Cosplay clad Calgarians lead Parade of Wonders through downtown core

Calgary Comic and Entertainment Expo underway Bill Macfarlane reports from the BMO Centre following the official kickoff of the 2017 event

A sea of superheros and pop culture icons joined the caravan of cosplay through Calgary’s downtown on Friday morning to kick of the twelfth Calgary Comic and Entertainment Expo.

The four day comic convention is on now at the BMO Centre and is a showcase of science fiction, comic books, film, television, horror, fantasy, animation and pop culture.

The event attracts celebrity guests, artists, writers, creators, toy vendors and cosplayers from around the world and dozens of exhibits and vendors are set up at Stampede Park.

“I’ll be autographing, taking photo ops but my side job, I moonlight as a moderator or host of a lot of the panels so I get to host John Cusack’s panel, Stan Lee’s panel,” said  Garrett Wang, from Star Trek Voyager. I think it’s wonderful. I also feel that this is the best convention in Canada. I love this show.”

On Friday, hundreds of people were decked out in cosplay for the POW! Parade of Wonders down Stephen Avenue Walk.

Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi was the Parade Marshal and says the convention is a popular community event.

“The Calgary Comic Expo has grown in 12 years to be one of biggest festivals in the city. It’s a chance for people to wear crazy outfits and meet people who are interested in the same things. It’s all about building community and I get to be in a parade so it’s awesome,” said Nenshi.

The comic convention runs from April 27 to April 30th and organizers expect over 80,000 people to attend the event this year.

For more information on the Calgary Comic and Entertainment Expo, click HERE.