AsiaPOP Comicon 2016

After attending PhLUG's Brickfast 24 last Saturday morning, the Waifu and I braved the traffic to get to AsiaPOP Comicon (APCC) 2016 in the afternoon. We already anticipated the heavy traffic that's why we left Brickfast early. We were really excited to go to the event because we know there would be plenty of cool and interesting stuff to see at the Con. 

Let's start with the renowned artists featured by APCC. We were lucky enough to catch a glimpse of them mingling with their fans. Comic artists like Billy Tan, Jason Palmer, Mike Zeck and Ken Lashley were meeting and greeting people at their respective booths.

Whilce Portacio also had a booth unfortunately we didn't catch him there though you could see some of his works displayed.

APCC also featured Filipino comic book artists Carlo Pagulayan and Harvey Tolibao.

There were also booths for famous cosplay artists. We spotted fan favorites Myrtle Sarrosa, Lindze Merritt and Ani Mia entertaining their fans.

On the other side of the venue, there several booths for local artists where you can view and purchase their artworks. I really like how APCC lets these guys and gals showcase the talents they have. Exposure is really important for local artists since it's one way for them to get people to recognize and support their work.

One of the cool things we saw at APCC was FightSaber Philippines. FightSaber is a non-profit organization that specializes in lightsaber choreography. It mixes performance art and costuming to recreate the lightsaber fights and duels from the Star Wars franchise.

The 501st Legion Philippine Garrison were also at APCC! Their booth, manned by several stormtroopers, lets you have your picture taken with your favorite Star Wars characters for a fee with all the proceeds to be donated to charity. For APCC, you get to relive the famous trash compactor scene from A New Hope. The wife and I had our mug shot with Luke, Han, Leia and Chewie!

Fans of the famous card game, Magic:The Gathering are in for a treat. Magic's booth allows newcomers or longtime fans to learn the game's mechanics or have a refresher course. Magic still has a strong following in the country. There were plenty of people hanging around in the booth all day. By the way, one of the members of the booth's demo team is PhLUG's very own JC Asehan. Really glad to bump into a friend while at the con

Now, let's check out the merchandise at APCC. There were several booths selling old and new comics at the Con. Probably the most visible one is National Bookstore's booth. National Bookstore is the country's largest book shop chain. Aside from selling all kinds of books, they also sell school, office and art supplies in their stores. Trust me, I've been a customer since I was a kid.

Check out what I found at National Bookstore's booth! Star Wars Lego!

Speaking of Lego, they have their own booth in the middle of the exhibit hall. There's a display and play area for onlookers.

I really love the giant standees Lego uses at their displays. Clay and Kylo Ren are my favorites.

Here are the sets available at Lego's booth. If I haven't come from Brickfast, I might've gotten myself a set.

There was also a Bandai booth at APCC. They had several displays as well as dioramas with the latest plastic models.

While the Waifu was busy checking out cute stuff at the Con, I dropped by the Hot Toys booth to take pictures of the lifelike figures of Star Wars, DC and Marvel characters. I've always enjoyed looking at Hot Toys collectibles because of the realistic details each fig has. I've always thought that collecting Hot Toys figs is the ultimate goal of each toy collector. I wonder when I'll be joining that league? For the mean time, I'll just enjoy the displays at toy conventions and hobby shops.

Before heading out for dinner, we were treated with a Philippine Wrestling Revolution (PWR) match. I've wanted to catch a PWR match for the longest time. Unfortunately, my busy schedule with family and work prevents me from going. We were really lucky to catch a live match at APCC! The crowd went wild with each move the wrestlers made. I'm actually thinking of making time to go to an actual PWR event with the Waifu soon!

Ava and I really had a great time at APCC. Come to think of it, we both have been having a blast attending the previous conventions as well. We're actually starting to think of including attending toy, comic and brick conventions in our dating regimen. I really feel blessed having a life partner who shares the things I'm passionate about. We're really looking forward to the next big event!

As always, let me end this post with other pics I took at the Con. Enjoy, folks! Wishing you a blessed Sunday. Till next entry!