Uncompromised Girl Geeks? An Intertrash Challenge

Just finished an excellent article by Sarah Seltzer in the current issue of Bitch called "The (Girl) Geek Stands Alone." Her central thesis is this: current movies such as "Knocked Up," "The 40 Year Old Virgin," and "Superbad," along with television shows like "Beauty and the Geek," "Chuck," and "The Big Bang Theory" are steadily raising the figure of the male geek to the status of new pop cultural darling. It’s never been trendier to possess arcane pop culture knowledge and spin said knowledge into an endless barrage of referential humor, ironic observations, and witty intelligence. However, the fangirl, or female geek equivalent is not getting the same kind of pop culture love (and rarely ever has). Where’s the movie with a gang of female geek friends hanging out, having (as Seltzer writes): "a hilariously ribald discussion on the relative sexual merits of elves and orcs?" The girl geek is still highlighted as robbed of her sexuality (too many examples to pick one), a mere audience to the male humor ("Knocked Up"), participating in art or fandom as an outlet for existential pain instead of genuine love or talent ("She’s All That"), or forced to go it alone based on their apparent complete otherness ("Beauty and the Geek"). The girl geeks are still "waiting for the day when pop culture no longer demands that their nerdiness be redeemed, transformed, or made over– but can, like the dudes’, be what makes them desired" (Seltzer 25).

Let me first say that, as a self-identified geek and fanboy, the representations of male geekdom in "Knocked Up" and "Beauty and the Geek" are in no way how I’d like to see male geeks portrayed either, but Seltzer’s point is still a strong and excellent one. It really does beg the question of why female dorks can’t be presented as sexy (in part for their geeky obsessions) on the pop culture stage. Obviously, the answers are far beyond the scope of this lil’ blog post.

I’m much more interested in some counterpoints, some exceptions to this general rule. I’m soliciting the masses of Intertrash readers (masses . . . yep, that’s how I picture it) to help a brother out. We’re looking for a pop cultural representation of a female geek who possesses sexuality and romantic agency without having to undergo a physical transformation. A female geek who is lauded for her geeky interests, and a respect or appreciation for those interests are a part of her attractiveness, not a hindrance. Give em up. There has to be a few right?