Can Fandom Ruin a Work?

[ChiggyvonRichthofen]

I really disliked the nu-BSG before I saw it. I perused/lightly participated in a couple of Stargate forums from the end of SG-1's run to about the end of Atlantis' run, and it really annoyed me to see some fans flaunt the supposed superiority of this dark, cynical show over Stargate and its charm. I got sick of the dual adjectives "gritty and realistic" pretty quickly.

Then Atlantis was canceled in favor of what many assumed to be a BSG clone in Stargate Universe- so I pretty much hated it. Eventually I actually watched the show, and frankly these days I'd probably be more inclined to agree with the people who put me off BSG to begin with (although I hope I be less pushy about it).

So I'd say it makes the biggest difference for me before actually viewing the work. A lot of people jump onto bandwagons, I naturally tend to view hyperbole with suspicion. To me, a work really has to earn its reputation over time to be placed up with the other all-time greats of its kind, so over-selling the superiority of the next big thing usually predisposes me toward disregarding it. There's also, of course, a fair share of fans that are just plain irritating for one reason or another.

Once I actually watch/read/listen to the work, my more rational side usually kicks in. I still take what other people have to say seriously, but if the work is any good at all I'm not thinking about fandom when judging it. If I took a larger part in fan communities maybe fans could retroactively spoil some part of enjoying a work, but if things seem toxic I usually just stay away.

[SlackerinDeNile]

I really disliked the nu-BSG before I saw it. I perused/lightly participated in a couple of Stargate forums from the end of SG-1's run to about the end of Atlantis' run, and it really annoyed me to see some fans flaunt the supposed superiority of this dark, cynical show over Stargate and its charm. I got sick of the dual adjectives "gritty and realistic" pretty quickly.

Then Atlantis was canceled in favor of what many assumed to be a BSG clone in Stargate Universe- so I pretty much hated it. Eventually I actually watched the show, and frankly these days I'd probably be more inclined to agree with the people who put me off BSG to begin with (although I hope I be less pushy about it).

So I'd say it makes the biggest difference for me before actually viewing the work. A lot of people jump onto bandwagons, I naturally tend to view hyperbole with suspicion. To me, a work really has to earn its reputation over time to be placed up with the other all-time greats of its kind, so over-selling the superiority of the next big thing usually predisposes me toward disregarding it. There's also, of course, a fair share of fans that are just plain irritating for one reason or another.

Once I actually watch/read/listen to the work, my more rational side usually kicks in. I still take what other people have to say seriously, but if the work is any good at all I'm not thinking about fandom when judging it. If I took a larger part in fan communities maybe fans could retroactively spoil some part of enjoying a work, but if things seem toxic I usually just stay away.

Ironically when I was younger I felt the same way about both the Stargate and BSG shows.
I was worried that the Stargate shows would be annoyingly stupid and repetitive and that RDA's character would be some arrogant jerk-off
who constantly stole the show and made irrelevant jokes and I was worried that BSG would turn out to be dark and edgy for the sake of it (which it kind of became later).

Eventually a few years ago I finally decided to check out Stargate SG1 (having already seen the first movie a couple of times) and I quite enjoyed it. It was kind of dumb but it was entertaining enough and had a nice, low-key sense of self-awareness about itself, even if it didn't push any boundaries or feature deep characterisation or satire.

Over a year later I checked out nu-BSG and I really enjoyed it, I thought the first season was good and the characters were interesting enough though it's flaws gradually began to show through as the show went on.


As for whether or not I believe a fandom can ruin a work, that's difficult to answer. I have to agree with Red Letter Media that in some respects the fandom, along with just about everyone else involved with the franchise to some degree, have ruined Star Wars by constantly harping the Original Trilogy and using it as a definitive bible for everything they come up with. It's like how religious fanatics take the books and scriptures they worship at face value, they don't seem to understand that some references, like what Han Solo was discussing with Luke and Ben when he first meets them, are not literal, he may have lied or exaggerated a little about details regarding the Millenium Falcon and his exploits. Don't get me started on the prequel lovers...

Regarding other works and their fandoms, it's hard to say whether the fanbase of a work has ruined it any way, particularly during the time it was being made. All the sci-fi fandoms during the 90's had a lot of horrible, obsessive, abusive people in them but they never had anything to do with the development of their beloved shows, movies, books, whatever, and this is probably for the best. Although Rick Berman era Star Trek was formulaic and riddled with flaws and irritating executive meddling, eventually resulting in the warped mess that was Enterprise, had they actually listened to the fanbase the shows would have turned out even worse, even more stupid, even more ignorant, even more short-sighted, even more perverted, you get the idea.

[GandALF]

It's like how religious fanatics take the books and scriptures they worship at face value,

Well, fan is short for fanatic.

[SlackerinDeNile]

It's like how religious fanatics take the books and scriptures they worship at face value,

Well, fan is short for fanatic.

Okay, thank you Captain Obvious, but you can enjoy something without having to read it every day or take it word for word.
Like you can enjoy reading the Christian Bible without having to take it seriously, despite what other Christians may say and think of this. Apologies in advance if I've offended any religious members here.

I like Star Wars, I like the movies, the books and the games and I even think there are good qualities to the Prequels, but I don't take it nearly as seriously as a lot of other people do. I don't really collect toys unless I feel they're valuable or they would look really good as a 'geek trophy', I haven't gone in a Star Wars costume in a very long time and I honestly don't watch the films very often.

[Darth Wedgius]

For some people, sure, fandom can ruin a work. A lot of fandom interaction is online, and the G.I.F.T. model of internet behavior is in full force. The global communications network that was supposed to let us understand each other... unfortunately did.

If you're thick-skinned enough not to care that much about the opinions of people you may never meet, hey, no problem. If people telling you how awful you are because you drew skinny Gems will be taken to heart, well, either don't go online for fandoms or find something nobody else likes to be a fan of. Maybe start with Galactica 1980.

[MadAmosMalone]

Thanks Amos, I think that's great input. I know at least a couple of people who really like the work in question who are definitely not assholes so I could always just limit discussions / requests for fanfic recs to them, then maybe to others as I put feelers out and figure out how to avoid the annoying minority.

You're most welcome. Another option you might consider is a board of your own. InvisionFree, ZetaBoards and ProBoards are all free, banner ad supported, and easy to setup. You could also setup your own Facebook group for free. Getting traffic to your own board or group might take some work though.