Steampunk is a subculture which combines science fiction with Victorian fashion. Instead of high-tech, futuristic science, it’s all about brass and cogs. Steampunk takes Victorian Britain and imagines a world where everything is powered by steam, from the engines in trains to ticking clocks.
While there are many possible reasons why this unique style has become so popular with the public, there are a few that stick out as being the most prominent. The first reason is the sheer amount of pop culture references. From The Chronicles of Nertia to Star Wars and even Marvel Comics, you can see traces of steampunk in almost anything today.
The second reason for its popularity lies in how it has evolved as a subculture through various fandoms over time. It started as cyberpunk authors reimagining Victorian era characters and settings—which was enough for many people at first—but eventually transformed into something else entirely. Steampunk has now grown into a huge niche subculture with people creating their own content based on its themes and conventions.
Steampunk and Comic Conventions
Steampunk conventions are a new way for people to come together and enjoy the subculture. These conventions usually take place at different venues like museums, fairs, galleries, and more where people get together to celebrate the steampunk lifestyle. In these types of events, you’ll find people from all walks of life who are enjoying this new style.
This is why comic conventions have started hosting Steampunk Day in recent years. As steampunk has grown into its own niche culture, comic book conventions have begun to offer more than just superhero movies and games—they now host steampunk-themed events too.
This has allowed you to experience something different from what you’re used to seeing and that can be a pretty cool experience overall.
Steampunk and Literature
Steampunk books are part of the reason for its popularity. With over 2,000 steampunk books in publication, you can find something that interests you there. There’s a wide variety of different genres including mystery, fantasy and romance.
The third reason is the sheer amount of diversity within this subculture. Many people make steampunk into their own thing, using art to represent what they want it to be. This includes everything from cosplays and costumes to novels and more!
Steampunk and Fashion
The most obvious reason for steampunk’s popularity is its fashion. A lot of people love the Victorian fashion sense and aim to create that look themselves. As far as aesthetics go, it’s not hard for this style to succeed. It has a unique aesthetic look and many people are drawn to that.
But the other reasons have more to do with society as a whole. Steampunk is seen as a rebellion against the technological culture we have today and the way society has evolved since then. Many people associate technology with being stagnant, with things staying the same while they keep evolving into something else without any real change or growth. By taking an interest in steampunk, you are creating your own gender identity—a sort of “steampunk world” where you can be someone you want to be instead of who society expects you to be.
Popular Culture References
Steampunk has a lot of references to pop culture, and as such it’s easy to see how popular it is. It’s been cited in many well-known films, books, TV shows, and video games.
One example of these references is the popular cartoon series Rick and Morty. The show follows the adventures of a super intelligent scientist named Rick Sanchez who travels across infinite dimensions with his grandson Morty Smith. Because of this new dimension travel, they end up meeting steampunk versions of Victorian era characters that are anthropomorphic animals. From there the show goes off on wild adventures with Rick traveling through time and space trying to fix various problems in history that have gone wrong because of his meddling. One episode even features Rick going back in time to kill Abraham Lincoln at Ford’s Theater while being chased down by zombies.
The Evolution of Steampunk
Steampunk has been around for a little over a hundred years. Originally, it was science fiction novels written by authors such as H.G. Wells and Jules Verne that were the main focus of steampunk. These books weren’t set in Victorian England like most people think of steampunk today, but rather, they were set in the future when technology had advanced past what we see now as Victorian times. It wasn’t until the early 2000s when steampunk began to become more popular with the release of various games and films based on the subculture. In 2003, Terry Pratchett released his novel The Long Earth; it’s a sci-fi novel about parallel worlds similar to Steampunk but set in our future time period. This is considered one of the key events that turned steampunk into a huge subculture that has evolved into many different fandoms over time.
Conclusion
Steampunk is a popular genre of science-fiction and fantasy that blends the Victorian, Edwardian, and early 20th century aesthetics with modern technological elements. There are many theories behind why Steampunk is so popular. One reason could be that the genre has been around for a long time and is constantly evolving into new ideas. Another reason could be that the genre is popular among young adults who grew up loving the series such as Warehouse 13 or Doctor Who. Whatever the reason is, Steampunk has certainly made its mark in popular culture.
