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For five years...
Oct. 29th, 2017 04:24 amThis icon will have to do because archers. I really should do some maintenance and decide about whether or not I ant a paid account given how relatively little I use and interact with dreamwidth compared to what I'd like.
Anyway, just checking in and gushing a little in glowing nostalgia. Several years ago my best friend got me into Arrow. She was really into it, and I was going to her family's vacation house so we watched the first two seasons in the space of about a week. I sincerely enjoyed it, but it also felt like I was hearing those little opening violin notes in my sleep.
It's a topic for another day, but I feel like Something Happened to fandom post-2014. It might be my maturity level or obliviousness changing. It might be the overall social and political climate having an impact on even the most trivial things. Following the Tumblr Mood such as I have off and on since 2011, I noticed a general consensus that once the initial widespread infatuation with Captain America: The Winter Soldier died away into fractious discourse about whether or not it was okay to find Hydra attraction (its members OR its place as a fictional bad guy organization some people find it fun to sympathize with in that context) acceptable or find it, in itself, politically charged.
Since then, I have seen a comment on tumblr which went along the lines of "Who would have thought in 2014 that the most unrealistic thing about CA:TWS was that you'd have to actually conceal being a Nazi to play a role in the government." Yikes and sad. But that's neither here nor there.
Back to the original topic, I just wanted to mention how, recently, I've been able to get back into Arrow without all the intense baggage that comes with trying to be into it when you are on tumblr every day. Even before work was gnawing at my soul and sanity, I had stopped getting on tumblr every time I was online, and while there are still things I think tumblr format is best for, it's honestly a relief. I still think I'm on tumblr more than here because it's more passive and things are so slow here (probably related problems imo), but it's amazing how much less pressure I feel by not reading the fandom groupthink obsessively and instead scrolling past the raging anger that goes with being near fandoms, especially that one, on tumblr.
I am in no way denying the political importance of representation and media's power to spread ways of thinking. However, I think if there is any truth to what was said about CA:TWS, it might be that it finally fully pulled together politically-interested young people with fandom that was making a political comment in a fantastic and exciting format that was widespread. It changed the tone of the discussion, bit by bit. And I think that's something that I feel was lost. It's that the tone of the discussion has started demonizing people and shaming them for liking a show at all when one creator, one actor, one character does something that is bad.
Watching Arrow again, I'm pleasantly surprised at the social commentary about the dangers of the extremely wealthy taking advantage of the social strata beneath them. Those kinds of things are an important part of the whole narrative so far in watching Season 1, but according to tumblr all of the show is mindless drivel trash and Oliver is disgusting through and through because... well, it depends who you ask. I am glad to have a place where I can say I love Arrow and Oliver without it automatically implying that I condone every single one of the characters' behaviors, Oliver in particular, or suggest that there aren't people on the staff of the show who have actually done something wrong at some point or another.
I'm just glad that I am not seeing the posts I see every time I get on tumblr that go "Are we still defending [x]" and clickbaity political angry nonsense that has absolutely no impact on meaningful chagne to anything. Just let us enjoy something. I'm glad I am enjoying it again. I need to enjoy something.
Anyway, just checking in and gushing a little in glowing nostalgia. Several years ago my best friend got me into Arrow. She was really into it, and I was going to her family's vacation house so we watched the first two seasons in the space of about a week. I sincerely enjoyed it, but it also felt like I was hearing those little opening violin notes in my sleep.
It's a topic for another day, but I feel like Something Happened to fandom post-2014. It might be my maturity level or obliviousness changing. It might be the overall social and political climate having an impact on even the most trivial things. Following the Tumblr Mood such as I have off and on since 2011, I noticed a general consensus that once the initial widespread infatuation with Captain America: The Winter Soldier died away into fractious discourse about whether or not it was okay to find Hydra attraction (its members OR its place as a fictional bad guy organization some people find it fun to sympathize with in that context) acceptable or find it, in itself, politically charged.
Since then, I have seen a comment on tumblr which went along the lines of "Who would have thought in 2014 that the most unrealistic thing about CA:TWS was that you'd have to actually conceal being a Nazi to play a role in the government." Yikes and sad. But that's neither here nor there.
Back to the original topic, I just wanted to mention how, recently, I've been able to get back into Arrow without all the intense baggage that comes with trying to be into it when you are on tumblr every day. Even before work was gnawing at my soul and sanity, I had stopped getting on tumblr every time I was online, and while there are still things I think tumblr format is best for, it's honestly a relief. I still think I'm on tumblr more than here because it's more passive and things are so slow here (probably related problems imo), but it's amazing how much less pressure I feel by not reading the fandom groupthink obsessively and instead scrolling past the raging anger that goes with being near fandoms, especially that one, on tumblr.
I am in no way denying the political importance of representation and media's power to spread ways of thinking. However, I think if there is any truth to what was said about CA:TWS, it might be that it finally fully pulled together politically-interested young people with fandom that was making a political comment in a fantastic and exciting format that was widespread. It changed the tone of the discussion, bit by bit. And I think that's something that I feel was lost. It's that the tone of the discussion has started demonizing people and shaming them for liking a show at all when one creator, one actor, one character does something that is bad.
Watching Arrow again, I'm pleasantly surprised at the social commentary about the dangers of the extremely wealthy taking advantage of the social strata beneath them. Those kinds of things are an important part of the whole narrative so far in watching Season 1, but according to tumblr all of the show is mindless drivel trash and Oliver is disgusting through and through because... well, it depends who you ask. I am glad to have a place where I can say I love Arrow and Oliver without it automatically implying that I condone every single one of the characters' behaviors, Oliver in particular, or suggest that there aren't people on the staff of the show who have actually done something wrong at some point or another.
I'm just glad that I am not seeing the posts I see every time I get on tumblr that go "Are we still defending [x]" and clickbaity political angry nonsense that has absolutely no impact on meaningful chagne to anything. Just let us enjoy something. I'm glad I am enjoying it again. I need to enjoy something.
