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I love the idea of the House internet fandom. Every week, it is honestly fun to get together and compare notes on what we thought of the new episode. In the past few years in which I've been involved in this fandom, I've met the most amazing people from all over the world. Many of you have become part of my support system, and I know that I couldn't deal with the show and with life nearly as much as I do if I didn't have y'all around.
Except. Except, except, except. Fandom has gotten out of control. I more than understand that this show is not the exact same show as the one that premiered five years ago. Focuses have changed. Characters have become revealed, and new characters have been added. Relationships have emerged. It happens on every show, and that's one of the oddities of a television series versus movies or books or plays; it is constantly in flux. And... there's nothing fans can do about that. Absolutely nothing. Yet somehow, by virtue of this thing called the internet, we think we should have a say. We have become desktop quarterbacks.
Many fans have come to personalize the show. Nicknames like "my baby Wilson," "my Cammy," "my Cuddles," and so forth are common. Many posts to LJ comms and other message boards start with "I want" or "I don't want." And if a show runner or an actor hints that something one may want is possible for the future, and then doesn't follow through in canon, a fan may feel that he or she has been "lied to." Bitterness ensues.
ETA: And it's hard to have a discussion with the "I want" people. Because when you disagree with their views, it's taken personally when it's not meant to be. When someone disagrees with one's view of a ship or a character, it doesn't mean that he or she is being called less of a fan; it's just disagreeing. And so long as someone isn't personally attacking you (and so long as you're not personally attacking anyone else), it's. not. personal.
Shipping dominates this fandom. I'm just as guilty of it as anyone. Generally speaking, it's harmless. It's fun. It's even natural. But, we have factioned ourselves off into groups and generally refuse to interact. Then when we do interact, it's to put down the "competing" character for House's affections and ever so occasionally, those characters' fans. Well, I have news for everyone: HOUSE IS NEVER GOING TO HAVE A LONG-TERM ROMANTIC RELATIONSHIP. With anyone. Not Cuddy. Not Wilson. Not Cameron. No one. It doesn't matter how good the fanfiction is written; good fanfiction does not necessarily translate to good "canon." That's not to say House can't have romantic encounters with these characters. He's human, his potential partners are human, and sex is a part of television -- it happens. It's a part of exploring fictional relationships, but sex does not necessarily equal a permanent relationship. It certainly doesn't on House.
What should we expect and demand from the show? Good entertainment. What shouldn't we expect and demand from the show? That entertainment to fit our individual views of what the show should be like. I, personally, wouldn't mind demanding that Hugh Laurie wear those sexy reading glasses all show, every show, and making out with Cuddy AND Wilson during DDX sessions. Luckily for everyone here, I'm not in a position to demand anything that I personally want from "The Powers That Be." And neither are you.
Internet fandom exists for squee and criticism. But too often these days, in every segment of this crazy place, constructive criticism seems to be replaced by borderline if not full on temper tantrums, and squeeing looks more like the bashing of characters, actors, show runners, and fans. No wonder people are leaving.
Except. Except, except, except. Fandom has gotten out of control. I more than understand that this show is not the exact same show as the one that premiered five years ago. Focuses have changed. Characters have become revealed, and new characters have been added. Relationships have emerged. It happens on every show, and that's one of the oddities of a television series versus movies or books or plays; it is constantly in flux. And... there's nothing fans can do about that. Absolutely nothing. Yet somehow, by virtue of this thing called the internet, we think we should have a say. We have become desktop quarterbacks.
Many fans have come to personalize the show. Nicknames like "my baby Wilson," "my Cammy," "my Cuddles," and so forth are common. Many posts to LJ comms and other message boards start with "I want" or "I don't want." And if a show runner or an actor hints that something one may want is possible for the future, and then doesn't follow through in canon, a fan may feel that he or she has been "lied to." Bitterness ensues.
ETA: And it's hard to have a discussion with the "I want" people. Because when you disagree with their views, it's taken personally when it's not meant to be. When someone disagrees with one's view of a ship or a character, it doesn't mean that he or she is being called less of a fan; it's just disagreeing. And so long as someone isn't personally attacking you (and so long as you're not personally attacking anyone else), it's. not. personal.
Shipping dominates this fandom. I'm just as guilty of it as anyone. Generally speaking, it's harmless. It's fun. It's even natural. But, we have factioned ourselves off into groups and generally refuse to interact. Then when we do interact, it's to put down the "competing" character for House's affections and ever so occasionally, those characters' fans. Well, I have news for everyone: HOUSE IS NEVER GOING TO HAVE A LONG-TERM ROMANTIC RELATIONSHIP. With anyone. Not Cuddy. Not Wilson. Not Cameron. No one. It doesn't matter how good the fanfiction is written; good fanfiction does not necessarily translate to good "canon." That's not to say House can't have romantic encounters with these characters. He's human, his potential partners are human, and sex is a part of television -- it happens. It's a part of exploring fictional relationships, but sex does not necessarily equal a permanent relationship. It certainly doesn't on House.
What should we expect and demand from the show? Good entertainment. What shouldn't we expect and demand from the show? That entertainment to fit our individual views of what the show should be like. I, personally, wouldn't mind demanding that Hugh Laurie wear those sexy reading glasses all show, every show, and making out with Cuddy AND Wilson during DDX sessions. Luckily for everyone here, I'm not in a position to demand anything that I personally want from "The Powers That Be." And neither are you.
Internet fandom exists for squee and criticism. But too often these days, in every segment of this crazy place, constructive criticism seems to be replaced by borderline if not full on temper tantrums, and squeeing looks more like the bashing of characters, actors, show runners, and fans. No wonder people are leaving.
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It seems to be happening most in House/Wilson fandom atm: dark!House/Wilson, fluffy!House/Wilson, friendship!House/Wilson... etc. And the dark!House/Wilson sub-fandom hates the fluffy!House/Wilson fandom, and both !fandoms think their sub-culture is the right one, with the right idea about what canon is because they're supplanting their fanon into the canon.
But House/Cuddy fandom is starting to do it, too. There's currently two sub-cultures: the Huddy Must Have Sex Or Else sub-culture, and the We Look At House/Cuddy A Lot Deeper Than That sub-culture. And the former sub-culture is hating on the latter sub-culture for "harshing their squee", and the latter are hating on the former because we think they're a bunch of annoying fuckwits with all their self-entitled shrieking.
AHAHAHA, IT'S LIKE SOME KIND OF REVOLUTION GONE WRONG. LEFT-WING AND RIGHT-WING FANDOM EXTREMISTS, lmao lmao.
And yeah. That's the other thing that bugs me about the whole "THEY NEED TO HAVE SEX RIGHT NOW OR ELSE" attitude. I mean, sure. I'm totes not gonna complain if/when we see House and Cuddy get freaky. But what a lot of people seem to do is completely forget all about the characters' personalities and their baggage that they have with other characters, in order to plug their Character X/Character Y Must Have Sex mantra. Like, House/Wilson fans, for example. A lot of them don't even seem to keep in mind the kind of relationship House and Wilson have. Same goes for the House/Cuddy fans. And the House/Cameron fans. Why? Because they're supplanting their fanon with canon.
Nnnrgh d;dfgsdfg. And ALL OF THIS has amounted to the utter disunity of this whole fandom. There's simply no community to it anymore. And I miss that. I miss the way people ENJOYED discussing things with each other. Now it's like guerrilla warfare, lmao. PEOPLE LURKING IN THE FANDOM BUSHES, READY TO AMBUSH AT ANY MOMENT THE SECOND A FOREIGN FANDOMER ENTERS THEIR TERRITORY.
From:
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From what I've seen, these characters (I'm going to pick on the House/Cuddy crazies at the moment, because that's where I've seen in terms of a reflection of actual canon recently) have ceased to be characters. There's been a lot of talk lately about whether or not OMG!TEH SEX is going to be real or a hallucination (I have my feelings about that issue, but will leave them out, because we're not talking about that). I've seen several House/Cuddy "shippers" say things like: "I don't even care if it's a hallucination, as long as I get to see the sex." "I just want to see them all naked and sweaty with each other." Etc., etc. And when I continually see comments like that, I think, "Why the hell don't you people just go and watch porn? Just picture House and Cuddy's faces, that's all." Because it really doesn't seem to matter who the characters are. I mean, really who they are. Character traits, development, other circumstances. None of it matters. The characters don't matter, the plot doesn't matter, the themes don't matter. None of it. All some people want to see is the softcore porn. That's the worst reason I've ever, ever heard for wanting and hoping and praying for two characters to fuck. And I know not everyone is like that, but those kinds of comments flood forums and comms and even those little comment pages in spoiler articles. It...kind of sickens me, honestly. It makes me hope that all those people just get their damn way so it can be over. But then, they'll just start harping on when they'll get to fuck again. And all those people who now say, "I've been waiting for five years for House and Cuddy to have sex" (as if that's something to be proud of and aspire to, admit that all you've waited for is for two characters to have a roll in the hay), will just move on to saying, "I can't wait until they do it again, and we get to see even more the next time". *rolls eyes* I don't even want to think about the ridiculous outrage if the sex itself isn't like in your face or if people don't see as much as they thought they would. The entitlement bullshit will fly.
Ugh, sorry. Ranting again. Anyway, but yes, the disunity is terrible. I love that I can still have some great discussions with and talk to lots of people on my f-list, but it's sad that I can't go do it in more "public" forums, you know? I just feel like I'd get cut down or ignored as soon as I tried. =\
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Seriously. Fandom is like customer service. IT DOESN'T MATTER HOW WRONG THE CUSTOMER ACTUALLY IS, THEY'LL INSIST THEY'RE ALWAYS RIGHT and there's nothing you can do about it except smile politely while silently wishing for someone to punch them in the face for you.