Windsor Comic Con draws hundreds in animated costumes
Hundreds of people dressed up as their favourite superheros, villains, monsters ,cartoon and video game characters made their way to the St. Clair Centre for the Arts to take part in Windsor's third Christmas Comic Convention Sunday.
Jeff Bunde came dressed up as the Penguin from Batman. He's been into comics since he was a small child.
"I started watching Super Friends since I was a wee little kid and my obsession with comic books kinda came from there and just grew over the years," said Bunde.
Bunde got into cosplaying — dressing up as different characters — several years ago.
"It's a great way to fully experience a comic conventions," he said. "You get to feel like you're more a part of it, you get to connect with all the other fans around you."
Dmitri Sheffiel was cosplaying a character from Naruto, a Japanese series based on an adolescent ninja who is always searching for recognition.
The 17-year-old said he was bullied at school when he was younger and comics was something he turn to.
"It really got me out of rough times and stuff," said Sheffiel. "There were some real mean people who were just being jerks. When I got home from school it made me happy to watch."
Chuienne Gauthier who spent two weeks creating here costume of Sona from League of Legends can relate.
"It's a way to express my individuality, my talents and who I am," said Gauthier about cosplaying.
"Before I started cosplaying I was really self-conscious about my size and I wasn't happy with the way I looked...the I found other popular cos-players who were my size and I was like, 'Look at them they're happy.'," said Gauthier. "It led to me wanted to do that, and I did it and now I'm generally happy with myself."
Many young and old could not walk by without lining up for an autograph from actor Paul Soles, who voiced Spider-Man in the animated television series in the late 1960's as well as the voice of Hermey the misfit elf in Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.
Soles said the characters he played had a similar message.
"Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer gives people back the feeling that they're not alone, you could always be redeemed, there's always hope," said Soles.
"Spidey, the antithesis of a superhero...this young teenager with zits and a scientific background and not a lot of ability with girls can be a superhero, there's hope for everybody," he said.
