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shadowkat1. Saw a post about not being that fannish any longer...and I pondered. First of all, have I really been active in any fandom besides Buffy/Angel? Not really. Oh I've fallen in love with other works. But I haven't joined the fandoms. I'm not a serial fan (I always want to call it cereal fan for some reason).
No, the Buffy fandom was the only one that I was ever really active in or really participated in. At one point, I got "BigFanName" status for my Buffy/Angel meta...this was in 2002-2006. It was short lived. Thank god. Found it embarrassing. I don't like being the center of attention. My father and I once had a discussion about becoming a famous novelist and we both decided it would be hell. People are more critical -- I think it's tall poppy syndrome. And they also...well, squee over you and act like they personally know you. Bleach. Go away people. I don't want fans. Of my work, sure, of me? No.
Also, I tend to be highly critical of the things I love. Which is a big turn off for a lot of fans, who just want to worship at the altar of the thing they are fannish about. I, as a general rule, do not "worship" anything. I find it irritating. I don't want to be worshipped and I do not want to worship anything else. Which puts me at odds with fandom on most occasions. Too analytical for the fandom.
Why is this? And more importantly why JUST the Buffy fandom?
I think it had a lot to do with timing and various things coming together at the same time. A confluence of events, as it were. Or intersection of events. While I'd started watching Buffy pretty much from when it aired, and had actually seen the movie in the movie theater (very disappointed in it -- the novelization was better, read it in the book store), I did not get involved in the fandom until halfway through the second to last season. In fact I joined the fandom in February of 2002, after lurking for months on various fan boards. I didn't find the fan board that worked for me until March/April of 2002. That's the one that eventually became home and I made friends at. The difference between it and the others...was it was more analytical and academic/scholarly in nature -- and less, well about squeeing over the show and/or whining over it or speculating/fighting over the spoilers, or fighting/speculating over who the lead should romantically ride off into the sunset with. (My theory was she wouldn't end up with anyone. Because I figured out the writers weren't writing a romance, but a horror tale about female self-empowerment, which sort of runs counter to Buffy setting up house with either Spike or Angle or anyone for that matter. In other words, they'd kill off all the four lead characters major romantic love interests before the finale credits rolled. Which, guess what, they sort of did. This was pretty much foreshadowed in S1, then repeated every season in various places just in case no one picked up on it. People did, but they were hoping they were wrong, because the audience liked the romantic love interests better than the leads and didn't want that particular ending. This resulted in more than a little friction between the writer's vision and the audience's vision. And I think that was one of the reason's I got fannish about it, because I thought it was ambitious of the writers to run directly counter to what the majority of their audience wanted.) Or sharing fanfic, or vids, or chatting. I wanted the in-depth scholarly discussion of the themes. And I found it, purely by writing lots and lots of meta.
Anyhow, the reason I got fannish about Buffy was --
* my mood at the time (without going into gory detail, I was sort of in the same emotional and mental place as the characters in the show),
* the way the internet was set up at the time (there's no way I'd have gotten that fannish or written that much meta in today's world -- too many platforms, I'd have gotten lost. I think it is harder to be fannish about things now than it was back then.) In 2002, fanboards were varied, but not as varied as they are now. Twitter didn't exist (thank god), nor did Facebook. We had Voy Forums, which while a nuisance at times, were actually easier to moderate, monitor, archive, and follow. You just followed specific threads. Also items jumped to archive leaving room for new discussions. Each board had clear rules. And you usually could figure out what the mood of the board was fairly quickly. There were no GIFS or hard to download photos and vids, or there were, but not quite as many. And, there wasn't as many platforms to keep track of.
* the way the series was shown -- it wasn't bingable. DVDs just began to come out in 2002. We didn't have the ability to binge watch the series like we do now. People either saw it on UPN or an affiliate, or downloaded it from satellite feed to their computers. Or they saw it on a channel overseas that had rights. As a result, you had to be more careful about spoilers. And there were long waits between episodes. So lots of time to write meta, speculate, and entertain yourselves on boards.
* less content back then. I only had access to about fifty channels if that. I had Standard Cable.
UPN barely came in. At one point I had basic or just broadcast. So I was only really watching a handful of shows. Also, I had a VCR not DVD player, so we could only tape one show at a time. Filling tapes. It was harder to see past episodes, and if you missed one, you networked with other fans to get it. Also taped it on FX, which showed the previous seasons.
The internet was just starting to explode. Less information. And less websites. Easier to find things. Google didn't exist. It was a different world.
Now? There's just too many choices. And you get things so quickly. Also, when one show ends, there's another out there that you can binge. If you miss an episode -- you can get a hold of it elsewhere.
You don't need to ask someone on a fanboard to provide you with a link to it, or help you get a hold of it. There's no long waits between episodes...so you don't need to speculate, discuss, analyze or try to figure out where it's headed. The anticipation time is less.
No, if Buffy had premiered in 2010, I doubt I'd have become part of the fandom. It wasn't just the content, but a combination of who I was then, what I needed and what the world around me provided.
And that just hasn't happened to me again. I'm not upset about that. I don't really miss the fandom as much as you'd think. I'd say I miss the people -- but many I've stayed in contact with in other ways. There's a few that I've lost contact with completely, but that's true with everything.
I don't regret being in the fandom. It came at a time in my life in which I desperately need it. And it sort of saved my life. Also, there's people from it, that I'm still in touch with and friends with now. And I'm thankful they are still in my life. I'd not have met them otherwise. I'd like to think I might have...but I doubt it. So I'm grateful for the Buffy fandom, I'm grateful that the show existed. And I'm glad that of all the fandoms that I chose to be become a part of, I picked that one.
It was a pretty cool fandom. It still is, in its own way, even though I've long since left it.
2. Random quotes taken out of context on my correspondence list that made me laugh.
* "The psychologist is a ghost" - from an icon
* "That was Excellent. I'd Bang You Again." - from a greeting card found on SmartBitches. (I'm amazed such a thing exists.
* "Do you have any stationery?
What is stationery?
Paper? Envelopes?
No, why would you need that?
To send a letter.
Why don't you just send an email?"
- from a tweet by Shaun Cassidy who was staying at a hip hotel in NYC, and asked for stationery.
No, the Buffy fandom was the only one that I was ever really active in or really participated in. At one point, I got "BigFanName" status for my Buffy/Angel meta...this was in 2002-2006. It was short lived. Thank god. Found it embarrassing. I don't like being the center of attention. My father and I once had a discussion about becoming a famous novelist and we both decided it would be hell. People are more critical -- I think it's tall poppy syndrome. And they also...well, squee over you and act like they personally know you. Bleach. Go away people. I don't want fans. Of my work, sure, of me? No.
Also, I tend to be highly critical of the things I love. Which is a big turn off for a lot of fans, who just want to worship at the altar of the thing they are fannish about. I, as a general rule, do not "worship" anything. I find it irritating. I don't want to be worshipped and I do not want to worship anything else. Which puts me at odds with fandom on most occasions. Too analytical for the fandom.
Why is this? And more importantly why JUST the Buffy fandom?
I think it had a lot to do with timing and various things coming together at the same time. A confluence of events, as it were. Or intersection of events. While I'd started watching Buffy pretty much from when it aired, and had actually seen the movie in the movie theater (very disappointed in it -- the novelization was better, read it in the book store), I did not get involved in the fandom until halfway through the second to last season. In fact I joined the fandom in February of 2002, after lurking for months on various fan boards. I didn't find the fan board that worked for me until March/April of 2002. That's the one that eventually became home and I made friends at. The difference between it and the others...was it was more analytical and academic/scholarly in nature -- and less, well about squeeing over the show and/or whining over it or speculating/fighting over the spoilers, or fighting/speculating over who the lead should romantically ride off into the sunset with. (My theory was she wouldn't end up with anyone. Because I figured out the writers weren't writing a romance, but a horror tale about female self-empowerment, which sort of runs counter to Buffy setting up house with either Spike or Angle or anyone for that matter. In other words, they'd kill off all the four lead characters major romantic love interests before the finale credits rolled. Which, guess what, they sort of did. This was pretty much foreshadowed in S1, then repeated every season in various places just in case no one picked up on it. People did, but they were hoping they were wrong, because the audience liked the romantic love interests better than the leads and didn't want that particular ending. This resulted in more than a little friction between the writer's vision and the audience's vision. And I think that was one of the reason's I got fannish about it, because I thought it was ambitious of the writers to run directly counter to what the majority of their audience wanted.) Or sharing fanfic, or vids, or chatting. I wanted the in-depth scholarly discussion of the themes. And I found it, purely by writing lots and lots of meta.
Anyhow, the reason I got fannish about Buffy was --
* my mood at the time (without going into gory detail, I was sort of in the same emotional and mental place as the characters in the show),
* the way the internet was set up at the time (there's no way I'd have gotten that fannish or written that much meta in today's world -- too many platforms, I'd have gotten lost. I think it is harder to be fannish about things now than it was back then.) In 2002, fanboards were varied, but not as varied as they are now. Twitter didn't exist (thank god), nor did Facebook. We had Voy Forums, which while a nuisance at times, were actually easier to moderate, monitor, archive, and follow. You just followed specific threads. Also items jumped to archive leaving room for new discussions. Each board had clear rules. And you usually could figure out what the mood of the board was fairly quickly. There were no GIFS or hard to download photos and vids, or there were, but not quite as many. And, there wasn't as many platforms to keep track of.
* the way the series was shown -- it wasn't bingable. DVDs just began to come out in 2002. We didn't have the ability to binge watch the series like we do now. People either saw it on UPN or an affiliate, or downloaded it from satellite feed to their computers. Or they saw it on a channel overseas that had rights. As a result, you had to be more careful about spoilers. And there were long waits between episodes. So lots of time to write meta, speculate, and entertain yourselves on boards.
* less content back then. I only had access to about fifty channels if that. I had Standard Cable.
UPN barely came in. At one point I had basic or just broadcast. So I was only really watching a handful of shows. Also, I had a VCR not DVD player, so we could only tape one show at a time. Filling tapes. It was harder to see past episodes, and if you missed one, you networked with other fans to get it. Also taped it on FX, which showed the previous seasons.
The internet was just starting to explode. Less information. And less websites. Easier to find things. Google didn't exist. It was a different world.
Now? There's just too many choices. And you get things so quickly. Also, when one show ends, there's another out there that you can binge. If you miss an episode -- you can get a hold of it elsewhere.
You don't need to ask someone on a fanboard to provide you with a link to it, or help you get a hold of it. There's no long waits between episodes...so you don't need to speculate, discuss, analyze or try to figure out where it's headed. The anticipation time is less.
No, if Buffy had premiered in 2010, I doubt I'd have become part of the fandom. It wasn't just the content, but a combination of who I was then, what I needed and what the world around me provided.
And that just hasn't happened to me again. I'm not upset about that. I don't really miss the fandom as much as you'd think. I'd say I miss the people -- but many I've stayed in contact with in other ways. There's a few that I've lost contact with completely, but that's true with everything.
I don't regret being in the fandom. It came at a time in my life in which I desperately need it. And it sort of saved my life. Also, there's people from it, that I'm still in touch with and friends with now. And I'm thankful they are still in my life. I'd not have met them otherwise. I'd like to think I might have...but I doubt it. So I'm grateful for the Buffy fandom, I'm grateful that the show existed. And I'm glad that of all the fandoms that I chose to be become a part of, I picked that one.
It was a pretty cool fandom. It still is, in its own way, even though I've long since left it.
2. Random quotes taken out of context on my correspondence list that made me laugh.
* "The psychologist is a ghost" - from an icon
* "That was Excellent. I'd Bang You Again." - from a greeting card found on SmartBitches. (I'm amazed such a thing exists.
* "Do you have any stationery?
What is stationery?
Paper? Envelopes?
No, why would you need that?
To send a letter.
Why don't you just send an email?"
- from a tweet by Shaun Cassidy who was staying at a hip hotel in NYC, and asked for stationery.
no subject
Date: 2018-08-16 07:03 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2018-08-16 01:24 pm (UTC)Life Cereal, I presume.
no subject
Date: 2018-08-16 02:45 pm (UTC)My fandoms are getting smaller and smaller. From SG-1 to The X-Files to Fringe to The Americans... I suppose Timeless has a fandom though I'm not sure if I'm still in it. Currently, I'm only writing in Yuletide-eligible fandoms and hardly reading fic at all, except really old, old stuff. I can't say "fandom is my fandom" because I feel so distant from most fans and their concerns.
no subject
Date: 2018-08-16 04:36 pm (UTC)Having more or less the same reaction. I get interested in something, want to join the fandom...to discuss it. And...crickets. Just started watching a really good anime, Seven Deadly Sins, but there's no one to discuss it with. I post on it -- in the hopes someone will come by or has seen it ? Crickets.
And when I manage to hunt them down -- I feel so distant from them. We just don't have any common denominators, we don't even view the series the same way.
no subject
Date: 2018-08-16 10:54 pm (UTC)I don't think I'd have managed to get into a fandom where episodes were still happening. Which, come to think of it, might be why I've never gotten into a new one.
no subject
Date: 2018-08-16 11:19 pm (UTC)Buffy fandom was admittedly different, in part, because we had the comics, and they sort of left it open-ended, which if you were fanfic person -- lent itself to a lot of stories. I did stick with the fandom until roughly...2010 -2012, in part because of that.
no subject
Date: 2018-08-17 02:11 am (UTC)I found myself smiling in amusement when I saw this because it still bugs me on the rare occasions I'm reading a posting board and see this. I have a friend who uses an enormous image as her email signature file and it drives me nuts.
The anticipation time is less.
Very much so. I also didn't see Buffy until S4 because I had no access to a WB station due to a lack of cable. And then due to life stuff I missed most of the season and only saw the end in reruns, I think, prior to S5.
That said I think that there are things today that are still difficult to get a hold of but they're fewer and they're also more eclectic. Chances are back in 2002 we wouldn't even know the thing existed to be missed!
But I was also in fandoms prior to the web and had different experiences with the way they worked. I found it much more canon-oriented because it was so difficult to share fanworks of any kind. So to me truly having a "fandom" and not simply being "fans" was a huge change that I loved.
no subject
Date: 2018-08-17 02:39 am (UTC)But there was no way to interact with others, and I'd no access to fanzines really, or any of that. So..it really wasn't until 2002 that I found fandom, and it had a lot to do with what was happening with the internet at that point.
And you're right the things that are hard to find now, we wouldn't even know existed back then.
...
Sigh, GIFS. They make me crazy on FB. Take forever to download and my service crashes, because I get lousy service in certain locations. Not user friendly at all. And often head-ache inducing. At one point I had a rule on LJ, no GIFS in responses to posts -- or I'd delete them. (Because they were giving me a headache.) I learned to tolerate them finally.
no subject
Date: 2018-08-17 07:37 pm (UTC)It was definitely difficult interacting with others unless one was lucky enough to already know a fellow fan of the same thing. I remember twice stumbling across fandom groups by chance -- one of the Monkees' albums had a reference to a fan organizer who I could contact. Another time I saw an ad for a fanzine in an entertainment mag and wrote away for it, which got me connected to various people. It's almost funny to think now how one would wait weeks for letters from fellow fans (and depending on the fan, the letters might not be worth the wait).
no subject
Date: 2018-08-18 12:58 am (UTC)But prior to that? It was hard. And prior to the internet? Impossible. My best friend as a kid also loved The Monkeeys and Batman & Robin, so we were fannish together. And in college, I had friends who were fannish about the X-men and Star Trek, so we hung out. But that's as far as it went. I'm not a gamer and I despise dressing up in costume and doing improve, so I never got involved with RPG crowd or the D&D or the cosplay crowds. Give me a script, a character, direction, and blocking, and I can do that. But improve? No. And ugh, conventions are my idea of hell, regardless of what they are about. I did the American Library Association Conventions twice in the 1990s, along with the Electronic Database Expo in NYC. The first was San Francisco, the second in DC, and I hated them. And that's apparently tame in comparison to Comic Con. LOL!
no subject
Date: 2018-08-18 02:53 pm (UTC)And you're right that when you're depending on in-person meetings it's much less likely you're going to be connected with people who like doing the same thing you do because it's already a big hurdle that they're in the same fandom.
no subject
Date: 2018-08-18 06:58 pm (UTC)Yeah, the problem with fandom...is yes, we're all in the same fandom. But after that, I've found many of the similarities fall awry. I was weird fan. I didn't really write fanfic, do vids, cosplay, do the convention bit, or RPG. Nor was I into squeeing over the episodes. I wanted to discuss the show like I used to discuss and analyze television, film, theater and literary works in college. Which isn't what most fans do, apparently. Also, you may both be fans of Buffy but that doesn't mean you share the same values, or even view the series the same way. Nor does it mean you'll like the same things. I met a woman on a fanboard who I really liked, but outside of loving Buffy and some of the same television series...our interests completely diverged.
no subject
Date: 2018-08-18 03:33 am (UTC)I miss fandom to some degree. I, too, participated pretty much only in Whedonverse fandoms. Then RL happened and now I find that I don't recognize anyone anywhere, and besides, it's not about Buffy anymore. Tumblr makes no sense to me and everything else is even more off-putting.
So, yeah. All your points are hitting the nail on the head for me. The bingeable season thing is HUGE cause, dude! I can't sit for eight to 12 hours and watch a show. I also find that because so many things stream and I can watch when I want that I don't watch anything at all. It's weird. BTVS back in the early 2000's was definitely lightening in a bottle.
no subject
Date: 2018-08-18 01:35 pm (UTC)Tumblr makes no sense to me and everything else is even more off-putting.
Doesn't for me either. I tried it, got lost. I find it hard to follow. It seems to be mostly about reposting and sharing links, with a lot of image/photo sharing, then original writing. I think people like it because re-posting/sharing links, etc is easier if you do everything via your phone. They aren't using laptops or computers any longer. So if you are communicating on social media mainly by phone or solely through your phone...you want something that requires very little writing and is easy to post on via your phone. But if you don't do much interaction on social media via your phone...it's the opposite.
When I joined the Buffy fandom, smartphones didn't exist.
Now that I think about it that's the common denominator between Tumblr, Facebook, Instagram, Pininterest, Pillow Fort, Reddit, etc - the smartphone accessibility. Some of them (Instagram and Pininterest) aren't available outside of a smartphone. While DW and LJ are really hard to use on a phone. You can barely access them. They aren't really set up with the smartphone in mind.
The bingeable season thing is HUGE cause, dude! I can't sit for eight to 12 hours and watch a show. I also find that because so many things stream and I can watch when I want that I don't watch anything at all.
This is sort of my situation at the moment. I can't just sit watch tv for more than four hours tops. First of all, my back starts to drive me crazy. And
I begin to graze on goodies. Also my attention will begin to drift after a while -- I'll jump on the internet and surf.
It's also harder to interact with a fandom online after a show airs...when it's binge-tv or television whenever you want. Some binged it in one night or weekend, other's are watching it episode by episode, while others may wait a few months to binge watch it on a holiday weekend. (I do that a lot. If I have a holiday or a day in which I've no other plans...I'll binge watch a television series.) You just don't have the immediate reactions, and the speculation over the next episode...it's very different.
Anyhow, right there with you. I don't watch as much television now...with over 1000s of options as I did over ten years ago, with maybe twenty options if that.