What Did I Get From Going To ToyCon?

It's another time of the year when toy collectors like me would check the calendar and tell their wives and children "Uy Malapit na ToyCon! (Hey ToyCon is coming!)". And so it is, on June 10-12, 2016-ToyCon marked its 15th great year of bringing together toy enthusiasts and pop culture fans to share their passion and of course, discover new or hard-to-find toys. 

But this time is different. Recently Salt Lake Comic Con, a world-class pop culture phenomenon that gives fans an up-close personal interaction with their favorite actors, authors, and artists announced its global partnership with POP Life Entertainment.
   
Since Pop Life has a great potential to manufacture collectible toys from best brands and it's massive reach to pop culture fans, this collaboration makes it more possible for U.S. properties including entertainment to penetrate the Southeast Asian marketplace-and this includes the Philippines in their 2016 event list.

So my first impression was there would be international stars at ToyCon because of Salt Lake's FanXperience which provides once-in-a-lifetime experience for every attendee. With its initial launch of FanXperience at ToyCon, you get the chance to meet:

    •    Superman, Dean Cain
    •    Hodor of Games of Thrones, Kristian Nairn
    •    Young Boba Fett,Daniel Logan
    •    The Wolf Pack of Twilight, Bronson Pelletier and Kiowa Gordon
    •    Frankie J and Heffron Drive

We entered Hall 2 of the SMX Convention Center, the largest private event center in the Philippines so we expected that it would be a huge event.

Before entering the hall, there's a gallery of sixth scale figures of NBA stars under Pinas Basketbol kolektibols.

As we enter the hall, I knew this would be great because I stumbled into Lord Vader's Imperial Army. These are one the displays at the Kotobukiya booth which also marked my first toy-to-take-home prospect.

Kotobukiya figures of Star Wars, the Avengers, DC Comic Superheroes, Marvel Heroes, Zoids, Sword and Wizards, etc.

Nice Egg Attack Action Figures

Enesco Disney Princesses (Couture de Force)-Belle, Cinderella, Rapunzel and Tinkerbell

 

Toy Collector's Gallery Booth:

To maximize our time for hunting awesome toys and collectibles, we first headed to the toy collector's gallery booth so we can also shoot better with no bags yet. Carrying early your shopping bags will not look good in group photos especially if the bag's too big with only one small item.

This booth is where I get my inspiration from the collections of our fellow toy enthusiast. Looking at them tells me that:

"There is an inner joy of accomplishment of being able to acquire such rare and expensive toys through the years, all because of your hard work." -Steve Grayson

I admire looking at this fellows how they make a diorama out of their vast collection of G.I. Joes. Did you know that most toy collectors are very good at planning and organizing? Check out more here: "Why Adults Are Into Toy Collecting?"

This caught my attention at the Coca-Cola memorabilia exhibit. Pinoy na Pinoy!

The Classic Avengers 6th Scale. Look at Hulk. :-)

Funko Pop The Force Awakens Vinyl Toys. I was looking here for Luke Skywalker #106

Reminiscing the The Muppet Show I used to watch on GMA7. Nice details they got here.

Trooper Boys Created by a group of Filipino artists, ImagineNation Design Studios.

Above left: President Duterte's action figure spotted.

Above right: A Rock band formed out of S.H. Figuarts action figures.

My family really had fun seeing the crazy and wild imaginations of toy collelctors by showcasing how you can also make fun with your toys.

Photo Opportunities:

My daughter was so excited when she saw the Little Pony cosplayers. They were so friendly and with that I can see that it really made my daughter's day.

Your ToyCon experience won't be complete without a souvenir of you being there-and the easiest way is having a picture taken. With the colorful cosplay participants and photo op booth intended for visitors, such memories are priceless.

Activities and Programs:

Some of the main stage highlights of the ToyCon 2016 event are the following:

• Stan Lee Video Conference
• Encantadia Cast Q&A
• Cosplay Contest
• FanXperience with some international stars
• Local band performances
• Tokyo Underground

Browse the Stan Lee Excelsior Exhibition which features his private collection of vintage Marvel comic covers, movie props, original art works and memorabilia.

On the other stage, I was lucky to catch the Jedi warriors with their Jedi fighting skills.

After the action, the visitors were given the chance to have a photo op with the performers. I also got the chance to pose like a never mind Jedi which I rather not include in this post.

I salute all the cosplayers who gave their time to accommodate the requests of many and with their awesome costumes and performances.

One of the major display I'm excited was to see the giant Voltes V. I just hope they put more lights on the robot for better group picture.

Looks like a Star Wars Transformer. I wonder if they actually change to a vintage car.

Wall of messages for visitors who have been there.

The Toy Market:

This is the common place where visitors and cosplayers love to go. There was a time when I was bidding for a Darth Vader figure, a Darth Vader in fan costume was also shopping beside me. It just put smile on everyone.


This is why they recommend VIP tickets so you can browse all the toys on every toy merchants which you can't do in just one day.

Some of the most wanted Star Wars Bandai model kits are here. This was my second toy prospect.

Speaking about the prices, it depends on the item. For rare and mint-on-box toys, don't expect too much bargain. Most discounts come from preorders, memberships and nice transaction. Who knows you might get lucky next time.

You can also find treasures at Toycon like toy parts and accessories. I stumbled upon this nice store The Random Shop that sells a POTF cover for the Millennium Falcon. So watch out Star Wars PInoy Toyaholics!

Meet Nice People:

I saw Malvin Lim of GreatToysOnline who was ordering lunch at Toycon's mini Food Court. I introduced myself and talked about my last 3 year's purchase of a preordered Stormtrooper helmet which turned out really well. He's very accommodating and hoping to preorder an Anovos 1st Order Stormtrooper helmet someday.

Here's a guide for beginners on purchasing toys online. Click here. Saw many familiar faces like people whom I had transactions with in the past and those I met on facebook groups. It could get crowded sometimes at Toycon but all was cool and everyone's giving way.

So what did I get from going to Toycon?

It's another bonding moment for my family that even through the pictures we took, it shows how supportive they are to my hobbies. My daughter also got the chance to meet her favorite Little Pony Main Six.

The experience was fun because we get to meet a lot of pop culture fans who enjoys sharing their passions where you get that invitation to enter their world.

After roaming around the marketplace, I finally decided to get the Kotobukiya ESB Darth Vader figure. Bought it at ArigaToys Collectibles and it comes with a free Kotobukiya T-shirt in the event. 

Our only regret that we can't wait anymore for the Wolf Pack stars of Twilight who is supposed to be there at 12:30 pm. It was almost 3 pm so we just left our seats.

Heading home was safe and we were so excited with our purchases and of course, the photos.