By Gwen Sour
For Parkersburg News and Sentinel
Parkersburg — Toy collectors, comic fans and cosplayers gathered Saturday at the Parkersburg Art Center for the Classic Plastics Toy Expo, a two-day event celebrating pop culture, collectibles and fandom.
Held Saturday and Sunday, the expo featured vendors, themed drinks, face painting and a cosplay contest that drew participants from around the region.
Becky Ferrell, an employee at Classic Plastics Toy Store who has helped organize the event since 2018, said the expo continues to attract fans interested in toys, comics and pop culture memorabilia.
“It’s pretty much everything you can think of nerdy-wise — like Transformers, Star Wars, comics, Marvel, DC,” Ferrell said.
Classic Plastics owner Tony Workman has hosted the expo since 2014. Ferrell said the event paused briefly while the business adjusted to changes at the Grand Central Mall before relocating to the Rinky Dink Flea Market in Marietta.
“We were just kind of trying to get settled in and see where we were,” Ferrell said.
A highlight of the afternoon was the cosplay contest, judged by regional cosplayers Emily Carter, known online as Celestial Cosplay, and Katrina Sherwood, who goes by Katalyst Cosplay.
The contest included multiple experience levels, ranging from younger participants to experienced costume builders.
Sherwood said one of the most rewarding parts of cosplay is transforming everyday materials into elaborate costumes.
“There’s something very rewarding about taking something that does not exist yet and then creating it from scratch,” Sherwood said. “Finding a way to mold something that was just a regular hat into something costume-worthy.”
Many of the costumes require significant time and craftsmanship, Carter said.
“It does feel really good when people are like, ‘Oh my God, I love your cosplay,’” she said. “And it’s like, ‘Thank you so much. It took 40 hours of my life, and I’ve bled on it.’”
Ferrell said the expo is also about sharing those interests with a new generation.
“My favorite part is just walking around seeing things that interest me from my childhood,” she said. “And seeing the kids walk around and get excited for the same things that we used to get excited for.”
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