Thousands of manga and anime fans yesterday braved the rain brought by Typhoon Doksuri as they eagerly converged on this year’s Comic Exhibition at the World Trade Center in Taipei on the first day of the event.
Holding umbrellas, fans began lining up well before the doors opened at 10am, taking up almost the entire sidewalk around the building.
By 9:30am, all 20 designated waiting areas around the building were packed with an estimated 10,000 fans, Chinese Animation and Comics Publishers Association (CACPA) secretary-general Roger Kao (高世椿) told the Central News Agency.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
This year’s show, the 22nd, features 125 exhibitors at 1,200 booths, CACPA head Kang Zhenmu (康振木) said.
As in previous years, the event also includes live music performances, with 42 Taiwanese and Japanese pop groups and artists scheduled to perform over the next five days, the organizers said.
Travis Japan from the well-known Japanese talent agency Jonny & Associates, Inc, performed at the opening ceremony of the exhibition.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
In addition, 13 Japanese anime voice actors, and 30 local and overseas manga artists and illustrators are scheduled to make appearances at the event and interact with fans.
Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) at the opening ceremony said the turnout seemed set to be larger than at pre-COVID-19 pandemic exhibitions, which averaged an estimated 400,000 visitors per year.
This year’s Taipei International Comics and Animation Festival in January had about 400,000 attendees and created revenue of NT$100 million (US$3.2 million), Chiang said.
Judging from the turnout yesterday alone, Chiang said he was confident that the attendance at the five-day exhibition would top 500,000, which would hopefully generate revenue of more than NT$300 million.
The Comic Exhibition runs until Monday next week at Exhibition Hall 1 of the World Trade Center.
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