Bigger and better was not the term I thought I’d be using for Octobers MCM Expo. But I was astounded by just how much bigger this expo was this time round. In May many people criticized how small it all felt and the lack of variety in the stands back in May. Seems the organisers listened!
Double the amount of stalls were available for us to splash our hard earned cash on. Gaming/anime merch, decorative items, Japanese food and more was all on hand to buy and it was rare to find somebody not walking out with the odd item or two.
Gaming also seemed to have a much bigger part in the show. Usually you only find titles which have an affinity to nerd/anime culture on hand to preview. But larger triple AAA games such as Assassin’s Creed 4 were available to play. Ironically, I didn’t get to play anything due to epic lines to play most of the titles. My fault to going on the usually crazy busy Saturday 
This is probably the first year where I have left incredibly impressed by the cosplay. I found myself in awe and begging to take pictures of some truly inspiring costumes. Lots of these seemed to be home made and custom designed which is testament to just how important this event has become to fans of geek culture across the UK.
The importance of the event also brings with it my one and only criticism, the crowds. Crowds have now become part and parcel of the event. But the organisation of these crowds during entry to the event is still somewhat lacking. A lack of visible communication can have you wondering where you have to queue, which can have you waiting in the wrong entry line I’ve found this only really happens on the crazy Saturday of the event, but fingers crossed the organisers will also learn to improve the system.
Overall this is most fun I’ve had at an MCM expo in a long time. And is probably the first time an October event has surpassed the usually super hype May event. It’s easy to see the event is growing and finally becoming quite a commercially important event for many industries so let’s hope it continues to become bigger and better 😀
Bring on May!
PS- I took a ton of more pictures at the event. Check them out here! – http://l1kemike.deviantart.com/gallery/46477136
