Once upon a time, President Woodrow Wilson established National Flag day as June 14th, with a proclamation in 1949. This holiday commemorates the adoption of the flag of the United States and that’s all fine and good, an honorable commemoration if ever there was one, but truth told, my fellow geeks and I often stand under other flags (or banners) besides our national ones.
So, with that in mind, here are just a select few of the many fictional flags/banners that geeks stand under and for.
Let’s take a look…
Old Freebie
[Futurama]
Let’s talk about the flag that most resembles that of the United States Flag, “Old Freebie” or Earth’s Flag, from Futurama. The flag is basically the Stars and Stripes with Earth on the blue in place of stars.
The episode featuring “Old Freebie” the most is about flag eating, but is basically a social commentary on flag burning, but that’s how Futurama rolls…
Blue Rogues Flag
[Skies of Arcadia]
There exists a few different kinds of air pirates within the video game Skies of Arcadia, but as Vyse and friends, you play as the right and the just Blue Rogues Air Pirates. Their flag is a skull with an eye patch, wings and two swords, similar to that which Vyse your lead character wields.
Obviously, it’s not quite as menacing as the Jolly Roger, but it’s not some weak old flag either.
Flag of Latveria
[Marvel Comics]
The flag under which Doctor Doom was raised… From a design standpoint, probably one of the flags that most graphic designers would be attracted to because of it’s simplicity and balance.
Now, Latveria itself isn’t so balanced, as it is a dictatorship with the capital of Doomstadt. But the coolest thing about Latveria is it’s law enforcement which largely relies on Doctor Dooms’ Doombots.
Goal Pole
[Super Mario Bros.]
We’ve all been there. It’s what you’ve traversed the level to get to, and now it’s time to jump on for a bonus!
Sure the goal pole is just an 8 bit, green mushroom on a white background, but it’s classic. It’s the end of most traditional Mario games levels and when you first picked up a Nintendo controller to play through Super Mario Bros., you definitely enjoyed seeing the stairs as you approached it.
Flag of Krypton
[DC Comics]
Before Superman stood with the American Flag defending the US and sometimes the world in “The never ending battle for truth, justice, and the American way,” he was, and technically still is, a proud son of Krypton.
Sure, Krypton is no more, but that doesn’t mean the DC heroes from there have completely abandoned all accounts from the world of their birth. It’s been referenced too many times to count and it should never be forgotten.
Springfield Elementary School Youth Court Banner
[The Simpsons]
The Simpsons contains many flags and banners, but this, as their take on the scales of justice, is just simple and fun. Two kids balancing on a seesaw is good enough with the words of the youth court surrounding it, but the episode is classic, too.
I mean we’re talking about Janet Reno as the judge of the Springfield Elementary School Youth Court! As guest stars who get to play themselves go, this was typical Simpsons!
United Citizens’ Federation Flag
[Starship Troopers]
As far as futuristic science fiction movie flags go, the United Citizens’ Federation flag from Starship Troopers is amazingly retro. The eagle appears to have some lineage from the Federal Armed Services uniforms of America.
That said, it’s a beautiful green, blue and white flag to fly as you make bug juice of your enemies.
The Flag of Kessel
[Star Wars]
Kessel is a planet in the Outer Rim Territories, near Hutt Space. It is most famous for the Kessel Run a route used by smugglers to move spice from the mines of Kessel to their customers.
The black of the flag is derived from lack of color on the planet’s surface while the tower icon and the bands of blue and red, signify its place as a prison world.
The Flag of Rohan
[Lord of the Rings]
Rohan also known as the Riddermark is home to the Rohirrim. While they have ties to the Dunedain of Gondor, they are truly the “people of the horse-lords.”
On their flag is a majestic steed on a green field surrounded by a border of red and gold with a sun shining down from the top right corner.
Strong Badia
[Homestar Runner]
“It just so happens Strong Badia has about the coolest flag you ever saw.” – Strong Bad
The national colors of Strong Badia is red, white and brown with a snake in a tire wielding a sword. Now, despite Strong Bad and The Cheat being there, the population of this great nation is “tire.”
Now Strong Bad may be opinionated and even wrong at times, but let us all agree that here, at least on this topic, he is correct about his flag.
Obviously, this is only a very small list, and us geeks stand for many many geekdoms, so this is really just the tip of the iceberg. If you want more, just ask the nearest geek to you, and I’m sure you’ll get more than you bargained for.