I agree totally with MB that there are two camps in the DS world: Those who love the show in general, and those who love a particular character (in the instance MB was speaking of, it was Barnabas).
Fortunately for me, I belong to the former. I like the show in general. I love each character differently, because you can't measure them all by the same standards. Different people brought them to life, and each character had his or her own motivations throughout the series.
The REAL draw for me this year, was, of course Jon Frid. As I mentioned in another (or perhaps this) thread, my mind was completely made up without a doubt once Frid was announced as a guest. Like I said before, I was *thinking* about going, kind of hemming and hawing about it.
But, what made me want to go to the fest was not the allure of meeting "Barnabas". No, no. It was the allure of meeting "Frid" the actual PERSON. Because I've watched numerous fest videos on You Tube, as well as the vid that Mr. Frid sent to the last fest, not to mention numerous stories and other Frid-oriented videos on You Tube that have nothing to do with an actual fest, and this is a wonderful man, and I would be sorry to have never met him. Sure, he portrayed a great character on a amazing television show, but for me, Frid trumps Barnabas.