Three women stood outside the exhibit hall at the Colorado Convention Center on Friday, all wearing homemade costumes featuring characters from the popular anime and manga series “Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba.”
The trio, who have been attending Fan Expo Denver since 2017, were eager to enter the venue and show off the colorful, hand-sewn capes they made last year.
“It's an opportunity to get creative and dress up,” Emily Ploegstra said, “and also an opportunity to meet people and celebrities and build community.”
Behind them, thousands of elaborately costumed locals milled through this year's Fan Expo Denver, Colorado's largest convention of all things comics, film, TV, art and animation.
The expo, which runs from Thursday to Sunday, will attract costumed visitors and feature celebrity meet-and-greets, cosplay contests, shopping, games and panel discussions.
Fan Expo HQ, the self-proclaimed largest comic convention producer in the world, started in Canada and has been hosting conventions in various cities for over 25 years.
Now, more than 25 years later, Fan Expos are held annually in 16 cities across the U.S. and Canada, including Denver.
Fan Expo Headquarters merged with Denver Pop Culture Con in 2021 after the pandemic. Prior to the group agreement, Denver Pop Culture Con had been bringing nerd fun to Denver since 2012.
“Whatever fandom you love – sci-fi, gaming, comics, anime, horror, fantasy – we'll celebrate it all under one roof,” said Andrew Moyes, vice president of Fan Expo headquarters. “This is a place where fandom communities can come together in a safe and inclusive environment to be themselves and celebrate the things they love together.”
And all these different fandoms were certainly represented throughout the convention.
Stormtroopers, superheroes, Klingons and samurai lined the halls, perusing a variety of pop culture memorabilia and waiting for autographs and photos from celebrities, including Brie Larson, Andy Serkis, Rainn Wilson and Rosario Dawson.
“I remember at the first convention, the tent was just a little corner of the convention center,” said Anthony Tali, a member of the Colorado Ghostbusters Cosplay Charity. “It's definitely grown over time and become its own thing. It definitely has a cult following.”
Moyes noted there was “huge pent-up demand” after the 2020 tournament was postponed due to the pandemic, and demand has continued to grow since then.
“There's no digital replacement for this. You get to meet a lot of celebrities and heroes online, but not as many opportunities to meet them in person,” Moise added. “There's also no replacement for the sense of community – the camaraderie that comes from realising you're wearing the same costume while waiting in line, that you just can't get if you're not here.”
According to the trio, who were wearing anime capes outside, the aforementioned costumes are a big part of the fun surrounding the convention.
Though the trio haven't even participated in this year's competition yet, they're already thinking about next year's costumes.
“We will start planning costumes as soon as this event is over,” Emily's mother, Bethany Ploegstra, said.
“Do we always do it? No,” laughed Katie Garcia, noting that she often hastily decides on multiple costumes right before the convention each year.
Fan Expo Denver runs through Sunday. Tickets and event information can be found at Fanexpohq.com/fanexpodenver/ .
