Friday, September 11, 2015

Singapore Toy, Game & Comic Convention (STGCC) 2015 Preview


The Singapore Toy, Game & Comic Convention (STGCC) starts tomorrow.This year's edition looks to be the biggest yet with 29 Pop Culture Personalities from the East and West, 180 exclusives and new products, and 240 exhibitors including 180 Artist Alley participants which is the largest turnout ever for the event! There are also new experiences not to be missed!  I hope you've planned out what you want to do at STGCC, if not you might miss something.


To queue or not to queue for the Hot Toys Exclusives. That's the first question you need to ask yourself. There are a number of exclusives up for pre-paid purchase this year and they include the Avengers: Age Of Ultron Maria Hill, Iron Man Mark III (Stealth Mode Version), Iron Man 3 Tank (Mark XXIV), Star Wars: The Force Awakens - First Order Stormtrooper Squad Leader, Luke Skywalker (Stormtrooper Disguise Version) and Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance Raiden (Inferno Armor Version).




























According to Action City's Facebook, the following 5 options are available to you:

Option 1: (Bundle Set)
1 piece MMS303 - Iron Man 3 Tank (Mark XXIV) 1/6th scale Collectible Figure 
AND
1 piece MMS314D12 - Iron Man Mark III (Stealth Mode Version) 1/6th Scale Collectible Figure
@ S$819.90/set (limited to 1 set per person)
--------------------
Option 2: (Bundle Set)
1 piece VGM19 - Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance Raiden (Inferno Armor Version) 1/6th Scale Collectible Figure
AND 
1 piece MMS314D12 - Iron Man Mark III (Stealth Mode Version) 1/6th Scale Collectible Figure
@ S$819.90/set (limited to 1 set per person)
--------------------
Option 3:
1 piece MMS304 - Luke Skywalker (Stormtrooper Disguise Version) 1/6th scale Collectible Figure 
@ S$299.90/ea (limited to 1 piece per person)
--------------------
Option 4: 
1 piece MMS305 - Avengers: Age Of Ultron Maria Hill 1/6th scale Collectible Figure 
@ S$289.90/ea (limited to 1 piece per person)
--------------------
Option 5:
1 piece Star Wars: The Force Awakens - First Order Stormtrooper Squad Leader 1/6th Scale Collectible Figure
@ S$299.90/ea (limited to 1 piece per person)
--------------------

*Restrictions: Only persons aged 16 years old and above will be eligible to make a pre-paid purchase; Identity Card or Passport is required when placing your order.



Don't forget to bring your cameras. You'll want a photo of the Hulkbuster Vs Hulk life-sized staatues brought to STGCC by Hot Toys and Action City.

Pic taken from STGCC site

Sticking with Action City, they will also have the Jiang Shi BE@RBRICK of various sizes up for pre-paid order. This will be first available at STGCC.




If statues are more your thing then you should definitely check out what XM Studios has to offer. One of their STGCC exclusives is the 1/4 scale Ghost Rider! I can't wait to see this in person. It's going to be big! I love the look of the flames with the skulls.


The second exclusive which they'll have for pre-order is the 1/4 scale Green Goblin bust which will be fully hand sculpted.


Mr Bryan Tan from XM Studios mentioned at the media preview that STGCC attendees will get a sneak peak of a special Batman line. I'll definitely check that out. XM Studios are also working on characters based on old Hong Kong comics. Hmmm... wonder who can they be referring to.

For a list of what's available for pre-order from XM Studios, click here.



There are way too many exclusives and products for me to cover so here's a quick look at some of them. Click images to enlarge. 







This particular piece from Outrageous Studios caught the eye. It's titled Captain America: Civil Wok and it hilariously depicts the Avengers in a very local setting. I'll definitely give it a second look to decide if I should get it. Outrageous Studios can be found at the Artist Alley at booth AA33.



Also don't forget to check out The Falcon's Hangar and Simply Toys for even more exclusives! The below is just a sample of what they have to offer.

Pic taken from the TFH Facebook

Available from Simply Toys. Pic taken from Simply Toys Facebook


One of the biggest draws at STGCC is the star-studded line-up of personalities from comic, cosplay, toy, anime, gaming and manga who will be making special appearances at the Walk of Fame and panel sessions on stage. Follow this link for the full guest list and a short description about them. 


Adam Hughes, Huck Gee and Stella Chuu were in attendance at a media preview held yesterday. We got to find out a little more about them from the short panel session.


Adam Hughes (Comic Artist)

Adam Hughes

On what he hopes to see at STGCC, he had the following to say:
  • (jokingly) he hopes to see the sun  at some point during his visit as he's heard Singapore is a beautiful place. He's had a wonderful time here so far.
  • he's looking forward to meeting the fans as he's never had an opportunity to fans from here before. Most of the shows he's done has been in North America and Europe.
  • he would like to find out what fans here like about what he does 
  • he's also looking forward to checking out all the toys

If he were not a comic book artist he thinks he would probably be a hobo or a bum. When he was a kid he wanted to be an astronaut. By the time he grew up the space programs had basically stopped so he decided to draw. Maybe he can be the first cartoonist on MARS.

Adam draws Mary Jane while his wife, Allison answers questions



Stella Chuu (Cosplayer)

Stella Chuu

Stella Chuu was cosplaying as Tharja from The Fire Emblem. Her costume took a few weeks to make. The neck piece was made with PVC plastic shaped to fit around her neck and was wrapped in gold cloth. She designed the costume specifically to debut in Singapore. It's hot to wear. The cape was made with a velvet like material, kinda like a winter coat and is pretty heavy. She also brought a Yuffie (Final Fantasy VII) costume which we can expect to see her in during STGCC.

On what she loves most about being a cosplayer she says that she used to think it was about being able to dress as her favourite characters but in recent years it's about being able to see her friends and fans from all over the world. They usually only get to meet at conventions like this. Being able to cosplay with friends is important to her. She loves the creative process of making the costumes. Anime have their own laws of physics and it's not easy to translate that to a real costume.



Huck Gee (Toy Designer)

MC Misa (left) with Huck Gee

On his highest and lowest points of his career. His highest point of his career was doing a piece for the New York City Museum of Modern Art. He feels he hasn't had any lowest point but with any low point he tries and find the positives.

On which work he most identifies with it would have to be the skullhead. He even has a tattoo of it on his neck. 

He showed us his upcoming The Blank figure which he had been working on for 3 years on and off. He say it probably went through between 20 -30 interpretations. He tells us that he's producing his toys in the US so as to cut down on waiting time for his product compared to if it were produced in China. This allows him to provide input in the production process. His says his work is never finalised and will always make improvements and make different versions of it.

The Blank


There are several new experiences to look out for:

  • TAM (violinist) and Animenz (pianist) will take the stage for their first ever collaboration. That will take place Saturday, 12 September at 7pm.
  • DJ Night takes place Sunday, 13 September at 6pm. It will be helmed by Yuyoyuppe and Hige Driver who will be releasing a limited edition exclusive STGCC X MOtOLoiD EP CD.
  • STGCC presents the inaugural Championships of Cosplay where the winner will be flown to Chicago to represent STGCC at the 2016 C2E2 Crown Championships of Cosplay
  • Also new to the event this year is the Kids Cosplay Parade for children ages 5 to 12.


For more information, check out http://www.singaporetgcc.com/


I hope you're ready. It's going to be a blast!

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