Revenge of The Nerds – Geek is Chic

Sep 15, 2012 by Mike Hernandez

If you were to play the first five seconds of Beethoven’s “Allegretto” movement from his Seventh Symphony (one of his most popular pieces) and then play the theme to Super Mario Bros., which would be the more recognizable tune?

Before you Google the Allegretto (and if you didn’t, I give you a golf clap) Granted that Mario is one of the most popular video game characters ever, but the comparison here is to illustrate how nerd culture has permeated into general pop culture. Like oil, it was something buried that’s now become unearthed, and the resources are plentiful and endless.

Ostensibly, the nerd culture still has this chic label attached to it, but people are always looking for the next new thing, and the nerd well had mostly been an untapped source. Comic books, video games, collectible were all part of the nerd lore that people attribute to them, but that term has kind of manifested into something else. Before the digital age (we’ll call this A.D. – After Digital) “geek” and “nerd” were loosely used terms to describe outcasts or different factions of people,  but now everyone has something they self-admittedly geek or nerd out about, and it’s become fairly acceptable.

Much of that is due to the inundation of geek-dom from the hands of Hollywood. The highest grossing films all spawn from similar starting points: books, and in most cases, comic books. Movie franchises like The Dark Knight and Lord of The Rings gross over $1 billion worldwide, and the clamoring for these projects are unanimous and in unison, that the divide between “true” nerds and ones just entering the foray is less distinct. A show like Big Bang Theory heavily relies on nerdisms and implores the audience to follow and understand the characters’ vernacular. Being one of the highest rated sitcoms point that there is a larger crowd becoming infused with the small contingency that the show once specifically catered to.

There’s no escaping the volcanic explosion of nerd culture and where it still might be headed, but one thing that should never be diminshed is your love for it. Just like before it became popular, the reasons you loved Doctor Who or your kick ass Ninja Turtles collection (guilty) should not be soiled by others’ perception of it. The old adages of nerd no longer rings true, and now is the time to wear your faux Superman cape and Power Glove with pride.

 By Mike Hernandez

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