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Star Wars vs. Fandom: Pleasing a Fanbase

techstomper.com

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Re: Star Wars vs. Fandom: Pleasing a Fanbase

#2
Are there any examples of media that existed purely as fan service for an existing fan service that ended up working out extraordinarily well? It seems like an impossible task to make good art if your pure focus is on making a fanbase happy. I cant imagine that the empire strikes back put making the fanbase happy over trying to tell a good story. Looking at star trek, something like DS9 seems like it would have been impossible to create if trying to pander to the existing fanbase, but it's since established itself as among the best (or the best depending on who you are talking to) of the treks.

Re: Star Wars vs. Fandom: Pleasing a Fanbase

#3
post #2

Are there any examples of media that existed purely as fan service for an existing fan service that ended up working out extraordinarily well? It seems like an impossible task to make good art if your pure focus is on making a fanbase happy. I cant imagine that the empire strikes back put making the fanbase happy over trying to tell a good story. Looking at star trek, something like DS9 seems like it would have been…

Fan creations frequently do this. Plenty of fan made pokemon or sonic games are either competitive with or better than the official games. Alot of the time a fan is willing to put in the time and effort to make something that isn't large enough to try and sell, a good example being https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCFMtdiQILuTZr22sKUeAOOA where a fan of Warhammer 40k spent two years making a 15 minute video series. I guess if your definition of working extraordinarily well is making a huge profit then fan creations can't usually try to do that, but they can still make great things to please existing fans.

Re: Star Wars vs. Fandom: Pleasing a Fanbase

#4
post #2

Are there any examples of media that existed purely as fan service for an existing fan service that ended up working out extraordinarily well? It seems like an impossible task to make good art if your pure focus is on making a fanbase happy. I cant imagine that the empire strikes back put making the fanbase happy over trying to tell a good story. Looking at star trek, something like DS9 seems like it would have been…

Exactly.

You need to seek new fans every generation or so - the trick is balancing 'new' vs. 'old', how you retire certain characters etc.

You are screaming into the wind if you expect something to stay relevant for your entire life without major cyclical upheavals.

Re: Star Wars vs. Fandom: Pleasing a Fanbase

#5
post #2

Are there any examples of media that existed purely as fan service for an existing fan service that ended up working out extraordinarily well? It seems like an impossible task to make good art if your pure focus is on making a fanbase happy. I cant imagine that the empire strikes back put making the fanbase happy over trying to tell a good story. Looking at star trek, something like DS9 seems like it would have been…

I'm not sure about complete series but there are definitely some episodes. One I would say is the ST:TNG episode "Relics" where they rescue Scotty from a ship crashed on a Dyson Sphere. They even had the original captain's chair from the original series in it. And it was a pretty great episode too!

I think another example are the D&D or paintball episodes of Community. They even reference the other episodes and make fun of how fan service-y it is at points.

Re: Star Wars vs. Fandom: Pleasing a Fanbase

#6
The author of this piece fails to understand the Western. Han has to shoot first to establish himself as a rogue whose only interest is himself thus setting up the redemption arc when he flies the falcon in to save Luke.