The Star Early Edition

Comic Con get together

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IN A COUNTRY where the use of magic is a crime punishable by beheading, it’s not every day that young Saudis wander down the street dressed as the Hulk or Doctor Doom. But for three days over the weekend, some 20 000 Saudis decked out in costumes and face paint queued to get into Saudi Arabia’s first-ever Comic Con, where robots, video games and giant anime figures filled a tent in the Red Sea city of Jeddah. The global comics expo was held under the auspices of the Saudi General Entertainm­ent Authority, which has bucked some of the austere Islamic kingdom’s strict social codes to host a series of festivals, comedy shows and concerts this year. Saudi Arabia is trying to boost its entertainm­ent sector as part of an economic and social reform drive.

 ?? PHOTO: REUTERS ??
PHOTO: REUTERS

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