It's articles like these that give Star Trek fans a bad wrap. Fucking whack-jobs...
Oh, it's the articles? It's not the people who dress up in the costumes in non-con situations? Or the people who walk around, speaking Klingon to each other? Or the people who pepper what should be normal conversations with Trekisms?
How's about this person: I went to see Trek with my friends on Monday night thanks to favors that were called in. We sat and, for the most part, things in the theater were pretty durned normal - no one dressed up, no one commenting throughout the movie, no one having conniption fits about continuity issues. It was a pretty non-Trekfan crowd. Except for this one guy...
The movie ends and we're sitting through the credits because my friends want to see who played this guy and who played that girl - standard nerd stuff (I do the same with horror flicks). Behind us, this guy is talking to his son(? nephew? twink?) about all sorts of "when I was young, Trek..." stuff. It was like having Beardguy in the theater. Credits end, and we (and the other remaining groups of viewers) get up to leave when East Coast Beardguy says to all of us, "Hey, did anyone catch who played Nurse Chapel, or will she be in the sequel?" He starts snort-chuckling (yes, he was snorting and chuckling at the same time) at his witty joke while the rest of us look at each other and silently file out. I head into the men's room to take a piss when ECB comes in, lines up at the stall next to me, and starts blabbing about when he was young and Trek and how awesome that movie was and blah blah blah. In the men's room. At the stalls.
THERE'S NO TALKING IN THE MEN'S ROOM!!! THAT'S A FUCKING RULE!!! IT'S A FUCKING MAN LAW!!!
I quietly wash my hands and move towards the door when ECB asks me something about how new Trek compares with...whatever. I cut him off and, as politely as possible, say, "I'm sorry. I've never been a big fan of Trek. I'm just here with friends." To which he replies something about loving Trek and Star Wars, about being a rocker and a shit-kicking country fan, and not knowing whether to shit or go blind, about...well, I had rejoined my friends by this point and we had left the scene.
The movie wasn't awful, but it had enough flaws to keep me from calling it "great." But my enjoyment of the film was greatly tempered by this idiot's babbling and general nerdity. I realize that people like this guy are part of the reason I hate Trek as much as I do. So I asks ya, Pro, is it the articles that give Star Trek fans a bad name, or is it Star Trek fans that give Star Trek fans a bad name?
