My Top Geek Out Moments (That Never Get Old)

By Scott Murray

I don't need to tell you that movies can generate emotional responses.  Films that make you laugh and cry are nice, but the ones that generate an epic geek-out can be even better.  With geek movies now hitting theaters every year, we get plenty of geek-out opportunities, but not all of them will last.  In other words, you may geek-out the first time you see it, but after that, as B.B. King would say - the thrill is gone.

That's why I wanted to highlight three of my classic geek-out moments that continue to generate a geek-out response  every time I see them.  They just never get old.

"General...would you like to step outside?"

I was 7 years old when Superman II hit theaters, but that was old enough to be really mad at General Zod for causing havoc all over the country.  It was really tough to sit there and watch all of that happen while powerless Clark Kent could only stand by and watch.  That is what made his re-emergence at the Daily Planet so epic.

Once Superman asked Zod to step outside, I had a geek-out moment that internally said, "YEAH!  Party's over, bitch."  Okay, maybe not those exact words at age 7, but you get the idea.  This scene still generates a response today.

​"Here it comes."

I've said it for years - I'm a Kirk guy.  I love his swagger, cockiness, and confidence - especially when it comes to sticking it to the bad guy.  There was arguably no better time to witness that then in Star Trek II when Khan thought he had beaten the Enterprise crew.  Unfortunately for him, Kirk doesn't believe in a no-win situation.

I remember seeing this movie in theaters.  As Kirk, Spock and Saavik pull up the prefix code, the fantastic music of James Horner began to swell.  An over-confident Khan thought he was going to get a transmission of Genesis information, but when Kirk says, "Here it comes"...it drops Reliant's shields and allows the Enterprise to counter attack.

When this happened, the crowd in the theater burst into applause.  I still feel like doing that every time I watch this scene.

​"Jabba...this is your last chance. "

Speaking of over-confidence...Jabba the Hutt exuded plenty of that, especially when he had Luke, Han and Chewie standing over the Sarlacc Pit.  Luke was my hero growing up, and nobody wanted to see him master The Force more than me.  Watching him enter Jabba's Palace and making quick work of two Gamorrean Guards was a pretty good indicator.

Yet, watching him stand on that plank as Jabba scoffed at his threats to free them or die...I have to admit I was a little panicked.  There seemed to be no way out.  Then suddenly...

the salute
the flip
and whoa, GREEN LIGHTSABER!

Then opening a can of Jedi Whoopass on Jabba's cronies!  

It was just so awesome.  It remains my favorite Star Wars moment.  The best part about seeing this scene today is that I not only geek-out a bit, but I still feel some of that child-like emotion from the first viewing (though I like experiencing it better without the EXTRA Sarlacc mouth in it).

I guess you could say there's a common thread here.  All of these scenes involve the good guys turning the table on the bad guys.  So, yeah, I guess I'm all about the heroes.  Don't get me wrong - I think Zod, Khan and Jabba are cool too.  They're just not supposed to win.

​
​Scott Murray is a host/producer and the Creative Director for Assembly of Geeks. He is also known for his fanaticism for geek merch (especially t-shirts).