Geek has turned chic. The nerd world has undergone a massive makeover, and in the meantime conquered contemporary mainstream media.
Previously identified by thick horn-rimmed glasses, suspenders, and a high stack of textbooks, the nerds of today barely resemble the nerds of the golden years. From Urkel, the nerdy comic relief from the hit 80’s show Family Matters with his nasal voice and memorable dance moves, to Tony Stark’s super-smart, robotic, suave, lady-killing ways, the i,age of geekiness has drastically been transformed..
“Nobody’s getting stuffed in lockers for being a fan of comic books anymore,” said Rob Spittall, owner and manager of The Comic Book Shoppe.
“In the past five years I’ve gone from a large to an extra-large shirt being the best selling to a small or medium… The stereotype of [being a geek] and the clientele are changing. Many will declare themselves as a geek or nerd as they’re coming through the door… none of them fit the high school definition of it.”
The Comic Book Shoppe — which turned 13 years old this summer — is noticing a more widespread demographic than ever, Spittall said.
“Personal trainers, ravers, suits… [We’ve got a] little bit of everything coming in the door and all of them will declare themselves a geek or a nerd… the lines and the definition of that have definitely blurred from what it was”.
But what has caused this sudden shift to nerd pride? Where did Urkel go? Shows like The Big Bang Theory “have made it more socially acceptable,” Spittall said, and he’s not alone.
Ian Nagy, a former Carleton professor who specializes in pop culture, said he feels the same way. “Shows [like The Big Bang Theory] really demonstrate the sort of ‘mainstream’ or common place of geeks within modern pop culture,” he said.
“[The geek] has not changed so much, how society has reacted to the geek has changed.” Films are the best explanation for this change, Spittall said.
“Hollywood brought [nerds] out, [making them] more socially acceptable.”
But Hollywood’s new love of comics is making geek culture more than acceptable; it’s becoming something successful. According to boxofficemojo.com, Marvel’s The Avengers raked in over $1.5 billion worldwide, and shattered records as the fastest movie every to surpass the 100, 150 and 200 million dollar markers during opening weekend. With Marvel in the works to produce even more movies and sequels in the future, one has to wonder; why the comic book obsession? Spittall said for the most part it’s just convenience.
“When you look at a comic book you’ve got your basic script done, your character design, your storyboards are done. Now all they have to do is shoot, and cast it . . . comic book movies help [Hollywood] progress things a little bit faster. . . They’ve got a prepackaged movie.”
But the geeks aren’t just ruling the box office; now they’re taking over the award shows too. The Big Bang Theory, Chuck Lorre’s hit show about three physicists, an engineer and a blonde, has been racking up awards since it started in 2007. The show, now on its sixth season, has garnered 18 Emmy nods and two wins, a Golden Globe and two nominations, and numerous other accolades, according to IMDb.
Lars Konzack, a Danish game studies theorist, wrote a paper about geek culture entitled, “Geek Culture: The 3rd counter culture.” In it, he said that geek culture is at its heart an intellectual movement.
“It has something to do with Star Trek but certainly not anything to do with sports, music, fashion and food,” he said in the paper.
“One might have argued earlier that [Geek Culture was] obscure, but nowadays seems to represent mainstream.”
His paper follows geek culture from its beginnings to today, in light of rapidly advancing technology, where Konzack remarks that “geek culture is mixing fun with substance, rapidly changing how culture and aesthetics are perceived in our society.”
So have the geeks won? Spittall said he thinks so.
“The introverted comic geeks are now the multimillionaires leading these new corporations… that have the power. Some of them took their dedication to heart and said, ‘I can’t train my body like he did but I can train my mind and I’m going to succeed,” he said
Based on the upcoming The Avengers 2, Iron Man 3, and Captain America sequel coming out in the next few years, it doesn’t look like the geek world plans to slow down. You could say it’s on a mission, to explore strange new worlds; to seek out new life; new civilizations; or to boldly go where no fan has gone before.
