Pop culture aficionados take in Winnipeg expo

Comic and collectibles fans were in sensory overload in Winnipeg over the weekend at the Winnipeg Pop Culture Expo.

Hundreds of people packed into the RBC Convention Centre to check out the annual event, which is considered a smaller version of Comic Con.

Exhibitors, vendors, and artists were able to show off and hawk their wares, which included video games, action figures, toys and more.

Attendees tried their hands at retro-gaming tournaments and trivia challenges, and were able to meet celebrities like Kenn Scott, who starred as Raphael in the 1990s classic Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movies.

'90s nostalgia'

Phil Guerrero, who used to host YTV in the 1990s, was also in attendance. He said there's an interesting new wave of appreciation developing for 90s-era pop culture.

"Nineties nostalgia is coming around, and I would find myself on these BuzzFeed lists, these internet lists constantly," he said.

"It's like, 'They're still talking about me?' That started happening so I decided to do these conventions, to get on the road and to say 'Hi' to the kids that used to watch, because they're really feeling it now."

The event was started in 2006 and has grown from 3,000 to 48,000 attendees since then. Much has changed at the festival in the past 10 years, said Violet Paille, the founder of the Central Canada Comic Con.

"If we look, say even 25, 30 years ago, the big thing was sports, the big thing was sports cards and jocks and everything," she said.

"Now you've got the geeks and nerds that are the cool people. You've got ... dressing up, that's what's cool. You know, you've still got your sports fans that go out, they still dress up, but you've got this huge group of people who have come out of their shell."

The expo wrapped up Sunday.