Geeklings, I was having a conversation today and the subject of things we’ve never watched before came up. I always find it interesting learning the things that people haven’t watched. It leads to so many questions and ends usually with “well we have to change that”, but the question is, does it ever really change? Does the person ever really go back and watch whatever it is they haven’t watched. In some cases yes because certain things are too big to be missed out on. Just as recently as last week someone I work with watched Shawshank Redemption for the first time. When I asked what they thought about it they said “it was pretty good” which boggled my mind considering that movie is all types of incredible, but hey, they watched it. That’s a start.

I think in a lot of ways we can out grow things if we didn’t watch them in the time they were intended. For example, The Goonies. The Goonies is something magical that every child should watch because it does nothing but enhance the possibilities of your childhood adventures. Can you find your own One Eyed Willy (well that sounded way more dirtier then intended)? Do you have a friend that can do the truffle shuffle or make booby traps? It opens a door of endless possibilities and unlimited imagination. That’s the power of watching The Goonies as a kid. I wonder if that would translate as an adult? Obviously the film is geared to the child in our hearts but something tells me that the impact of the film is missed as an adult. While that’s sort of sad it still warrants a viewing. Who knows what it could awake? Plus everyone needs that Cyndi Lauper song in their lives. Everyone.

The example I gave during my conversation today was E.T.. Now before you guys get all “oh my gawd” on me allow me to further explain. I watched E.T. when I was in the five to six age category. That’s a long time ago. I don’t remember a lot of the film but there has been one specific moment that I’ve hung on to my entire life. That’s the part when E.T. is dying. You know what I’m talking about, when he goes all grey and the dudes in the hazmat suits show up. That is immediately my first thought whenever any one mentions
the film (that and “beeeeee gooooood“) and it’s also the one thing that has prevented me from ever re-watching the movie. Honest to god truth, that scene scared the shit out of me as a kid. As a matter of fact I think it’s the first time I remember a movie actually scaring me (sorry Halloween and Nightmare on Elm Street), and because of that association I have never been able to find the will to watch the movie again. I won’t say I can’t do it but I will say that it prevents me from doing it. This is with the full understanding that E.T. is a classic and the inspiration to a lot of coming of age tales that I love (Stranger Things comes to mind). Yet, I can’t bring myself to do it. I just keep thinking of that grey alien and those probing lights and I just want to throw up.

But E.T. wasn’t the inspiration to this post as I’ve actually seen the movie in some degree. Well, enough of it to have left scars. I thought today would be a good day to come clean with you guys about something. Something I’ve wrestled with since I started I Am Geek. There are a number of geeky things that I should have experienced that I never have. To some degree I know it hurts my geek street cred but there are only so many hours in a day. Things like Battlestar Galactica, Twin Peaks, and Dr. Who are all things I have yet to experience. I’ve tried Battlestar if briefly and without much convection (I’ll try again when in the right mindset), I’ve also tried Dr. Who but couldn’t get past the first episodes with Doctor Nine (and now it’s off of Netflix so who knows if I’ll ever be able to give it a shot. Truthfully I want to be a Dr. Who fan because the fan art is so spectacular. I want so much of it but can’t in good conscience hang it in the Fortress.), and Twin Peaks seems like something I would like but just haven’t gotten around to it. Seems like such a commitment, like re-watching The X-Files (holy crap there are a lot of episodes!) but I do want to watch the re-boot. The struggle is real.

Yet, putting those three things aside I have committed a far greater geek sin. Here we go, and I want you to appreciate how difficult this is for me to admit… I have never watched Firefly. I knoooooooooooow. I’m kind of the worst and understand if you’d like to see my geek card knocked down a couple of levels, but I’d argue that it should stay where it’s at because at the end of the day you and I both know I’m pretty damn geeky even without watching Firefly. And that’s because I understand and appreciate the impact the show has on pop culture and on geekdom. Plus, I’ve seen the movie (Serenity) many years ago and didn’t really understand much of it. As a matter of fact I didn’t even know it was associated to a television show. I’m not making this better am I?

Trust me, I’ve thought about giving this confession throughout the entire existence of I Am Geek, but something about today just felt right. Mostly because I’ve decided that enough is enough. It’s time. One of the things I want to do during my 2017 is check things off my Geeky Things That Should Be Experienced List, and near the top of that list is Firefly (so is Dungeon’s and Dragons and Geeklings, we are close to that one coming true. More on that another day). At some point this year, and probably some point soon, I’m going to watch that single season of Firefly and I’m probably going to become a super fan who wants to join a suicide pact like so many of you (Community joke… just watch below) in the hopes that it gets brought back.

Will I be late to the party? Sure. But the great thing about certain parties (especially when those parties are television shows) the door is always open. Now there is always the slight chance that I won’t even like the show in which case I won’t say anything and quietly let this admission vanish into the I Am Geek library. Honestly though, what are the chances of that? It’s got Nathan Fillion, Joss Whedon, and some incredible fan art. Chances are this will lead to a Firefly t-shirt or two. Will I even be allowed to wear it? I think so but first I need to put in the work.

You know what? I feel kind of better now. This confession has been a long time coming my friends. The fact that I haven’t watched Firefly has hung over my head for many years. Thank you for your understanding and what I’m sure will be slight ridicule. I get it but know I’m taking the steps to fix this. 2017 will be the year I become a better geek. That’s my promise to you. And to me I suppose.

How about you guys? What’s the one big pop culture item you’ve missed out on? Are you brave enough to confess? Sound off in the comments below or you can find me on Twitter @iamgeek32. Let’s air it all out and take measures to change it. Let’s all become better geeks. We deserve it.