I've been part of online fandom since '96, and I disagree with this:
A mature criticism of anything we love because we love it, is vile and repugnant, and causes a chill in the air.
My fandom experience is that criticism is what has destroyed many fandoms of late. In the late 90's, on mailing lists, the focus was DISCUSSION of the source material (and of course, fic/vids/art).
As time went by, I found fans becoming more and more critical. Using "Doctor Who" as an example, I've seen the full spectrum of reactions across my friendslist: some love, but some are full of hate. And it's the same old story of hate they've been reciting for a couple of years now.
That's not fun to me.
So from my point of view, it's not that fans don't dare criticise, it's that they criticise Too Much and forget the joy in fandom.
no subject
I've been part of online fandom since '96, and I disagree with this:
A mature criticism of anything we love because we love it, is vile and repugnant, and causes a chill in the air.
My fandom experience is that criticism is what has destroyed many fandoms of late. In the late 90's, on mailing lists, the focus was DISCUSSION of the source material (and of course, fic/vids/art).
As time went by, I found fans becoming more and more critical. Using "Doctor Who" as an example, I've seen the full spectrum of reactions across my friendslist: some love, but some are full of hate. And it's the same old story of hate they've been reciting for a couple of years now.
That's not fun to me.
So from my point of view, it's not that fans don't dare criticise, it's that they criticise Too Much and forget the joy in fandom.