Picture the scene. We are at the Comic Con convention in San Diego and the line for autographs from George Takei, Lieutenant Sulu from the original “Star Trek” cast, snakes around the “Iron Man” doll booth and the $5 churro carts.
A geek named Charles, excited about having driven his mom’s Toyota Prius to the Convention for the weekend, gets up the nerve to talk to a girl named Lindsay.
“Hey there Lindsay, I am so upset that they did not cast George Takei as Lieutenant Hikaru Sulu in the new “Star Trek” movie they previewed the other day! The man doesn’t age! I am sure he could have pulled off a twenty year old version of himself! This may mean I will only go see it in the theatre three times instead of my usual six as for any comic book movie release. You know, like I did with “Iron Man.”
When Charles met a pretty girl, he so often would put her off with his geeky commentary about comic book movies and science fiction trivia. But this was Comic Con, so these character traits made him sexy to the decidedly rare female attendants.
“I totally agree! That troubles me more than “The Trouble with Tribbles!” Say, Charles, would you like to take me to see the new “Star Trek” movie on opening night? I have to warn you, though; I only ride in hybrid vehicles. Or the bus. Do you have a hybrid…or a bus pass?” asked Lindsay.
For once in his life, Charles realized he had everything this girl needed. He had both a bus pass and his mom’s Prius to impress this girl with. Never in his life had he felt so lucky. Never before had a girl talked to him for such a long period of time without a restraining order becoming involved.
So ends our scene with Charles and Lindsay. But what does it all mean? Like Beanie Babies and Troll Dolls before them, it appears that driving a “green” vehicle is now trendy among the geek set.
According to a poll done by General Motors as a part of its Challenge X design competition, “Goonies” of all ages now consider a person who drives a fuel efficient vehicle to be highly fashionable. Interestingly, nearly 90% of women said they would rather chat up a person who drives the latest fuel efficient vehicle as opposed to a sports car driver. Sorry, Porsche owners, but it appears the salad days are over in regards to picking up women in your new Boxster.
Additionally, 45% of respondents said that it was a “fashion faux-pas” to drive a car that isn’t green or at least somewhat environmentally friendly.
You're probably thinking by now being green is, yet again, another passing trend like tabloid stories on those Spears sisters. Sorry to burst your bubble, bub. Ever since Al Gore managed to turn himself into a “rock star” with his film “An Inconvenient Truth” there has been no stopping the rise of geek-chic. While this is no doubt bad news for lovers of gas guzzling, high powered sports cars it is a boon for the once maligned “eco-geek.”
So what becomes of the central characters of this piece, Lindsay and Charles? Doing their part to both save the environment and the careers of D-list Sci-fi movie celebrities, they will no doubt pass their proclivities onto their children. Thus we are ensured a new generation of comic book geeks and early adopters of “green” automotive technology.
Our view? It may not easy being a geek, but it sure appears to be easy being “green.”