Geek culture is no longer on the fringes of society but has reached the point where it plays a significant role within the entertainment and economic fabric of the twenty-first century. Comic book superheroes dominant the box office, Star Trek and Star Wars are more than science fiction epics to millions of fans, video games have evolved into a billion-dollar industry, and popular culture has been embraced as an educational tool in high schools and universities. Many cities across the United States – from Seattle to San Diego, New York to Los Angeles, and Boston to Pittsburgh – even have their own geek history that has helped shaped their identity.
Geek culture is more than an entertainment outlet and economic powerhouse, however, as fans have increasingly used the basic tenets of geek culture – from comic books to science fiction to gaming – as charity vehicles and the means for social change. Geek Frontiers spotlights these efforts, as well as original fan creations in art, music, and theater that enhance the geek experience. In the twenty-first century, geek culture has emerged into something larger than mere escapism, as well as a pathway to a better understanding of – and thus better – contemporary society.
Geek Frontiers has a sister site, Remixing History, that explores individual comic books and television episodes through the lens of the real-world events that shaped their narratives. By intertwining the fictional storylines with their factual counterparts, Remixing History creates a hybrid narrative that not only offers a unique perspective but serves as a gateway to further understanding of the past as well as present. The website also contains sections on nonprofit organizations promoting popular culture as an education tool and the efforts of college professors and high school teachers to incorporate pop culture into their classrooms.
When the crew of the Starship Enterprise embarked on its five-year mission in 1966, Captain James T. Kirk proclaimed space the “Final Frontier.” Six years earlier, presidential candidate John F. Kennedy declared, “We stand today on the edge of a New Frontier, the frontier of the 1960s, the frontier of unknown opportunities and perils, the frontier of unfilled hopes and unfilled threats.”
Geek Frontiers is a homage to those twin frontiers, as well as a continuation of their spirit of discovery. Its mission is not as grandiose in scope, or even a call to action. In fact, Geek Frontier can best be considered as a “digital history database” more interested in preserving geek culture than offering the latest news in entertainment, as well as an exploration of what makes geek culture a prevailing culture in the twenty-first century.
Anthony Letizia
anthony@geekfrontiers.com