Yamazaki!

10.20.2024

Something so awesome happened yesterday. This moment was so great that I wasn’t really disappointed when many of us who had waited over 30 minutes in line were turned away from the Godzilla 70th Anniversary panel because the room reached maximum capacity. But it turned out that being there would have been icing on a cake I had already eaten earlier in the day.

Yesterday was the third day of New York Comic Con 2024, where “the greatest creators in the world rub shoulders in Artist Alley at NYCC. Meet comic book legends, the hottest new creators, and everything in between.”It’s an epic event of guesses and vendors unmatched on the east coast. Although it was tough to get tickets and autograph sessions, this year was special because the convention was celebrating Godzilla’s 70th anniversary. A couple weeks ago Godzilla Minus One Director Takashi Yamazaki was announced as a guest. And my hope to meet him was rekindled. Previous opportunities turned out to be merely near-miss encounters. Then just days ago an autograph session with the director was announced and the promise for tickets availability but never materialized. The announcement still had not been made even upon arrival at the Jacob Javits Convention Center in Manhattan on Saturday morning, the day of the session. But I was just happy to be there with my great friend Eric and his daughter. I gave up hope of meeting the director and getting his autograph. I focused on the Godzilla panel later in the day that he would attend. But God had a better plan that I never saw coming.

After spending some time at the X-Plus North America booth, I decided to head over to the Bandai Namco booth to make the most of the time before the panel while my friend and his daughter played a game. Little did I know this was my best decision of the day with some divine timing. Then the Godzilla booth came into my view and I was stoked. Shoppers were inside the booth and a line was forming outside the entrance. I asked a fellow attendee what the line was for and I was told to get a picture with Godzilla. There was no way I was going to walk away and I jumped in line standing right in front of the booth’s entry. A huge monitor was running Godzilla content and clips of Minus One on a loop. I noticed a slide about tickets for the autograph session with the directori. I was bewildered and thought maybe tickets were available for purchase rather than online as it was suggested on social media. Yet I was content and happy to see Godzilla who was only moments away from his 2:30 appointment.

And then the surprise of the day. Out of the crowd a voice shouted, “Coming through! coming through!” I looked to my right and a small group was quickly approaching. A man asked me to step back since I stood by the entrance, when “Godzilla” appeared. Approaching and following him was Director Tamashi Yamazaki! With his head lowered he walked right in front of me just inches away! I did a double take and almost fainted. I gathered myself and scrambled to pull my camera from my bag. The director entered the booth and stood just feet away where he waited for Godzilla like the rest of us. I had the perfect view to capture the amazing moment. My day reached its nadir! My mission was accomplished by an unexpected surprise of the day.

Director Yamazaki was engaged in a conversion that fixed him in front of me. I was in the perfect place for photos and video. Then Godzilla finally arrived! He stood before his majesty and bowed. Then the two exchanged greetings and handshakes. As quick as Yamazaki arrived he was whisked away on to his next destination. And as far as I was concerned my day could have ended then. But it was capped with my photo with Godzilla and my little niece.

After my photo session with the Big G, I inquired about tickets for the autograph session and learned all tickets were sold out. An apology was extended because of the failure to make the announcement as promised. Obviously for a moment I was disappointed because I waited two days for the chance to get a ticket. But that fleeting disappointment paled in comparison with my incredible close-encounter with the Director. Nothing mattered any longer. My day was complete. And missing the celebratory panel didn’t really matter either. Nothing that day would have been better than this new memory that I will cherish for the rest of my life.

Overall, we had so much fun at NYCC despite the crowds, the intense walking, the long lines, and occasional snafus along the way. My day was filled with meeting old and new fellow Godzilla fans. I saw my dear friend and colleague Jeremy with his team at the X-Plus North America. I had wonderful conversations about new products and shared my process of toy photography with fellow attendees. Get ready for the new X-Plus Kaiju Wars Series revealed there. This series will be a winner for fans and collectors with great sizes for our shelves and great prices for our wallets. New Godzilla merch seemed to be everywhere I looked. With a grateful heart for a magical unforgettable experience, I’m looking forward to seeing Director Yamazaki again on Godzilla Day in Japan and returning to NYCC in years to come.