The Problem with "Blind" Fandom
833I didn't exactly want to call out anyone in particular, or any game in particular with this video, because "Blind" Fandom is something that affects all corners of fandom. In today's video I dissect what it is, why it's becoming a bigger problem, what can be done about it, and why "Blind" Fandom is a problem.
Notes:
There's a few different kinds of fandom
Casual fan:
• They like a series, will play a new game when it comes out but otherwise doesn't often think about the game.
Dedicated fan:
• They loved a game or series, will buy collectors editions, love to talk about the games., but acknowledge the media has some issues and how it could improve
Blind fans:
• Stans. The games are immaculately conceived, absolutely no flaws, and everyone who says otherwise is just a hater.
What is Blind Fandom exactly?
• Blind fandom takes "I liked this game: to "This is an objectively great game" to "this game is perfect" to "This is the greatest game ever made and everyone who disagrees is evil!"
Why is Blind Fandom Rampant?
• Modern social media pushes people to express extreme opinions because those are the kinds of comments and posts that gain the most traction, and are easiest to convey quickly.
o They provoke strong reactions from people.
o That's what Click bait is, they're "extreme" because nobody wants to go looking up nuanced opinions on YouTube.
o People want easy answers, they want the decisive victory, the big win of the big game.
What can be done about Blind Fandom:
• Try to recognize it in yourself, and fix it.
o What are some of your favorite shows, games, or books? How do you think they could have been even better? What was the worst part? If you can’t think of anything, you might be a blind fan.
o Look up some criticisms of your favorite game or show or book. How does it make you feel? Angry? Rub you the wrong way? You might be a blind fan.
The first step to fixing a problem is admitting there is a problem.
The problem with being a blind fan:
• The first real big problem with Blind Fandom is nobody wants to deal with vitriol. Blind fandom shuts down conversation.
• It’s also intellectually dishonest. It puts games and media on a pedestal, creates hype that a media property could never live up to. Killing the fun of experiencing it for first timers.
• I call it blind fandom because it's akin to willful ignorance. Blind fans are willfully blind.
Love is blind after all so why shouldn't fandom be?
• But I disagree with the statement that love is blind. Infatuation is blind. Real love is all-seeing, but love is forgiving.
o If you love a game, love the game for what it is, flaws and all. Don't just pretend that those flaws don't actually exist. Nothing is perfect. And there’s nothing wrong with that.
o If you're just denying the existence of flaws, you're only in love with the idea of that game.
A Photoshopped picture of it in your head.
o Our flaws and our idiosyncrasies are what make us unique, and the same goes for the media we consume.
It's what makes it interesting. To deny the existence of those things is to also deny that uniqueness. If you love a person or a game, love it and acknowledge it, flaws and all
One of my favorite games is Earthbound, but I acknowledge that it has terrible inventory management, and has sub-par visuals for a SNES game of that time. The game also drags in the middle. But I still love the Earthbound. I know it like the back of my hand, we're good buddies, we go way back.
Mentally Unhealthy
• Another aspect that tends to go hand-in-hand with blind fandom is that people seem to attach their own self-worth to the media they consume.
o We've all seen the memes that "Liking The Office isn't a personality trait," well the same thing goes for liking any video game, book series, or anime.
• Blind fans have attached their identities to the media they consume, and because they've attached their identity and self-worth to this thing they like so much, they take it as a personal insult whenever people question or criticize the media property.
• Blind fans put media on pedestals, and the creators are unquestionable godlike figures, and people will treat any nay-sayers like heretics, to be shamed and ostracized.
o But here's the truth: media you consume doesn't make you who you are. And if you disagree with that, you've insulted yourself more than I ever could.
• True fandom is loving a game or media property despite its flaws, or even because of its flaws. But to pretend that the quirks and idiosyncrasies don't exist is an insult to the artists who created them in the first place.
• You can't be a fan, you can't love something if you haven't ever actually even seen it, blemishes and all, with eyes unclouded.