23 Aug 2011

Nerd Herd

On the season finale of The Glee Project, my favorite contestant Cameron returned for the final episode. While I was extremely happy that Damien took home the win, I don’t think I paid that much attention to him as much as I focused on the scenes Cameron was actually in. Bree and I agreed last night that while it is obvious that he is talented, there is definitely something that draws our eye towards him throughout the entire episode. Sure, it’s his voice and the hipster attire, but another part of me thinks that it is because he represents a group of people  that has never been a part of the in crowd: the nerds. There’s no one like him on Glee or even on television right now.

As we all know, I’ve got a pretty sweet spot for the nerds – as do many girls. Can you really find a reason to not like one? I mean, have you ever seen a douchey nerd? And I’m not talking about those pretentious characters in television shows, I mean in real life. They don’t exist! They never cheat, except for that one episode of Saved By the Bell. They are known for being the shy smart types. They’ve got a type of style that isn’t mainstream and they always seem to know what’s going on before everyone else. A blogger’s dream right? Today, I learned from HelloGiggles that there’s actually a distinction between geek, nerd and dork. Who knew, right?

In short:

“Geek- Smart but not awkward
Nerd- Smart and awkward
Dork- Smart in less useful areas, awkward but proud regardless”

Feel free to read the rest of the article here:

What I also recognized today was the similarities between a nerd and a hipster. The same transition process occurs when scenesters become hipster. In this case, you start out being a nerd and develop into a full-grown adult-sized hipster. I’ve decided to highlight some of my favorite nerds in this post, but I’ll let you be the judge as to whether or not they are really as hip as they appear to be.

[Cameron Mitchell – The Glee Project right]

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EVRNMlFwqhU]

I think I’ve talked enough about Cameron in the text above so I won’t exhaust you anymore. He is basically the proudest nerd I have ever seen promoting the “Nerd Herd” in his YouTube videos, on the television series, and even in his music.

[Michael Cera]

Self-explanatory.

[Seth Cohen played by Adam Brody on The OC]

Seth Cohen is the comic-book nerd from California, but I love his Cinderella story so much because in the end, he ended up marrying the girl he thought he could never get. Boom. Hope!

[Artie played by Kevin McHale on Glee]

Artie is kind of an interesting character on Glee and while he does look like a nerd in his physical appearance, the nerd personality doesn’t really come out of him. Why does he always say things that make him sound like a gangsta? How did he get with the cheerleader? At the same time, we root for Artie because he’s the underdog and he’s just so likable.

[Dr. Spencer Reid played by Matthew Gray-Gubler on Criminal Minds]

Out of this list, Dr. Spencer Reid is by far the nerdiest! If you’ve ever seen him on Criminal Minds, you will notice that he questions everything and corrects everyone. The guy is a super genius, obviously, since he’s the youngest member of his crime-fighting team. I love the show regardless, but sometimes I wish the characters would all have their own romances even though it would not make any sense to the show.

[Dr. Gregory House played by Hugh Laurie on House]

I’ve only seen a few episodes of this show, but every other blog post on this subject as put him in the nerd category. I needed some diversity in this post and he hits the older crowd.

[Jim Halpert played by John Krasinski on The Office]

I was a little bit on the fence adding John Krasinski to the list because his character isn’t nearly as nerdy as Dwight, but at the same time Jim Halpert is kind of a “cool” nerd like an undercover hottie – which I have found many nerds to be.

[Joseph Gordon-Levitt]

So I don’t actually have any evidence that Joseph Gordon-Levitt is a nerd, but he’s always playing extremely intelligent characters, is he not? I’m going to go with my gut feeling on this though.

[James Franco]

This one is a no brainer. I don’t know anyone that has enrolled in more universities than he has and to come out with all of these degrees.

[Ted Mosby played by Josh Radnor on How I Met Your Mother]

Ted gets a lot of crap from his friends for his mannerisms and lifestyle, but he always has such a  great heart. If you’ve ever seen the series, then you know that he gets excited about the nerdiest things…like the Empire State Building. I’m starting to think that this post should be turned into TV characters you would want to date…

[Ryan played by Elijah Wood on Wilfred]

Aside from being a nerd, Ryan suffers from several other issues with himself such as lack of self-confidence and lack of balls to do just about anything. It’s a good thing he’s got Wilfred there with him to give him a little push because Ryan would probably not make it. Ryan is considered a nerd because he is always being picked on by his overbearing sister and his neighbor’s dog.

[Will Schuester played by Matthew Morrison on Glee]

Because Sue Sylvester says so.

[Ezra Fitz played by Ian Harding on Pretty Little Liars]

Ezra Fitz is the teacher that 17-year old Aria got into a relationship with illegally obviously and while he doesn’t look like a nerd, I’m convinced that every single teacher has a little nerd inside of them.

[Ben Gibbard – Death Cab For Cutie]

He’s got the look and the voice down; Ben Gibbard is my favorite local nerdy musician!

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Welp! Looks like I’ve constructed a type.

Not enough nerd for you? Check out Nerd Boyfriend for much more.

Posted on August 23, in -