“King of the Nerds” Season 2 Flies Into Action

From Geek Goes Rogue TV Editor Zach W. Lorton, as told to by the… well, crap, there’s absolutely nothing within my line of sight that one could call nerdy…

“Sylvanas is the Banshee Queen of the Forsaken.”  Betcha didn’t know that, now, did you?

Thursday night saw the much-anticipated return of the TBS reality competition series King of the Nerds.  I absolutely loved the first season, and have been waiting on 17-pin connectors and needles for last night’s premiere.  The producers were able to put together a show that featured a lot of heart, passion, humor, and a genuine love of all things nerdy.  The contestants in Season One were a great cross section of nerd culture from every angle — scientists, comic book authors, geek bloggers, you name it — and their most endearing trait was that they all were themselves.  That’s it.  They all have these unique characteristics and personalities that make them so likable and/or unlikable, depending on your point of view, that you can’t help but watch just to get to know these people.

It’s like The Bachelor, except no roses, no engagements, and no trips in helicopters.  Oh, and it doesn’t suck.

The first episode of Season Two kicks off in similar fashion from Season One — teams are picked, but because there’s 11 contestants, one person is left out.  And of course, being the last person to be picked is the nerdiest thing in the world, and Kelsey (resident Japanophile who speaks 4 languages) gets to choose which contestant she wants to see banished from Nerdvana right off the bat.  When she chooses chemist Nicole, hosts Curtis “Booger” Armstrong and Robert “Lewis” Carradine inform everyone that getting kicked off a team by someone that wasn’t even on a team is even nerdier than being picked last.  Can I get a what what??

Without going into all the gory details, two competitors are sent to the Nerd Off, where one of them is summarily escorted out of Nerdvana and loses all hope of claiming the title of King of the Nerds, as well as the opportunity to sit atop the Throne of Games.

Also, Curtis Armstrong wears a Rock-Paper-Scissors-Lizard-Spock t-shirt.

This season pits the Midas Touch Attack against the Titans of Rigel (“All the past scientists and philosophers have propelled us to this moment,” quips historian Brian), and the first Nerd Off consists of two competitors duking it out over a game of “Nerdditch”.

You know, if you’re going to take this seriously, it’s not going to be any fun.  That’s why I love this program — you get to see a cadre of nerds get nerdy about nerd things, but “nerd things” covers such a huge variety of topics that it’s never boring.  Nothing from one episode to the next is ever the same, and you’re probably not going to see contestants fly through the air on a broom, trying to hurl bottles of potion into cauldrons of varying point value more than once.  The variety is where the producers have really hit a home run with this show.

If you’re a fan of nerd culture in any way, big or small, true geek or merely geekface, there’s no way you could watch King of the Nerds and not walk away a fan.  I’ll be posting details about each episode as they air, but without giving flat-out recaps of the episodes.  Honestly, they’re too much of a great escapist pleasure that if you miss the broadcasts or fail to DVR them, you’ll be doing yourself a favor by watching the full episodes on TBS.com.

Zach W. Lorton is a media producer and professional DJ/MC by trade, and a comedian, actor, and musician by default.  His debut music project is set to begin recording in 2014, and will likely take the world by storm, possibly in the form of a Sharknado.