The ultimate celebration of all things science fiction and fantasy continued as Nexcon 2: Heroes Rising stayed exciting on its second day at the fresh new venue of SMX Convention Center at SM Aura in Taguig City. As one of biggest gatherings of genre fans and creators from the Philippines and beyond, it continued to be a spectacle for fans both old and new who have been yearning for an event that caters to their special interests. arkadymac.com is a media affiliate of NexCon 2, and we are glad to bring you the highlights of Nexcon 2: Heroes Rising, Day 2.
On its second edition after a successful inaugural event at the Bayanihan Center last year, NexCon 2: Heroes Rising promised to be the ultimate gathering of superhero, sci-fi and fantasy fandoms in the Philippines, with lots of unique attractions and special guests to keep things fun and interesting.
Helping us out doing the rounds for the coverage is our Coverage Partner and Features Writer Jillian Rose, who even early on was enjoying herself and getting acquainted with the sights and sounds Nexcon had to offer.
Day 2 opened around ten in the morning at the SMX of SM Aura. There were already attendees there excited for the day, and most of the booths had already opened for business. The program opened with greetings then a documentary on the comic book industry in the Philippines on the video wall on the stage.
We got to go around and check out the booths selling delightfully unique items like toys, collectibles, trinkets, clothing, accessories and a whole lot more that it was a joy browsing through each and every one.
Not all booths had merchandise. The booth of the 501st Legion Philippine outpost had R2-D2 and a trooper handing out biscuits to guests. Their group from what I understand are comprised of fans and costumers who do active charity work around the country. We appreciate seeing their contingent there. Oh, I actually got to find my friend Reg underneath a trooper suit on my first try. Nice seeing you again.
On stage at the time were games for the audience, like Facepalm the Music where contestants guess titles of the songs being played, making their intention known by putting their palms on one of the staff’s cheeks.
Tux Teach by Tux Team was a very informative panel and an exciting discussion about cosplay photography. Tuxedo Team members Jin (behindinfinity), Miguel – merkymerx, and Reskiy were on stage discussing art direction, production design, and photography. Tuxedo Team is a cosplay group known for their cinematic photoshoots that look like they leapt straight off the big screen. Their most famous work is their Big Hero 6 series, which went viral and was featured on sites like BuzzFeed, Kotaku, and Comicbook.com.
Nexcon Auction saw a variety of items being sold starting at one peso. Toys, replicas, accessories, and collectibles were only some of the few things that were auctioned off and went to some very pleased new owners.
Next was the Lip Sync Kombat where cosplayers got to perform and lip sync chosen songs, doing one-on-one battle with the audience judging who the winner would be. The effort and creativity that the participants put into it were outstanding, and the performances were easily the most memorable moments of Nexcon.
The president of cosplay.ph Pablo Bairan himself was part of the act as Superman engaging Batman in an epic lip sync showdown, one the crowd particularly enjoyed.
Cosplay remains a solid mainstay at NexCon, focusing more on Science Fiction and Fantasy fandom with characters from TV shows, movies, comic books, traditional literature and video games. For Day 2 there was Cosplay Masquerade, a contest where cosplayers who normally don’t choose to join competitions and just enjoy mixing it up with the crowd get chosen by a pair of judges and then asked later on to do the catwalk for everyone to see and appreciate. Judges for the Cosplay Masquerade were cosplayer Duane Bacon and me.
It was a challenge to choose from the many cosplayers who attended that day and narrow them down to seven, then again choose the best three from among them as they put on great performance despite only having a short time to come up with one.
It was a tough job choosing the winners as all of them gave such delightful performances despite having only a short time to prepare, where characterization meant more than costume. In the end, third place went to a Daenerys Targaryen cosplayer who remarkably spoke (fluent) Valyrian, second place went to an adorable Hiro Hamada and first place went to a particularly energetic Harley Quinn who stuck really close to character as well as voice. They got to take home certificates, cash, and some other really nice prizes from the organizers and sponsors.
Geek Fight was a battle between teams about pop culture trivia with snarky competitive mayhem on the side, with heroes and their ascension.as the theme. Eight teams comprised of six people battled it out for the championship, and in the end the team battled it out against each other in the Eliminator Round where the winner was left after a sudden-death round of questions and was crowned King.
And of course we were there for the cosplayers, whose company we enjoyed throughout the day. It felt pleasantly different as most of them were Western pop culture-based cosplays. We took the chance to have photos of them inside and around the venue.
With these and more, Nexcon 2 was definitely one of the most exciting and unique events of the year, and it was a welcome break from the usual Japanese pop culture-themed events we frequently cover. There was a different kind of crowd with fans of a whole array of different fandoms, all gleeful they got to take part in something special and something they can call their own. Nexcon had a solid agenda, a well thought out lineup of programs and panels, a plush, comfortable venue and assured order and security, and that really made a difference in how attendees experience the event compared to others they have been. With years of extensive event organizing experience under their belt, cosplay.ph showed that they can still com e up with events that the community can truly appreciate.
Our congratulations to the cosplay.ph team for a job well done, and we hope that Nexcon 3 would be an even engaging and exciting experience.
Watch out for our coverage of Day 1. We’re still processing the videos.
Thank you for dropping by, and please visit us again for more features here at arkadymac.com.
About The Author
