The biggest pop culture event in Asia had once again landed in Manila and was unbelievable on its opening day as AsiaPOP Comicon Manila 2018 welcomed thousands of attendees from all over the world with huge and amazing attractions, the scale of which never before seen in the country . Spanning the entire SMX Convention Center at the Mall of Asia Complex, the scale that APCC 2018 was on was mindblowing, and on its fourth straight year it had an impressive lineup of guests and unique attractions from around the world for attendees to enjoy, bringing the latest and hottest trends, activities, and attractions pop culture had to offer.
arkadymac.com is glad to be APCC’s online media partner for the fourth straight year, and we had our Correspondent Rica bringing in the action from this huge pop culture extravaganza.
Filipinos have always been been big fans of pop culture, being forever in love with movies, comics, cartoons, music, books, TV, and other media, which was most probably why they eagerly to get inside the event even before the SMX’s doors opened, anticipating all the excitement that AsiaPop had promised waiting for them on opening day and APCC was ready for them.
On the entire ground floor of the SMX convention center, a bewildering array of booths and exhibits were there to amuse, entertain and amaze the attendees. People could browse through amazing toys and figure displays and collections, take part in demos, special sales, and mini games most exhibitors had to offer. They got to go home with nice freebies and giveaways from those too.
Pretty popular among attendees was the Netflix booth which had special areas dedicated to several of its most-watched shows like Riverdale, Stranger Things and Iron Fist, all of which were fun and interactive with scores of freebies to be had.
APCC 2018 had also become viral for the introduction of the Jollibee Funko Pop which saw record sales and long lines for this special toy and collectible, with Jolibee mascots on hand to join in the celebrations.
Artists from around the globe also graced APCC. They had their own booths so they could display their work to their fans, and the artists were happy to tell us that it was a great experience meeting their Filipino fans as they appreciate their work so much and go to talk to them as they did autographs as well, whcih included comic book veterans Whilce Portacio, Brian Mur, Stanley Artgerm Lau, Simone Legno, Alex Sinclaire, Lan Medina, Mike McKone, , and Phil Noto along with up-and-coming artists Amanda Visell and Michelle Valigura .
APCC 2016 had been the talk of the town as they delivered on their promise to bring big Hollywood stars to Manila. Celebrity guests include Finn Jones, the star of Netflix’s Iron Fist, Tye Sheridan, the lead star of Ready Player One as well as having played Cyclops in X-Men: Apocalypse, and Osric Chau who played who portrayed Kevin Tran on the hit series Supernatural, were the big names that had their Filipino fans scrambling all over to get the chance to meet them in person. On Day 1, attendees got to see Osric chau at Meet and Greet and Autograph Sessions as well as special appearances. The media also got the chance to conduct interviews with him, and we got to know more about him as an actor and as a normal person. We will have video clips of the interviews ready on the site very soon.
We have always given our full support to APCC because they have never forgotten the local cosplay community, and they have always brought the brightest and most talented cosplayers from all over the planet to visit and meet Filipino cosplayers. This years roster of extraordinary Cosplay guests included Yugana Senshi Uon, Vera Chimera, Leon Chiro and Canvas Cosplay. They had their own booths at the venue where attendees can see and meet them at no extra cost as well as had the chance to offer their merch and prints for their fans to purchase and take home. Particularly popular among the attendees was Leon Chiro, who was genuinely enamored with his Filipino fans and took all opportunities to bond with them.
APCC was nothing short of amazing and exciting, with people going home happy with tons of pop culture merchandise and pictures with their favorite actors, actresses, artists, and cosplayers, but this was only Day 1 of this three-day affair, so catch you again soon as we have our coverage of Day 2.
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