#thoughts and commentary
It’s really fascinating how the fandom condition has changed, even over the past few years (and I can’t help but blame tumblr for a lot of it, whether that be a good or bad thing) and how old-school fans and critics have dealt with the shift. It’s definitely worth a much more detailed and in-depth piece than this but here goes anyway.
Imagine, though, a girl in her teens who never really grew out of her “being fixated on stories and characters” phase. She discovers that fanfiction is a thing one day in Kroger while flipping through the an issue of magazine ‘Movie Magic’ dedicated to Harry Potter. It makes her so excited that she is buzzing happily with delight that there are others out there besides her who write stories based on their favorite characters and tales. She buzzes this way for the rest of the day and much of the following week.
However, it’s actually not until a few years later that she actually delves into fandom and the culture surrounding it. Still, once she starts, she discovers that the online fan culture helps make her enjoyment of different movies, books and television shows that much more rich. She realizes that she can embrace her fandom side.
After discovering tumblr in her early twenties, this girl starts a ‘Supernatural’-based one and begins interacting with others in the fandom. She makes friends - some that she keeps, others that she sadly loses contact with but still thinks of often. Through the community she engages is discussion of fandom theory, meta-analysis and gains a deeper understanding and story structure that applies across the board. At one point she meets someone outside of her fandom world who, after knowing her for the better part of two days asks “Wow, did you major in literature or something?”
(No, she didn’t. She’s actually a surgical technician in the veterinary field).
If it weren’t for fandom, this girl would never have met some of the people she has. If it weren’t for the fact that she (relation)shipped Dean/Castiel, she never would have traveled to some amazing places. Never gone out of her way on a roadtrip just to visit with some wonderful people, never run around in New York City or seen a Broadway show.
Connections are made, friends are made, fandom has transcended.
Tumblr, which was kind of an inside joke in the beginning (”I like your shoelaces.” “Thanks, I stole them from the President”) has now become mainstream. Shipping has become mainstream. Fandom in general has become mainstream.
This leads to some interesting conflicts because not very long ago, “hard-core” fandom itself was joke fodder (except for ‘Galaxy Quest’, which was YEARS ahead of its time) and fanfiction was synonymous with “terrible writing”. But now we have fandom and fanfic being referenced positively in all kinds of media. In just one example, Rainbow Rowell’s hit novel ‘Fangirl’ featured a slash-shipping protagonist. People are realizing that some fanfiction is as well-crafted and written as any of the best published, original literature.
Fandom is being taken seriously at last, which of course is frustrating to those who are used to being able to take pot-shots at the culture with little to no backlash. But it’s the fact that some people are going to the trouble to comment angrily and repeatedly on fan culture that proves that fandom really has broken the mold.
The downside to those in fandom and the aforementioned girl (who, if you haven’t gathered, is me) is that knowledge of plot, story structure and continuity makes flaws in a story stand out in stark relief.
It’s part of why she no longer watches ‘Supernatural’ and can’t watch a movie without picking it apart and discussing it at length.
Unfortunately, when there is disillusionment with source material/canon, and fans are confident that they could have done better when structure is ignored in favor of drama, plots never expanded on, etc., it can lead to heated feelings.
The internet is a battleground to begin with (this is NOT something unique to fandom, just check the average post on Facebook, the average news story comment or any comment thread on YouTube) and things can definitely blow up.
Fandom has lovingly termed these kinds of blow-ups as “wank”, which may be the only time in the history of the internet that sexual slang has been used to describe something having nothing to do with anything sexual. Wank can be really frustrating to deal with in fandom, especially if it’s happening with any regularity in a fandom you are in. And honestly, if you are in a non-wanky fandom, chances are it’s a relatively small or new one.
Sadly, fandom wank tends to make waves and it’s what the non-fandom public sees and associates with the culture. Because let’s face it, fandom wank is loud and unmoderated. With the internet you can tweet or comment something angry and enraged and post it before you have time to think and ponder ‘should I have reallyhit post?’
So fandom does have its negatives but, truth be told, the negatives and wank are usually based in something legitimate. It’s just, as with a game of telephone, the uproar tends to morph into something outrageous and lose sight of the original intent.
Maybe for those with little grasp of modern fan culture, it’s easy to compare angry fans to psychopathic fictional characters but to those in fandom, it really highlights that little grasp.
If something doesn’t add up, we’re going to say so. Never before have we been able to provide such instant feedback that is actually HEARD by The Powers That Be (TPTB).
For those still used to pre-internet-fandom, the new revolution of instant fan feedback and opinion is probably distressing and troubling. However I tip my hat to those successful up-and-comers who know where their towel is and have capitalized on and embraced such fan following. That’s one of the reasons I love ‘Gravity Falls’ so much, it actually utilizes fandom over-scrutiny to add to the storytelling.
I believe this is the wave of the future. The pressure is on for creators to cater to a generation of fandom culture that knows the ins and outs of storytelling and has a broader and less traditional viewpoint. As this is such a new concept for some creators, it is going to take some getting used to.
