Wil Wheaton: What geeks should do to keep his new show alive
Former 鈥�Star Trek鈥� actor Wil Wheaton needs fans to boost the ratings of his new TV show, 鈥淭he Wil Wheaton Project鈥� on the SyFy Channel, and parents need his show to succeed so that kids can learn about the value of working with the system while retaining their individuality.
The problem with Mr. Wheaton being king of a counter-culture group is that those groups tend to gravitate to alternative channels online 鈥� rather than the official SyFy.com website or channel to view episodes 鈥� meaning his kingdom and subjects may be invisible to the network eye.
In an effort to educate fans about what it will take to keep their new favorite show on the air, Wheaton posted on a few days ago that while he understands that many fans without cable TV are viewing his new SyFY Channel show online, through alternative channels like streaming sites, he hopes they will use so he can prove to the network (via the website鈥檚 internal tracking听 of visitors) that his show is popular.
鈥淚f you can watch it in some way that the network can score (on broadcast or via one of the legally-supported websites), please do that, because the more people who watch it in a way the network can count, the more likely it is they will order a full season of the show,鈥� Wheaton鈥檚 post read.
I suspect my older sons may have been among those who first watched the show via a non-network source, having already been听watching Wheaton's previous online show "."
As the mom of a flock of proudly self-professed 鈥済eeks鈥� and a herd of 鈥渘erds,鈥� I feel like it鈥檚 now my job to help my sons and their friends wade into the mainstream in order to keep their new favorite show on the air.
For any network executives at the SyFy Channel reading, please consider this a note from their mother to let you know that 鈥淭he Wil Wheaton Project鈥� was an instant hit at our house.
After seeing the show online, my teens chose to view it on SyFy via the TV in our living room during a weekend geek-out. Quin, 10, two of my teen sons plus their girlfriends (all are 鈥淪tar Trek鈥� aficionados and geeks) were glued to a rerun of the first episode of Wheaton鈥檚 show.
Here was the scene I walked in on: three laptops playing the online game 鈥淟eague of Legends鈥� simultaneously, a TV turned to the SyFy Channel, the remnants of Thai takeout boxes and their spicy aroma, and at least one teen in the group with gorgeous asymmetrically cut bright green hair.
Quin was soaking it all in as if it were an IMAX experience.
The discussion in the room ran from reminiscing about Wheaton playing the character Wesley Crusher on the television series 鈥淪tar Trek: The Next Generation,鈥� to the news that geek goddess Felicia Day would be Wheaton鈥檚 on Tuesday, June 3.
Ms. Day is known for both her roles on TV and multiple online series including 鈥楾he Guild鈥� (which pokes fun at online gamer lifestyles.)听 Day has most recently become an online favorite for her internet show , which reviews games, films, TV shows, and other sundry issues of interest to her gamer audience.
After getting my parent brain past the noise and the mess, plus the mind-melting multitasking happening in the room, I foolishly said, 鈥淪o Wheaton鈥檚 show is just 鈥楾alk Soup鈥� for nerds, right?鈥�
This earned me a collective look of wounded horror from everyone else in the room, which had suddenly become silent, but for some mouse clicking.
They each drew breath and launched into individual rebuttals.
It was a geek meets nerd (Gerd? Neek?) cacophony punctuated by gaming slang and 鈥淪tar Trek鈥� references.
The gist was that Wheaton was bullied at school for his acting role and so is a hero for triumphing over his tormentors via success with this new show, striking a blow against the oppressors of听nerds and geeks everywhere.
Also, I was reminded that the terms 鈥榞eek鈥� and 鈥榥erd鈥� are separate and distinct.
In order to more carefully apply these words, I went online to look up the definitions.
According to the Urban Dictionary, which usually has the most currently accurate slang definitions (although sometimes taking a more inappropriate slant to its definitions as well), geeks are, 鈥淭he people you pick on in high school and wind up working for as an adult.鈥�
The 鈥�Merriam-Webster Dictionary鈥� gives a more traditional and less pleasant definition of geek as: 鈥渁 person who is socially awkward and unpopular: a usually intelligent person who does not fit in with other people.鈥�
A nerd, meanwhile, is said by The Urban Dictionary to be 鈥淥ne whose IQ exceeds his weight.鈥�
Again, Merriam-Webster has a more negative definition as: 鈥渁 person who behaves awkwardly around other people and usually has unstylish clothes, hair, etc.: a person who is very interested in technical subjects, computers, etc.鈥�
Having seen the earlier Google+ post by Wheaton that my kids all missed, regarding the legitimate viewing of his show online or on TV, I am going to let the teens know that they should go 鈥渓egit鈥� in their viewing habits in order to keep their new favorite show viable with the network.
While this may not be an easy sell, I think it鈥檚 an important lesson on where power lies and how to work with mainstream systems in the support of counter-culture passions like Wheaton鈥檚 show.
Teaching head-strong teens to accept society鈥檚 rules, while encouraging individuality and out-of-the-box thinking is one of parenthood鈥檚 greater challenges.
Hopefully Wheaton鈥檚 show will gain enough popularity to stay on the air, but not lose its geek credibility along the way.
Then parents and kids can 鈥� as they say in 鈥淪tar Trek鈥� 鈥� 鈥淏oldly go where no one has gone before,鈥� which may include the Nerd Neutral Zone and the Geek Galaxy.
