It's that time of the year once again... And I don't mean Christmas. I'm talking about the otaku convention of the year: Anime Festival Asia! Held from the 5 to 7 December this year at the Suntec City Convention Centre, it drew throngs of Japanese anime, manga and game fans and boasted an exhibition space one and a half times larger than the previous edition.
It was my first time ever visiting this event and I was super excited! As I made my way to the exhibition hall, I spotted an extravagantly-dressed cosplayer having his meal at Subway and being subjected to wide eyed stares from confused passers-by and patrons alike. But I couldn't help breaking into a smile. I know that sounds extremely creepy but I was elated. I was happy seeing cosplayers sashaying in the mall, full of confidence and pride and not caring what other people thought.
As I stepped towards the entrance, a sign featuring the mascot and a mosaic of colourful logo tiles greeted me. I could hear the chatter and bustling crowds from within the hall, I could see the bright lights shining on the clean cut booths. I must admit it was a rather pivotal moment for me.
So without further ado, ladies and gentlemen, shall we step in together?
(P.s. If you haven't done so, do check out my fellow writer, J.Fluffysheep's article on AFA 2014 too!)
Let's start with the exhibits and booths! Here are some that caught my eye:
Cardcaptor Sakura necklaces and earrings?! *_* My heart said yes but my wallet said no.
Check out this super cool booth that specialises in leather products and steam punk cosplay! They're called Steam Machine and are based in Thailand.
Sailor Moon cosmetics! They're just too cute.
Just let this fact sink in and seriously try to imagine what it'll be like. Like, imagine L singing. (I can totally imagine Mello singing though, he's always had that rocker vibe about him)
Free balloons yaaassss.
Haikyuu!! figurines!
The infamous 3D boob mouse pads. The store owner was probably judging me when I took this.
An SNK gear balance simulation?! Are you kidding me? I almost squealed out loud. It was definitely one of the most popular exhibits there.
Hate to break it to you guys, but these yummy looking french toasts are actually miniature food figures. That's right, they only measure about 1-1.5cm in size!
It's Shingeki no Kyojin madness.
And of course, no convention article is complete without lots of anime figurine photos!
It's Yoko from Gurren Lagann!
Asuna looks extremely out of character here. (I just had to say it)
Hatsune Miku (Figurine by Dollfie Dream), the icon of all icons.
Eren looks hot here. And Armin's hair game much strong.
Everybody's favourite green-haired child: Yotsuba!
Sorry for the One Piece spam but ya'll must know I love OP.
Neon Genesis Evangelion? Hell yes.
I have to say, the final cherry on top were the countless posters plastered across the booth walls. Super snapshot (and selfie) worthy, if I do say so myself.
Did I mention there were mascots too? I saw two others that I was not able to get pictures of unfortunately, but one of them was a Nissin mascot. He was basically in a silver suit, with a bowl for a head and holding a giant fork. Yeah, it was pretty surreal.
It's Domo!!!
There were tons of gacha machines too! Well, to be honest, it's not exactly a new concept here in Singapore but I couldn't resist taking some shots of the more memorable ones to show you guys. Can you spot Funasshi?!
And last but not least, there's no point in going to a convention if you don't buy something, right? You've got to have something tangible to remember it by, after all. Behold, my modest loots:
An eye mask to keep me looking snazzy during naps, a JJBA Killer Queen badge, and a Ace x Negative Ghost keychain! Total damage: $10
The keychain was actually for my sister and it was from a gacha machine. She loves Ace and I was thinking it would be so freaking cool if I got Ace but what were the odds man? Turns out the Gacha God must secretly love me. Or how else can one explain I managed to get Ace out of all the characters?!
Overall, I had a wonderful time at AFA 2014. I probably lost like, an uncountable number of calories from walking non-stop too.
Signing off on the wall! Sadly, there wasn't much space left but at least we left our mark (:
I bade farewell to AFA 2014.You treated me well. Cheers to an awesome edition and I look forward to seeing you again next year. Sayōnara!
