Every year, Atlanta is host to a number of nerd centric conventions. MomoCon, GnomeCon, NerdaCon V8 and the Anime Weekend all revolve around video games, Japanese animation, science fiction lore, technology and so much more that will inspire the inner nerd in everyone.
However, anyone who even skims the surface of “geeky” topics will tell you that the one event to outweigh the rest is undoubtedly Dragon*Con. Dragon*Con is a four-day festival during Labor Day weekend spanning three of Atlanta’s largest hotels to the city streets themselves. Fans of popular comic books, movies and television shows don impressive costumes from every pop culture genre imaginable.
Started in 1987, Dragon*Con began as a congregation for mostly science fiction and gaming fans. Its namesake was borrowed not from the fantasy beast depicted in its logo but from the “Dragon Computer,” developed by convention co- founder Ed Kramer.
Nobody is entirely sure just how many people attend the convention annually. This year, a safe estimate is more than 50,000 people, up from the few thousand who initially attended in its flagship years.
Those organizing the spectacle prepared several incentives for convention-goers to get out of their hotel rooms and explore the city. For instance, on certain nights, those with a Dragon*Con badge received discounted tickets at the Georgia Aquarium, as well as at an Atlanta Braves game. A mob of people in costume showed up to Thursday night’s game against the Cleveland Indians.
Attendants at the front desk of hotels in the area give one piece of advice: “All the best costumes come out at night.” Some costumes were so elaborately decorated that it was difficult to imagine how they were put together. One attendee was dressed as a bright orange robot, complete with flashing lights, realistic metal and a loud clanking each time his armored foot stepped forward.
The annual highlight of the convention was held on Saturday morning. A parade of storm troopers, power rangers and gamers dressed in Minecraft regalia strolled through the city streets. The sidewalks swelled with onlookers taking photos of their favorite characters.
So what brought Kennesaw residents out to the event? “There were a few celebrities there that I was really interested to meet, and I wanted to see all the costumes,” said junior Political Science major Brandon Schmidt.
They also had some interesting panel discussions. A number of famous actors arrived to sign autographs and meet fans. Among the celebrities were James Urbaniak, from the television show “The Office,” and George Takei of Star Trek fame. For junior Information Security major Cody Skinner, Dragon*Con 2013 was all about “the late night parties on Saturday and the Angelspit and Crüxshadows concerts on Sunday night.” Skinner dressed as Finn from the television show “Adventure Time.”
Skinner said this year was slightly different from past conventions.
“It seemed to be a lot more crowded this year,” Skinner said. “Also, not allowing lines to form for panels until an hour before the event caused a lot of congestion [and] overcrowding issues.”
Overcrowding may be an issue the founders of the convention will need to address in the very near future with so many new faces appearing on the scene recently. Whether it is meeting the biggest names in the television and comic industries, or playing video, board or card games, Dragon*Con is the capital for all attractions in nerd and popular culture.
