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Identity Crisis: Are geeks the new hipsters?


The surge in popularity of comic book adaptations, video games, and sci-fi television programs has effectively transformed pop culture into a geek showcase. Case in point: this year, we’re getting five big comics-related movies: Captain America: The Winter Soldier, “The Amazing Spider-Man 2,” “Transformers: Age of Extinction,” “Ninja Turtles,” and, perhaps most surprisingly, “Guardians of the Galaxy.” When a movie about a walking tree and a gun-slinging space raccoon actually gets greenlit, you just know that Hollywood bigwigs are more than happy to tap into the vast realm of comics for ideas.

And it's not just comics-based movies that are “thwipp”-ing and “snikt”-ing their way to financial success. For example, if you went back in time to about ten years ago and told my younger self that Green Arrow would eventually become the star of a popular television show (with swooning fangirls and all), I probably wouldn’t be here to write this, because I would have died laughing on the spot.

Now, however, you won't get any blank looks when you start talking about Oliver Queen. Heck, “Arrow” is even about to have a spin-off - “The Flash,” starring the Barry Allen version of the character - and everyone is running around in excitement for a spandex-clad character whose live-action exposure in the last decades was basically limited to being represented by his annoying grandson Bart Allen on “Smallville” and Sheldon’s shirt on “The Big Bang Theory.”

All of this serves to highlight the biggest reason why geeky properties are getting a very long stint in the spotlight: They’re a smash hit, even with – or perhaps, especially with – the non-geeky crowd.
 


Guardians of the Geekery

“Before the trailer, I didn’t really know anything about the Guardians of the Galaxy,” says Ken Jamandre, an avid moviegoer who, while somewhat familiar with comic books, does not consider himself a full-blown geek. He developed an interest in the upcoming film because the trailer was shared on social media by his friends and contacts - “not even the hardcore geeks,” he says, “just the casuals.”

Ken also reveals that he has started to read up on the Guardians because of the pages he follows on social media – pages about comic books, novel adaptations, and upcoming films. “The more you get interested [about geeky things], the more you get to read stuff that you initially weren’t interested in.”

In the case of fandoms, heightened interest usually translates to an increase in spending for geeky goods – something that curious newcomers seem to be more than willing to do.

“Casuals are the lifeblood of geekery,” believes Bim Barbieto, a voracious comics reader and gamer who runs a pop culture blog. “Geekery is highly dependent on commercialism. Toys, action figures, TV shows, movies, video games are all essentially businesses. Sure, a lot of them are fueled by passion, but they're still kept alive by economics.”

It’s this continued patronage of mass media audiences, combined with the Internet’s capacity to put everything you need right in front of you (and turn you into an expert on, say, Star Trek) in a matter of minutes, that allows everyone to fully immerse themselves in whichever comic book adaptation, novel, or video game happens to be the current talk of the town. However, quite a few argue that this may not necessarily be a good thing.

Comedian and well-known geek Patton Oswalt wrote in a 2010 article on Wired that the Internet may be helping to create an army of weak “otaku” (the Japanese word for an obsessive fan). Since anyone can pretty much Google anything nowadays, the necessary level of active engagement and immersion in worlds of science fiction and fantasy has been reduced significantly. As Oswalt explains, instant gratification leads to customers being easily satisfied with whatever’s there, eventually leading to creative bankruptcy and rehash after rehash of every single pop culture artifact that has ever worked before – essentially, the death of original and groundbreaking content.
 


Others, such as Joe Peacock, bring to light the emergence of geek posers and so-called “fake geek girls,” who wear logo-emblazoned shirts or cosplay only for the fame and attention, and not out of a true love of the source material.

Even comic book creators such as Tony Harris have weighed in – in his case, with a rather strongly-worded Facebook post lashing out at a certain subset of cosplayers who the artist believes are not “real fans” of the characters they're dressing up as, and are supposedly seeking nothing but validation (and longing stares) from socially awkward male convention attendees.

Is it really that much of a problem, though? And should it be?
 


Universes colliding

“It’s a battle between being exclusive and being inclusive,” says Ken, who brings up how fans become especially knowledgeable through their devotion to the source material. According to Ken, being an expert on something does put you in the position to discuss it (or even educate other people about it). “The challenge is, to what extent can I say something about it? As an educator, I [can] either portray one of two roles –should I be arrogant about it as an elitist, or would I share and have goodwill about it? “

“It’s deeply embedded in our culture. Young as we are, we’re already taught how to be segregated, how to behave in a certain way.”

The strong urge to be possessive of one’s fandom can stem from a number of things. One may be the longstanding negative connotation of being a geek, which has been swiftly overturned by the successful penetration of geekier interests into the mainstream consciousness. The tables have now turned – geek is in, and it pays to be “in the know” before everyone else.

“In a way you share in [your fandom’s] triumph,” shares “Bruce” (not his real name), a comic book, video game, and television series enthusiast. “[Some geeks] view its newfound popularity as a validation of their sense of taste, and a touch of precognition.”

However, “Bruce” also describes being a longtime fan as a “bittersweet affair.” His concerns lie in the tendency of the source material to be eventually “diluted” due to the need to conform to the more popular mass media interpretation. In comics, for example, characters are changed and significant events in current continuity are undone (or even wiped from existence) to match the story in the movies or television shows. Of course, with this comes the risk of alienating the original fanbase.

Another possible explanation is the need to stand out. Bim compares geek elitism to hipster behavior – the tendency to adopt a “controversial” or contrarian stance in order to be able to say that one is different and, as some may even believe, better than the rest of the masses. “Geek elitism is seriously bordering on being a hipster. [Like,] ‘I loved Dr. Who before it was cool,’” he observes.

Days of Geekdom Past

As Ken puts it, "in order for the world to be a happier place," there doesn't need to be a divide between hardcore fans and casual fans. Regardless of fandom or hobby – comic books, TV shows, crossword puzzles, or even shoe collecting - “it’s a perspective on what you value and what you want others to value, in such a way that you’d understand each other better.”

“Casuals look to you as the expert,” says Bim. “It works the same way with specialists. It feels great to be thought of as the go-to guy, but I think everyone is entitled to enjoying the material equally.”

“In the end, I think the main source of joy from being a geek should be derived from how you personally experience your fandom,” affirms “Bruce.” “What anyone else thinks of it should hardly be a factor at all.”

“It’s a great time to be a geek, no matter where you are.”
 


Maybe it’s time for us to finally leave the past behind, to stop thinking about the time when liking comic books and video games meant that the popular kids at school never even gave you the time of day. Maybe it’s time to accept (and appreciate) the fact that a newcomer can easily skim through Superman’s 75-year history - from when he could only “leap an eighth of a mile” up to his status in the New 52 - in less than half a day.

Like the characters we love and follow religiously, the idea of the “geek” is constantly evolving and adapting, like one big comic book crossover with thousands of writers and artists across the decades. Creativity and original ideas aren't dying, and certainly won't be dying anytime soon. Besides, from the way things are looking now, the pros of the geeky pop culture wave seem to outweigh the cons – after all, we're living in a time when producers are actually willing to give a “Hellblazer” television show and a “Sinister Six” movie a shot. (Heck, with any luck, we might even get a “Transmetropolitan” series.)

The world of geekdom is waiting with open arms, and seeing all six “Star Wars” movies beforehand isn’t a requirement to be a part of it (in fact, feel free to skip “The Phantom Menace,” please). For the newcomers: Don’t be afraid to sit with the geeks at the cool kids’ table – there is more than enough room for everyone.

Just don’t forget to spell “Spider-Man” with a hyphen. — TJD, GMA News
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