When we had decided that we would go to Spain and France in May 2014, I googled comic cons online. Was there any one of them there that time? It took some digging, but I found it: a website completely in Catalan Spanish, the language used in Barcelona. Ficomic's 32 Saló Internacional del Còmic de Barcelona from the 16th to the 18th of May. I knew instantly that this was it. One of the best experiences I would ever have.
It was.
Two things struck me when I first walked inside the Fira de Barcelona centre: Barcelona Comic Con was huge, and it was nothing - nothing - like Mumbai Film & Comic Con (MFCC). The first auditorium had the thematic displays, installations and stalls concerned with the war theme of the Fair, complete with original World War battle tanks and reconstructions of medical camps during the period. Cool war cosplays and strategy game centres. I had a feeling my father was drooling - he has always been a fan of war comic and such. Some of the war stalls also had fandom sections (naturally) and we found superb Star Wars mini-figurines and I found what seemed to be the only Doctor Who t-shirt and the coolest Game of Thrones t-shirt there.
The second auditorium was more my thing than my father's. This was my world. Cosplay everywhere; superhero installations; a Star Wars fan club; LARGE comic and merchandise stalls. 75 Years of Batman was being celebrated alongside the anticipated release of X-Men: Days of Future Past and Dragon Ball z: Battle of Gods.
I ended up buying a Game of Thrones 3D jigsaw puzzle and a Barcelona Comic Con poster to put alongside my MFCC one. My brother had been eyeing Anakin Skywalker's lightsaber but it had turned out to be £179, which too high, naturally. I found out that a Series 3 TARDIS keychain was for £5 whereas I had bought the very same keychain at MFCC for ₹100. That anecdote made all of apprehensive of the pricing, but that didn't really matter. Neither had bought anything much but that was okay. Because for a few hours, I had been in my paradise.
I ended up buying a Game of Thrones 3D jigsaw puzzle and a Barcelona Comic Con poster to put alongside my MFCC one. My brother had been eyeing Anakin Skywalker's lightsaber but it had turned out to be £179, which too high, naturally. I found out that a Series 3 TARDIS keychain was for £5 whereas I had bought the very same keychain at MFCC for ₹100. That anecdote made all of apprehensive of the pricing, but that didn't really matter. Neither had bought anything much but that was okay. Because for a few hours, I had been in my paradise.
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