A Geeks Dilemma

I’ve been driving rideshare for about a year full-time. I really enjoy the conversations and meeting different people from different walks of life and a lot of my conversations turn nerdy. Not all of them, because not everybody’s a nerd. And some people have never seen Star Wars or Star Trek, which are two of my favorite IPs. (Seriously, I have to wonder if these people grew up under rocks, but I digress.)

But sometimes, the conversation turns geeky, and it spurs some deep thinking.

One such instance was yesterday. I was out driving like I usually do to make money for my family, and I had a gentleman in the car who was very clearly still intoxicated from the night before get in.

This happens from time to time. I work primarily in a college town and I go with the flow.

So yesterday, my client gets in and immediately strikes up a conversation about Star Wars. He can see the fact that I have a Rebel symbol on the back of my car, and the fact that I’m wearing Rebel symbol earrings. Not only that, which he didn’t see, I have a Klingon sticker on the opposite side of my car.

I’m kind of a geek.

He proceeds to ask me a question that comes up from time to time: which is better, Star Wars, or Star Trek?

This is not really a question I can easily answer. For one I have mixed feelings. I do sort of feel like comparing the two is apples and oranges. Star Trek, you’ve got a lot of militaryesque features. Star Wars hits more about the story, the characters and while the Imperials are definitely a military force, it’s not really about that, at least from my point of view. So answering the question directly is difficult.

With my client, I kind of went back-and-forth because I really like both franchises. I grew up watching Star Trek: The Next Generation and I watched it alongside my dad. It’s a story I tell quite frequently because it’s something that I think helped ground me in the nerd culture as early as the age of five when TNG came out. But I also fell in love with Star Wars as a teenager. It’s always been something since I first found it that I’ve loved. The battle of good versus evil, the story of Han and Leia and their love for each other, it’s just something that I’ve always enjoyed. I even really love most of the new TV shows. (Hint: My favorite is Andor.)

But, I also love a lot of the new Star Trek. Watching Jean-Luc Picard in the Picard series was amazing. And since I grew up watching The Next Generation, it has a lot of sentimental value for me. Never mind the fact that the story is superb. Especially season three.

So it’s not exactly an easy question to answer for me.

Eventually, I kind of had to settle that yeah I’m probably more of a Star Wars nerd than a Star Trek nerd. Mostly because I’m still working my way through a lot of the older series. For instance, my husband and I have been poking at Deep Space Nine for the last several months and are probably about four seasons in at this point. I haven’t watched the new Acolyte series for Star Wars, and I don’t intend to. Personally, for me, I don’t feel like a TV shows goals should be focused entirely on the political leanings of the creators. Tell a damn good story and I’ll show up. And I think that’s why people enjoy the Mandalorian and Andor so much is because they are damn fine stories.

Again, going back to Picard, season three is a damn fine story. And the fact that pretty much the entire original cast is back together? Definitely worth the time for me. Especially since Worf is there. And I love Worf.

I really kind of like Klingons.

But I don’t think it should just be a Star Trek versus Star Wars thing. There’s plenty of great TV and IP out there that deserves a lot of love. I love Firefly. I love The Orville. I am enjoying watching Stargate: Atlantis right now as well as Deep Space Nine. My husband and I watched through Warehouse 13 which was a fantastic story! And obviously I play DND. I love creating stories with my friends that we’re the only one who are probably ever going to be privy to most of it. Although I do share a lot of stories about battles and characters with my clients.

So what say you? Are you a hard-core Trekkie? Star Wars is the only way to go for you? Or are you a little bit more equal opportunity as I am?

Personally? I don’t feel that there’s a wrong answer here.