Queens Comic Con will be holding a big convention on Halloween at P.S. 329Q in East Elmhurst.
Photo by Jonathan Quito
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The Queens community doesn’t see a lot of anime conventions. Many are hosted in areas such as Long Island and Manhattan, with the widely known “New York Comic Con” being one of the most popular anime conventions. However, Jonathan Quito has been changing this by hosting his very own “Queens Comic Con” on Halloween to allow the Queens community to enjoy an anime convention.
Quito began working on his dream project in May of last year by hosting his first-ever Queens Comic Con at P.S. 329Q in East Elmhurst. He also takes pride in being the first in his hometown to host a convention,
Queens Comic Con began with a convention in May 2025 at P.S. 329Q. Photo by Jonathan Quito
“I wanted my hometown to finally have a convention,” Quito said. “There wasn’t really anything Queens that wasn’t very popular, and I’m happy that I’m the first to do it.”
He visited many conventions in the five boroughs. He helps out in these events and also learns about how to organize and run an event smoothly.
“I love everyone’s conventions. Everyone has their own thing in the Bronx and Brooklyn and Manhattan, and there’s other different conventions in Long Island, I love them all. Everyone has their pros and cons,” Quito said.
At his first convention, Quito included fun activities such as Karaoke to entertain his attendees.
“I do a lot of giveaways to show my gratitude to the people who buy tickets to support my convention,” Quito said.
He also likes the idea of giving his attendees a variety of options at his convention.
“What I realized in most cons in video games, they only have one game for each machine,” Quito said. “My machine carries thousands.”
Quito’s main philosophy is to keep his conventions fun and affordable for his community and allow growing vendors to experience what it’s like to vend at a convention.
“I want to try to make it affordable because times are hard for everybody,” Quito said. “I want something from my hometown. That’s something I’ve been dreaming about for a while and I kind of feel like we’ve been left out for a very long time. And to finally make it happen, it’s a dream come true.”
Quito added, “I want the Queens community to know that there’s finally somewhere they can go and have fun and share their cosplay, share their arts and crafts. And if they want to start out before heading to the big leagues like New York Comic Con or whatever, like cafe guest stores or vendors, they can start off small before they hit higher ground.”
The Marvel-themed convention will be held on Halloween. An upcoming Christmas-themed convention is also on Quito’s mind along with many more events to come.