We live in a wonderful time for nerd-dom, people. There are so many different outlets for our pop culture predilections that it’s sometimes hard to keep track. This past weekend in Chicago saw one of the great bastions of nerdy-ness in the form of the Chicago Comic and Entertainment Expo, or C2E2 for short.

C2E2 isn’t the biggest draw in terms of comic book and entertainment news or major events. But what the convention lacks in nerdly scoops, it more than makes up for in terms of fan passion. Countless die-hards proved themselves willing to venture out into the Windy City solely to cosplay their dang hearts out. The Chicago conventions seem to bring in true fans that all seem to have a real deep appreciation for whichever comic, movie, TV show or video game inspires their dress.

We could just post the gallery, but we simply can’t let this article go without posting some of our favorites in totally not made-up categories.

Best Throwback Fandom: Ducky (The Land Before Time)

Creepiest Cosplay (especially from a distance): Slenderman 

Most Bad-ass: Cable

And there’s certainly a tie for what is truly the best category there could ever be: Best Parents. Either by instilling the love of nerdy things in their children or simply letting them be what they want to be, we gotta give it up for the parents of a young Emperor Palpatine (built into his wheelchair) or the dad and his little BB-8. You can see both in our gallery.

Check out the gallery below for all the cosplay pictures we snapped and make sure to share ones we missed during the weekend in the comments below or on Facebook.

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Images: C2E2 2016