Not just for Trekkies anymore...

February 16, 2005 8:15 AM

Fandom is, at the core, neither good or bad. It simply is. [+]
posted by FunkyHelix (17 comments total)

It is a way of bonding together strangers into friends, friends into closer friends. Through shared adoration of a particular cultural aspect, trust can be forged and secret tokens exchanged that allow the circle to feel as if they share something private from the rest of the world. This inward consumption of media, always appreciated in a unique way even if a similar grouping exists elsewhere, is the enabler of socialization through mutual cultural kinship.

Through that kinship, you can enrich your life by indulging in creative expressions of your fandom-love -- creating unauthorized offshoot works, improving your art and writing skill by aping another's style. Such acts can even branch out into your own original work, so inspired by the material that you seek to achieve the same emotional high you get when basking in the glow of the parent intellectual property. Such expressions, shared among friends, can be a positive healing force as you integrate your own hopes and dreams and fears and phobias, working through issues and exploring the notion of 'self' as you explore your fandom. Truly, fandom can be a force of constructive goodness.

Or it can be an excuse for perverts to flock to a single focal point.
posted by FunkyHelix at 8:16 AM on February 16, 2005

neither nor
posted by Robot Johnny at 8:18 AM on February 16, 2005

Drat. I tried to catch all the mistakes in the first link's quote. Guess I didn't get them all.
posted by FunkyHelix at 8:23 AM on February 16, 2005

That's okay, I'm just being an ass!
posted by Robot Johnny at 8:31 AM on February 16, 2005

Yes, Robot Johnny, you should be "...improving your art and writing skill by aping another's style."
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 8:48 AM on February 16, 2005

BOO TO THAT
posted by chrid at 8:49 AM on February 16, 2005

Hey! I resent the "perverts" on the fandom_wank link. We're not perverted, we're mean. There's a difference!
posted by Karmakaze at 8:58 AM on February 16, 2005

Star Trek fandom can be cool! My buddies at Warp 11 are the best Star Trek tribute band ever! I interviewed them for my Web site, a while ago. And they have a new album, Boldly Go Down on Me, coming out in a few weeks.

Of course, they aren't the only Trekkers who rock. William Shatner, anyone?

[Couple of self links. Couple of links to buddies.]
posted by hipnerd at 8:59 AM on February 16, 2005

"Bosom-y" Renaissance Festival chicks saying "tis" and "verily" as they waddle through the "castle grounds" eating waffle cones as big as their heads.

Adenoidal Star Trek nerds shrilly arguing about the "accurate physics" in the show and the "philosophical depth" of the episodes about "Q".

The Star Wars premiere nerds that Triumph the Insult Comic Dog dissed.

Furries. Fucking Furries. They fuck each other dressed up as the Care Bears. Can you imagine what the inside of those fursuits smell like?

Grind them all up and make Soylent Green, ok?
posted by orthogonality at 9:01 AM on February 16, 2005

As a proud shit flinging cunt of Fandom Wank myself, I can say that we're probably closer to being just really mean perverts. ;)
posted by FunkyHelix at 9:03 AM on February 16, 2005

Buffy (or, more accurately, Whedon) fandom has introduced me to some truly wonderful and wise people.
posted by 1016 at 9:33 AM on February 16, 2005

Lots of fandom types are really great people.

The rest need to be kicked in the head.

That is all.
posted by neckro23 at 9:43 AM on February 16, 2005

There's a great quote by the Acid Drops that goes like this "A fan club is a group of people who tell an actor he's not alone in the way he feels about himself".

I like some shows, I like some actors but I'm not going to camp outside a theatre to see their next movie or write haikus about how cool they are.
posted by fenriq at 9:53 AM on February 16, 2005

I love fandom_wank. Of course, I'm a wimp and don't use my main online name for it, but my corner of fandom is not very forgiving of such things. They don't like mean perverts.

My fandom has been great for me - it got me really online, I've made great friends, etc. etc. And no, I've never camped outside a theatre, or been to RenFaire, or had furry sex. Though you may consider dressing up as Ginny Weasley for Halloween weird, but, to each their own. ;)
posted by livii at 10:49 AM on February 16, 2005

I'm a fandom type. I'm a fan of the maker of this website. It has given my life meaning.
posted by dios at 11:27 AM on February 16, 2005

I love fandom_wank as well. It's one of my favorite gulity pleasures. And I don't even have a fandom.
posted by LeeJay at 4:32 PM on February 16, 2005

"Bosom-y" Renaissance Festival chicks saying "tis" and "verily" as they waddle through the "castle grounds" eating waffle cones as big as their heads.

Adenoidal Star Trek nerds shrilly arguing about the "accurate physics" in the show and the "philosophical depth" of the episodes about "Q".

The Star Wars premiere nerds that Triumph the Insult Comic Dog dissed.

Furries. Fucking Furries. They fuck each other dressed up as the Care Bears. Can you imagine what the inside of those fursuits smell like?

Members of community websites who rant on for 100 comments about whether or not their memories of a favorite book have been FOREVER BESMIRCHED based on a two minute movie trailer....
posted by LeeJay at 4:36 PM on February 16, 2005