The biggest anime-themed event in the Philippines came back strong for its 7th straight year as The Best of Anime 2016 excited everyone in attendance at Function Rooms 2-4 of the SMX Convention Center at the Mall of Asia in Pasay City. With a solid and spectacular lineup of guests performers, artists and cosplayers, coupled with amazing attractions and activities for attendees, this year’s BoA has been the biggest one to date. arkadymac.com is an official media partner for BoA 2016, and we are glad to bring you our coverage of the first day of this event.
arkadymac.com has been The Best of Anime’s official media partner for the fourth year now, and this year our Writer Rin and Correspondent Nicki helped us cover BoA 2016 opening day.
For the past six exciting and fun-filled years, The Best of Anime has undoubtedly become an annual haven of fans and enthusiasts. Last year, the two-day event had approximately 30,000 visitors who trooped to the venue to experience and witness once more what “The Best of Anime” showcases and offers – an impressive roster of talents, cosplayers, activities, and much more.
This event started with a bang. All the cosplayer guests all participated at the ribbon cutting event, driving all their fans crazy as they started piling into the event hall.
Lots of fun activities were held on stage. Congoers got to watch Naruto the Last Part 1 on the big screen, and eat their way to victory at the Yoshinoya gyudon eating challenge. BoA brought a bunch of Filipino fan groups to the stage. Haikyuu PH and Grandline PH got to do presentations of their respective anime.
The Nihongaku fanfest gathered the most dedicated of JPop fan groups to their corner of the venue and at the stage. INKT PH, Amuse Philippines, and Babymetal Philippines pleased their fellow JPop fans with several minigames wherein they could win some merchandise.
Of course, what’s an event without contests? The BoA Superstar Karaoke Competition had amazing Filipino singers singing their hearts out and livening up the stage.
Highly-anticipated activities during the event include the different competitions held namely performances by various anime and cosplay groups, the All-Star Cosplay Competition, the Best of Anime Superstar Karaoke Competition, and the Battle of the Bands. The convention also held various demos like Jun Kaise’s Cosplay Makeup Workshop, among others.
Cosplayer guests at BoA were one of the many highlights of this event. Congoers got to buy their merchandise and have it signed. A special meet and greet was also held where in participants could ask the guest cosplayers questions. Misa Chiang(TW), Liui Aquino(PH), Jun Kaise(JP), Team Balance(HK), Sara Tousa Bao(SG), Chun WX(PH), and SUZUME (PH) had a blast meeting all their fans and exploring what the Filipino cosplay community has to offer.
Popular Japanese artists namely INKT with Koki Tanaka, former member of the idol group KAT-TUN managed by Johnny’s Entertainment and, of course, up-and-coming AniSong singer Haruna Luna will be performing for the very first time in the Philippines at the second day of the Convention and have made special appearances on the first day.
If it starts with a bang, it ends with an even BIGGER bang. Pinoy band Tanya Markova performed several humorous heartache songs that many could relate to.
Unchesentai:NOIZ came back louder than ever! Their energizing beats and jaw-dropping performance certainly did not fail to liven up the crowd despite the full line of activities of this event. Their original songs and renditions of popular Filipino songs World End Superstar, Superhero, Liwanag Sa Dilim, Kanata (English ver.), Happy Tied (Filipino ver.), Narda, and Pinoy Ako thrilled fans as Angel Taka, Masato, Kotaro, Yamato and Kyo took the stage.
Our Writer Rin shares her experience at The Best of Anime: “BoA has never failed to disappoint me. And this year, it has exceeded all my expectations. I loved all the fun activities they had and merchandise that could be bought. I even got to meet one of my cosplay inspirations, Misa Chiang, and got interviewed for Hero TV(I was so nervous)! A lot of amazing cosplayers attended the event so I gave all of them cosplay appreciation cards (originally by Ani Mia) Of course, I made some new friends and reunited with some old ones. Next year, I will definitely go again! BoA is one of my favorite events in the Philippines and I don’t wanna miss even one.”
With these and more, The Best of Anime 2016 is shaping up to be one of the biggest and most exciting events this year, so make sure to get your tickets now so you wont miss out on all the fun at the second extraordinary day the biggest anime-themed event in the Philippines.
Thank you for dropping by, and do visit us again for Day 2 of our coverage of The Best of Anime here at arkadymac.com.
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