Shopping Guide
The model display and selling event Winter Wonder Festival 2014 (WonFes) was held at Makuhari Messe in Chiba on Feb. 9. The day prior, the Kantou region was blanketed in thick snow, so much so that for the first time in 45 years a record amount of 27 centimeters of snow fell in the Tokyo metropolitan area. The snow also harshly affected transportation, and there was an outbreak of participating dealers being late the event to prepare. Even in spite of all of this, fans packed into the convention center.
Approximately 54,000 square meters of space was reserved at the Makuhari Messe International Convention Center for the event throughout which eye-catching items including new products, limited edition products, kits of existing characters that were approved for sale only on the day of the event, and one-of-a-kind models were on display everywhere.
This time, there was particular attention on Kantai Collection - Kan Colle and detailed, vivid figures of the characters from the series could be seen at booth after booth. There were also figures created using 3D printers. These elaborate creations caught the eyes of many attendees.
At the Good Smile Company booth, the “Nendoroid Snow Miku Magical Snow Ver.” figure was available for advance purchase, and a huge crowd of fans rushed the booth.
Not only that, but there were also demonstrations of the pilotable robots Guges Landmate and Land Walker being held, and each time the gigantic robots moved, gasps could be heard from the crowd. The spectacle of the event crossed over the boundary of traditional garage kit figures created by sculptors and gave a glimpse at the future of WonFes.
The next WonFes will be held on July 27. If you like garage kits, why not take a summer trip to Japan for the event and do some sightseeing while you’re here?
© Kaiyodo
© Wonder Festival Project Office
This is a Tokyo Otaku Mode original article.
