and the geeks shall inherit the earth

SDCC was last weekend, (that's San Diego Comic-Con, for those of you not in the know), and with so much going on in the world of sci-fi and fantasy, the "geek" label is thrown around like a frisbee at
Bonnaroo.  Who's a geek, who's not geeky enough, girls and fake geekery, yadda yadda yadda...

So, now "geek" is something that's exclusive as well?  In that case, I don't know if I'm a geek or not.  I know I'm pretty dang geeky when it comes to some things, but whether or not I fit into the new definition of the "geek" label is beyond me.

I grew up not only playing with Barbies and My Little Ponies, but also with Transformers and Star Wars figures.  When I watched TV, my favorite shows were Wonder Woman, He-Man and Super Friends.  I had a crush on Christopher Reeve as Superman and David Bowie in Labyrinth.  These were in the mainstream, not fringe entertainment.

The same can be said for entertainment today.  We're in the land of 80's remakes like Transformers and GI Joe and not only that, but comic book characters rule the world of movies and cartoons.  Avengers, Superman, Spider-Man, Batman, (Green) Arrow, sadly still no Wonder Woman though...they're everywhere.  It's rare that you find anyone who doesn't watch any of these.

So, I guess where my confusion lies is if all of these characters and story lines are so mainstream, when does a fan cross into the "geek" category?  Are we all geeks or are there certain criteria that need to be adhered to? 

I've read that they now have geek clubs in schools where you have to answer certain questions in order to be accepted.  Seriously?  Geekdom is something you can be excluded from now?  Something you have to study to attain?  I just do not get this.

And there are throngs of women/girls who feel like they're not accepted.  That they're being labeled as "fake geek".  How can you be fake geek?  I just can't wrap my head around this.  This whole issue has been summarized in one music video by The Doubleclicks....



So, here I am...  You know what my interests were when I grew up.  I still love watching the original sci-fi & fantasy movies I watched as a kid, I'm a huge fan of the new Marvel movies, still strive to be Wonder Woman, but I've never owned a comic book (well, until this year), never got into role playing games, Dungeons & Dragons (except for the 80's cartoon), and I don't know the names of the aliens sitting behind Jabba the Hut's throne in Return of the Jedi.  To throw everyone for a loop, let's also throw in the fact that I greatly enjoy watching football as well.  (*gasp*)  Where do I fall on the geek scale?

And does it really matter?

Just be yourself, my friends!  Like what you like, be okay with what you don't like.  Don't feel like you have to conform to standards to be accepted, and most important of all, always follow Wheaton's Law:

Don't be a dick.