

Friday

Is 1 p.m. too early to start off with a special gaming announcement? Steve Jackson of Steve Jackson Games will be announcing something big that no gamer will want to miss!

Choose to talk to some of the artists and writers of X-Men in an eye-opening session at 2 p.m. or take a break and watch live music from various bands performing live.

At 3 p.m. you can keep with the zombie theme and attend authors James Collins and Jason Kristopher’s Zombie Apocalypse panel.

Celebrity sightings kick up at 4 p.m. when you can meet the faces behind some of your favorite animated voices at the Whose Voice is That panel. More interested in zombie survival? The Zombie 101: How Not to Be Zombie Bait is in the same slot.

Another announcement drops at 4 p.m. This time it is from Samantha Inoue-Harte, Paul Alvarado-Dykstra and author Tad Williams.

Perhaps the most fun event on Friday starts at 4:30 p.m. in the arena. Wear your house colors because the first Quidditch match of the weekend puts Sam Houston State University against Texas Tech!

Ease into the evening by showcasing your comic knowledge at the 8 p.m, at the first annual Comicpalooza Trivia contest.

Twist your mind at 9:30 p.m. by watching performers drill things into their skulls and other odd tricks at the Braggart Family SideCircus Performance. They’ll be performing a few more times during the weekend in case you miss out.

Time to party at 10 p.m, at the Dead Night Party. Slap on your zombie makeup and get your fake blood oozing as you watch the cast of San Jacinto College sing songs from Evil Dead: The Musical. Costume contest, live music and other special surprises.

Saturday

Get your questions ready by 11 a.m. because Chewbacca, Yoda, and Boba Fett will be on deck to give you some answers. Hear what they think about Luke and Leia’s “innocent” sibling relationship.

11 a.m. also brings the second Quidditch match of the weekend! SHSU will be pitted against Texas A&M.

Saturday at noon is the perfect time for the one and only Edward James Olmos to make an exclusive Comicpalooza announcement about a new project he has been working on. Follow him around until 2 p.m. when you can catch him for an autograph.

Big shot writer Fred Van Lente will talk at 1 p.m. about his graphic novel turned soon-to-be-hit movie, Cowboys & Aliens. Get a glimpse into what everyone is waiting to see this summer.

Time to root for the home team! A roller derby match also starts at 1 p.m. where Houston’s HaRD Knocks squad faces off against the Nuclear Knockouts.

The doctor is in at 2 p.m.. Sean Maher from Firefly will conduct a Q&A session. This panel is sure to be packed with Browncoats.

Hate Twilight? We have a session for you! Real Vampires Don’t Sparkle at 3 p.m. will be sure to cause a mini riot within the convention center. Keep some garlic on hand for this one.

A Star Trek Q&A with the beautiful Marina Sirtis phases in at 5 p.m. Maybe ask her about her future voice work for the new Young Justice animated series.

Magical things will happen at 6 p.m. with a show by World Magician Ben Jackson. You can opt to skip the theatrics to snag some eye candy because Sam Trammell will be doing a True Blood Q&A session at the same time.

Now is the perfect time to break for dinner because the day ends with a showing of The Rocky Horror Picture Show at midnight.

Sunday

One of the biggest sessions happening on Sunday starts at 11a.m. The Battlestar Galactica Q&A panel will have Edward James Olmos fielding your inquiries. Be sure to ask follow-up questions about that Saturday annoouncement.

Comicpalooza really outdoes itself with special guest Bob Layton at 1 p.m. Hear what the man who revitalized Iron Man and X-Men has to say about the state of Marvel comics.

Another big name enters the convention at 1 p.m. Devon Murray of Harry Potter fame will be sitting down to talk to fans. With the final movie on the horizon, this is an opportunity to ask about what happens behind-the-scenes and attempt to drag out any spoilers.

Go straight from Harry Potter to Green Lantern with the film’s Deke Anderson and Nick Jones. Ask questions about the soon-to-be hit film and see if they will hint about a possible sequel.

Don’t put your brooms away just yet. The final Quidditch match of the weekend features Texas Tech against A&M at 2 p.m.

If you are an artist, character designer, inker, or digital painter, Sunday at 5 p.m. brings an opportunity to show the big wigs your skills. A special portfolio review with Don Kramer, Andy Kuhn and Phil Hester puts amateurs in the spotlight.

These sessions are a small fraction of what all is going on during Houston's nerdiest event. Be sure to check out the full program schedule to find out when your favorite authors will be doing signings, what booth your favorite artists have reserved and where to stalk the stars.

Get zombified because Comicpalooza is here!