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What makes you fannish? And by that we mean, what is it about a tv show/movie/book/band/podcast/etc that takes you from, "Yeah, I like that," to "I need MOAR!!!" Is it a character? A plotline? The pretty? Subtext that’s just screaming to be acknowledged?
In your own space, tell us what it is that gets you to cross that line into fandom.
As it turns out, non-main characters and the ensemble in ensemble cast often spark the fannish idea. I'm not sure whether it's that we only see into their lives a little bit, whether they're allowed to be written a little bit more loosely, or what it is, but the presence of a good cast can make a lot of difference.
Compare, for example, Warehouse 13 and Haven, shows aired on the same network. Both have meh main characters in Pete (The Warehouse's everyman chauvinist jock) and Nathan (the man afflicted with a trouble that prevents him from feeling anything with his skin). Where the Warehouse shines and Haven flops, in my opinion, is in their other characters. Myka, Claudia, and Helena are all far more competent Warehouse agents, and Jinksy is Pete's foil on toxic masculinity. Nathan has Audrey, who is useful in that she is immune to Nathan's troubles and far more empathetic than he is, and Duke, who is mostly there to snark at Nathan and occasionally use his own Trouble. It's a very different dynamic, and I like 13 better, despite the violence the showrunners did to their own universe by putting Pete and Myka together as the Official Couple, when Myka and Helena are clearly the correct call.
I like lower decks episodes and beach episodes and stories that pause a bit or shift perspective off of Our Hero(es) so that we can see the world around them and learn what passes for normal around there. I like to see villains with logical reasons and well-built relationships last.(Joss Whedon, I'm giving you the biggest side-eye ever on this.)
Show me that your world has more dimensions and give your characters more to do than relate to the protagonist, and you're well on your way to making me a fan. (Doesn't hurt if you can hang a lampshade or two along the way, too.)
I'm not busily pairing characters in the background, though, which is why a lot of fandom can sometimes feel a little orthogonal to the way I'm viewing / reading. Playing matchmaker isn't necessarily a thing I'm interested in. Evaluating whether a relationship presented in the text / screen is a good one is. I like looking at the world and poking it to see if it falls apart. And, in many ways, seeing if I can build it better.
Which is, I suppose, one of the core fannish impulses.
In your own space, tell us what it is that gets you to cross that line into fandom.
As it turns out, non-main characters and the ensemble in ensemble cast often spark the fannish idea. I'm not sure whether it's that we only see into their lives a little bit, whether they're allowed to be written a little bit more loosely, or what it is, but the presence of a good cast can make a lot of difference.
Compare, for example, Warehouse 13 and Haven, shows aired on the same network. Both have meh main characters in Pete (The Warehouse's everyman chauvinist jock) and Nathan (the man afflicted with a trouble that prevents him from feeling anything with his skin). Where the Warehouse shines and Haven flops, in my opinion, is in their other characters. Myka, Claudia, and Helena are all far more competent Warehouse agents, and Jinksy is Pete's foil on toxic masculinity. Nathan has Audrey, who is useful in that she is immune to Nathan's troubles and far more empathetic than he is, and Duke, who is mostly there to snark at Nathan and occasionally use his own Trouble. It's a very different dynamic, and I like 13 better, despite the violence the showrunners did to their own universe by putting Pete and Myka together as the Official Couple, when Myka and Helena are clearly the correct call.
I like lower decks episodes and beach episodes and stories that pause a bit or shift perspective off of Our Hero(es) so that we can see the world around them and learn what passes for normal around there. I like to see villains with logical reasons and well-built relationships last.(Joss Whedon, I'm giving you the biggest side-eye ever on this.)
Show me that your world has more dimensions and give your characters more to do than relate to the protagonist, and you're well on your way to making me a fan. (Doesn't hurt if you can hang a lampshade or two along the way, too.)
I'm not busily pairing characters in the background, though, which is why a lot of fandom can sometimes feel a little orthogonal to the way I'm viewing / reading. Playing matchmaker isn't necessarily a thing I'm interested in. Evaluating whether a relationship presented in the text / screen is a good one is. I like looking at the world and poking it to see if it falls apart. And, in many ways, seeing if I can build it better.
Which is, I suppose, one of the core fannish impulses.
