Earlier this week, I was researching something and it led me to something else, which led me to something else, which made me ask, “is there a t-shirt for that thing?” which there was, of course. Now, mind you, said thing is an obscure character who most people would have forgotten even existed, unless you were a fan of a certain show. Now, on the same day, I asked my loving wife, if she was on a mission to purchase t-shirts would she purchase the one I had found as well as an even more obscure reference to something in a major fandom. We all do it… there are certain things we geek out about that most people who share the same fandom will ask ”what?” and there’s nothing wrong with that. 

I like to believe that this stems from our inherent need to be an individual, yet still be part of the tribe. So someone may love Stargate, but hold a special place for that team that went through and never returned. Or the Star Trek fan who holds a secret love for Section 31… look it up, you might be surprised! At any rate, we all have things that hold a special place in our hearts that make our respective fandoms truly our own.

So maybe you love a property that no one else remembers, but you or a few other fans may vaguely recall it and you can recite lines like you just watched a full episode. That is awesome and we should each hold on to that. No one else may care for Lothar from Defenders of the Earth or Wraith Squadron from the SWEU, but I do and will wear my shirts with pride because, in my mind, I’m the coolest club of 1 no one else can get into… maybe!