"Best of Megatron" compilation

[Onslaught Six]

Again, I just can't agree with that. The general audience does think like that, although they may not necessarily be (as) aware of doing it. Like, say someone preferring a movie adaptation over the original book. While they may not phrase it as such, they would essentially be "counting" one version of the story over the other.

I had an ex-girlfriend who thought the theatrical ending of I Am Legend was better than the true-to-the-book deleted ending on the DVD. I was like, what? The DVD ending is clearly the way it was meant to be if executive meddling didn't think it'd be too over-the-heads of the moviegoing public.

[Shockwave]

I've seen several fans say that they don't count Enterprise in-particular as part of the Trek fiction, largely due to continuity issues that show has to the other series.

I don't count it because it ends with Riker walking out of the holodeck saying "End program". That's a good enough in context reason for me to ignore it.

I think the term "personal canon" is common enough in the various fandoms that we interact with that we can say it conversationally and others would know what we mean, which effectively makes it an accepted paradigm. To us. It's kind of a case of know your audience. Obviously your average soccer mom isn't going to be familiar with this concept on a consious level so the term would be meaningless. But at Comic Con, it's likely to be getting thrown about pretty frequently. It's like being at a Superbowl party talking about Wookies, you'd get a lot of strange looks. But if you're at a Star Trek convention talking about Wookies, you'll probably find people that actually speak Wookie.

[Dominic]

Sparky has a point about the vocabulary. General audiences will use the idea of fanon, if not the term. They are less likely to bother with it as they are less likely to care. But, people tend to be selective about what they count.

Of course, at this point, we have to figure out where the line between fan and causual user is.


Dom
-had a conversation about literary theory at school today.

[Onslaught Six]

It's like being at a Superbowl party talking about Wookies, you'd get a lot of strange looks. But if you're at a Star Trek convention talking about Wookies, you'll probably find people that actually speak Wookie.

Wookie-talkers? At a Star Trek convention?

Of course, at this point, we have to figure out where the line between fan and causual user is.

If you consider yourself a fan, you are one. Full stop.

[Shockwave]

You'd be surprised how many people who are fans of both. But the point is that the "sci fi" crowd will know a lot more about wookies than the jock crowd. I swear I work with a guy who's a full out football fan and doesn't even know what Star Wars is. I know this because I made a comment about Chewbacca and that lead to him telling me he'd never even heard of Star Wars.

I'd have to disagree with the second statement somewhat. I know people who consider themselves "fans" of things but can't answer even basic questions about it.

[Dominic]

There could be degrees of fans.

Let me rephrase the question: What degree of fan would know/care about fanon? How to establish the degree of fandom?

And, would general audiences really be considered "fans"? What about the difference between fan of a property (TF), or fan of a genre (sci-fi)?

[Shockwave]

Ok, well here's a good example. My mom considers herself a "fan" of Star Wars. But she has no opinion and isn't even aware of the whole "Han shot first" thing. She watches them and enjoys them, but there's no analysis beyond that. I would say she "likes" Star Wars, but is not a "fan". The root word of Fan is fanatic, someone who beleives in something so heavily that it consumes every part of their existence. In modern terms it simply refers to a person who enjoys a work of the arts so much that they try to take in every part of it. My mom doesn't fall into that category. I do. Therein lies the difference.

[Dominic]

By that definition, I am arguably not a fan of TF, as there is plenty I am happy to skip or dispose of.

In your mom's case, I would agree with what you are saying, as being a fan implies interest enough to at least know, if not care, about questions like who shot first.


Dom
-accepts that Greedo shot first and Han was saved by a rubbery neck.

[Shockwave]

No, you're considered a fan by that definition. You don't just look at the toys and think "that's cool" and move on, you have an extensive collection of them. You also enjoy the cartoons, books, comics and other media that come out (now, by "enjoy", I mean that you have read and/or seen them, even if you don't necessarily like or agree with the content). You also analyze that content beyond "teh robotz is COOL!". Skipping specific entries doesn't disqualify your fan status. Anyway, to further clarify my definition, partaking in the various forms of medium that are offered and immersing yourself in the hobby qualifies you as a fan even if you skip specific offerings within those mediums.