NYCC 2019 Has Evolved: The New York Comic Con Experience

It’s the first week of October and here in NYC, people are already in costumes. Are people celebrating Halloween early? Nope! It’s New York Comic Con!! This year I took public transportation to get to the Jacob Javits Center, where NYCC 2019 has been held for the past 14 years, and you definitely feel the buzz. People from all walks of life hopped on the same bus as me to fly our nerd and geek flags together.

NYCC 2019
AEW wrestlers: (Left to Right Jon Moxley, Nyla Rose, Jungle Boy, Awesome Kong, Chris Jericho, Brandi Rhodes) in the SyFy Wire area. 

NYCC 2019 has grown and evolved from just being a “comic convention”. It has grown to be a place where fandoms of all kinds come to congregate to share what they love. For instance, it’s no secret that celebrity Michael B. Jordan is a huge fan of anime. This year, he did a collaboration with Naruto and Coach. Yes, you read that right…Naruto and Coach. The booth itself did not sell any of the merchandise but just showcased the goods. Although, you were able to buy them at two Coach locations in NYC. One of which was right across the street from the convention center at Hudson Yards. The collaboration included shirts, bags, coats, and shoes. The items ranged from $95 – $1,500. When I went to visit the Coach store. Nearly everything was sold out.

Another section of NYCC that has grown throughout the years is The Block. This area bands together artists, small businesses, and underground collectible toys. The Block is near and dear to my heart, as I’m a toy customizer myself. This year, Martian Toys held one of the bigger custom toy shows I have seen. With over 90 artists participating, each one of them took their own art style in customizing a TEQ63, which was brought to life by the artist Quiccs. The custom toys valued from $200 – $6,000.

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This TEQ64 piece made by J*Ryu went for $6000 at NYCC 2019

 

 

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With more than 200,000 tickets sold, it’s fair to say there are going to be lines for everything.People waited in line for about an hour to try games like My Hero One’s Justice 2 and Dragon Ball Z Kakarot. There were also long queues for fun things like the South Park experience. This was where attendees would go from station to station and do mini science experiments. But there is one booth every year where the line never ceases to amaze me…Funko Pop. Funko Pop has grown so big that they do a lottery for their exclusives. I was able to chat with one of the lottery winners, and he said he put up for sale one of the exclusives he bought, which was $15, and sold it on eBay to someone overseas for $1,000.

 

NYCC 2019
Cosplayer Animated Lola

We can’t talk about NYCC 2019 without talking about cosplay. Whether you do it alone or come as a group of Friezas, dressing up is always fun. Cosplayers spend many hours working on what they are going to wear for the convention. Rookie cosplayer, Justin, spent the summer making his Nova costume with the help of his mom. There are also cosplayers, like Animated Lola, a cosplay veteran for 6 years, who make getting ready into an event itself as she listens to Holding Out For A Hero by Bonnie Tyler while getting into her Bunny Bulma cosplay. Though cosplay is suppose to be fun and creative, there are a few guidelines you have to abide by to get in. One of which is the weapon and prop rules. Each prop has to be inspected upon arrival to make sure it’s safe for everyone. For cosplayers Arsenio’s Arsenal and Defcon_21, props make or break their costumes, as they came dressed as Daredevil and The Punisher respectively. Sunzi, dressed as Amara from Boarderlands 3, has spikes on her costume, and was amazed she didn’t have trouble getting in. The only problem was hugging friends, as some said it hurt, but in a “please, step on me” kind of way…which is good I guess.

NYCC 2019
Its da Frieza Boyz

 

The date for next year New York Comic Con is October 8 – 11, 2020. Be sure to sign up and get your fan verification to be able to buy tickets, or you can be like Megan and get lucky and score a ticket two hours before Friday’s show, and still cosplay as Mera! Hope to see you next year fam. Checkout the amazing Pics we got at this year’s NYCC 2019!