Ramblings

There's a great kind of self awareness in these "hardcore" fans. They are aware of their low status on the cultural hierarchy which can be seen in their "shame" factor. Such as from my focus group, I asked what aspects of fandom they were ashamed of, there was a group consensus that the intensity and the extent of the fanaticism displayed at the time was generally not shared with their own friendship groups. Fan fiction in particular and how much time and effort devoted.

M: There are people out there that if I told them the level of obsession I have with something I would be judged so bad and I just, like, I don’t...

But they are also hyper aware of their power as a community. Fans of all ages, religions, genders, nationalities etc. across the globe collaborate online about fandom. They discuss ideas about the latest episode or a specific scene or the content of the next show; feelings and emotions uniformly or conflictingly felt when a major plot twist/event occurred such as the death of a beloved character, they give moral support when a fan explains they missed out on the latest episode or the panel meeting at a convention. When something happens in the plot of the film/television show is not well received by the fans, they will send angry messages to the producers and creators, even the actors of the franchise. When a film series or television series has come to an end, people will band together to campaign for a sequel (a prequel at most) or a new season.

They do this because it is known to work. It has happened before. The successful Doctor Who is what it is today because fans refused to let it be cancelled. Sherlock Holmes was resurrected by Arthur Conan Doyle after fans expressed outrage and dismay from his death in The Final Problem. That latter case occurred in the 1890s, so we can see how far fans have influenced the creating process. They know that without them, the fans, the show cannot go on. The show will fail. The production therefore needs to find a way to maintain the satisfaction and devotion from a fan base while taking the risks in how the show will turn out. When they get that balance then it is called good quality film/television. (Which is probably why I love Joss Whedon and Buffy so much....)

Throughout these ramblings I did not look anything up except for the dates when The Final Problem by Arthur Conan Doyle was published. All other references to pop culture and such I already know because of my own fandom activities. I go on tumblr as procrastination but also because I need my daily dose of it. There are fantastic images, gif sets, thoughts and ideas from other fans. I follow at least 4 Buffy/Joss Whedon blogs, 3 Avengers/Doctor Who/Supernatural/Sherlock blogs (those franchises are always together for some reason), 1 Disney blog and 1 Merlin blog. All of which I keep up to date, daily. I have never watched one episode of Doctor Who or have seen a full season of Supernatural, yet because the blogs I initially followed for Sherlock and Avengers were combined with these two, I learned the language and story arcs etc. just by observing.

It's all fun, a heart-warming and exciting and enjoyable.

Mother fudger this is hard....

Something to think about

Here is me trying to figure out all my thoughts/analysis. Tis all jimble jamble, but bear with me here:

• It starts out watching something and loving it
• Not just for the entertainment but for the actors, the production, the story, continuation etc. 
• So because of this, fans start becoming fans by participation like Henry Jenkins said
• This is through research, conventions, fan activities etc.
• Most of all by seeing their love reflected in hundreds to thousands of other people around the world for the same thing (via internet)
• This love is then transferred to the feeling of being in the fan community
• It's where you can fan girl the hell out as much as you want and not be judged because that's what everyone else does any. It's normal. Accepted. Nothing to be ashamed of
• At that point the original love for the TV show or film is sort of just like a foundation for this newfound community
• It's the driving force behind discussions, interactions and such
• "The TV viewing itself was more like homework" - Barbara Fennison extract from Textual Poachers by Henry Jenkins.
• I love that quote because it is so true. 
• You're watching the show out of love for it but then the new factor of the fan community is added in.
• The community (internet) is lightning fast at absorbing the latest or new information and ideas.
• You have to watch the latest episode or interview or trailer or read a certain fan fiction or the latest updates about up coming projects or the latest comments from the cast and the producers via gossip sites/tabloids/twitter/facebook and other PROMINENT fans via forums/official websites/ unofficial websites/social networking.
• All this JUST to keep up with what the fan community is talking about. Why everyone is excited or shocked or freaked out.
• All this effort to feel that sense of belonging in a group of people who share a mutual interest and love for a TV show and/or a film. 
• That's how it blurs the sense of reality and hyper reality
• It's a community
• A culture all by itself so separate and alien from "real" reality
• But it's one that people love and can identify with so much
• They wish it was real, not a secret, shameful hobby. Or a different side to them that their "real" friends and family don't often see. A communal sense or unity through pop culture
• They try to incorporate it into life or make substitute it instead
• It's beyond escaping (which is also a huge part)
• It's like going to a second home or a second life. Not a fantasy destination. 

Tutorial #4

A long overdue tutorial with the teacher saw me panic and cry on the inside.

I was initially excited to present all the primary research I've done. My focus group, the questionnaire and the convention. I was pretty progressive.

And then I realised I didn't have a proper question. I thought I did. But I don't. So pretty much I am screwed. I have 7 weeks to research, analyse and write up a 7000 report.

The good news is I found what I need to do within the next week and a half. Bad news is I have to do it within a week and a half. So I will definitely be just focussing on this for a while.

I was explaining to teacher everything I could about fandom and in the end I just wanted to show how crazy it can make people and what extents it makes people go to. This is all mumbo jumbo right now. A constant stream of consciousness. It was quite hard explaining fandom to a person who claims to have no obsessions in life.

So main focus from now on = HYPER REALITY. A theory/term developed by Jean Baudrillard in 1980s. Going beyond popular culture, the new level in which we reach that not only blurs the line between fantasy and reality but where fantasy nearly overtakes the aspects of real life.

Makings of a question:

To Infinity and Beyond!

Fandemonium and Hyperreality

The evolution of popular culture into the realms of fandom and the influence of cyber-community life on fans 

To what extent does "hardcore" fandom inflence the lives and identities of fans?

Hypothesis: That "hardcore" fandom significantly blurs the distinction between hyperreality and "real" reality

Chapter 1: "A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away" (Star Wars)

The definition of fandom, the fans and the history of fandom studies. The move to cyber-fandom. Pop Culture evolution, birth of fandom. 

Chapter 2:

Living a life through fiction. Fandom Addiction. Beyond escapism. 

Chapter 3: 

Worlds within worlds: Baudrillard meets Joss Whedon. The theory of hyperreality and it's application to fandom today. 

Google: Fandom Addiction

People to e-mail and interview: http://fanstudies.wordpress.com/about/ and Adam Possamai

Update

I haven't made a post in a while but that in no way means that I've been neglecting my PIP. I've actually completed 2 processes of primary research which I'll post more on later. I am also going to be a participating observer at SupaNova on upcoming Sunday and so I'm pretty excited. I'll do another post for that too.

I've just been lacking in the secondary research department and I need to find a specialist of some kind. I'm thinking of trying to contact Henry Jenkins, one of the famous scholars, specialists, professors of fandoms in our time. He has a website http://www.henryjenkins.org/ which is highly informative and contains amazing sources such as interviews with other scholars of people he considers to be contributors to fandom studies and culture. Read some of his works first before I actually attempt contact so I don't look like an ass in front of him by asking stupid questions he's probably already answered in his thorough works of studies. I JUST WANT A LENGTHY FRIENDLY CHAT WITH THE MAN. FOR A WHOLE DAY. AT LEAST.

Andddddd when excitement all caps comes on, it's my cue to sleep. 

http://thebuffster.tumblr.com/

I'm a Buffy psychofan and so I follow up about 3 Buffy blog religiously. Came upon this and thought it related a lot to the appeal of online fandom. That sense of community and belonging where it is based on something you and complete, total strangers have a common love for. A something that would render you strange, weird and uncool in Real Life.

Driven by desperation and improvisation

So since I got a new topic last Friday, I've now got to write 1000 words for my first chapter by this Friday. Since my mac is having technical difficulties, I have resorted to my 8 year old PC in order to document my research and findings on blog and also to use my 2007 Microsoft word and Internet Explorer. Only a true young Gen Y and geek would find this stuff ancient.

So...Tutorial #2

Well technically happened yesterday. It was the last Friday of the holidays and Miss set up two days to helps us out with our writing and see how our PIPs wer getting along. Of course I did some semblance of research and work these holidays but nothing that set me off or got me into it. So after my first one on one with the teacher, I was left with a drab thesis and procrastinating time to mull over what I was really doing.

Later on I got fed up and just thought to myself, 'You know what? Screw it" and asked to have a chat with teacher.

I had this thing in my head for a while. On Thursday I watched Battleship with a couple of friends (mixed feelings about that film...) and afterwards we killed time by looking around JB HI FI.

We got to the TV section.

Now, this section is pretty broad. It's categorised by the television network and/or by genre. I noticed that for every single section we got to, we all had something to say for about at least 3 different shows. I mentioned the show Merlin and was surprised that at least one other friend followed that series and was obsessed with the same aspects as I did. We got into Doctor Who, Mad Men, True Blood, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Game of Thrones, Sherlock and that wa just he tip of the iceberg. We watched A LOT of tv. Out of all this, I noticed how much passion we had for certain franchises as well, not just tv shows but films and literature as well.

I brought this up with teacher and got into this idea that had been nagging me for a little while. Fandoms. Now, I know when it come to TV shows, I tend to get geeky and obsessive. What I love is that not only can I share this with my friends who are also avid viewers, but I could also share this with the global community. I check certain tumblrs hourly, when I can, to see the latest gif photoset based on Sherlock or Hunger Games or Buffy the Vampire Slayer. They seem to know exactly how I feel about certain aspects of the franchise.

One of my guilty pleasures since Year 7 or 8 is fanfiction. I read fanfiction almost daily. Mainly Sailor Moon, Buffy and yes, even Twilight fanfiction. I realized that through my obsessons with these films, tv shows and books, that I go to great and almost ridiculous lengths to keep this obsession alive and healthy and that I'm certainly not alone.

This quickly became a topic of interest once I tried to explain this to teacher. I began my research and found a couple of really good thesis' already. I'm not going to get into that on this post though.

I bottom line is, I've changed topic. As much as I love the dark, tall, handsome and brutally gorgeous brooding men, I want to go in this direction (early rough question):

How does fandom move individuals beyond the realm of popular culture and what influences do fandom communities have on the personal identity of fans?

Taking a franchise out of the realm of fantasy and fiction and manifesting it into reality through active participation in fandoms (cyber and physical communities) and how it effects the personal identity.

Semi-panicking because my school e-mail is not working. My myclasses is but mymail isn't. I NEED MY TEACHER COMMUNICATION AND MORAL SUPPORT. WISDOM IS BEING BLOCKED FROM ME THIS VERY INSTANT.

Ok. crap.

The Evolution of the Bad Boy

When I say bad boy, I think of the 50s with the emergence of Elvis and James Dean. Leather jackets, motorbikes (even though James Dean was never seen near a motorbike in any of his films. FACT.), smoking. Rough around the edges, rebels without causes, smart ass, talks back.

All signs of douchery yet for some reason, sooooooooo totally hot. But why is this? What is it about them that makes them so appealing? Is this healthy, or right, even?

And the fact of the matter is, the bad boy image began waaaaaaaaaay before the 1950s. It can be seen in Austen and Bronte literature with broody Darcy and Heathcliff. Heck, there was most probably some broody bad boys in Shakespeare.

I think, like fashion, there are different types of bad boys and they trend in a little cycle. They branch off from mysterious bad boy to brooding bad boy to rebel bad boy etc. Right now brooding bad boy is in.

Vampires are obviously everywhere and they are the epitome of brooding bad boys. They are immortal, beautiful monsters who regret or revel in their life of killing over the years. The vampire male leads in most of the shows and movies we see today mainly spend their time hunting animals instead of humans because they try to cling on to their humanity as they mourn the loss of their soul and the horrendous murders they've done in the previous decades or centuries. And since they were "turned" in the 1800s and even before that, they have those gentlemanly quality that pays homage to the original brooders from Austen/Bronte eras.

Before that was the "rebel-without-a-cause" bad boys who defied the rules just to spite authority and broke the rules because they were bored. The boys the dads warned you about who were up to no good and would be a bad influence on their little girls. Famous examples = James Dean, Bender from The Breakfast Club (<3), Danny from Grease.

There's probably more branches. I don't know exactly where this post is going, what point it's trying to prove or what I'm trying to say. But it all kind of sounds important to me so I'll just write it down in case.