Michael Davis: The Geek In Me
Really.
I’m proud to be thought of as a geek. Shit, I’m so geek I don’t just have an abundance of action figures – I have among those figures a pretty substantial Barbie doll collection.
Long sad story and yes I’m straight.
I have nothing but love and respect for geeks and like I said I’m proud to call myself one.
But…
Lately I’ve been feeling a bit guilty. I’ve been wondering if I really am a geek. Yes, I love comics, video games, movies, books and TV. Yes, I tend to categorically love the sci-fi flair within those media… but am I really a geek?
I’m looking forward to the next Star Trek movie but I’m not losing any sleep over it. The announcement that the original cast was being reunited in the next Star Wars movie was interesting, but except for thinking “Duh.” I had no reaction.
I love going to the San Diego Comic Con but I couldn’t tell you when the last time I spent any time on the floor not doing business. These are just a few of the hundreds of “I could give a shit” thoughts about pop culture I harbor.
So, am I really a geek or am I just a guy who thinks owning action figures and hating Jar Jar Binks makes me a geek?
Someone tell me.
Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi…
WEDNESDAY: Mike Gold
THURSDAY: Dennis O’Neil
One of us! One of UUUUUSSSSS!
Haha, no seriously, though – you totally are, because I say so. And you own action figures. Here, I will knight you with a light saber and then there will be no more doubt in your mind.
Also, I think successfully doing business at geek cons means you’re actually like, a leveled up geek and stuff. Uber-geek? You know it’s true. :P
Really, though – I think being a “geek” is totally subjective. I was thinking about that when I wrote my column a couple of months ago (http://www.comicmix.com/columns/2013/01/08/emily-s-whitten-geeklitism-part-i/). My preference is for geekdom to be as inclusive as possible – it’s more fun that way.
“One of us! One of UUUUUSSSSS!”
That made me laugh!
I hate that. ;-)
I think it’s just the result of being an Old School Geek. We’ve seen almost every new geek thing before, just with lesser production values. The current Star Trek films are great, but we’ve seen eleven previous Trek films, and five TV series – six if you count the cartoon. Yes, the current incarnation arguably has the best acting, writing, and special effects, but it’s still just a prettier version of the same thing we’ve seen for almost fifty years.
The original Star Wars cast reuniting is potentially exciting, but we saw the magnificence of the original trilogy already, and the botching of the prequels. It’s hard to get our hopes up after Jar-Jar and Darth Whiner. It’s hard to maintain any level of excitement when the quality of a future series is in doubt. Even if the new films are great, chances are they won’t exceed the wonder inspired by the first film, or the majesty of of the second film.
Cons suffer from the same problem of been-there-done-that. Cons used to be a place where outsiders could gather, and share their passion for things dismissed by the mainstream. It’s almost the same thing today, but now that geek is chic we no longer have that feeling of being the outsider. And for someone who works in the industry, a con must like just another day at the office. Booths used to consist of a couple of folding tables with a few boxes of comics, or shelves of games, and the occasional creator signing autographs. Now, everything at cons is so slick that only subject matter distinguishes the presentation of a con and a convention for insurance agents.
Cosplay in the eighties and early nineties consisted of guys wearing plastic ears or Styrofoam head-ridges, and a few women wearing get-ups that left you guessing where the chain-mail ended and the cellulite began. Again, production values have improved, but it’s really nothing new.
I doubt the question is whether or not you’re a geek, it’s a question of how jaded you are.
Malcolm,
Maybe I’m a jaded Geek?
I think we all go through that phase of self-doubt at one time or another. I mean if anything, it does help keep things in perspective. I remember when “geek” was not at all an attractive term, but then I also learned how to read before school on my dad’s old Classics Illustrated comics. My head is filled with so many seemingly useless facts even comic fans my own age get weary at times. But it’s the passion that keeps drawing us in, whether we like it or not, through good costumes and really really bad ones.