The older I got as a kid, the more it became obvious that there was a growing social divide between me and some of the other kids in my class.
I was getting more and more into comics and the like while holding onto my passion for giant transformer robots.
Other kids, however, were getting more and more into sports.
I’m not saying geek and sports fan are mutually exclusive, just that, for the most part, it’s ok to be in public and not to be the other.
At least, way back in the day it was. Times, they do a’change.
Still, looking at the rabid fan bases that geekly pursuits and athletics inspire, I have to say, there’s isn’t that much difference between the two sets of people.
Not much at all really…
Both Know a Lot of Dumb Things
You can list all of Derek Jeter’s stats going back to his high school years, I can list all the different shades of kryptonite.
You can pontificate on the virtues (or lack there-of) restrictor plate racing, I can pontificate on the virtues of having a comic line having a multiverse.
You can tell me who coached The Pittsburgh Steelers to victory in Super Bowl IX, I can tell you who was the colorist on Uncanny X-Men #104.
By the way, the colorist was Andrew Yanchus.
Both Like To Show off Loyalty
There really is zero difference in an adult wearing a New York Yankees jersey out in public and me hitting the mall in my Aquaman T-shirt. None.
And define how the guys who dress up as Boba Fett at a convention are any sadder than the assholes who paint the names of their favorite teams over their fat bellies in -30-degree weather at a football games.
See? You can’t do it, because there is no difference.
People who are passionate about anything want to share that passion and show off that passion. Whether that’s their favorite baseball player of Battlestar Galactica bit player is irrelevant.
Passions Run Deep
How often have people almost come to blows when discussing just who, exactly, is the greatest NFL quarterback of all time?
Hell, how many times have you turned on the news after a playoff game to see a city block on fire? Crazy!
On the flip side, DO NOT go to the hotel bar late night a convention and demand to know who would win in a winner-takes-all bout between Batman and Captain America.
And then, the world’s collided |
Or scream that Deadpool is absolutely the single most overrated character ever produced by a comic company and that he is, at best, a fun supporting character that should be used sparingly.
Everyone Knows What’s Best For Their Favorite Franchise
Wouldn’t The Braves clinch the title every year if you had a shot at coaching? I know for a fact I could right every wrong at DC if I were just called into to run the joint.
If there’s anything that being a fan of, well, anything teaches us it’s that we know what’s best at every turn. Whether that involves when and where to throw a ball or who should or should headline a book is irrelevant.
We All Know Controversy
Just how many past and future Hall of Famer’s used steroids to enhance their performance? Should that be held against them?
Why didn’t Stan Lee take more of a stand for creator rights when he was the only creator with the forum to do so for decades? Why does he sign comics he didn’t write?
We’re All Pretty Immature
Being a rabid spots fan boils down to getting worked up and overly excited about adults playing children’s games. That’s a fact.
Want to know another fact? Geeks like me get worked up an overly excited about properties created specifically for children. And yet both sides sit in judgment of the other…
Overly Homoerotic
Hate to break it to you sports fans, but you’re really into dudes in tight clothes, grabbing each other’s ass, placing their hands on each others taints, while fighting for possession of balls.
Meanwhile, my number one passion in life, super hero comics, centers around physically fit dudes dressed in form-fitting tights suits all hanging out together in secret places.
They in turn get physical with other dudes dressed in form-fitting tights suits who, as it so happens, also hang out together in secret places.
The Joke is on All of Us
Whether your passion is for the Miami Dolphins or The Legion of Super Heroes, we all gloss over the fact that, sports or geek stuff, our passions are actually long cons with us being the marks. Yep, that’s exactly right.
The collection on the right belongs to Friend of FOG!, Marshall Julius |
We’ve all been tricked into giving massive amounts of money to corporate franchises all because we fell for some pretty savvy marketing. Remember that the next time you hear someone offer up their take on Lebron James’s return to Cleveland or how Dan DiDio is ruining DC (again).
Sports geek, comic geek, sci-fi geek, it’s all the same.
Geek.
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