Magic Goes Mainstream

Is it just me, or is Magic becoming more pop-culture?

Reference: Get Fuzzy from March 13, 2006

Get Fuzzy is one of…no actually it’s my favorite comic. Since Bill Watterson left and took Calvin and Hobbes out of the papers and I’m pretty sure I grew out of Fox Trot, Get Fuzzy is just the best. Bucky Katt is so acerbic and Satchel Pooch is so naive and Rob the Human likes so many of the things that I like! Anyway, I just really feel like I relate to Get Fuzzy.

It speaks to me.

And then Darby Conley goes and mentions my favorite card game in his comic.

Awesome.

It’s like there’s a special joke that only I and other Magic players get.

I mean, I’m definitely one of those people who sees the humor that surrounds Magic: the Gathering. You’ve got a group of smelly, girlfriendless nerds sitting around a table trying to kill each other with Grizzly Bears, or, even better Faeries and Pixies. How retarded is that?

Okay, well, for one thing, it’s not Live-Action Role-Playing retarded.

Some of you know what I’m talking about. Some of you have probably seen the video I’m referencing. If not, just Google “LARP Lightning Bolt” and you’ll find it. This is one of those cases where you can actually have success using the “I Feel Lucky” button.

Anyway, most Magic players don’t dress up as wizards, and most don’t even pretend to be wizards when they’re slinging spells back and forth and ordering creatures into the red zone. Thank god, right? Can you imagine how awful that would be? Smelly kids dressed up as wizards staring at each other across a table? Whee! I think even I’d be out of that one.

I’m okay with regular role playing. I mean, I’ve played D&D and Star Wars and they’re pretty cool, but I think that’s because I was playing with cool people who were pretty much okay with doing whatever you wanted to do. Like we had drinking contests all the time and I rolled natural 20s twice to give “The Look” to the princess and make her want to sleep with me. But I think once you go beyond that and dress up as your favorite fantasy race, you’re just a goth with too much time on your hands.

Hopefully by now I’m drawing negative reactions from two groups: LARPers and Goths.

I just want you to know that I hate neither of you. You’re just something for me to talk about when I don’t know anything new about Magic and can’t really concentrate because I’m either under the weather or under the influence of over the counter medications.

So, anyway, I didn’t just see Magic referenced in Get Fuzzy. I heard it on King of Queens too, which was really weird. I mean, Get Fuzzy references the Hitchhker’s Guide to the Galaxy, which is one of those things that nerds the world over can agree on. King of Queens, on the other hand, references the Mets who, while largely bad at sports and color schemes (like nerds), aren’t really understood by anyone outside of the New York City metro, or at least New Jersey.

Now I don’t even remember what they said about Magic on King of Queens. I just remember that they mentioned it and that I was pumped at the time. Later I was just confused and a little disappointed, like they took my cool thing and made it into an actual joke.

Oh well.

Is it possible that Magic: the Gathering will soon be a thing to not be embarrassed about? Will I be able to tell my friends and family soon that I’m a Magic geek and have been for the past 12 years or so? Will I be able to wear my Nightmare t-shirt in public again?!

I hope so.