Comments on: Portlandia just keeps getting better.

By: Steve Olsen

Steve Olsen — Fri, 01 Feb 2013 09:28:00 +0000

I won’t argue that it doesn’t, but this doesn’t represent reality. If the sketch was a narrative one, where this guy was talking to that girl would you argue that the character had to be representative of all “nerds”? Where is the line set for this kind of thing? If this were journalism or even a larger piece of work, TV show about this guy/girl then maybe there is an issue? It’s a one off with very specific circumstances. I see the problem but I’m not sure this is material that is meant to throw down in the ongoing argument.

By: Antinous / Moderator

Antinous / Moderator — Fri, 01 Feb 2013 05:46:00 +0000

Where do you live that there are women who fawn over men?

By: Max Kingsbury

Max Kingsbury — Fri, 01 Feb 2013 05:25:00 +0000

They’re referred to in nerd circles as “douchebags” or “assholes” that women so stupidly fawn over.

By: Max Kingsbury

Max Kingsbury — Fri, 01 Feb 2013 05:23:00 +0000

I think it proposes a false dichotomy. “Either you’re an ugly awkward sad male nerd, or you’re a hot fake stupid female ‘nerd’.” In reality there are many shades of gray.

By: thatbob

thatbob — Thu, 31 Jan 2013 19:22:00 +0000

Okay, I read this. It’s hilarious. Because the female nerds apparently want the male nerds to stop saying sexist things that marginalize their nerdiness.

But if the male nerds could understand nuance, socially-appropriate behavior, gender-appropriate communication, or women broadly… then *they wouldn’t be nerds*.

By: Girard

Girard — Thu, 31 Jan 2013 03:44:00 +0000

After watching this dumb video, I suspect you’ll have to provide your “P3″ form (proof of penis possession) in triplicate to qualify.

By: Girard

Girard — Thu, 31 Jan 2013 03:41:00 +0000

Yeah. Extra damning is that not only is the “fake” nerd at the beginning of the skit a woman, and all of the “authentic” nerds are men, but even the only verbal example he gives of a “fake nerd” is a “sexy girl who went to see the Avengers.”

By: Christopher

Christopher — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 20:44:00 +0000

That would seem to fit with my interpretation:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zh5kCiTkWmE&list=UUhLjZbstKeQdEiYuxVBulAg&index=14

By: Dan Hibiki

Dan Hibiki — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 19:08:00 +0000

quite so. the ‘Boyfriend’ skits just kill me: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sHx9khi_QxI

By: Garret Noling

Garret Noling — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 18:00:00 +0000

Extreme? Person, that wasn’t an extreme nerd by any stretch.

By: jayson

jayson — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 17:09:00 +0000

Agree 100%. It’s a shame they had to perpetuate the “fake geek girl” stereotype. Would have been much better if the “actual nerd” had been a girl, too.

By: Navin_Johnson

Navin_Johnson — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 17:03:00 +0000

Snuffbox has to be the greatest unknown (in the states at least) comedy series out there.

By: Navin_Johnson

Navin_Johnson — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 17:03:00 +0000

That first band was The Decemberists, right?

By: Snig

Snig — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 16:28:00 +0000

As a content expert, having been, for decades, considered both nerd and geek before there was an accessible internet, back when it was considered legal to hunt us for sport, the arbitrary distinctions don’t matter. There will always be someone who will consider you both geek and nerd, as well as someone more hipster than nerd/geek will consider you too normal to be a geek. Fuck em. Mean people who have a hobby of disapproving of others, suck. This goes for nerds, geeks, mundanes, typicals and jocks. The Fake Geek Girl conversation is dumb, sexist and mean. As William Shatner once said “Get a life”.

By: dculberson

dculberson — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 16:12:00 +0000

Seriously. Matt Berry. Nice pull, Portlandia!!!

By: needlenoodles

needlenoodles — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 16:04:00 +0000

Hmm, I wonder why no one rushes to discredit attractive and/or outgoing “Fake Geek Guys”…

By: GlyphGryph

GlyphGryph — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 16:03:00 +0000

Yeah, those notarized statements are gold. The Gatekeepers of Nerddom are the “popular” kids. Once they think you’re a nerd, you’re good to go! Everyone knows the NRD forms are just a formality.

By: GlyphGryph

GlyphGryph — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 15:58:00 +0000

You don’t have to be smart, or interesting, or knowledgeable to be a nerd. (It helps, though!)
You just have to effectively behave in such a manner as to socially isolate yourself through a combination of awkwardness, unattractiveness, and annoyingness.

Even nerds don’t like to hang around nerds, though they may be forced to by a limit on other options! But Geeks LOVE to hang around other Geeks. Geeks are weird and niche. Nerds are just kind of sad.

At least as one possible interpretation.

By: GlyphGryph

GlyphGryph — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 15:55:00 +0000

Nah, a Geek is what Nerds aspire to be. No one aspires to be a Nerd, that would just be silly.

Geeks are different and quirky and have non-mainstream hobbies or lots of trivial specialized knowledge someone else might find interesting. Geeks are perfectly capable of being social and popular, and I agree – defining yourself as a geek is fine. There’s no gatekeepers. It’s a willing association.

Nerds are different. The world, unlike geek, doesn’t tend to have all those positive fringe attributes that would make someone want to self identify as one. It means irritating, awkward, unattractive, and socially inept. Nerd isn’t one of those things you can self-label as. You are a nerd if /other/ people think you are a nerd.

You can grow out of being a nerd. Most people want to! You don’t really grow out of being a geek. :P You can hide it, but you don’t really grow out of it.

(Or at least that’s one particular way to look at it. The difference between the “you aren’t really a geek” and “you aren’t really a nerd” has always felt pretty substantial to me. And I’ve known a few nerd-girls too. I actually thought the nerdy-girl was a pretty common stereotype in media? Certainly when have been appropriate to include one?.)

By: Emo Pinata

Emo Pinata — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 15:32:00 +0000

This show is still wildly hit or miss with me. While I think a couple skits a season are brilliant, I find just as many grating, and most are just kind of boring. At least the show is mostly new territory.

By: Mordicai

Mordicai — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 15:02:00 +0000

You just have to find the important Gatekeepers & survive the No Win Scenario of Madonna/Whore complex! Come on, KIRK beat the Kobayashi Maru!

By: Mordicai

Mordicai — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 15:00:00 +0000

Yeah, this is just Fake Geek Girl dressed up in different clothing. Boo.

By: creesto

creesto — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 14:27:00 +0000

I’m starting to feel like it might, at least partially, be organic. I am curious how much of their work is improvved

By: Dan Hibiki

Dan Hibiki — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 14:26:00 +0000

Holy crap Matt Berry is in an episode!
Sqweee!

By: creesto

creesto — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 14:26:00 +0000

I think to qualify as a geek, you need to be circus people and bite the heads off of chickens. For money.

By: Christopher

Christopher — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 13:47:00 +0000

Just out of curiosity, how do you distinguish between nerds and geeks? I’ve always felt there should be a distinction. For instance I’ve always thought of nerds as people who write computer programs while geeks write science fiction novels. Nerds work in IT, geeks work in design or advertising.

This probably came about in my mind because I’ve always loved things that are often considered nerdy–D&D, science fiction, science fact–but never felt like a genuine nerd because I’m terrible at math. So I preferred to think of myself as a geek. The fact that “geek” was once a term that referred to circus performers who bit the heads off live chickens also appealed to me.

By: Christopher

Christopher — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 13:40:00 +0000

As much as I’m enjoying season 3 so far nothing has, for me, surpassed Doug and Claire’s Battlestar Galactica obsession.

But then maybe that’s why I laughed so uncomfortably at the “Nerd PSA”.

By: Maggie Koerth-Baker

Maggie Koerth-Baker — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 13:39:00 +0000

I’m starting to feel like I need to fill out some sort of form to qualify for nerd-dom. I’ve completed NRD-1 and NRD-5 in triplicate, and I’m just waiting for my witnesses to send back their notarized statements verifying my standing as the absolute least-popular person in my junior high school.

By: Steve Olsen

Steve Olsen — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 12:40:00 +0000

Right, but in the proposed scenario it’s obviously not that. I don’t think this is tied to the Internets ongoing conversation about “geek girls.” They don’t, I’m guessing, have a dog in that fight. It’s just a self contained skit. not a sweeping social commentary. Just my guess. I tend to think Portlandia is “sweet” in the classic sense, so to me their skits don’t have bite behind them… just like puppy nibbles, plus they seem to be pretty inclusive and never outright mean.

I think I replied to the wrong post, my bad.

By: Petzl

Petzl — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 07:14:00 +0000

Portlandia is a truly transcendent, peerless program.