TOYCON PH 2014 Highlights: A Record-Breaking Weekend!
As we all know, ToyCon blasted their first day with all the goodies that all geeks and of course, toy collectors have been waiting for. All kinds of toys from all kinds of franchise that was available in the metro were set and displayed. There were also performances to cap off the night and entertain the guests.
But that was just the tip of the iceberg. The second day of ToyCon was even more explosive. The day opened with a ribbon cutting ceremony which included guests from ABS CBN, Star Wars 501st group, and Enchantment PH. New booths have opened on that day as well. Kazooloo had their own segment, Enchantment PH featured their own version of Elsa and the Gaming Library gave a sampling of one of their board games as the visitors in attendance ogled their eyes in amusement and excitement.It was soon followed by an entertaining panel discussion for toy collectors and aspiring toy collectors by the top toy groups in the country.
The Toy Exhibit which was located on Function Room B of Megatrade Hall opened its doors and featured all kinds of toy collections – from quirky Coca Cola merchandises to humongous spaceships from Star Wars, LEGO set pieces and GI Joe figures. But not only the toy collectors had their hearts’ content at ease, but also the comic book collectors and readers had their satisfaction as our Filipino Marvel and Komiks artists joined the fray for a weekend of signing and sketching for the fans.
The second day not only had big cosplay groups as their guests but also the Filipino cosplay goddess, Alodia Gosiengfiao graced the event in her Mikasa Ackerman cosplay from the anime, Shingeki No Kyojin. Also, the convention held panels for the upcoming movies Rurouni Kenshin and Guardians of The Galaxy. There was even a Rurouni Kenshin exhibit that showcases the costumes used by Sato Takeru as Himura Kenshin, Munetaka Aoki as Sanosuke Sagara, and newcomer Yusuke Iseya as Aoshi Shinomori.
As for the Caped Crusader’s fans that were on the occasion, the organizers had put up a special video and talk about the 75th anniversary of Batman that highlighted the evolution of the said character from comics, his gear and even in the movies.
And of course, how can we forget the cosplay competition that featured not only mechs and in-game characters, but also from those coming from our beloved comic books. Bands such as Dreamsicle, Evening Tea Time, Verbacoma and Asterysk graced the stage as well with their soulful performances, much to the delight of the crowd. Ryza Cenon also dropped by to sign UNO Magazines for the fans.
But you know what the amazing highlight of ToyCon is? It has set a record of 13,000 attendees! Now, that’s an achievement for a second day.
Though June 23 experienced a bit of rain, attendees still came and gone by as ToyCon opened the show floor for its third and last day. A lot of contests were announced and other bands gathered to share music to the attendees. The third day also featured a cosplay competition which qualifies the winner to fly to Nagoya, Japan to represent the Philippines for the World Cosplay Summit as observatories – which is one of most prestigious cosplay contests all over the world. A cosplay taken from Tekken 6 featuring a fight scene from Alisa Bosconovitch’s storyline won the WCS qualifying contest and will represent our country on the said tilt.
Bands like Jeepney Joyride, People of The East, The Squeezers, Ashley Gosiengfiao & The Midnight Meetings and Shinkan added delight and didn’t stop to create wonderful music despite the weather.
The director and cast of Blue Bustamante and UNO cover girl Roxee B also dropped by to promote the film and sign posters/magazines for the audience.
The 13th Philippine Toys, Hobbies, and Collectibles Convention 2014 broke records by having 27,975 attendees. It was by far the most successful ToyCon to date – and you all know what this means. The organizers had dropped a bomb that a bigger and better ToyCon for next year needs a bigger venue – something we should all look forward to.
LJ Zenarosa
