^ Rick's
not Alpha. He's what a Gamma Male
thinks an Alpha is: a) the smartest guy in the room; and b) always right; whom c) simultaneously-offends everyone because they can't handle his 'realtalk' whilst - and note the Gamma capacity for doublethink here - also being king of the party. Note the genius displayed is of ultra-specific subcultural knowledge -
Rick knows all the geek pop culture references! - of little interest to those beyond what was traditionally a social-loser class that knew it was a social loser class, and, with the introduction of Social Justice Millennials to the mix, is still a social-loser class too narcissistic to be aware that it's becoming even bigger losers.
Gammas are sort of reaching for their capacity to become Sigmas - forgetting that the Sigma's tendency to push social boundaries succeeds due to their genuine charm whilst doing so.
But they don't really know what Alpha is, they just long deeply for it:
a) Alpha's can be intelligent OR as dumb as a rock, they get laid either way.
b) The social circle doesn't cares when the Alpha is wrong, including the Alpha at the centre of it. It's the Gamma who obsesses over proving that the Alpha is wrong, because he wishes he was the centre, not understanding that
no-one cares.
c) Sigmas and Gammas
deliberately-provoke in conversation, Alphas carelessly-provoke in conversation, until there's a direct challenge. Sigma provocation is largely for their own amusement, or to privately-amuse a smaller group within the social circle who is in on the joke. Gamma provocation is always a failing attempt to steal control of the social circle from those who actually control it. Alpha provocation is whatever the alpha genuinely thinks.
I stumbled into some site called Quora, researching Hyssop the other night. There was a user answering a question someone had asked, and the tone was so Gamma, I just had to read more. He had a list of his accomplishments in his profile, and was answering his own questions about himself, like "Why are you such an arsehole in your answers?" Short version: "People don't recognise my obviously-superior intellect and it's their problem if they can't handle my realtalk." He then explained how much he 'blocks' the dumb.
According to the stats, in three years, he'd answered something like 30,000 Quora questions. Because, apparently, that's what a Social Successful Genius Intellect does.
It's the biggest show at Adult Swim and it has reached an ever greater cult status - tendency likely rising.
I don't know. My gut tells me it doesn't matter what it currently seems to be, it's about what it's destined to turn into. Last season was the Normie Influx point. It seems to have picked up about 360,000 extra viewers for the season as compared to season two. If those 360,000 extra people are toxic and embarrassing enough that association with it becomes a social stigma, you might see an increase for the next season, then a trailing off.
The original fans are already making memes about the new fanbase. Both the critical overhype backlash and Normie Fatigue is inevitable: particularly as the Geek Culture Bubble is bursting. Note the severe worldwide underperformance of say, the last Star Wars, Tomb Raider (which I didn't know had even come out and didn't even break even) and Ready Player One, (another
I know all the geek pop culture references! celebration).
Remember Emo? The culture is already shifting away from Geek. The Vice Writer seems to understand that much, whilst not understanding that Fourth Wave Feminism is similarly on its way out.
