There comes a moment at Comic Con Africa when you check your phone and discover that what you thought was a day at a convention was apparently an endurance event.
I walked more than 8KM on Day 1.
Nobody handed me a medal. My feet have lodged a formal complaint.
Thursday, 24 September was Heritage Day, so Nasrec was absolutely packed. It was hot, loud, colourful and occasionally required joining a human river and hoping it flowed towards the hall you wanted.
But it was brilliant.
Artist Alley deserves your attention
Before the celebrities and massive brand activations, I need to give some serious love to Artist Alley.
Please don’t treat it as somewhere you simply walk through.
Take your time.
Some of Comic Con’s most interesting work is sitting on those tables, created by illustrators, designers, comic creators, crafters and independent artists.
There are prints, stickers, comics, pins, jewellery, crafts and wonderfully strange creations everywhere. Better yet, you’re often buying directly from the person who made them.
That matters.
The giant brands understandably attract attention, but Artist Alley represents something equally important about Comic Con: people taking the things they love and creating something of their own.
If you can, buy something. Even a small print or sticker. Follow the artists. Ask about their work.
These creators deserve the support.
Rick and Morty were ridiculously good
Seeing Ian Cardoni, Harry Belden and Spencer Grammer, the voices of Rick, Morty and Summer, was easily one of my Day 1 highlights.
All three came across as genuinely funny, relaxed and happy to interact with the South African crowd. There was none of that awkward “celebrity has been contractually placed on stage” energy.
They were just really cool people.
Perhaps my favourite discovery was that Harry Belden has apparently been learning South African swear words.
Naturally.
Bring the voice of Morty Smith to South Africa and apparently this is our contribution to international cultural exchange.
I’m weirdly proud.
Doctor Doom is coming early
Grant Hinds also deserves a shout-out for getting the crowd properly fired up during the Marvel trivia.
He knew his audience, kept the energy going and built everything towards Avengers: Doomsday and Doctor Doom.
Then came the surprise.
South Africa gets Avengers: Doomsday on 16 December 2026, two days before its US release.
For once, Americans can avoid our spoilers.
Grant turned what could have been a simple announcement into a proper Comic Con moment.
STARBOX got me
Then there was STARBOX and its blind-box collectibles.
I got my hands on some PopCons and immediately understood the danger.
You tell yourself you’re “just looking”. Then you open a blind box and suddenly you’re emotionally invested in tiny collectibles and wondering whether you need another one.
I absolutely love mine.
STARBOX represents another thing I enjoy about Comic Con: discovering something you didn’t know about before arriving.
My shelf space may disagree.
Capitec understood the assignment
Capitec deserves praise too.
As presenting sponsor, they didn’t simply plaster logos everywhere. They brought energy, supported some of the biggest moments and actually felt part of the Comic Con experience.
There’s a huge difference between sponsoring geek culture and participating in it.
Capitec went the extra mile.
The Vegan Chef kept me alive
After several kilometres of walking, there comes a point when enthusiasm can no longer sustain the human body.
Thankfully, The Vegan Chef was there.
Finding proper vegan food at huge events isn’t always easy, so having delicious vegan food available at Comic Con made my life considerably easier.
They kept me fed on Day 1.
Heroes don’t always wear capes. Sometimes they feed exhausted bloggers.
Burger King, where are the burgers?
Then we have Burger King.
They’re a major sponsor and have a big Dragon Ball partnership being promoted at Comic Con.
Fantastic combination.
One small problem.
On Day 1, I couldn’t actually buy Burger King food there.
I’m still baffled.
Thousands of hungry people. Burger King sponsorship. Dragon Ball promotional toys.
But no Burger King food to buy.
You can see the promotion, but you can’t buy the meal there to get the thing being promoted.
It’s like sponsoring a swimming competition and forgetting the pool.
Perhaps this changes during the convention, but on Day 1 it felt like a bizarre missed opportunity.
The people are still the best part
Comic Con Africa has celebrities, enormous brands, gaming, merchandise and spectacular activations.
But after Day 1, the thing that stuck with me most was the people.
The artist watching somebody pick up their work.
The cosplayer being stopped for their twentieth photograph.
The stranger confidently answering an absurdly difficult Marvel question.
The person discovering a collectible they suddenly desperately need.
Everyone gets to be unapologetically excited about something.
That’s what makes Comic Con work.
I walked 8KM, laughed with Rick and Morty, discovered STARBOX, watched Grant Hinds unleash Doctor Doom hype, ate brilliant vegan food, admired incredible local artists and somehow survived the Heritage Day crowds.
My feet hurt.
My wallet is nervous.
And I’m still wondering where the Burger King burgers are.
Day 1 was absolutely worth it.
