Davao-based ladies win Hero Face Off 2015
Animé fans and enthusiasts had a blast during the annual Hero Face
Off that recently took place at the Music Hall, SM Mall of Asia. It was the biggest cosplay battle to date, celebrating the distinct Pinoy creativity. The Hero Face Off competition was divided into three categories — Kids Squad, League
of Heroes and Face Off. The competition now recognizes Filipino characters as part of the choices for the participants, apart from the animé favorites.
Team XO, comprised of Sarah Jane de Ocampo and Jennifer Ong, in their Dynasty Warriors themed costumes, took home the grand prize in the Face Off category. The two ladies will be the Philippines’ first-ever representatives to the World Cosplay
Summit in Nagoya, Japan next month where they’ll be competing against cosplayers from around the globe. The country was just an observer nation the last few years, but this time, the Philippines has qualified to be a competitor.
The winner for the Kids Squad category was Ashley Hernandez, who came on stage as Christian Bale’s Batman. For the League of
Heroes category, the Dragon Ball Z Warriors took home the top prize as they re-enacted adrenaline-pumping scenes from the animé. The judges of this year’s Hero
Face Off were World Cosplay Summit, Inc. CEO and founder Tokumaru Oguri, Hero TV channel head Jojo Estacio and comic artist Berlin Manalaysay.
The big convention was not only for cosplay enthusiasts as Hero TV gave everyone a treat with their free showing of the latest Dragon Ball Z movie titled Dragon Ball Z: Battle of the Gods. Hero TV also invited the voice of Son Goku himself, Jeffrey Utanes, along with the voice behind Shiroe from Log Horizon and the original voice of Naruto, Blair Arellano, to share secrets and tips to prospective dubbers.
However, the most-anticipated part of the program was the performance of Japanese group Starmarie. The affable girls from Japan had the crowd roaring wild when they performed a song from one of the country’s most-loved animé series of all time, Samurai X. The group also had a meet-and-greet with some lucky fans after their mini-concert.
KZ Tandigan serenaded the crowd as part of the opening act before the cosplay battles ensued. Adding spice to an already impressive line-up, one of the popular cosplayers in the country and Hero TV jock, Myrtle Sarrosa, hosted the event along with one of the original hosts of My Hero Nation, Dino Imperial.