Why did geek stuff become cool?
As a lifelong fantasy enthusiast, I find it funny that many skeptical friends are now absorbed in series like Game of Thrones or the Marvel movies. Big budget sci-fi & fantasy has always been prominent at summer box offices. But the quantity of these tales spreading across mainstream entertainment feels new.
Fantasy and superheroes were once considered “nerdy” to the point that they existed only on the fringes of entertainment in the 70s and 80s. In those days, they were a haven for acolytes who didn’t fit well with mainstream society.
But now the broad American audience CARES about nerd stuff (if Marvel profit margins or YouTube reactions to Game of Thrones scenes are any sign). There are concrete and intangible factors contributing to the shift from musty basements to limelight.
On the practical side, fantasy junkies have been dying to see our favorite series’ on the big/little screen for a long time. We are a fiercely loyal viewer base. Advances in technology have also made it cheaper to produce high quality graphics for imagined worlds. So it is easier to create these types of shows and they look less ridiculous than they once did (ex. 1980’s Flash Gordon). This draws in skeptics who might have once scoffed at the kitsch of older animation. Children, with their less inhibited imaginations, also represent a big support base. They have a passion for magic and heroes, and their parents buy tickets and related merchandise by the chest-load.
Boosted by loyal fan groups, enhanced CGI, and an industry shift toward genre-fiction, these series started to catch on with a broader audience. There are many sci-fi and fantasy series that have been horrible, much like there are many terrible comedies or horror flicks. But enough great shows and films have emerged for popular consumption.
People recognized that many were compelling stories with great characters. The visual fantasia only serves to make the stories more of a spectacle. And Hollywood executives have been happy to cash in.
As executives realized there was money to make, they increased the supply, which generated more interest, and encouraged them to continue to fund these. This feedback loop has continued to the present, where many worry that we’ve reached saturation point. Whether we have hit over-capacity (I concede that super hero movies perhaps make up too large of a percentage of the film release schedule at the moment), science fiction, fantasy, and comic book genres have significant staying power.
This popularity is more than executives recognizing profit to earn. Geek genres are successful for two primary reasons. They are a unique platform for exploring topics, and they connect with our desire to envision a world beyond constraints.
A UNIQUE PLATFORM FOR EXAMINING TOPICS
Sci-fi, fantasy, and comics provide a platform for examining real-world topics by changing the rules. Similar to scientific experiments — where one alters a specific variable to examine changes on the control group — these genres allow authors to conduct thought experiments about how a world might progress in the face of fantastical conditions.
Want to create a movie examining the implications of climate change? Make a dystopian science fiction film where nature has reached a tipping point and upended human society. Want to ponder about the loss of innocence? Write a book or show about how magic only makes people unhappier. Want to examine trust and loyalty during times of hardship? Create stories of friends going on quests to save the world from evil.
There is a lot of junk out there focusing only on the surface aspects of re-envisioned rules (i.e. CGI spectacles, sexy superhero sagas, campy YA dystopian clones, etc.). But at their best, these genres envision new rules to govern nature or society, and then explore how very real human beings might cope with it. What happens when we change the laws of physics or biology (ex. magic, superpowers, etc.)? Or explore how different political structures shape human behavior (ex. dystopias, new kingdoms, etc.)?
Sci-fi and fantasy involve a re-imagination of reality. They allow us to bypass our notions of reality to focus on specific topics in a way that is not possible in the real world. Many of these stories focus on everyday conflicts or themes, but a re-envisioned world highlights these conflicts in unique ways. Seeing old topics in novel lights is good for the soul, and sparks imagination. Which leads us to the second major reason why I think these genres have propagated.
OUR INNATE WONDER AT THE WORLD
There is something pure and joyous about creating a new world. For me, much of the allure in these tales comes from the construction of new realms, societies, and laws governing them. Fantasy, sci-fi, and comic genres are popular in large part because they exhibit and feed upon an innate human joy of imagining. There is a magical quality to creating fantastic-sounding lands and peoples. Humanity has always sought out things to be in awe of. Ever heard of a thing called religion?
I’m not equating fantasy & comics to religion but the creative drivers are connected. There is a strong connection between existential mystery and the creation of mythological narratives to explain the world’s complexity.
In a world that is easy to get disillusioned with, these genres give us an opportunity to do what the prominent company instructs us — to marvel. And that is why these genres have captivated our interest. They draw on mythology and religion for inspiration, connecting with humanity’s attempts to rationalize the wonder of our existence.
At their best, fantasy, sci-fi, and comic stories let us recall the childish curiosity of seeing or imagining the impossible. As silly as it is to some people, watching movies & TV shows with dragons, sorcery, space wonders, and super-powers is just fun. It is dazzling in an adolescent way. Nerd genres offer a glimpse of the unashamed joy we felt as kids about fantastically unrealistic stories.
They offer kids a spectacle of wonder and give adults a brief return to a magical world. Without the drudgery of 8am-6pm jobs, bureaucracies, and bills…
Of course there are plenty of bad genre tropes which are repetitive and there is plenty of dumb content created in these genres. Such is the case with all entertainment. Despite the bad apples and the tired view of nerd topics as “uncool,” all manner of people have flocked to consume geek culture. It gets us to marvel at something inherently unrealistic.
Hardcore geeks and most Americans appear to agree that it is fun to immerse ourselves in fantastic worlds, even temporarily. Fantasy, sci-fi, and comics give us ways to explore old topics in creative ways, and they connect with a human love of imagination and creation. The world is full of things to get disillusioned with…just read the news. Americans need a little more time spent marveling and thinking about what could be.
Originally published at https://bwaters13.wixsite.com on March 2, 2016.
