Following the immense success of the first day of Comic Con Africa, new fans were thrilled to join in on the second day of the festival. With the long-awaited announcement of the Telkom VS Gaming E-sports league, the new lineup of live sketches at the StreetCon Stage, offerings from Legends Barber and the highly anticipated appearance of Stranger Things actor Jaime Campbell Bower, Comic Con Africa keeps surpassing fans’ expectations with each passing day.
Kicking off the day at the Artist Alley Spotlight Stage powered by Cricut, local illustrators Alboe Botha and Mekateko Nlankulu joined forces to give comic fanatics a live sketch, ultimately welcoming them into the whimsical world of illustrators.
local artist Zandi Glendoline took to The Artist Alley Spotlight Stage moments after to showcase her craft to festival-goers said:
“Attending the Con this year is more incredible than ever because I used to attend just to have fun and meet the other cosplayers. Now, I get to have my own stall and share my artwork with my community, and I’m overjoyed to be sharing a part of my happiness with them”, adds
At the StreetCon Stage, the newest addition to the festival, local graffiti artists went head to head in a two part sketch battle to offer fans an immersive experience into the world of street art.
Local digital illustrator Ashleigh Pritchard shared a few words right before hitting the stage:
“I think it’s really admirable what Comic Con Africa is doing for South Africa’s graffiti and animation space alike. We often find ourselves having to rely on social media for our work to be recognised, so to have a platform where people can see our work live is revolutionary, especially in South Africa. Although I’m nervous to go head to head against other industry greats, I’m beyond excited to be alongside my peers at the Con”.
Africa’s number one barbershop, Legends Barber, brought freshness to this year’s StreetCon with their exciting three-part Barber Wars contest. Six barbers competed in the quest to be considered Mzansi’s ultimate barber. The remaining four contestants competed in the semi-finals ahead of the finals that are set to take place on Saturday. Legends Barber didn’t stop there and provided festival-goers with a legendary experience to have their hair cut by some of the brand’s top barbers at the Klipdrift Culture Connect activation near the StreetCon Stage.
Back at the Main Stage, fans rallied together to welcome Stranger Things breakout star Jaime Campbell Bower as he took to the stage to connect with his African fans for the first time ever. In an engaging discussion with resident Main Stage host DJ Elliott, Campbell Bower delved into his success in the industry, what he’s most excited about at this year’s Con, and what it means for him to have the opportunity to meet his fans all the way in Mzansi. With hundreds of fans in the audience, it’s safe to say that the highlight for many fans was having the opportunity to see the actor in real life. It certainly doesn’t end there because Campbell Bower had a one-on-one meet and greet with his fans, and will return to the Main Stage powered by KFC on Saturday and Sunday too.
Red Bull gave gaming enthusiasts their wings as they competed in the Campus Clutch activation. Over the past three to four months, Red Bull has been touring the country to find the top-performing student teams South Africa has to offer. The top-performing team in each province were invited to the Ultimate Pop Culture and Gaming Festival to compete in the semi-finals taking place on Saturday and the finale which is set to take place on Sunday. The winning team of the Red Bull Campus Clutch competition will be afforded the opportunity to jet set to the beautiful shore of Rio De Janeiro in Brazil and compete in the international edition of the contest.
Comic Con Africa’s official connectivity partner, Telkom VS Gaming, encouraged gaming lovers and fans alike to explore their potential with the various gaming offerings at the Telkom VS Stage situated at the heart of the Gaming Hall. Telkom VS Gaming spokesperson Wanda Mkhize said:
“We’re beyond excited to have partnered with Comic Con Africa once again. We have been on this journey with the Con since its inception in 2018, and we have been constantly blown away by the success of the festival, and the heartwarming support of the fans and exhibitors. The opportunity that Comic Con Africa has offered Telkom VS Gaming is absolutely amazing – as the official connectivity partner of the festival, we’re able to showcase what we can do in providing world-class connectivity to both the exhibitors and the audience at large”.
Undoubtedly, the most exhilarating offering that the connectivity brand has brought to the Con so far is their highly-anticipated High School E-sports League S2. Over the past few months, Telkom VS Gaming has facilitated their league at schools across Mzansi but in the end, only one team can remain victorious. Stellenbosch-based high school Paul Roos Gymnasium was announced as the winner of the HSEL Rocket League S2. Their team of four has been participating in the league for the past two years, and after placing as the runner-up in S1, they’re ecstatic with the result of today’s finale.
“It still feels unreal! It has been a long journey over the past two years, and after the team placed second last year, it feels like our hard work is finally paying off’’, says Jh Stoltz, Head of Paul Roos Gymnasium E-sports powered by ISB Global. With thirteen years in the space, Telkom VS Gaming is committed to empowering the local industry. By affording the school R55 000 to better their esports technology, the connectivity giant is investing directly into the future of young gamers.
At the StreamerCon section of the festival powered by Røde Microphones, the home of content creation, budding content creators were delighted to enlighten themselves on how to produce high-quality content with workshops and panel discussions on podcasting, YouTube content creation, and Tiktok content creation too.
The younger fans of the Comic Con community had the most fun on day two of the festival with a jam-packed schedule at KidsCon in Hall 8. Nintendo Switch brought smiles to hundreds of kiddies’ faces by hosting the Mario 8 Tournament at the KidsCon Tournament Stage. Young gaming enthusiasts competed against one another, and the mini Mario Kart players stood a chance to win a variety of prizes and vouchers to purchase Nintendo products on their online store. If that’s not exciting enough for the little ones, Nintendo made sure to cater to the young tabletop gamers with Pokémon lessons conducted by Pokémon professor Luna to teach kids how to play the popular card game, and it was an opportunity to win tons of prizes too.
Along with all the fun activities was Johannesburg-based roller skating club Golden City Rollers, with their Roller Derby offering, a full contact sport where two teams engaged in a friendly competitive game of rugby on roller skates.
At the KidsCon Stage, young Cosplay enthusiasts joined in their numbers to participate in the second Kids Cosplay Competition to showcase their creativity through the art form. For the Comic Con audience, highly admired international Cosplayer Elizabeth Rage joined the Main Stage to engage with fans on a personal level and answer their burning questions about how she found success in the international Cosplay scene.
It feels like the Con is just getting started as Cosplayers still come in their droves. Ecstatic about the outstanding turnout of the festival so far, Luno’s Country Manager, Christo De Wit, had the following to say about the festival:
“Luno is beyond thrilled to be one of the official partners of this year’s festival, and we are thrilled with the turnout so far. Comic Con Africa gives us a platform to engage with an interesting demographic from all walks of life who have a common love for pop culture.’’
Comic Con Africa runs until Sunday, 25 September. You can still buy tickets for Sunday. Saturday tickets are all sold out. Grab the last Sunday tickets before they run out here.
