Did the nerds win?

[MGibster]

Some of the post here in this thread read to me "Great, now more people like/are aware of this thing and that's bad I'm no longer "special"."

I was into this band before it was cool. The thing with something becoming more mainstream is that most of the "normies" aren't going to be into it as much as you are. I think it's safe to say most people my age liked the original Star Wars movies. You don't get more mainstream than the original movies, but most people aren't going to know the names of every alien in the cantina and might not even remember who Captain Needa was.

 

[MGibster]

This too - stop staking your whole identity on corporate media, people. They were corporate when you were a kid, too.

It was a rather harsh lesson for me when I had to accept the truth that GI Joe, Transformers, Masters of the Universe, etc., etc. were just glorified commercials. They were produced to get around advertisement restrictions against marketing to children. It's why I don't particular care about whatever changes they've made to GI Joe, Thundercats, etc., etc. over the years. I'm not going to get worked up over something created to advertise to me.

 

[Bedrockgames]

It was a Pyrrhic victor

 

[Micah Sweet]

It sounds like the general feeling is that nerds didn’t win at all. If anything we got conquered and colonized and now we’re just performing old, watered down rituals as entertainment for the tourists.

Hyperbole!? You bet!

Still, I think this really touches on some of the things that make people see different fan bases as “toxic”. It’s always easier to see the reproachable behavior than the underlying feelings that drive them.

If I’m reading the responses correctly that is.

That's about where I am on a lot of it.

 

[Micah Sweet]

It was a rather harsh lesson for me when I had to accept the truth that GI Joe, Transformers, Masters of the Universe, etc., etc. were just glorified commercials. They were produced to get around advertisement restrictions against marketing to children. It's why I don't particular care about whatever changes they've made to GI Joe, Thundercats, etc., etc. over the years. I'm not going to get worked up over something created to advertise to me.

I don't really care about the creator's motivation so long as I enjoy what they created.

As far as G.I.Joe is concerned, I was a far bigger fan of Larry Hama's original comic run with Marvel than I was of any other aspect of the property.

 

[Micah Sweet]

Mostly that. Though admittedly, it seems like there's a subset of people you could label "cool nerds", which do have wider recognition now and whose nerdy hobbies are seen with more benevolence. But I don't get the feeling that the social standing of the "classic nerd" has improved that much.

I certainly don't feel any "cooler" than I did as a teen. Better in a lit of other ways, but no more cool.

 

[Bohandas]

This too - stop staking your whole identity on corporate media, people. They were corporate when you were a kid, too.

Like I said before that's why the Cthulhu Mythos is the best fandom; Most of H.P. Lovecraft's and C.A. Smith's stuff is public domain

 

[trappedslider]

I was into this band before it was cool. The thing with something becoming more mainstream is that most of the "normies" aren't going to be into it as much as you are.

Is that bad or a good thing? YMMV

 

[MGibster]

As far as G.I.Joe is concerned, I was a far bigger fan of Larry Hama's original comic run with Marvel than I was of any other aspect of the property.

Hama referred to the cartoon as "morally bankrupt" for all it's violence without consequences. As a wee lad, I also enjoyed the comic more.

Is that bad or a good thing? YMMV

I don't think it's good or bad, but it's often a way to separate the nerds from the regular folk. It's not a hard or fast rule though. I imagine there are plenty of young women who know minute details about Taylor Swift and her songs that matches what the biggest Star Wars nerd knows about that franchise.

 

[Umbran]

It’s always easier to see the reproachable behavior than the underlying feelings that drive them.

Yes, it is. But let us be clear, the rest of us are not under an onus to allow or forgive reproachable behavior. Period.

If someone has problems with their feelings driving them to behave badly, it is that person's responsibility to seek help with their issues.