musing on SGA fandom
Dec. 28th, 2008 06:00 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
xparrotI was looking over the results of my Keller poll a few weeks back, and one figure was either upsetting or encouraging - 38% agreed with the statement "Whatever my feelings on Keller and Rodney/Keller, I'm sad to see it dividing the fandom. Can't we all just get along?" This was discouraging because it reflected what I've been feeling myself - that the fandom is divided right now, that there's lines being drawn and sides chosen and some people just surrendering and moving on to less combative and more positively squeeful Merlin/Arthur fandoms. On the other hand it's encouraging that I'm not the only one upset by this, that a lot of us not only perceive the division, but would like to make peace.
So in my usual way of dealing with conflict, I've been trying to examine it from all sides, attempt to determine the causes and effects and psychology of my own reactions and everyone else's, and pretty much talk it to death. Here's a bit of that analysis, as always discussed and argued in detail with![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
gnine and naye as well as a bunch of y'all online. Because really, I don't like to see the fandom being divided; SGA was a relief to come to after Smallville, which is a pretty intense fannish hot zone (at least I haven't noticed pro- or anti-McKeller fans calling each other Nazi sympathizers yet...) and I'd rather SGA didn't get like that. And then, I'm feeling guilty now, because I'm definitely part of the problem, having raised the dreaded Keller question and giving people a place to vent. Venting can be cathartic but it can also feed the flames, increase the divide even if there's not open conflict, by more firmly entrenching people on one side or another.
The negativity is especially divisive because as far as I can tell, a lot of SGA fandom (I speak mostly of segments of lj fandom here; I don't have much contact with other places) had an unspoken contract not to get too negative. The truth is, most of us accept that SGA is not the best show ever, and the writing especially is problematic; we tend to snicker and wink at its many foibles, roll our eyes at the juvenilism of Mallozzi & co., and move onto the fun stuff. This season a bunch of us have had trouble with the moving-on step, and instead are focusing on the negative aspects. This is frustrating and harshing for fans who are still enjoying a lot of the show; they're feeling betrayed by a fandom that's no longer bringing the squee like it used to. All those fans who are being negative now (myself being one of them) have breached that basic tenet of the unwritten SGA fandom contract, and it's understandable why other fans are upset.
The divisiveness is worse because that betrayal, in a lot of cases, is happening between old fan friends. Some fans have always been negative about the show, or have always been out of step with the majority of fandom. SGA fandom has always been somewhat divided - the McShep contingent is so overwhelming in numbers and fervor that they inadvertently leave all the other fen feeling kind of oppressed; it's hard to find the pairing or char you like amidst the vast John/Rodney sea, and naturally there's a bit of resentment there, the usual hard-to-avoid irritation of "how come nobody writes what I want to read?" But for the most part the fen seem to have settled in different circles; they don't interact that much and so there's relatively little direct conflict.
But lot of the division now is between fans who used to be in the same circles - it's civil war, sister against sister, McKay fan vs McKay fan. Fans who used to see the show and fandom similarly are no longer eye-to-eye; fans who used to be in the comfortable majority are now finding themselves stranded in minority opinions. It's leaving a lot of us feeling a bit hurt and betrayed even when there isn't much direct conflict - which there hasn't been, at least in the lj circles I've been on; for all McKeller supporters often preface their squee with, "I know this is an unpopular opinion..." I haven't seen anyone getting flamed for saying they like McKeller, and the McKeller fic I've seen posted tend to get comments like, "I don't really like this pairing but I like how you portrayed it..." Maybe that's been different in other areas of the fandom, I don't know. But I've seen a few Keller/McKeller fans who feel betrayed by and resentful of fandom not because they've been attacked outright, but because they keep seeing negative reactions to the character/pairing they like, and start to take those reactions personally.
The odd thing is, I know exactly how they feel, because I confess to feeling the same way myself in the reverse. For whatever reasons my flist is (apparently atypically) Keller-positive - I have a few anti-fen, but more pro-, and I sometimes find myself feeling (completely irrationally) betrayed when reading about how much a fellow fan who I usually agree with loved an episode I hated. It's that age-old fan-phenomenon - "Your Friends Are Not Watching the Same Show You Are" but it's hitting closer to home because a bunch of us used to be tuning in to the same program, and we're not anymore. And both sides keep trying to change the other side's channel, have a hard time accepting that we're now watching different shows.
Which is leading to more divisiveness, as some McKeller fans, baffled why the majority of fandom is so against something they find entertaining, find themselves concluding that it must be something wrong with the other fans. I'm not sure if it's an aspect of being in the minority (and while Keller is more liked than disliked, liking the McKeller was a minority opinion in my poll, only 13% of fans liking it as portrayed in the show (though another 20% liked it in theory)) or if it's something to do with positive vs negative fanning, but while most anti-McKeller fans direct their resentment and frustration at the show itself and the writers (rather than flaming McKeller fic writers or the like), some pro-McKeller fans, rather than just squeeing, also direct a portion of negativity toward the anti-McKeller fans, accusing them of bringing the fandom down or all being rabid McSheppers who can't appreciate het relationships. I suspect a lot of this is because these McKeller fans are feeling besieged by the negativity around them and are just defending themselves, but it makes the anti-McKeller fen jump to their own defense.
Which rarely goes well, because even if the debate stays polite, it usually ends up just entrenching both sides deeper in their respective positions. The McKeller fans find more to like about the pairing; the anti-McKeller fans find more to dislike. Usually these aren't the same things - a McKeller fan is not squeeing over an unhealthy romance but rather seeing a healthy relationship. But the positive things the McKeller fans are seeing are simply not there for the anti-McKeller fans, and likewise the faults the anti-McKeller fans are seeing are nonsensical or nonexistent from the pro-McKeller perspective. It's not that either side is right or wrong; it's that the show provides support for both positions, depending on what you're tuning in for, and the more fodder you look for, the more you get.
Meanwhile there's a bunch of fans who are generally neutral on the McKeller issue but are frustrated by the fandom's arguments, wondering where the heck the squee has gone. A lot of these are fans who really don't like negative fanning and are finding both character-hate and critical analysis squee-harshing, so they drift more toward the McKeller side because it's the more positive side of fandom, rather than because they're really 'shipping it. They're resentful that the fandom's tone has changed, that there's less squee than there used to be, and blame the anti-McKeller side of the fandom for the squee-loss.
This is the one stance that I argue is unfair. The biggest mistake SGA's writers made this season is not the introduction of the McKeller; it's the loss of other things. In my poll, the thing that the most fans can agree on - over 80%, the highest response rate in the entire poll - is that we want more Team episodes. Most of us love team love, and there's been less this season, less Ronon and Teyla especially, but also less John. (There's also been less John & Rodney scenes than any previous season - partly because John's been in it less; Rodney's been more the main protagonist in s5 - and for many Rodney fans, it's jarring that Rodney's most emphasized relationship in the show has switched from John to Keller.) This is not solely the fault of the McKeller; a lot of other things have also replaced the team moments (e.g. Daniel Jackson, and Carson popping in.) But the McKeller is the most consistent element, and a new one, so it's the easiest to blame - a scapegoat, not actually the cause but a symptom. I think if there'd been more team/McShep stuff as well as the McKeller, most fans wouldn't be as bothered by the McKeller. Likewise, one of the reasons I suspect that the anti-McKeller fans have been piling on that negative bandwagon is that we're feeling deprived - there's not as much to squee about together, so instead we're communing over the negative things.
For anyone who's wondered why people who seem to hate the show now are still watching it - it's partly so we can stay in touch with each other in the fandom. Bonding over character/pairing hate is still bonding. Also, most of us don't actually hate the show - we're disappointed in it, and we dislike certain elements, but a lot of us still love it dearly for all its flaws and faults. I personally am thrilled when an episode gives me something to squee over, and I've cheerfully squeed when I can - there just hasn't been as much, for me, and I've been feeling betrayed by the show for it, while I'm still happy with the fandom. For those fans who enjoy the McKeller, they haven't faced a loss of enjoyment in the show, but they have in the fandom, finding their circles of shared squee much reduced, and thus feel betrayed by their fellow fans. So both sides are ultimately unhappy with the state of things in the fandom.
And I'm not sure what we can do about that. I do hope a lot of it will blow over when the show ends next month. Most of us who are so frustrated by the McKeller in the show are not nearly as resentful of McKeller in the fandom. SGA's mostly pretty peaceful when it comes to pairings, and it seems very unlikely McKeller's ever going to dominate the fandom, regardless of its canonical status - which might be disappointing to McKeller 'shippers, but at the same time, there probably will always be a contingent for that 'ship (more than for some non-canonical pairings), and likely growing, as fic'ers and squee'ers find ways to render it more convincingly for all those fans who like it in theory even if not in canon. As well, the majority of fans do like Keller (and I believe more like her in the theory even though they don't like how she's been written in the show) and aren't really into character bashing, so there probably won't be much of that to contend with in fic (even in Smallville fandom, far more fics simply ignored Lana Lang than bashed her, and the Keller-hate of SGA is nothing compared to the Lana-hate!)
Meanwhile, the best we can all do is probably just live-and-let-live, seek out those fans who fan the way we are, who are watching the show we're watching, and take our squee where we can get it! *defiantly hugs SGA, show and fandom - dammit, I don't care what else happens, Rodney McKay forever!*
Now I'm going to go wake up the sis and bro in the other room, and we can open the Christmas presents we left until after we got back from Hong Kong! Yay, presents! (Also, Hong Kong is wonderfully warm this time of year, and delicious. Christmas dinner was roast goose at the best Chinese restaurant I have ever been to. Oh man. SO TASTY. But someday I have to go on an Asian eating tour with people who actually eat seafood;gnine is allergic and the bro doesn't like it, so I was left drooling over pictures of crab and shrimp and shellfish but not ordering any because I can't finish whole dishes on my own...)
So in my usual way of dealing with conflict, I've been trying to examine it from all sides, attempt to determine the causes and effects and psychology of my own reactions and everyone else's, and pretty much talk it to death. Here's a bit of that analysis, as always discussed and argued in detail with
gnine and naye as well as a bunch of y'all online. Because really, I don't like to see the fandom being divided; SGA was a relief to come to after Smallville, which is a pretty intense fannish hot zone (at least I haven't noticed pro- or anti-McKeller fans calling each other Nazi sympathizers yet...) and I'd rather SGA didn't get like that. And then, I'm feeling guilty now, because I'm definitely part of the problem, having raised the dreaded Keller question and giving people a place to vent. Venting can be cathartic but it can also feed the flames, increase the divide even if there's not open conflict, by more firmly entrenching people on one side or another.The negativity is especially divisive because as far as I can tell, a lot of SGA fandom (I speak mostly of segments of lj fandom here; I don't have much contact with other places) had an unspoken contract not to get too negative. The truth is, most of us accept that SGA is not the best show ever, and the writing especially is problematic; we tend to snicker and wink at its many foibles, roll our eyes at the juvenilism of Mallozzi & co., and move onto the fun stuff. This season a bunch of us have had trouble with the moving-on step, and instead are focusing on the negative aspects. This is frustrating and harshing for fans who are still enjoying a lot of the show; they're feeling betrayed by a fandom that's no longer bringing the squee like it used to. All those fans who are being negative now (myself being one of them) have breached that basic tenet of the unwritten SGA fandom contract, and it's understandable why other fans are upset.
The divisiveness is worse because that betrayal, in a lot of cases, is happening between old fan friends. Some fans have always been negative about the show, or have always been out of step with the majority of fandom. SGA fandom has always been somewhat divided - the McShep contingent is so overwhelming in numbers and fervor that they inadvertently leave all the other fen feeling kind of oppressed; it's hard to find the pairing or char you like amidst the vast John/Rodney sea, and naturally there's a bit of resentment there, the usual hard-to-avoid irritation of "how come nobody writes what I want to read?" But for the most part the fen seem to have settled in different circles; they don't interact that much and so there's relatively little direct conflict.
But lot of the division now is between fans who used to be in the same circles - it's civil war, sister against sister, McKay fan vs McKay fan. Fans who used to see the show and fandom similarly are no longer eye-to-eye; fans who used to be in the comfortable majority are now finding themselves stranded in minority opinions. It's leaving a lot of us feeling a bit hurt and betrayed even when there isn't much direct conflict - which there hasn't been, at least in the lj circles I've been on; for all McKeller supporters often preface their squee with, "I know this is an unpopular opinion..." I haven't seen anyone getting flamed for saying they like McKeller, and the McKeller fic I've seen posted tend to get comments like, "I don't really like this pairing but I like how you portrayed it..." Maybe that's been different in other areas of the fandom, I don't know. But I've seen a few Keller/McKeller fans who feel betrayed by and resentful of fandom not because they've been attacked outright, but because they keep seeing negative reactions to the character/pairing they like, and start to take those reactions personally.
The odd thing is, I know exactly how they feel, because I confess to feeling the same way myself in the reverse. For whatever reasons my flist is (apparently atypically) Keller-positive - I have a few anti-fen, but more pro-, and I sometimes find myself feeling (completely irrationally) betrayed when reading about how much a fellow fan who I usually agree with loved an episode I hated. It's that age-old fan-phenomenon - "Your Friends Are Not Watching the Same Show You Are" but it's hitting closer to home because a bunch of us used to be tuning in to the same program, and we're not anymore. And both sides keep trying to change the other side's channel, have a hard time accepting that we're now watching different shows.
Which is leading to more divisiveness, as some McKeller fans, baffled why the majority of fandom is so against something they find entertaining, find themselves concluding that it must be something wrong with the other fans. I'm not sure if it's an aspect of being in the minority (and while Keller is more liked than disliked, liking the McKeller was a minority opinion in my poll, only 13% of fans liking it as portrayed in the show (though another 20% liked it in theory)) or if it's something to do with positive vs negative fanning, but while most anti-McKeller fans direct their resentment and frustration at the show itself and the writers (rather than flaming McKeller fic writers or the like), some pro-McKeller fans, rather than just squeeing, also direct a portion of negativity toward the anti-McKeller fans, accusing them of bringing the fandom down or all being rabid McSheppers who can't appreciate het relationships. I suspect a lot of this is because these McKeller fans are feeling besieged by the negativity around them and are just defending themselves, but it makes the anti-McKeller fen jump to their own defense.
Which rarely goes well, because even if the debate stays polite, it usually ends up just entrenching both sides deeper in their respective positions. The McKeller fans find more to like about the pairing; the anti-McKeller fans find more to dislike. Usually these aren't the same things - a McKeller fan is not squeeing over an unhealthy romance but rather seeing a healthy relationship. But the positive things the McKeller fans are seeing are simply not there for the anti-McKeller fans, and likewise the faults the anti-McKeller fans are seeing are nonsensical or nonexistent from the pro-McKeller perspective. It's not that either side is right or wrong; it's that the show provides support for both positions, depending on what you're tuning in for, and the more fodder you look for, the more you get.
Meanwhile there's a bunch of fans who are generally neutral on the McKeller issue but are frustrated by the fandom's arguments, wondering where the heck the squee has gone. A lot of these are fans who really don't like negative fanning and are finding both character-hate and critical analysis squee-harshing, so they drift more toward the McKeller side because it's the more positive side of fandom, rather than because they're really 'shipping it. They're resentful that the fandom's tone has changed, that there's less squee than there used to be, and blame the anti-McKeller side of the fandom for the squee-loss.
This is the one stance that I argue is unfair. The biggest mistake SGA's writers made this season is not the introduction of the McKeller; it's the loss of other things. In my poll, the thing that the most fans can agree on - over 80%, the highest response rate in the entire poll - is that we want more Team episodes. Most of us love team love, and there's been less this season, less Ronon and Teyla especially, but also less John. (There's also been less John & Rodney scenes than any previous season - partly because John's been in it less; Rodney's been more the main protagonist in s5 - and for many Rodney fans, it's jarring that Rodney's most emphasized relationship in the show has switched from John to Keller.) This is not solely the fault of the McKeller; a lot of other things have also replaced the team moments (e.g. Daniel Jackson, and Carson popping in.) But the McKeller is the most consistent element, and a new one, so it's the easiest to blame - a scapegoat, not actually the cause but a symptom. I think if there'd been more team/McShep stuff as well as the McKeller, most fans wouldn't be as bothered by the McKeller. Likewise, one of the reasons I suspect that the anti-McKeller fans have been piling on that negative bandwagon is that we're feeling deprived - there's not as much to squee about together, so instead we're communing over the negative things.
For anyone who's wondered why people who seem to hate the show now are still watching it - it's partly so we can stay in touch with each other in the fandom. Bonding over character/pairing hate is still bonding. Also, most of us don't actually hate the show - we're disappointed in it, and we dislike certain elements, but a lot of us still love it dearly for all its flaws and faults. I personally am thrilled when an episode gives me something to squee over, and I've cheerfully squeed when I can - there just hasn't been as much, for me, and I've been feeling betrayed by the show for it, while I'm still happy with the fandom. For those fans who enjoy the McKeller, they haven't faced a loss of enjoyment in the show, but they have in the fandom, finding their circles of shared squee much reduced, and thus feel betrayed by their fellow fans. So both sides are ultimately unhappy with the state of things in the fandom.
And I'm not sure what we can do about that. I do hope a lot of it will blow over when the show ends next month. Most of us who are so frustrated by the McKeller in the show are not nearly as resentful of McKeller in the fandom. SGA's mostly pretty peaceful when it comes to pairings, and it seems very unlikely McKeller's ever going to dominate the fandom, regardless of its canonical status - which might be disappointing to McKeller 'shippers, but at the same time, there probably will always be a contingent for that 'ship (more than for some non-canonical pairings), and likely growing, as fic'ers and squee'ers find ways to render it more convincingly for all those fans who like it in theory even if not in canon. As well, the majority of fans do like Keller (and I believe more like her in the theory even though they don't like how she's been written in the show) and aren't really into character bashing, so there probably won't be much of that to contend with in fic (even in Smallville fandom, far more fics simply ignored Lana Lang than bashed her, and the Keller-hate of SGA is nothing compared to the Lana-hate!)
Meanwhile, the best we can all do is probably just live-and-let-live, seek out those fans who fan the way we are, who are watching the show we're watching, and take our squee where we can get it! *defiantly hugs SGA, show and fandom - dammit, I don't care what else happens, Rodney McKay forever!*
Now I'm going to go wake up the sis and bro in the other room, and we can open the Christmas presents we left until after we got back from Hong Kong! Yay, presents! (Also, Hong Kong is wonderfully warm this time of year, and delicious. Christmas dinner was roast goose at the best Chinese restaurant I have ever been to. Oh man. SO TASTY. But someday I have to go on an Asian eating tour with people who actually eat seafood;
gnine is allergic and the bro doesn't like it, so I was left drooling over pictures of crab and shrimp and shellfish but not ordering any because I can't finish whole dishes on my own...)
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no subject
Date: 2008-12-30 07:48 pm (UTC)I truly believe that once canon ends and time has passed and the wounds aren't so raw, that everything will settle down. In fact, I look forward to reading fanfic, for the talented writers to fix what TPTB broke this year. I look forward to McShep and to gen team fics where the focus is on the team. I can skip past any McKeller, happily leaving it to those who enjoy it. At that point, everyone will be free to read/write what makes them happy and what they think Atlantis should be. I really hope that as that happens and a little time passes, we can all express our love for the show and maybe agree to disagree on some of the hot points. Long live SGA!
no subject
Date: 2008-12-30 08:15 pm (UTC)But I wonder if the writers ever really saw the show as being about the team - I don't think Gero ever did, anyway; I think Gero saw the show as being about these various chars, with Rodney his favorite, and it didn't matter who Rodney was with, as long as he was writing McKay. And I think it does work like that for some fans - but it doesn't for me. Rodney without John is not nearly as much fun to me as Rodney with John, or with Ronon, or Teyla (...gah, I'd give so much for just one ep with some good Rodney-Teyla interaction. 5 seasons and they never once got an episode that gave them more than a single scene alone together. And they never touched heads. *siiiiigh*!)
But yeah, that's what fanfic's for!
no subject
Date: 2008-12-31 06:02 am (UTC)A sub-point for me being a John fan, even the episodes he was in, we didn't learn anything, get any development or advance a plot. In Whispers, Sheppard was thrown in as window dressing for Carson and the female team. Lorne could have been cast to do the same role with no difference. In Remnants, he played a key role but yet we got no payoff, no background as to why Kolya was the nightmare and what caused his guilt, why he tortures himself. Very frustrating when you see a clear path for Rodney, but not for John. I want to reiterate that I love Rodney and like learning about him, but I would like to see the same treatment for John, too. Teyla and Ronon would be nice also.
You are right about the writers not seeing the same show fans are. It was the team, the individual characters thrown together with their adventures and humor that made SGA so special. The chemistry between the four disparate individuals who formed a tight team that would go through hell and did for each other is what made me love the show. Obviously the writers don't see it that way or we wouldn't have been so shortchanged this year. Gero admitted that McKay and Keller were his favorites and that is who he liked writing for, so yeah nothing and no one else mattered to him. For me personally, being there from the beginning, Sheppard, Ronon and Teyla mattered to me - a great deal. Makes me wonder that by focusing on the technical aspects when watching the dailies and different cuts, that they never watched it for just the joy of it, for who and what was actually on screen, for the chemistry of the four main cast. Maybe they would have followed a different path for season 5. Unfortunately there were so many possibilities for the team that just never happened and apparently were never thought of or cared about. I would have loved to have seen a technologically advanced society. An ep where Ronon or Teyla take charge as Pegasus natives as the experts. I would have loved any number of combinations John/Ronon or John/Teyla in addition to Rodney/Teyla. (John/Rodney is just understood *g*). Unfortunately, I didn't like the Ronon/Rodney feel we got in Trackers, so I would like to see them having fun or bickering but not in the mean spirited way I felt in that episode. Basically, the team together watching each other's backs, having crazy adventures, having fun with each other, just being themselves makes me happy. As you said, at least we have fanfic for that.