Darth Vader, Astro Boy and Sailor Moon were just some of the characters seen at the fifth annual Comic Gong convention.

Even a very realistic looking Freddy Kruger was at Wollongong Town Hall scaring kids and this unsuspecting journalist.  

Celebrity cosplayer and cosplay (costume play) judge Evey Dantes, dressed as Duffman from The Simpsons, was suitably impressed with the variety of costumed characters on show.

‘’We look for the person who is most getting into character. But those handmade costumes that are build with love definitely stand above the pack,’’ she said.

‘’There are lot of great costumes here today.’’

The Wollongong-raised cosplayer said she loved being involved with Comic Gong.

‘’It is so cool to see so many awesome people here. It just gets bigger and bigger every year,’’ Dantes said.

Tech expert and cosplay celebrity Rae Johnston, who reprised her role as Wonderwoman and cosplay competition host for a third straight year, said Comic Gong held a special place in her heart.

‘’There is just such a fantastic vibe at these kind of shows,’’ she said.

‘’You get a lot of people who haven’t seen a comic convention before, that are being introduced to this world.

‘’You’ve just got a real ability for that geeky community in the area to come together and celebrate the things that they love about comic books.’’

Dressed mainly in attire of their favourite superhero, hundreds of people took advantage of free events around Wollongong CBD, the town hall, city library and art gallery.

Other exhibitions included a showcase of zine culture, Copier Jam, plus a selection of prints and sketches by illustrator and graphic designer Bill O’Donovan.

This year 74 stall holders packed into the town hall selling everything from rare zines to superhero figurines, graphic art to memorabilia and collectables.

Wollongong Lord Mayor Gordon Bradbery said Comic Gong had come a long way in the past five years.

‘’It started as a half-day event at Corrimal Library. It’s now morphed into this incredible event all around our facilities in the centre of the Gong,’’ Cr Bradbery said.

‘’I think many of us connect with comic books, no matter how old we are. Many of us I think subtly learnt our literacy skills by reading comics.

‘’There is people around here strutting their stuff, living out their fantasy. It is great to give them an opportunity to come out and dress in their favourite comic book character or whatever.’’