There's No Such Thing as a "Real Fan"

[krpalmer]

When I first heard about the plans to release the "Vintage Editions" of the three old Star Wars movies, I have to admit I flashed back to a dismissive comment I read back in 2004, that George Lucas wouldn't release them because he didn't want them to outsell the Special Editions by some huge margin. That comment seems moot now... but some may try to explain it by bringing in other people who have started making a big deal about the Vintage Editions not being in "anamorphic widescreen." Unfortunately, while the song has changed, the key of annoyance remains the same.

I had noticed that D. Trull was working on rebuilding his Lard Biscuit site, and checked it out... to see, right on the front page, a post about how he wouldn't be getting the new release because of the widescreen issue. I can understand that; when you're a videophile, you want a release that suits you, and there's always the question "Could things have been different?" However, right at the start he said that "real" Star Wars fans prefer the 1977-1995 versions... and that grated on me.

To me, saying "real fan" or "true fan" means only "the fans I agree with." It's meaningless in a bad way. With that thought, I proceeded to remember a page I have bookmarked, a subsection of a Transformer fan's site where he contemplates how to be a positive force in fandom, which preserves a post taking on the comment "true fan" probably much better than I ever could. The references are fandom-specific, of course, but I'd hope the sentiment is universal... although it can chide me as well, given that I try to pride myself on accepting all six Star Wars movies as a unit but I don't read the books of the Expanded Universe.

Comments

[lazypadawan.livejournal.com]

The Lard Biscuit seems to have been flipping his lid lately.

To me, a "real" fan has a basic appreciation for the saga and respect for the fandom. As for the ASHP/SJ fans, we're the "cool" fans ;).

[krpalmer.livejournal.com]

On thinking about it, I've wondered if the "true fan" post I linked to is truly universal. We do try to establish (along with George Lucas himself) that there is a consistent theme to all six movies. While I wouldn't stop people from wanting to see just "gritty insurgency" or even "nonstop swashbuckling adventure" in parts of the saga, it somehow seems to leave people unsatisfied...

I'd try and sum up the board by saying it's more pleasant than my impressions of other places. Could people discuss the Vintage Editions and Expanded Universe while keeping away from things they don't like? I don't know, but I've never gone looking...