Dragon Con is the king of all the comic cons in the South. It’s the biggest con that Atlanta has and every year it tends to get even better. Dragon Con takes place every Labor Day weekend from Thursday till Monday (it’s usually going on at the same time as college football). So the streets of Atlanta are filled with football heads, awesome nerds, and geeks of all types.
One of the big things about Dragon Con is the parade. That’s when everyone will wake up early, jump on Marta, and head downtown. You will see almost everyone in costume on Marta heading to the parade, from toddlers to the elderly, in full costume. Once you reach downtown, the streets are packed with tourists and residents to view the parade. During the parade, you’ll see everything, from Deadpools to Harley Quinns, Iron Mans, Storm Troopers, Hip Hop Trooper, Ghost Busters, Steven Universe characters, Zombies from Netherworld and more. If you see someone you recognize in the parade don’t be afraid to call them, they will stop and take a picture with you.
Every year they have a huge celebrity roster during the parade as well and the majority of the celebrities you can also see in the hall of fame where they hang out. David Yost the Blue Power Ranger was there along with Austin St. John the Red Power Ranger. I also ran into Ciara Renee who plays Hawk Girl from the CW Flash and Legends of Tomorrow. I spoke with the cast of Sponge Bob and they were hilarious. I did not know the voice actress who plays ‘Pearl’ on Sponge Bob is also The Boss from Metal Gear Solid 3. That totally blew my mind.
I also attended a panel about Marvel in The 80’s (it was a pretty cool panel). It was a panel of writers who told us how marvel was in the 80’s and what took place behind the scenes. One of the writers who wrote for The Incredible Hulk took the blame for having Wolverine’s adamantium ripped out. There was one question from the audience, “What are your thoughts on Batman vs. Superman?” and all three writers said it sucked. The audience cried laughing and applauded (we see that everyone is a Marvel fan). Even one of the writers who also wrote for DC said the movie sucked.
I ventured off into the dealer’s room and man… All I have to say is that I felt like I was in the merchant area in Legend of Zelda, or Aladdin. There were a lot of things to buy, from weapons to shirts, action figures, props, anime, old school video games, and so much more. The dealer’s room was mind blowing! The gaming room was pretty awesome too. I played a Japanese flip table game, that was awesome, and there were tons of other games available.
At the end of the night, the con doesn’t end because they have parties and raves where you can dance all night (You will literally dance until the sun comes up and do it again the next night). Overall Dragon Con is really fun. You get to see all of your friends, make new friends, and see famous cosplayers too (even the kids dressed up in really neat costumes). I spoke to some first-timers that attended this year, and they said they had a blast and would attend next year and on.
Dragoncon, the comic con of the south, is one of the biggest events in Atlanta. If you live here and have never attended or if you’re from out-of-town and always wanted to come, you should. You will really enjoy yourself. Everyone is friendly and more than likely you’ll be joining the Dragon Con family.
-TBZ
Photos: Yoh Phillips, Kent Foster