Welcome back!
Our third day at Dragon Con began, for Bethany and Riley, with the Sam Witwer panel! Hosted by Bryan Young, this panel was a really fun one with Sam talking about what it was like being Starkiller, Darth Maul, and a zombie extra on The Walking Dead. A true Star Wars fan, he seemed to really enjoy the panel himself, and spoke enthusiastically about Star Wars themes, characters, and behind the scenes experiences.
Sam taking the photo of Starkiller:
The end result photo that Sam took:
After that, Riley and Bethany rushed off to make it to the Star Wars Costume Contest! With a great view of the stage, they were able to see all the costumes up close with all the amazing details. Jedi Ariel and toddler Luke and Han were Bethany’s favorites, while Riley was a big fan of Leonidas Fett. The costumers put so much time, creativity, and hard work in their costumes, and were impressed with seeing the end results of it all.
After that, Aaron and Teresa were moderators of the “EU Legends: Author Edition” panel, which Bethany and Riley also went to.
With Michael Stackpole, Timothy Zahn, Dave Wolverton (also known as David Farland), Christie Golden, Kevin J. Anderson, and Rebecca Moesta, this panel had so much Star Wars writing talent on it that people started lining up for it more than an hour before time. The authors discussed their thoughts and opinions about the Star Wars Expanded Universe becoming Star Wars Legends. They also talked about their thoughts on continuing writing in Legends, which they all believe is highly unlikely, and the fact that all of them would love to continue writing new Star Wars novels.
After that panel, the four of us hung out for a while and talked with some listeners of the Star Wars Report podcast, and other people who had gone to the panel. I also took a selfie with some of the amazing Dragon Con Star Wars Track volunteers! They were super nice and professional the whole convention.
Afterwards Riley and Bethany scooted into the tail end of a Battlestar Galactica panel “May the Gods Watch O’er Us” in which the panelists (Richard Hatch, Tricia Helfer, Michael Hogan, and Mary McDonnell among others) were talking about some memories of being on set, and the good times they had there.
Bethany ran into some My Little Pony Mandalorians.
She was also quite suspicious that this tree was Groot in disguise.
After that, Riley and I went to the “Appreciating Aaron Allston and A.C. Crispin” panel. Sadly, both of these writers are no longer with us, and the panel was about honoring and remembering them. It was sad, but it celebrated their lives and their positive impact, with both laughs and tears as the panelists and crowd reminisced about them. Most everyone wore Hawaiian shirts and leis (Hawaiian flower necklaces).
Aaron and Teresa meanwhile had adventures wandering around the dealer’s hall and the Walk of Fame (where the celebrities will sign pictures, talk to fans, and do photographs).
Riley and Bethany caught the end of the Star Wars Trivia Contest where Kelly Adams of Big Shiny Robot was a contestant! Some of the questions were easier, and some of them were really difficult, and both Riley and Bethany had to resist the temptation to shout out the answers to some of the questions. Bethany also worked typing up blog posts during the contest.
Afterwards, Riley and Bethany hung out with Bryan Young, Amy Ratcliffe, Kelly Adams, and Kelsie to watch the Dragon Con Masquerade while eating somewhat suspicious looking Chinese food. Essentially it was a giant cosplay contest with skits, and some of them were incredible. Others were mildly confusing… like the zombie-steampunk-belly-dancer. The Caractacus Potts and Truly Scrumptious characters from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang particularly impressed Bethany and Riley, with a nearly perfect routine and amazing costumes.
Bethany and Riley had fun taking photos of cosplayers and the hotels.
After that we went back to the hotel with Teresa and Aaron, and played Heads Up, a fun card game that had us giggling like kids. It was kind of a sad night, knowing we were hanging out the last time we would together at Dragon Con, as Aaron and Teresa had different plane flights in the morning. We made an impromptu McDonald’s run in the wee hours of the morning to get some food.
On Monday, Bethany and Riley said goodbye to Teresa and Aaron, checked out of the hotel, and went to Dragon Con for morning.
Afterwards, Riley and Bethany ran into the Dragon Con Director of Media Relations Dan Carroll, and said their farewells to him, as well as the Star Wars Track Director Brandy Roatsey, and a few other people involved with the Star Wars track. They then hung out with a friend and went to see Sam Witwer, who was awesome as usual. However, both Bethany and Riley were surprised and excited to find out that Sam listens to the Star Wars Report podcast, and on that nice note, Dragon Con was at an end for all of the Star Wars Report staff. If you haven’t been to Dragon Con, I would definitely encourage you to go! The people, panels, sights, dealer’s hall, Walk of Fame, guests, parties, and more all make it a fun and interesting convention to attend.
