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erica_o 's review for:
Black Nerd Problems: Essays
by Omar Holmon, William Evans
I’m listening to this because of my friend, Britt, who often talks about how hard it is to be a Black nerd. Will this help me relate to her better?
I no longer define myself as a nerd but I do have some nerd history and I associate heavily with nerdom through both my job and my relationships, which is to say that this is not foreign territory.
I am interested to hear what two young Black nerds have to say and how I, an old white woman, will react.
Re-definition: Nerd Isn't a Person, It's a Spectrum
So far, one essay in, I’m finding that these guys are Black nerds but they’re also very male nerds. They’re not disparaging women and this piece is about inclusivity, but I don't know if women or nonbinary nerds would feel like they fit in here, either.
This still feels like that pretentious, philosophy-degree level thinkpiece that appeals to other guys who want to be sitting by the fire with their Star Wars brandy snifters smoking their League of Extraordinary Gentlemen pipes and wearing their Pokemon slippers discussing their thoughts on nerd things.
Speaking of Pokemon, why did they (I’m going to pin all the essays on both of them even though I know they each wrote their own essays) compare progressing the definition of “nerd” to Pikachu’s evolution? Pikachu just evolves into Raichu. Even the Alolan evolution is Raichu but with a spray tan and a surfboard. The whole point of the evolution comparison is that nerdom is a spectrum, it’s not a monolith. So wouldn’t the more appropriate comparison be to Eevee? There’s a whole spectrum of evolved Eevees…and they’re all cute.
It's Time We Stop Pretending that Simba Wasn't Garbage in The Lion King
Did anyone care about Simba? I remember kids having Simba plushies but was that because they liked Simba or was it because there weren't many other options in that merch line?
To me, Simba seems like the vehicle to the good stuff, an otherwise throwaway character whom we follow in order to get to the characters and moments we like. I think we all recognized Simba as an unprepared (heh heh heh) brat who was traumatized as a child, ran off and tried a new life and, only through the strength and grace of those he left behind plus his father's ghost, was he able to return and fulfill his destiny to rule over the Pridelands.
Raising the Avatar: No One Woman of Color Should Have All Them Haters
...and yet...
They're right and I'm not disagreeing.
Also, though: There it is, the guy saying he cares about how women are represented because he has a daughter and he wants her to have representation. Fucking hell, dad-man. Did you only find out little girls who grow into women exist when the woman who is your partner had a baby girl?
I really don't know why this always bothers me, dads becoming aware of sexism and patriarchy once they have daughters. I mean, at least they get there, I guess.
And I suppose it's the same with any equality and equity work; unless you were raised with a ton of compassion and love for others, it's hard to think about the validity of people you don't see or people you are told not to see until you finally see them.
...and yet...
You Can't Win When Escapism Won't Let You Escape
This seemed like a mix of New Car Syndrome and writers needing to write about what’s bothering them more than actual escapism not letting a person escape.
The things that are currently in all your headspace will start showing up in unexpected spaces, just like how everyone is suddenly driving the car you just bought, because that’s what you’re focused on. It's frequency illusion.
A storyteller explaining something not related to race at all but that can easily apply to race relations in the US isn’t an inadvertent reminder of the Black experience, it's the author talking about something else that's important in their story while the reader relates it to his own story. That's why we consume stories.
But if we're too mired in our own stories, in ways that make us need to escape, I think it's probably on us to find escapism that will suit our needs and to be cognizant of any shifting boundaries we've got going on inside our heads.
That said, I am very guilty of doing this, too.
In my case, though, I'm pretty sure I'm being masochistic and just adding lemon juice to the cuts for shits and giggles or something. It has nothing to do with escapism not letting me escape.
Into the Spider-Verse Got Three Moments Better Than the Best Moment of Your Favorite Comic Book Movie Not Named Into the Spider-Verse
I can’t disagree with this at all. My reasons for agreeing are different, for the most part, but we arrived at the exact same conclusion: Best comic book movie ever.
Also, shoulder touch. How did that become a universal thing? My group also walked out of the theater with shoulder touch as a souvenir, too! SO powerful.
I Hate It Here: Food Wars Would Be the Most Annoying Anime to Live In
I don’t read or watch Food Wars but I can answer the question of which fictional universe would you like to live in. It’s Azeroth, pre-Cataclysm.
Y'all Gotta Chill with the Slander and Let Batman Cook
Batman doesn’t cook. That’s Alfred’s job.
I shrugged this one off but agreed with the last line that Batman doesn’t need any of us to defend him. He’s gonna be fine.
What Happens to a New Fictional Black Character Deferred?
Wait, are they arguing against creating new characters? They want established characters to be re-imagined?
They posit that the 2000s showed a lot of Black heroes who didn’t last and didn’t become main characters. They should go back to the late 60s to early 80s.
Ok, wait, so are they arguing for the re-introduction of the 2000s characters and making them top billing, rather than abandoning them, killing them, whatever?
I don’t actually know what the point is here.
“You can’t tell us we need new heroes for our stories to be told when the heroes already exist and aren’t getting an opportunity to be in the story because they get killed off…sidelined…or shut down before they even have a chance.”
To both argue against and support this: Ta Nehisi Coates reintroduced plenty of Black heroes. Everyone who wasn’t Black Panther was cancelled.
But wait, now they're saying that when Black heroes get top billing by taking legacy positions, they aren’t allowed to keep the spot, like RiRi Williams got to be IronMan until IronMan resurrected. Miles Morales was Spider-Man and is now a multiple Spider-man. Sam Wilson became Capt. America before Cap came back and Sam went back to being Falcon. They say Kamala Kahn is different because she’s not taking anyone’s place - her predecessor levelled up and now Kamala’s canon. So heroes of color can become mains but they’re demoted after awhile and it’s all white again.
“...which is why I want to see stories of characters of color that have been around longer in Marvel Comics and DC Comics, instead of an assembly line of new characters being added into the elephant graveyard that is comic book limbo after a quick supporting appearance or being pushed to the side for not selling well.”
Black Panther was surely around when they wrote this. He showed up in the 60’s. He’s surged and re-surged and now look. The whole argument about Black heroes getting retired doesn’t count in this case because in the comics, other people got to be Black Panther, and in the movies, Chadwick Boseman can’t be blamed for not being able to continue the role.
But, it's also true that one out of hundreds is still to0 close to zero.
And, actually, I’d like to piggyback off their thought.
I’m still angry that Disney took Marvel so all the TV shows are gone and there will probably never be a Misty Knight + Claire Temple as Night Nurse (I don’t care if Misty Knight is supposed to team up with Colleen Wing, that show was dumb and I hated it and I never read those comics anyway) in a Cagney and Lacey-style show.
See, I can do this nerdy pontificating, too.
Two Dope Boys and a Comic Book: the Superhero Fade Heard Round the Multiverse
Oh good grief, this is about Black Panther v Namor in the comics and I kinda want to fast-forward this one. And Black Bolt's here, too. Great.
This is definitely not for me.
ANNE! Anne, you’re being paged. This is your kind of nerd shit!
My Theory on How Black Folks' Black Card Actually Works
Warning: If you're wearing earphones of some sort, this one's gonna get loud.
Top Five Dead or Alive: Tai Lung (Kung Fu Panda)
Now these nerds sound so very young.
--AND CUT--
Alright.
This wasn't quite what I'd hoped, at least not for the first 25% and I don't think my boring old white lady ass can continue on. I'm definitely not the intended audience.
If you love nerdy podcasts, grab this in audiobook format.
If you're really into books about how Black culture and popular culture, nerd edition, intersect, this might be interesting but you also may be better served by reading [a:Phoebe Robinson|15080033|Phoebe Robinson|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1479071142p2/15080033.jpg] or [a:Samantha Irby|6896957|Samantha Irby|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1575862314p2/6896957.jpg] or [a:W. Kamau Bell|16044402|W. Kamau Bell|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1492462000p2/16044402.jpg]
If 1990's-present comic books, manga, Marvel movies, cartoons & anime, and Pokemon are your jam, get this immediately.
I no longer define myself as a nerd but I do have some nerd history and I associate heavily with nerdom through both my job and my relationships, which is to say that this is not foreign territory.
I am interested to hear what two young Black nerds have to say and how I, an old white woman, will react.
Re-definition: Nerd Isn't a Person, It's a Spectrum
So far, one essay in, I’m finding that these guys are Black nerds but they’re also very male nerds. They’re not disparaging women and this piece is about inclusivity, but I don't know if women or nonbinary nerds would feel like they fit in here, either.
This still feels like that pretentious, philosophy-degree level thinkpiece that appeals to other guys who want to be sitting by the fire with their Star Wars brandy snifters smoking their League of Extraordinary Gentlemen pipes and wearing their Pokemon slippers discussing their thoughts on nerd things.
Speaking of Pokemon, why did they (I’m going to pin all the essays on both of them even though I know they each wrote their own essays) compare progressing the definition of “nerd” to Pikachu’s evolution? Pikachu just evolves into Raichu. Even the Alolan evolution is Raichu but with a spray tan and a surfboard. The whole point of the evolution comparison is that nerdom is a spectrum, it’s not a monolith. So wouldn’t the more appropriate comparison be to Eevee? There’s a whole spectrum of evolved Eevees…and they’re all cute.
It's Time We Stop Pretending that Simba Wasn't Garbage in The Lion King
Did anyone care about Simba? I remember kids having Simba plushies but was that because they liked Simba or was it because there weren't many other options in that merch line?
To me, Simba seems like the vehicle to the good stuff, an otherwise throwaway character whom we follow in order to get to the characters and moments we like. I think we all recognized Simba as an unprepared (heh heh heh) brat who was traumatized as a child, ran off and tried a new life and, only through the strength and grace of those he left behind plus his father's ghost, was he able to return and fulfill his destiny to rule over the Pridelands.
Raising the Avatar: No One Woman of Color Should Have All Them Haters
...and yet...
They're right and I'm not disagreeing.
Also, though: There it is, the guy saying he cares about how women are represented because he has a daughter and he wants her to have representation. Fucking hell, dad-man. Did you only find out little girls who grow into women exist when the woman who is your partner had a baby girl?
I really don't know why this always bothers me, dads becoming aware of sexism and patriarchy once they have daughters. I mean, at least they get there, I guess.
And I suppose it's the same with any equality and equity work; unless you were raised with a ton of compassion and love for others, it's hard to think about the validity of people you don't see or people you are told not to see until you finally see them.
...and yet...
You Can't Win When Escapism Won't Let You Escape
This seemed like a mix of New Car Syndrome and writers needing to write about what’s bothering them more than actual escapism not letting a person escape.
The things that are currently in all your headspace will start showing up in unexpected spaces, just like how everyone is suddenly driving the car you just bought, because that’s what you’re focused on. It's frequency illusion.
A storyteller explaining something not related to race at all but that can easily apply to race relations in the US isn’t an inadvertent reminder of the Black experience, it's the author talking about something else that's important in their story while the reader relates it to his own story. That's why we consume stories.
But if we're too mired in our own stories, in ways that make us need to escape, I think it's probably on us to find escapism that will suit our needs and to be cognizant of any shifting boundaries we've got going on inside our heads.
That said, I am very guilty of doing this, too.
In my case, though, I'm pretty sure I'm being masochistic and just adding lemon juice to the cuts for shits and giggles or something. It has nothing to do with escapism not letting me escape.
Into the Spider-Verse Got Three Moments Better Than the Best Moment of Your Favorite Comic Book Movie Not Named Into the Spider-Verse
I can’t disagree with this at all. My reasons for agreeing are different, for the most part, but we arrived at the exact same conclusion: Best comic book movie ever.
Also, shoulder touch. How did that become a universal thing? My group also walked out of the theater with shoulder touch as a souvenir, too! SO powerful.
I Hate It Here: Food Wars Would Be the Most Annoying Anime to Live In
I don’t read or watch Food Wars but I can answer the question of which fictional universe would you like to live in. It’s Azeroth, pre-Cataclysm.
Y'all Gotta Chill with the Slander and Let Batman Cook
Batman doesn’t cook. That’s Alfred’s job.
I shrugged this one off but agreed with the last line that Batman doesn’t need any of us to defend him. He’s gonna be fine.
What Happens to a New Fictional Black Character Deferred?
Wait, are they arguing against creating new characters? They want established characters to be re-imagined?
They posit that the 2000s showed a lot of Black heroes who didn’t last and didn’t become main characters. They should go back to the late 60s to early 80s.
Ok, wait, so are they arguing for the re-introduction of the 2000s characters and making them top billing, rather than abandoning them, killing them, whatever?
I don’t actually know what the point is here.
“You can’t tell us we need new heroes for our stories to be told when the heroes already exist and aren’t getting an opportunity to be in the story because they get killed off…sidelined…or shut down before they even have a chance.”
To both argue against and support this: Ta Nehisi Coates reintroduced plenty of Black heroes. Everyone who wasn’t Black Panther was cancelled.
But wait, now they're saying that when Black heroes get top billing by taking legacy positions, they aren’t allowed to keep the spot, like RiRi Williams got to be IronMan until IronMan resurrected. Miles Morales was Spider-Man and is now a multiple Spider-man. Sam Wilson became Capt. America before Cap came back and Sam went back to being Falcon. They say Kamala Kahn is different because she’s not taking anyone’s place - her predecessor levelled up and now Kamala’s canon. So heroes of color can become mains but they’re demoted after awhile and it’s all white again.
“...which is why I want to see stories of characters of color that have been around longer in Marvel Comics and DC Comics, instead of an assembly line of new characters being added into the elephant graveyard that is comic book limbo after a quick supporting appearance or being pushed to the side for not selling well.”
Black Panther was surely around when they wrote this. He showed up in the 60’s. He’s surged and re-surged and now look. The whole argument about Black heroes getting retired doesn’t count in this case because in the comics, other people got to be Black Panther, and in the movies, Chadwick Boseman can’t be blamed for not being able to continue the role.
But, it's also true that one out of hundreds is still to0 close to zero.
And, actually, I’d like to piggyback off their thought.
I’m still angry that Disney took Marvel so all the TV shows are gone and there will probably never be a Misty Knight + Claire Temple as Night Nurse (I don’t care if Misty Knight is supposed to team up with Colleen Wing, that show was dumb and I hated it and I never read those comics anyway) in a Cagney and Lacey-style show.
See, I can do this nerdy pontificating, too.
Two Dope Boys and a Comic Book: the Superhero Fade Heard Round the Multiverse
Oh good grief, this is about Black Panther v Namor in the comics and I kinda want to fast-forward this one. And Black Bolt's here, too. Great.
This is definitely not for me.
ANNE! Anne, you’re being paged. This is your kind of nerd shit!
My Theory on How Black Folks' Black Card Actually Works
Warning: If you're wearing earphones of some sort, this one's gonna get loud.
Top Five Dead or Alive: Tai Lung (Kung Fu Panda)
Now these nerds sound so very young.
--AND CUT--
Alright.
This wasn't quite what I'd hoped, at least not for the first 25% and I don't think my boring old white lady ass can continue on. I'm definitely not the intended audience.
If you love nerdy podcasts, grab this in audiobook format.
If you're really into books about how Black culture and popular culture, nerd edition, intersect, this might be interesting but you also may be better served by reading [a:Phoebe Robinson|15080033|Phoebe Robinson|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1479071142p2/15080033.jpg] or [a:Samantha Irby|6896957|Samantha Irby|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1575862314p2/6896957.jpg] or [a:W. Kamau Bell|16044402|W. Kamau Bell|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1492462000p2/16044402.jpg]
If 1990's-present comic books, manga, Marvel movies, cartoons & anime, and Pokemon are your jam, get this immediately.