If you’ve been to one Comic Con Africa, you’ve been to them all, right?

*Insert Lex Luthor voice* Wrong!

Next week’s Comic Con Africa 2023 – taking place in Johannesburg over the Heritage Day long weekend from 22 to 25 September – is only the fourth CCA. And just as the organisers always strive to bring something new to the event, they’re also constantly tweaking the experience on the basis of feedback from attendees, vendors and other exhibitors. In short, Comic Con Africa isn’t even close to its final form.

Comic Con Africa has moved around in the past with the inaugural 2018 event taking place at Kyalami before shifting to the much more upmarket Gallagher Exhibition Centre the following year. Post-COVID, the pop culture celebration relocated to the Nasrec/JHB Expo Centre in 2022, and that’s where it’s staying for this year, making CCA 2023 the first con to return to the same location as its predecessor. That means learnings can really be taken to heart and applied.

At the CCA 2023 Media Launch, Carol Weaving, MD of Reed Exhibitions Africa shared the prediction that this year’s event is expecting 80,000 people over its four days, and has been restructured for a more comfortable, less overwhelming experience as fans navigate the con floor and engage with the 350 exhibitors present. This relook will be welcome during the busiest periods, like the traditional Saturday midday crush.

Show Director Carla Massman spoke of CCA 2023 enjoying expanded floor space in comparison to 2022’s event, as well as a reconsidered and rearranged flow. In summary:

  • Hall 5 will be home to gaming (including multiple free-to-play competitions) and technology.
  • Hall 6 is the biggie, devoted to all things pop culture, and will also contain the Kidscon Zone as you enter on the right. Also found here are a bigger Cosplay Corner, which will be your port of call to enter the casual cosplay contests (now ramped up to two per day for kids and adults); and the con’s all-important Main Stage.
  • Hall 7 is now dedicated to Artists Alley, which will house over 120 local and international artists. As a sidenote, at least three more comic creators from overseas will be announced this coming week in the lead-up to the event.
  • The Conference Centre has been claimed as a larger space for CCA’s ever-expanding and very popular tabletop gaming offering. Along with board games, and Dungeons & Dragons role-playing sessions, this part of the con has claimed an exclusive: the region’s first Yu-Gi-Oh! World Championship Qualifier tournament.

Other notable changes at CCA 2023 include StreamerCon replacing its Stage with a Lounge, where content creators and their followers can mingle. Meanwhile, photo and autograph sessions with the celebrity guests are moving to Hall 7 from the Conference Centre – in order to get around the problem of people standing in long queues outside in the baking September sun. Out of interest, both Star Wars’ C-3PO Anthony Daniels and Pokémon voice artist Veronica Taylor have committed to being at their tables for up to 5 hours a day to meet local fans. These meet-and-greets are paid experiences, although the stars will be interviewed on the Main Stage as well.

As for new additions to the Comic Con Africa formula, there’s the introduction of Otaku Town. This zone answers the call for more Japanese pop culture at the event, as South Africa has a massive anime and manga following across all cultural groups in the country. At Otaku Town, fans can enjoy anime screenings, Asian foods, martial arts demonstrations, anime character cosplay tutorials, Japanese language lessons, and interactions with globally popular Youtubers Akidearest and The Anime Man.

Of course, for all the changes, Comic Con Africa 2023 is still serving up some of its most popular attractions. Literally, in the case of headline sponsor KFC Africa, which is bringing back its exclusive CCA menu – this year including the Pretty in Pink Meal (with pink burger, chicken pops and chips), Cachos and the Hulk Burger.

Like last year, KFC’s Kentucky Zone will let fans buy KFC sauces, and unique merchandise for home, and take part in challenges for kids (mini-cricket and VR gaming) and adults (Hot Strips Challenge). Hloni Mohopa, Marketing Director at KFC, describes the brand’s participation in Comic Con Africa as a chance to explore and extend their creativity.

Dual exploration and extension seems to sit at the heart of Comic Con Africa 2023 overall, as the show continues to evolve. Tickets for the event can be purchased online here, with children under 5 attending free. Please note that Saturday is already sold out, so don’t arrive expecting to purchase tickets at the gate.