“Heroes, Villains, and Me” is a periodic article on Geeky KOOL by Larry Litle about the world of comic books and my reaction to it. “Heroes, Villains, and Me” is not a comic book review article. I will write about current events, speculation and rumors, or my own wacky thoughts about the world of comic books and related stuff.
Things are very different than they were years ago. We are at a golden age of Geekdom. People are embracing their love for comic books, science fiction, fantasy, and all things geeky. It has become KOOL to like Star Wars and comic book movies. Instead of beating up the geeks and nerds, the KOOL kids have realized that this stuff is awesome.
With this new level acceptance and more people into geeky things, comes new potential revenue for businesses that sell and cater to the geeky community. The market for comic book related merchandise is at an all time high. You can buy related stuff for your favorite geekdom.
I have heard a lot of grumbling about these Entrepreneurs. Some believe these businesses are just trying to make a buck on our favorite fandoms. I have even heard the term “fake geek business”.
Comic book shop owners have been making a buck off our geekdom for a long time. They sell us the comics, the toys, the games, and the statues. They give us what we really want while making a living. Most of us don’t fault them at all but rather thank them for providing a service that we really desire. A good comic shop is a special thing to a local geek community. I have met several comic shop owners and workers and everyone of them are pure geek through and through.
The same it true for the vendors at comic conventions. These people are providing a service with merchandise that we want. They hand make Harry Potter wands. They do metal work to create swords and armor for us. They create new and fun things from all of our different fandoms.
I have talked to numerous vendors and geek business owners. I am friends with several of them. Sure, they want to make a living by catering to our geeky side. But the vast majority of these businesses are created out of love for various geeky genres. They make the Harry Potter wands because they love Harry. They make swords and armor because they love the fantasy side of geekdom. They make these things out of their passions.
Geek websites like Geeky KOOL are in the same vain. These webpages are full of geeky news and articles. They post clips, trailers, and videos for different geeky interests. I have heard it said that many of these websites are just trying to get the hits for their advertisers.
Yes, some of these sites live on Click Bait. I have learned which ones are about the click bait and avoid them. But most of these websites were created out of love for the geeky community. Geeky KOOL prides itself on being a website for geeks (or nerds), about geeks, and by geeks. I have to believe that if you didn’t love the geeky community, your website wouldn’t last long.
As geeks and nerds, many of us have been treated poorly by others. We assume people are trying to advantage of us because of our bad past experiences. Instead of assuming people are trying to get away with things (like that stupid “Fake Geek Girl” crap), we should embrace those that support our fandom. At the very least, they are providing services and merchandise that we want. Most of them are doing this because they love our fandoms and our geeky community.
Let us embrace those business with an open heart while we open our wallets.
Stay Geeky My Friends!
