This year marked the 10th anniversary for the Calgary Comic & Entertainment Expo, a huge milestone for what is now the biggest convention of its kind in Western Canada.

The 10th anniversary was obviously a big deal which was quickly made apparent by the 100,000+ fans that attended this year!

But first, my adventure starts back in our hotel room where a few people were putting the finishing touches on their new cosplays (which is more or less becoming a tradition)…

…such as Jessica, as seen here finishing up her Atomic Wonder Woman Chainsaw Of Truth!

We had a total of about 10 cosplays in our group so there were things scattered throughout the rooms…

…but one thing that caught my eye sitting on the table was this incredible looking Pip-Boy from Sean’s NCR Ranger cosplay. Not only is this completely handmade, but this is also Sean’s first time ever cosplaying! Pretty damn good attempt for a first timer if you ask me.

So without wasting too much time, let’s take a quick look at what the show had to offer this year…

…kicking off with one of my favourite artist groups, Cyanide & Happiness!

This year Rob DenBleyker, Kris Wilson, and background artist Shawn Coss were present to share their wacky ideas with their fans.

And when I say wacky, I mean it (why yes that is a drawing of some monstrosity eating itself).

We even got a commission done of John of Your Fitness Corner…

…and all we did was explain what type of person he is and this is what Shawn Coss came up with!

This year they also had new fully nude plushies…

…complete with butt crack!

Looks like the Cyanide & Happiness plushies weren’t the only ones getting in on the action.

Some pretty cool custom DS cases made from real leather.

Am I the only one who ends up buying useful cool stuff but ends up not using it because I’m too afraid of ruining it?

Pusheen the cat is now available in physical form and even different colors!

Crotchet has really been getting more and more popular over the past couple years and now we’re seeing all kinds of neat creations.

Another thing that has not stopped in popularity is League Of Legends, something that will be very apparent when we take a look at the cosplayers!

In case you’re wondering, this life sized Storm Trooper was for sale. While very tempting, I’m not exactly sure what I would do with this…

I’m glad to finally see some Terraria items around as I absolutely love this game!

It’s amazing how detailed some of these masks for sale are.

I swear these things get bigger every year…

It’s been absolutely years since I’ve seen a Dandelion Game Boy Color…

…but it’s probably been even longer since I last recall seeing the special Pikachu Edition!

The ONLY Baymax Pop! Figure I saw at the show. Sadly, it did not make its way home with me.

In fact, Pop! Keeps coming out with so many new figures that it’s so hard to keep up with…

…like who knew that they made figures of the Penguins?

Oh yeah looks like they made this thing into a figure too.

Steampunk AND purple? Yes please.

This would certainly be a good spot to store your entire horror movie collection.

So that’s where Loki’s Sceptre ended up after he got defeated.

The original Transformer designs never get old…

…but these custom ones were looking pretty sharp as well.

A kitty? Octopus? Squid? I’ve absolutely no idea what this is but it looks pretty cute!

Start your morning right with a cup of absolutely anything you want from these awesome superhero themed cups!

The guys over at Mindzai always have the coolest things for sale.

Most art toys are made of some sort of plastic but Jibibuts are 100% wood!

Holy crap I want this.

I had no idea that Bicycle and Be@rbrick collaborated on this wonderful looking deck of cards.

Needless to say, this was one of those things that I bought instantly without even thinking twice about it.

The designs by the folks over at Akumu Ink remind me of Skelanimals a lot.

They put a nice twist on some of our favourite characters too!

I was just as confused as you are right now.

A tiny sheep to keep my tiny alpaca company!

I don’t remember the name of the builder but this predator is completely made of miscellaneous metals such as chains, springs, nails, and gears! Incredible.

Right above it was this equally impressive X Wing Fighter.

Apparently this is a mummy case of some sort.

Cameron Farn had some pretty intense (and massive) aliens on display and was even working on some of them during the show.

Things were a little different at the Weta booth this year as they were applying various prosthetics to guests…

…and also had a bunch on display for everyone to see and touch.

These felt surprisingly realistic and almost a little gross if I’m honest, but I guess they’re just that well-made!

As usual they had a bunch of cool things from various projects on display…

…but one thing that I was surprised about was that some of the weapons we’ve seen in the past were completely open for the public to get a feel for!

This also let people see just how much thought and detail goes into every little thing that Weta works on.

S.A.L.U.G. never fails to amaze people with their extraordinary creations.

They always have huge displays with enough Lego to make a sea to forever separate a parent and child.

Anyone who has ever played with Lego will know just how much time goes into making these displays. I wonder what happens to them after the show?

I would like to think that many of these Lego creations, if not all, are kept and either stored safely away or proudly displayed in someone’s home.

Rest in peace Monty, we love you!

Now you can be the coolest kid in class!

Not good enough you say? Then how about these fancy schmancy toques to keep you warm?

Not entirely sure how these are made but still pretty cool!

Sadly, I only now found out (as I’m tying this) that these Hexadecimal masks were for sale by local Calgary cosplayer Hyoken Seisou. Maybe next time…

I don’t usually post anything from the artist alley (it’s a personal rule of min and most artists should know why) but the Puglie booth was just too cute not to post!

As the name suggest, this adorable art style by Vancouver based graphic design Eugenia Leung features this pug as many different famous characters, and of course many different originals as well!

Okay, THAT’S pretty darn cool.

Like I said earlier, I would be so afraid to use one of these decks from shear fear of ruining them. Good thing I can’t skateboard!

This is a fully functioning shark themed go-kart built by Beakerhead. The mouth even opens and closes!

If you don’t cosplay but feel left out, don’t worry as TeeTurtle has some of the coolest t-shirts available.

With a shirt like this, you’ll feel right at home at a place such as the Calgary Expo!

Of course one of the biggest (and surprising) announcements this year was that Neil Patrick Harris would be attending the expo as a special guest!

It came as no surprise that both photo ops and autographs were sold out in mere hours as NPH has become one of the most popular celebrities over the past few years.

During his panel he spoke about many things such as his love for magic and theatre, and also had one heck of an entrance.

He also had one heck of an exit. Going…

…going…

…gone!

Another guest that many people were excited to see was Peter Cullen, better known for his roles as the iconic voice of Optimus Prime and Eeyore.

I’ve been lucky enough to see and meet my fair share of celebrities in the past and I must say, Peter Cullen is probably one of the most down to earth and humbling guys that I have ever seen.

He is just such a chilled and easy going guy, which was made apparent when he agreed to record one lucky fans voicemail (keep that in mind next time you get to ask a famous voice actor a question!).

The Calgary Expo certainly didn’t disappoint for its 10th anniversary, but there’s still more to see as we’ll be taking a look at the cosplayers next time!

-brandon.

Click HERE to view the full photo set on Flickr.

Check out my vlog from the 2015 Calgary Expo HERE!