It’s hard out there for a geek, especially when it comes to finding a date, but thanks to events like Sci-Fi Speed Dating, comic-book and video game enthusiasts actually have a chance of finding a special someone who shares their interests.

Sci-Fi Speed Dating is an event that takes place at Comic Cons around the USA, giving geeks the chance to meet like-minded members of the opposite sex, and hopefully lay the foundation for a real relationship. Ryan Glitch, the man who came up with the idea for Sci-Fi Speed dating, actually met his girlfriend at one of these events and is now on a mission to help fellow geeks find their Princess Leia, Catwoman, or whatever other fictional character they might fancy. He travels the country attending Comic Con events looking for single male and female attendants willing to give his speed dating session a try. His idea was so popular that Sci-Fi Speed Dating actually got its on series on TLC, called “Geek Love”.

Photo: Nerdsburgh.com 

In order to avoid stalking issues, no one gives their real names at Sci-Fi Speed Dating events. Instead, everyone is assigned a number, and at the end of dozens of rounds, they put the numbers they liked down on paper and hope their number shows up on the other person’s list. Glitch, who calls himself the “Geek Dr. of Love”, says some of the people who met at one of these things have gotten engaged, but as with other events of this sort, it doesn’t always work out. He makes sure to give everyone a comforting speech at the end, about how it’s ok if they didn’t get the phone numbers they wanted. A geek speed dating event is pretty straightforward – participants have three minutes to find out as much as possible about each other, before guys switch seats, in order to make sure everyone has a chance to know each other. Only, while at most speed dating events people ask questions related to their personal interests and professions, at Sci-Fi Speed Dating, people want to know about each others’ favorite anime characters, their preferred video game genre, and stuff like that. These geeks are really serious about their passions, so if you want to stand a chance at one of these things, you’d better have some geeky knowledge.

Photo: Everyday Economist

In an interview with Neredsbourgh’s Erin Wolf, back in June of 2012,  Ryan “Geek Dr. of Love” Glitch said 8 couples who met at Sci-Fi Speed Dating were currently engaged, and 37 other were dating seriously. “And those are just the people that check in with us on Facebook. I’m sure there’s more but not everybody is on Facebook,” he added. Apparently, his dating idea has become really popular, and they’re actually had to turn down thousands of people at some Comic Con events. It turns out geeks need love, too.

Source: Sci-Fi Speed Dating via Laughing Squid