What Made Free Comic Book Day 2025 Special for Me

 I had a blast at Free Comic Book Day 2025! The event was held last May 3 at Robinsons Galleria’s Main Atrium, from 10 AM to 6 PM.

Big thanks to Comic Odyssey’s Sandy Sansolis, Ma’am Rowena Sansolis, and the entire team for the warm welcome and for taking care of us throughout the day. I’m really grateful for the invite!

I arrived around noon and went straight to my table, where I was seated with Ian Velasquez of Velasquez Characters. Fun fact: Ian is the grandnephew of Tony Velasquez, the father of Pinoy Komiks and the creator of Kenkoy—who’s turning 100 soon! But I digress.

As part of the tradition, every attendee received two free comics. I got mine too—thanks to Ian who lined up and grabbed copies for us!

At my table, I set up and displayed copies of Lingon, Parekoys Comics, a full set of Sikami Vol. 1 to 8, some Sikami art prints, and Kalye Cats refrigerator magnets. I’m happy to share that by the end of the day, I sold the Sikami set and a few copies of Lingon, my short comic anthology.

When I arrived, the venue was already packed with comics fans! The Comic Odyssey table was bustling with activity—they had T-shirts, posters, discounted comics, and more on sale.

I also brought my camera along and filmed some short clips of my fellow comics creators. I asked them one simple question: “What do you like about Free Comic Book Day?”

One highlight was getting to interview Aurello Castro III—a talented urban sketcher, musician, and now a comics illustrator for the book Nagalit ang Aswang sa Mahal ng Bawang written by Randy Valiente.

Overall, it was an awesome experience! I got to reconnect with old friends and meet new ones. The crowd at FCBD feels different from the usual Komiket or Komikon scene—and I mean that in the best way possible.

Looking forward to Free Comic Book Day 2026 already!