DragonCon 2006 Recap Posted September 12, 2006 at 10:11 pm
The 2006 Labor Day weekend marked the passing of another thoroughly enjoyable DragonCon. For those out of the loop, DragonCon is a massive general-purpose sci-fi/fantasy convention held annually in Atlanta, Georgia. Where many conventions of its type choose to focus on a narrow segment of fandom, DragonCon brings everything together in one place through a diverse set of programming. With everything from anime to Zork finding representation, there’s a little something for everybody.
2006 marked my third year in attendance at DragonCon. Here’s a few of the highlights from my experience.
I finally made it to “Drawing Anime 101″ this year, which I managed to miss in years past. This year’s rendition of the recurring panel was headed by Kittyhawk, artist and webmaster behind the anime-styled webcomic Sparkling Generation Valkyrie Yuuki. The panel ran a bit long at three hours and it was less structured than I had hoped, but our hostess quickly proved her competence and offered a bunch of useful tips. Much of the advice offered on the panel would likely have proven useful to artists in other genres as well.
While this year’s ART track had a plethora of interesting panels, I was only able to fit one into my schedule. “How I Learned to Stop Pirating Software and Love the GIMP” took an insightful look at the free software options available to aspiring digital artists. In a space largely dominated by pricey commercial offerings, capable free software like the GIMP and Scribus deserve due consideration. Now, if only they could help me understand the GIMP’s UI…
Dean Haglund of the X-Files and Stargate’s Gary Jones returned this year for encore performance of their excellent improv comedy routine. Donning the mantles of Spock and Kirk, respectively, the duo put on a highly entertaining parody of the original Star Trek in this year’s panel, appropriately dubbed “An Improv Enterprise.” With audience members providing cues, Dean and Gary filled in the rest for one hilarious hour.
“Mythbusting for Fun and Profit” was one of many panels featuring personalities associated with one TV show or another. Mythbusters host Tory Belleci did an admirable job of entertaining the crowd despite the absence of fellow hosts Kari Byron and Grant Imahara who were also scheduled to attend. Between tales of wild pyrotechnics and a fake IMDB biography, it was a thoroughly enjoyable way to spend the hour and a nice introduction to the show.
Titus, who also joined me for the convention, has posted his own thorough set of synopses for Saturday, Sunday, and Monday.
