My top 5 geek-TV crushes.

They're smart, talented, funny, crush-worthy... and hugely underrated, if you ask me. In random-ish order:

Grant Imahara, Mythbusters. Grant is Mythbusters' resident electronics and RC expert, but even if you don't watch the show, you've probably seen some of his work. Past jobs include operating R2-D2 and creating the mechanism for the Energizer Bunny. He and his robot Deadblow competed in my favorite spectator sport (BattleBots); he even wrote a book on combat robots called--can you guess?--Kickin' Bot. How can I not love this guy?

Tory Belleci, Mythbusters. He's an expert model maker and prop builder, and has worked on films such as Star Wars and Terminator 3 for Industrial Light and Magic. On Mythbusters, apart from building rigs, he also does many of the more dangerous stunts (like wakeboarding behind a cruise ship. That was awesome.)

Chris Hardwick, Attack of the Show. This former DJ and MTV host is now half of the music comedy duo Hard 'n Phirm. You can also see him on AOTS, where he occasionally guest hosts and reviews gadgets for Gadget Pron.


Mike Rowe, Dirty Jobs. So he's too macho to be called a geek. I just think it's nice to see a man who isn't afraid to get dirty. (And it's is on Discovery anyway, so it counts.) On the show, he's been a septic tank technician, a sludge recycler, a pigeon poop cleaner, and lots of other jobs that many guys would never man up to. The show's great in itself, but his good-natured sarcasm is what keeps it so fun to watch.

Danny Forster, Extreme Engineering. First of all: yeah I watch Extreme Engineering, get over it. I'm sold on any show that has fun with tower cranes and forklifts. And I don't know if it's just the dorky way he hosts the show--or the adorable hard hat--but I think he's kind of cute.

Ok, now these are just my picks, not based on a real set of criteria or anything, so feel free to disagree. Think I missed anyone?