Tiffany M. Davis

From Merriam-Webster dictionary:

Nerd (noun):

: a person who behaves awkwardly around other people and usually has unstylish clothes, hair, etc.

: a person who is very interested in technical subjects, computers, etc.

Geek (noun).

: a person who is socially awkward and unpopular : a usually intelligent person who does not fit in with other people

: a person who is very interested in and knows a lot about a particular field or activity

[sidebar: the above terms are often used interchangeably]

Late last year on Twitter, I stumbled across a group of people calling themselves Blerds (Black nerds). Blerds were the lost tribe I’d been seeking but didn’t know it: a group of melanin-enriched folks with high IQs and love and appreciation for a diverse array of things considered not the norm for traditional Black folks, including comics, video games, science fiction, and punk rock. I was in heaven. I’d found my peoples.

I reveled in it. I wrote about it for Black Girl Nerds. I read comics for the first time (and reviewed a few). I was down like four flat tires.

Then I got my geek card pulled.

I frequently partake in #SaturdayNightSciFi, hosted by Geek Soul Brother, a fellow Blerd. Every Saturday night, we gather across the interwebs to live tweet a curated sci-fi/fantasy movie or the first two episodes of a (usually cancelled) SFF (science fiction/fantasy) TV show. I’ve been pleasantly surprised by some of the offerings and have garnered new favorites as a result: the now-defunct British TV show Misfits and the now-defunct American show Fringe (the latter proved so popular for #SaturdayNightSciFi that we are now indulging in #FringeFriday. Join us at 9 pm ET on Fridays!).

Game of Thrones fans: yes, that is “Ramsay [Snow] Bolton” on the far right!

The infamous FRINGE glyph/code

Once again, I was happy to be amongst my tribe, my peoples, those who are often considered to be marginalized within Black society due to our interests and intellect.

Until Farscape.

Farscape was the latest #SaturdayNightSciFi offering and, as usual for a TV show, we were slated to watch the first two episodes. I barely made it through episode 1.

I was out of my depth from jump with regard to sci fi references that seem to be canon. On the contrary, my Blerd compadres were, well, geeked to be watching, and lost no time dropping SFF comparisons.

“Nice move to cast Kent McCord as Crichton’s father.”

“That trans-dimensional scene reminded me of Contact just a little.”

“…And it’s from Yuri Gagarin” 

“The last few Red Dwarf series jumped a whole school of sharks”

“Love Farscape! But Lexx was the better ship!”

“So, this is the sexy blue alien species that inspired the Asari in Mass Effect, eh?”

“LANI JOHN TUPU and he’s a captain!!!!!!”

HUH?!

“Basta” is Spanish for “enough”

Um…okay. I had no idea what they were talking about. The Geek was strong in these ones, but I was on the outside of the Death Star, futilely seeking entry through the formidable force field. My geek game was clearly the opposite of fleek. I wasn’t even on Padawan level; I was just a midichlorian.

What can I say? Geeks gonna geek. I quietly raised my church finger and exited out of the live tweet. (anyone who has encountered the Baptist Church will get that reference LOL).

This was a humbling experience. I realized I am more of a nerd than a geek, it seems: I hardly read comics, I prefer non-alien SFF (Terminator movies and The Fifth Element notwithstanding), and I have only a superficial knowledge of Star Trek (but I at least can differentiate between Star Trek, Star Trek: TNG, Star Trek: Voyager, Star Trek: DS9, and Star Trek: Enterprise). However, I’m all about that Star Wars action, boss, and I have all 132 episodes of the Thundercats cartoon on DVD. I’m also a fan of the Watson and Holmes and Nutmeg comics series.

Maybe there’s hope for me after all.

Thanks for stopping by.