Fan-organized Pokémon convention draws unfortunate parallels to doomed Willy Wonka event

Back in February, the internet was graced with the worldwide viral sensation which was a disastrous Willy Wonka themed event. Now, almost six months later, the curse of doomed conventions has struck again, this time with a Pokémon convention in the Philippines. 

Unlike the dodgy Willy Wonka event which happened in Glasgow, Scotland, the attendees at the Pokéverse PH convention at least had the sunshine on their side, but that did nothing to detract from a lack of convention activities, ticket issuing nightmares, and strange partnerships. 

Pokéverse was presented by two brands; Kaloscope, a VR and AR NFT company based in Dubai, and Frigga, a store which sells lucky charms based on the Chinese zodiac. It was also partnered with Make-A-Wish Foundation.

Thanks to @BintuRita on Twitter, we have a unique insight into what exactly went so wrong at the convention in Mandaluyong, Manila. 

The event was described by Pokéverse as “by fans for fans” and advertised to feature “trainer quests, stellar headliners and live musical performances”. However, from the start, things seem to have gone very wrong at the convention, with promised attractions being drastically downsized or simply failing to materialize, in the case of a giant Pikachu who was supposed to greet attendees as they arrived. 

The headliners, Veronica Taylor (who voiced Ash in the first eight seasons of the TV show) and Jason Paige (the vocalist on the now infamous original theme song) did indeed show up, but this exciting opportunity for fans was soured by the lack of thought or care which went into the rest of the promised activities. 

One of the biggest issues faced by attendees was a ticketing fiasco which left visitors confused and frustrated. Tickets were to be sold at the event for those who hadn’t pre-purchased, but they were being sold in an entirely different area of the convention’s location, information which wasn’t passed on to attendees until they’d already been queuing for a long time. 

The floorplan for Pokéverse, originally released prior to the event, showed the large area to be filled with activities to take part in and vendors to purchase items from. However, after eventually gaining entry to the event space, attendees were greeted with large empty areas and nothing much to actually do. 

Of course, no doomed convention or event would be complete, it seems, without the appearance of a bizarre character. The somehow more strange Pokéverse equivalent of the Unknown was the “Ravioli Man”, who entered the convention carrying a jar of Ravioli, eating it from in his pocket before smearing it all over the convention’s booths. He was kicked out by security, but then allowed to re-enter later. Honestly, you couldn’t make this up.