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Setting Up Comiket 95 – The World's Biggest Comics Event Began in Tokyo Today

Comiket began as a one-day comics show in Tokyo in December 1975 with 700 attendees. It now has the largest attendance of any comic book convention in the world, around 600,000 people over three days. That's over three entire San Diegos and one and a half Angoulemes.

Held twice a year, it's a very different show to either, focusing almost entirely on self-published comics, and a volunteer-run event administered by the Comic Market Preparatory Committee.

The show beginning today and running over the weekend will also be the last three day Comiket, shifting to four days in 2019 as the attendance continues to grow. Here's a firts look at set-up of the show yesterday….

This is Big Sight. The main building that hosts Comiket – though they will have to expand into another building for the next show, Comiket 96 in August 2019.

The empty hall – there will be ten of these, filled to the brim.

And it's nicely in view of the ferris wheel in Odaiba. Give them a wave,,,

The big signs start to go up…

The areas begin to be measured out…

The red cones arrive, they have to deal with 200,000 people a day. That's a lot of traffic management.

Rented equipment arrives – see that bicycle? Pay attention, it's important.

The volunteers arrive to set up the 6,000 tables and 24,000 chairs. But how will they get around? More on that later…

The tables start to go up.

As to the mobile phone masts. A lot of calls and Instagrams will need to be catered for. I wish NYCC did this…

The Changing Room Hall for cosplayers will need lots of walls…

It's those bicycles… this is how staff and volunteers will get around the show. It's just too big to walk when you are needed somewhere…

The portable toilets are set up. That's a lot of Comiket poop to process…

No, that's not the first cosplay of the show, that's the volunteer First Aiders…

The volunteers get a fire drill. With all that paper, very wise…

The thousands of tables are up.

Trucks enter to delivery the comics for the 12,000 artist groupings that participate on Day One. Two groups per table….

The first hall of tables await the self-publishers or dojinshi. Many packs have already been delivered, placed under the respective tables.

Here's a poster for the Blood Donation Run conducted in the Disaster Prevention Park across the road. This run covers all of Tokyo's blood donor needs across the New Year period.

Corporate area poster. es they have a corporate area. Not everyone is happy about that.

Poster for a Japan forest charity, to replace all the paper used during the show.

And so it began today… more as the photos start to flood in.

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