It’s hard to form an objective opinion on Comic Con Africa 2022 (CCA 2022) without it being coloured by the feeling that it’s great to be back.

At the end of the day, conventions are about people, and making connections, whether new or refreshed. Virtual gatherings generally don’t deliver the shared excitement and happiness that comes from interacting face-to-face over shared passions. The wage slaves among us know that this is the time of the year that people start to get very grumpy as a result of the end-of-year push. Loadshedding, inflation and gloomy news from all around the world aren’t helping moods either.

The greatest plus of pop culture conventions is that for a few days they provide attendees with a much-needed shot of positivity and creative inspiration. In that regard, this year’s Comic Con Africa (despite being a business-minded event under the behemoth Reed Exhibitions banner) delivered. It created an environment where all kinds of fans – whether into comics, movies, series, video games, boardgames and tabletop roleplaying, cosplay, streaming, fan art, collecting, and even tattoos – could come together.

CCA 2022 was the first Comic Con Africa in three years, due to pandemic restrictions. The inaugural CCA took place in Johannesburg at the Kyalami Expo Centre back in 2018, before making a move to the bigger Gallagher Estate venue in 2019. For this year’s four-day event, from 22 – 25 September, CCA 2022 moved yet again, to the Johannesburg Expo Centre NASREC, the country’s largest purpose-built exhibition venue. So you don’t get any bigger.

Overall, if you look at the three cons together, you can recognise the formula of a blockbuster movie trilogy: a rough-around-the-edges start; a much bigger sequel that builds on the original’s success but fumbles in certain areas; and a final instalment with a “MOAR” mindset that refocuses on giving fans what they love, delivered in a sleek package. The organisers of CCA have clearly learned from each event, taking feedback to heart. While there are still niggles (and some may never be solved), every time improvements have been actioned.

Now let’s take a closer look at what worked, and what was less successful, about the third-ever CCA.

The build up

We won’t ever hold celebrity guest cancellations against organisers Mogull Media (using the Comic Con Africa brand under licence from owners Reed). That is to be expected given the nature of the entertainment industry, although thank goodness for Jamie Campbell Bower as this year’s legitimate big name drawcard. It wasn’t quite William Shatner, but Bower is huge right now thanks to Stranger Things.

What did feel very last-minute-dot-com about the event, though, was its marketing. Everything seemed to be crammed into the last 2 – 3 weeks before the festival. Announcements prior to this window were basically a quest to find, even though there was a lot going on which could have been used to stoke hype. CCA 2022 included a massive Stranger Things experience, but it was sold out before the festival’s doors even opened, with no insight into how people scored tickets.

The new venue

Overall, the shift to the Johannesburg Expo Centre was a smart move for CCA. The greatest advantage for attendees was the high ceilings and 42 000 square meters of covered floor-space, which made the con feel a lot more spacious. Massive panels were also opened above the service entrances for more ventilation and natural light. Those who remember the aircon giving up in the artists’ alley areas of CCA 2018 (which was just a marquee) and 2019, will appreciate this feature. Also, unlike in 2019, where underwhelming in-house catering was the rule, in 2022, there were multiple food trucks catering for all tastes and dietary needs, while sponsor KFC provided their novel Kentucky Town menu, which included the likes of donut burgers.

The con floor experience

Linked to the change in venue was the upgraded con floor experience. Arguably the greatest success of CCA 2022, the show set-up featured a fantastic sense of logic that made visitor navigation a lot easier. Most of the action was centred in the Hall 6’s POPCulture space, but it connected seamlessly with the Gaming Hall (Hall 7), home to all electronic gaming and StreamerCon, and Hall 8, which housed KidsCon, including a roller-skating rink.

As an example of the new improved floorplan, Brother sewing machines, Dremel tools, costume hire, vegan makeup, and hair styling tools were all in the vicinity of Cosplay Central. All of these suppliers are of especial interest to cosplayers.

The new set-up also felt better for cosplay, artists’ alley and the comic creators, who have been shunted to out-the-way corners before. This year they were better integrated with the main attractions, inviting interaction in the more comfortably spacious halls. We especially loved chatting to international watercolour artist and comic creator Tony Moy about his experience in South Africa, and his new historical Webtoon series 4Forty2nd – The Lost Battalion, which tells the true story of Japanese-Americans who went from internment camps to fighting for their country during WWII.

Multiple cons in one

South Africa’s various pop culture scenes are all relatively niche, so it does make sense to bring them together at Comic Con Africa. This instead of having several small individual events. The concern, though, is that this approach will dilute the convention’s focus, taking away from the geeky point. Before you know it, Comic Con Africa could be just a general festival covering everything from comics to cookware and car wax.

We were admittedly sceptical about the inclusion of StreetCon, celebrating South African urban culture, but this turned out to be smart move. StreetCon was a surprisingly great fit for CAA 2022. Thanks to their vibrant graphic aesthetic, pop culture and street styling have a lot of overlap, and the event became a strong showcase for local artists and designers in that arena.

The Saturday crush

This one seems to be one of those issues that may never be solved, as it has impacted every single Comic Con Africa in some way.

Tickets sold out ahead of the third day of CCA 2022, with over 20,000 visitors attending the festival on the Heritage Day Saturday. You could certainly feel it, from queuing to reach the parking areas, to the suffocating effect after every high-profile appearance on the mainstage, as the audience moved on in a mass of hot bodies. It was especially overwhelming in the 11:30 to 14:30 window where certain key walkways were jammed, and there were exceptionally long lines for food and drink under Johannesburg’s blistering September sun.

The con was far more pleasant outside this period, and on the other days (Thursday, Friday, Sunday). While more shade is definitely needed at NASREC, at least by the last day there were more mobile vendors solely selling water and cool drinks, which speeded things up considerably.

For the record, back in 2018, the walkways were too small and the ceilings too low at Kyalami, and for a brief period the con ran out of water and other cool beverages on its busiest day. In 2019, the lunch period coincided with a Springbok rugby game, which saw attendees clogging areas with TV screens showing the match.

In terms of dealing with the crowds as a visitor, a good tip is to head to the KidsCon area if you need space and sustenance, as it’s generally quieter. And if you’re going to CCA to shop, do it on the earlier days before things sell out. Also, don’t think that if you saw something in the morning it will still be there to pick up in the afternoon. Buy it when it catches your eye.

Loadshedding

We can’t speak for the disruption to the esports events, tournaments and other challenges happening in Hall 7’s Gaming section, but CCA 2022 seemed to cope well enough with the great South African migraine that is loadshedding. The lights would dip during the automatic switch to and from generator power, but the natural lighting meant people were never fumbling in the dark.

More problematic, though, were issues with traditional card machines, which lost signal as cellphone towers in the area went down. These were favoured by food trucks and some of the big exhibitors, leading to transaction headaches and visitors scrambling for cash. Small-scale vendors using YOCO units reportedly had no problems.

Cosplay

Ending this recap on another positive note, CCA 2022 was definitely a positive, respectful experience for cosplayers. Daily casual cosplay contests and the prestigious CAA Championship of Cosplay aside (check out the winners and a CCA cosplay gallery here), CCA 2022 was cosplay friendly.

As already mentioned, Cosplay Central enjoyed a more central spot in Hall 6, and the more spacious walkways and outdoor areas reduced fears of costume damage. On top of that, the visitors’ guidebook led with a page on the convention’s anti-harassment policy, and there was pull-up signage in key places on cosplay interaction etiquette.

It may be because CCA is a family experience – as opposed to speaking primarily to teenage boys for example – but cosplayers (at least in our experience) were treated with respect. Even with some very drunk people around, visitors would generally ask permission to take photos, as well as touch the cosplayers while posing for photos.

CCA 2022 wasn’t without its issues, so we’d be hesitant to say “Third time’s the charm.” However, it felt like yet another step up for Comic Con Africa as a brand. Even if you were only there to walk around and soak up the excitement – without watching any of the panels, interviews and contests, or experience any of the big activations – it did offer something enjoyable for everyone.

Meanwhile, like many a good trilogy, Comic Con Africa is getting a spin-off. Thwarted by COVID-19 back in 2020, Comic Con Cape Town is finally happening in April 2023 at the Greenpoint Stadium in collaboration with South Africa’s original dedicated comic con FanCon. It’ll be interesting to see how the coastal experience compares.