Every year, hundreds of thousands of comic book, video game, cinema, television, and pop culture enthusiasts descend upon the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center on the west side of Manhattan to attend New York Comic Con, an annual convention that's being held later this week for its 13th year.

Last year, New York Comic Con attracted over 200,000 attendees, and it is projected that attendance numbers will reach and possibly exceed nearly a quarter of a million this year. While a majority of the people in attendance are average consumers looking to check out the latest offerings from comic book publishers, video game developers, movie and television studios, as well as to attend panel discussions and meet and greet photo ops with their favorite celebrities, there has been a rapid growth in attendees attending while donning costumes of characters from their favorite fandom. Ranging from casual to wildly elaborate, cosplaying, as the practice of dressing up as your favorite character is known within the community, has become such a big component of conventions like New York Comic Con that the Eastern Championships of Cosplay competition has been held at New York Comic Con since 2014, with winners going on to compete at national level cosplay competitions. . thephoblographer.com

2018-10-4 07:00