After spending four days in the company of Gandalf and Hellboy, walking back onto Emory’s campus had my head spinning. At the Dobbs University Center, I half-expected to see Darth Vader grabbing a slice of pizza. I guess spending time in another world will do that to you, and that’s the best way to describe Dragon*Con — a world in-between fiction and reality that is brought to life annually by the coming together of passionate fans from all around the world.

Dragon*Con, the largest science fiction and fantasy convention in North America, kicked off last Friday, taking over four massive hotels and most of downtown Atlanta. This year, the convention hosted 3,500 hours of activities, ranging from celebrity panels to costume contests, and attracted fans from all over the world, many of whom were more than willing to dress for the occasion. While this year’s official attendance count is still pending, it’s safe to estimate that the number of convention-goers easily topped last year’s 30,000.

But why exactly does Dragon*Con attract a crowd comparable in size to the population of a small city? Whether your passion is science fiction, astronomy, anime, costume role-playing or filmmaking, the convention offers something for every fan. Many come for the chance to dress up and others to see their favorite bands perform. Some even attend the convention in a manner similar to that of a holy pilgrimage, adorning themselves with fannish relics and traversing thousands of miles to pay homage to their obsession.

For the diehard fans, the convention offers a sense of community; for the casual observer, the fans themselves — and by fans, I mean costumes — are reason enough to attend. Costume contests are serious business, with convention-goers donning everything from full-body Wookie suits to Starfleet uniforms. While traditional fan favorites like fairies and vampires still pervade the convention grounds, steampunk — an offshoot of the speculative fiction genre centered around the aesthetics of the Victorian Age and steam power — was hugely popular this year. Others simply pride themselves on obscurity, like members of a group that wandered around the convention dressed as the Bruces from “Monty Python’s Flying Circus” — characters who appeared in only one skit.

Convention-goers also flock to Dragon*Con for the celebrity guests. This year there were several headliners, including “Star Trek” alumni William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy and Patrick Stewart, “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus” director Terry Gilliam and Charlaine Harris, author of the hit series that inspired HBO’s “True Blood.”

For the guests themselves, who meet thousands of fans every day, Dragon*Con is a blur of handshakes and hellos; but the guests are also spectators to the show.

“It’s an interesting experience and, visually, Dragon*Con is fascinating,” actor Ben Browder (“Farscape”) said in an interview with the Wheel. “You stick your head out the door at night [and think,] ‘I can’t believe that a bunch of drunk Predators just ran by.’”

“It’s like Mardi Gras in space,” he added.

Most celebrity guests attend Dragon*Con to take part in unique panels that range from simple Q&As to guest-directed discussions about their work. Shatner and Nimoy’s Friday morning “Star Trek” panel consisted primarily of a slew of inside jokes, while Sunday’s “Babylon 5” panel featured the actors answering fans’ questions. Not all panels, however, are highlighted by guest appearances. Some fans lead discussions about their favorite television shows, like the Saturday evening “LOST” panel that debated some of the series’ most burning questions. Other panels allow amateur filmmakers to discuss strategy or live-action role-players (LARPers, to those familiar with the lingo) to network.

Given the extensive schedule of events, which would require a time-turner or flux capacitor to attend in its entirety, it isn’t a surprise that much of a fan’s time at Dragon*Con can be summed up in two words: waiting and hoping. It wasn’t uncommon for people to walk up and ask, “What’s this line for?” because half of the floors were sliced into quadrants by uneven and ever-expanding lines. Before the convention’s biggest events, lines began to form nearly three hours in advance. One convention-goer admitted that they had actually camped overnight for Friday’s Shatner-Nimoy panel.

Shopping is yet another reason that people attend conventions like Dragon*Con. The bottom floors of the Hilton and Marriott Marquis formed an unearthly bazaar. Booths manned by pirates, elves and robots peddling a wide variety of unusual and eclectic items lined the walls. These merchants sold everything from comics and clothing to doll skulls, hand-crafted steampunk jewelry, action figures, plushies and horns (yes, horns).

Given the hefty price tag of a weekend pass, the travel expenses, the cost of a hotel room, food, memorabilia, autographs and parking, Dragon*Con provides an economic boom (an estimated $25 million in 2008) for the Atlanta area and its local vendors.

While most of Dragon*Con’s activities occur during the day, the convention’s nightlife gives attendees a chance to let their geeky hair down. This year, convention-goers attended events like themed masquerades, a zombie prom and a mad scientists’ ball.

Dragon*Con 2009 was also host to a World Record attempt — the largest “Thriller” dance. The event took place at the Sheraton on Sunday night, and 903 convention-goers came to lend their dancing skills. I was one of them. Rehearsals began two hours prior to the attempt in order to prep all the participants, and although I accidentally crushed Spider-Man’s toes, I think we pulled it off. We’ll leave that up to Guinness to decide.

Dragon*Con’s most well-known event, the enormous parade of costumed convention-goers that struts down Peachtree Street, didn’t even require a ticket to enjoy. The sidewalks began filling up more than an hour before the first parade step.

The convention also utilized its massive appeal to give back to the community, hosting a huge blood drive sponsored by The Heinlein Society and the new CW show “The Vampire Diaries.” An auction of authentic set pieces and other items used and formerly owned by the convention’s celebrity guests was also held. The event raised $25,000 dollars for the American Alzheimer’s Foundation.

All in all, Dragon*Con is a departure from the norm.

“Dragon*Con seems to take the already strange ‘con’ experience and then pumps a trillion gallons of insanity into it,” actor Colin Cunningham (”Stargate SG-1”) wrote in an e-mail to the Wheel.

Insane just about covers it. Where else can a couple hundred Stormtroopers perform Michael Jackson’s infamous “Thriller” dance while Klingons host beauty pageants a few yards away? Certainly not at Emory — well, then again, you do run the chance of bumping into a certain member of the undead community.

— Contact Kara Zimmerman