If you live on the west coast, then there is only one place you need to be come the middle of summer if you’re a fan of comics, sci-fi, film, television, gaming, or anything else imagination inspired – and that’s the San Diego International Comic Con. But come Labor Day weekend, Comic Con’s east coast counterpart can boast another gathering just as exciting, if not more so, in the name of Dragon*Con. The largest multi-media and popular arts convention, with a focus on science fiction and fantasy, as well as comics, literature, art, music and film. Fans gather in Georgia to take over not one or two, but three major hotels in downtown Atlanta; converting the beautiful, serene, southern style of the city into a mecca of Stormtroopers, zombies, aliens, Spartans, geeks and characters from every walk of Sci-Fi’s unique culture.
What sets Dragon*Con apart from other conventions? Two key factors: variety of topics and fan involvement on a grand scale. You have every conventional corner of media and entertainment included in this 4-day event; convention guests include actors, writers, artists and performers, you also have fan-sponsored tracks on every conceivable topic; The Jedi Assembly; British Films Since WWII; Two Apollo, a Chief and a Battlestar; and Beer Snobs in Space. After you’ve spent the day in huge ballrooms listening to classic sci-fi actors such as Tippi Hedren (The Birds) or purchasing a rare comic in the Dealers Room, you can wonder over to the Art Show and appreciate a completely different type of talent before heading to the Hyatt’s lobby for great live music and perusing the costumed throng of your favorite characters come to life.
Whether you’re a morning person or a night owl, Programming Tracks are available all day long and span the gamut of interests: American Sci-Fi Classics and Media, Apocalypes Rising, Art Show Forums and Workshops, British Sci-fi Media, Comics Programming, Costuming, Dragon*Readings (hear some of your favorite authors read portions of their own works), Gothic Shadows, Independent Films, Robotics (build your own robot), Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time, Sci-fi & Fantasy Literature, Silk Roads: Asian Cinema & Culture, Stargate: Offworld Fandom, Star Trek: TrekTalk, Star Wars: Matters of the Force, Tolkien’s Middle-Earth, Whedon Universe, Writer’s Track, Young Adult Literature, Anime/Animation. Kids if you don’t see it here, it doesn’t exist. Dragon*Con has something for everyone.
For anyone who hasn’t heard of or attended Dragon*Con in its 21 year history, you are certainly missing a weekend never to be forgotten. We’d be amiss to try and recapture it here in all its glory, but we’ll touch on a few key events which keep Dragon*Con on the ‘must see’ map for fans of every age.
The key to your success will be navigation, getting accustomed to the getting back and forth between hotels and finding event rooms. Friday is a great day for settling in and learning the ropes, as the crowds are a little lighter. Dragon*Con is presented in three of the largest hotels in Atlanta: the Hyatt, the Hilton and the Marriott, and with multiple floors in each hotel and over 50 event rooms, finding your way around can be daunting to the novice.
Let us toss some numbers out at you. There were over 20 authors and novelists (including Terry Brooks and Timothy Zahn), over 60 actors from television ann film (including Lori Petty and Nichelle Nochols), over 30 Comics artists and illustrators (from Eric Powell to Terry Moore), and over 30 musical performers. Events included the ever well-versed array of categories such as the Guest of Honor Awards Banquet, Tournaments and Gaming, and the Writer’s Workshop.
Four of the biggest draws at Dragon*Con are its annual Parade, as nearly 1,500 costumed fans saunter, chainsaw and stormtroop their way along Peachtree Street from Woodruff Park to the Marriott; the Walk of Fame, directed by Tom Gennaro, where celebrities are accessible for fans to offer a few words and get an autograph; the Masquerade, this years Best in Show went to Moulin Rouge Meets Sailor Moon; and finally the Whedonverse’ own “Buffy Horror Picture Show.”
The Dragon*Con Parade is an event not to be missed. The organizers make it easy for spectators to separate the Borg from the androids, and the Jedi’s from the Stormtroopers by breaking the participants into groups from their selected genre. Each group then walks with a banner identifying themselves – a brilliant strategy for identifying the more obscure costumes among the marchers. The costumes are marvelous and much care is taken by the wearers to maintain their character throughout the march. Imagine the dedication it takes to do a zombie shuffle for the entire parade route. Don’t let the pirates and the Monty Python knights distract you or may miss the famous faces. Eric Estrada, Michael Winslow, Sherrilyn Kennyon as well as a few others could all be seen making their way down Peachtree Street.
Every year the “Buffy Horror Picture Show” is a huge attraction – dedicated fans, dressed as the characters, act out the scenes on stage as the episode plays on the big screen behind them – and it was a packed house twice over. The line for the 10:00pm first showing went out of the Hyatt and down the street, but the second showing at 11:30pm had fans wrapped around the building. Luckily there were enough laughs, applause and singing along to make up for any sore feet.
There was no lacking in Hogwarts and Muggles roaming about as Harry Potter was very well represented at the convention with a huge fan-base in support. Those who had ventured ‘across the pond’ to meet and listen to the Phelps twins were extremely rewarded. James and Oliver carried their own panels to a standing-room-only crowd and where quite the handsome young men in their short cropped, dark hair. They were a big draw at the Walk of Fame as their autograph line extended out of the hall and they were gracious to each and every admirer.
Of all the Guest Panels scheduled for the weekend, the biggest and most anticipated were the iconic TV series that filled all four Centennial ballrooms. They gathered a collection of actors the likes of which some fans have never seen before all in one place. The Stargate Mega panels, Star Trek Guest Stars with the Next Generation Cast Reunion and the Battlestar Galactica Reunion. An amazing 23 guest list which included Michael Shanks, Brent Spiner, Gates McFadden, Richard Hatch, Jamie Bamber and many more. The stars shared their stories, recollections and ambitions while answering questions; really giving fans an opportunity to get to know the people behind the characters.
While the guests are certainly the media draw of this convention, it is truly the fans that make this event what it is. We spoke to two such attendees, a familiar face to Dragon*Con and a con-virgin, as the saying goes, to get their reflections on what they experienced. First we spoke to Michael Conrad from Jacksonville, Florida. He’s been to Dragon*Con several times and there’s always something to impress him. What I liked best were the costumes and the art show. I spent hours just admiring the workmanship and creativity of the people and imagining how much time they spent constructing those costumes he said. What Dragon*Con organizers get better at each year is informing people at the con with the Daily Dragon, and the podcasts they have been running the last couple years. It is really cool to wake up in the morning and turn on the laptop in the hotel room to hear who has cancelled today or what panel moved where or if there is a new musical guest on the Concourse or whatever, Michael explains and the ability to download the PDF every morning to read more details, instead of having to pick it up when you are already at the con.
What draws people to Dragon*Con? In my opinion, I think this year it was the guest list, which was the best I could remember in a while. The Frakes/Spiner/McFadden panel was standing room only and I expect - though I did not see it - that Claudia Black and Michael Shanks were also another big pull to people who would not have ordinarily attended. Michael recalls, A couple years ago I know people who were not planning on going and then when they heard Joss Whedon would be there jumped on the phone and ordered badges. A really juicy guest list of people you expect you won’t have many chances to see, like Claudia Black for instance, is always a good incentive to new people and returning con people as well.
This year I think the Con is finally outgrowing its space, but once the Marriot is finished with its renovations and the Dealers room can go back into the Marriot I think they will be able to sort things to be more central for access to all hotels, like it was in previous years. Michael found one slight problem, The spacing of the hotels is logistically difficult for people. For instance, the Whedon Universe track was a constant walk for people wanting to enjoy the guest talks and hardly two hours passed in the same hotel for that track… it was an hour in the Hyatt, then over to the Hilton for an hour, then back to the Hyatt for another guest talk and then back to the Hilton then over to the Hyatt again for the end of night party, etc. You can’t blame him, but at least you can stay in shape at Dragon*Con.
Richard Sussmann from Inwood, West Virginia was our voice of the newbie and he was happy to inform us that he made his goal panel, Yes, I did get to make it to the SG-Mega panel. All I can say is wow! From a small con like Creation in New Jersey to Dragon*Con in Atlanta….I was blown away. The massive scale of the event ensures that no matter what your interests are, you will be satisfied. Sure, you have to pace yourself, Richard admits, so you don’t get sensory overload, but well worth the effort. I wish I had done a little planning, so I could have seen even more, but I still got to see a lot. Either way, those who plan and those who just go on the spur of the moment, everyone if guaranteed to have fun.
In addition to the sci-fi actors, I was thrilled to see the likes of Michael Winslow and Elizabeth Rohm. Even though Erin [his girlfriend] is not as interested in sci-fi and some of my interests, she still had a great time. She became speechless when we ran into Lou Ferrigno in Starbucks. That dude is huge! Richard laughs, And the events were only part of the experience. Walking through the crowds and seeing the myriad of costumes was like walking through a museum or the hall of fame for the entertainment industry. I was thrilled to see classics like the Ghost Busters, the Predator and even Beaker from the Muppet babies. Additionally, the friendly and open atmosphere brought out the most creative and open con-goers, and people, I have ever met. It was like everyone was family, or at least a friend.
Even as awed as Richard was he found room for improvement, There were some problems, and it was not very handicap friendly. Friday afternoon on was crazy crowded because they over-sold tickets. They could have done a better job by selling a few less tickets and spreading out the different events better. For example, once they closed the Dealer rooms in the Hilton, everyone came over to the Hyatt because that was the center of the events. It got so bad that the hotel had to man the elevators to ensure that the handicapped could get onto the elevators. Overall though, it was a fantastic event able to keep anyone’s attention for as long as you could remain awake.
Being of the awake crowd is certainly the key element to Dragon*Con. Although the morning events don’t start before a reasonable 10:00am call, the nightly events continue until the breaking of dawn. Officially the last panel begins at 10:00pm but there are films to watch and live bands to listen to (including a surprise performance by Buffy’s own James Marsters) and more after-parties then you can locate.
We stumbled upon the Battlestar Galactica party with the line of attendees forming down the hallway as the Fire Marshall had already capped the party at 150 persons. That didn’t stop Jamie Bamber from dropping in to the excitement of the pretty girls dancing next to him. There was plenty of entertainment and the bars were well set up to keep the liquid refreshment flowing for those of all ages, the key is to keep moving so that the Fire Marshall doesn’t have to shut down the fun. Picture taking in the Hyatt lobby is suspended in the evenings to keep the foot traffic moving, but that didn’t stop “The Tick” who could be spotted asking for kisses in exchange for a quick pose, even when he’s 5’-11” tall and handsome it’s a little odd, but that was the going rate for a photograph. Only at Dragon*Con.
Saturday and Sunday are the biggest and busiest days of the convention, and be sure to charge those cell phones, because you’ll need them to locate you missing-in-action friends. When the eye candy becomes too much and you needed to refocus on the import things, like shopping, there’s plenty of merchandise being sold in three different Vendor and Dealer rooms. There were comic books (Dark Horse Comics), rare and new, costumes for the pirate in you or armor for the Spartan (Windlass Studios). You could get a pick-me-up with a purchase of Graveyard Grounds coffee and satisfy that sexy craving with a feather fetish. If you just needed to find that perfect 9-sided dice, you’d find that too!
Sunday’s biggest draw comes in the evening with the Masquerade, Happy Hour at Ten Forward (or rather Happy 4-Hours), and 2-hours of Star Wars fan films which offers some of the best in film-maker imagination. On Monday there are still exciting panels and events to attend, especially if there is someone or something you missed, and with a lightening of the crowds it can be a bit more relaxing as well.
If there’s something we missed and we’re sure there is, the good news is it all happens again next year! You know the when and where, so plan now to attend the greatest convention on the East Coast. If our little re-cap has whetted your appetite at all, trust us, we didn’t do Dragon*Con justice. And for those of you who were there this year… “May The Farce Be With You.” ~ Dragon*Con TV!
For more pictures please visit HERE.
- In 1999, Kristy Bratton teamed up with professional web designer VirginiaObeius to co-create the 'definitive source for Angel' website,CityofAngel.com, offering a fresh behind-the-scenes look at the series asnever before seen by its fans. In the course of the five years whichfollowed, Ms. Bratton wrote over 75 articles for CoA covering the gamut ofentertainment from conventions as the San Diego International Comic Con,London's Starfury events and Dragon*Con. Spotlight features on thecreative force of "Angel" included Joss Whedon, David Greenwalt, TimMinear and Marti Noxon. Highlight features on actors Andy Hallett, AmyAcker and Stephanie Romanov, plus Behind-the-Scenes features on makeupartist Dayne Johnson, set designer Stuart Blatt and stunt coordinator MikeMassa. Ms. Bratton's photography work has been published in the OfficialBuffy/Angel magazine by Titan. She has written for the Official StargateSG-1 magazine with features on Don S. Davis, Peter DeLuise and CarmenArgenziano. Her daily inspiration is the memory of her beloved, femaleyellow lab, Tobi who has a cameo in Tom Sniegoski's novel, "The Fallen:Leviathan." www.CityofAngel.com