2009 was a busy year for comic book enthusiasts and toy collectors. as events targeted towards them were spread throughout the past year. The 4th Annual Toys and Collectibles Christmas Fair was the last fair/convention of the past year that I went to.
The Annual Toys and Collectibles Christmas Fair, which marked it’s fourth year, was held last December at SM Megamall and ran from the 16th to the 22nd. I was happy to learn that the entrance fee was more inexpensive than the previous conventions– Php 30 pesos as opposed to Php 100 pesos.
I only went twice– first on the first day and then on the 20th, when they held a cosplay fashion show. I didn’t get to take photos of the cosplay fashion show because I had….technical difficulties… with my camera. I blame Mercury in retrograde. Koyah and J though, my companions at the cosplay show, were able to take some snap shots.
I have to say though that I was a bit disappointed because there wasn’t much to see— the convention only occupied a small area, and there wasn’t as much merchandise as I expected. Maybe I expected it to be on a grander scale, which probably made for the minor feeling of disappointment. But that all changed, of course, when I saw the boxes of comic books!
As I mentioned in an earlier post, the only reason I wanted to go to this convention was to buy comic books. And buy comics I did! Armed with my little list of titles I was looking for, I raided those boxes like crazy! I rummaged through boxes and stacks just to find what I was looking for. All the comics being sold at the fair were back issues, with some dating to 2008 and as far back to the 70’s. Prices ranged between Php 20 pesos up to thousands– some were sets, while some were single issues.
Ofcourse the first boxes I rummaged through were the discount bins, which contained the 20 and 50-peso books. That was where I picked up some of my purchases. There was another stall there that sold comics for Php 25 pesos. That was where I got some of my comics like Storm #1.
Out of the comic books I picked up, only 2 were on my list: Ororo #4 and Uncanny X-men # 321. I picked up issue #1 of Ororo at a Php 20-peso bin at a comic book shop. If it’s isn’t evident by now–yes I love going through sale bins. But that’s a different post altogether.
Uncanny X-men #321 is the third installment to the 4-part X-over “Legion Quest”. I already have parts one and two, so gettign that third one makes me one issue short of a complete story. I got it for Php 50 pesos from Chubi Del Rosario’s booth. Remember him? Late 90’s-early 2000’s teeny bopper actor who used to be anne curtis’s love team partner? yeah him. Thank you, Chubi!
I also picked some new titles like issue #2 of the House of M miniseries, which I’ve always wanted to read ever since I got back into comic books; Hellions, another 4-part miniseries; an issue of Dazzler with a painted cover.I remember having this particular issue in the past, something I found (surprise, surprise) in a sale bin in an old, decrepit comic book store in Virra Mall when I was a kid. I also picked up issue #3 of Phoenix: Warsong as well as a cloak and Dagger #1, a New Mutants special, and a Preview Comic by Virgin Comics.
Over all, while I may have had a disappointment or two, it still turned out okay. Here’s hoping that the next one would be a bigger and better one.
