Things Fandom Has Ruined

[redbrunja]

–My book-reading rate. Seriously, I used to read a stack of books as long as my arm (admittedly, I was shorter then) just about every week.

–My patience. (The most recent HP movie is two and a half hours long? I could watch my entire weekly tv in the space of that one movie! Who has that kind of time?)

–My ability to simply enjoy the viewing process of a series when I know that there is a fandom waiting for me. Like, just started a limited rewatch of Buffy* and I'm already like 'I wanna be done! I wanna talk to people about all my new/old opinions!' And it's like, 'slow down, there redbrunja , you haven't even gotten to "Angel" yet, focus on the journey and the joy of having a huge backlog of episodes.'

*To be honest, I think I've forgotten how awesome Buffy, the character, is. She's quippy and blonde and kills things! I can't believe I ever forgot how epic she is. Also, every time I watch early Buffy, I wish I had watched it when it first aired, without meeting Spike before Angel. Because I can sense the twelve-year old deep within my soul who would have loved Angel with all her preteen heart.

Comments

[lady-with-cats.livejournal.com]

For as much as HP fandom has made me wary of... fandom in general, it certainly hasn't reduced my enjoyment of the books/movies. Possibly because I got to HBP before I even realised fic existed? :D

And as someone who's grown up with Bollywood, 3+ hour movies are quite acceptable to me (though possibly not some of the trashier qualities). IDK, I've found Western audiences don't like longer movies... I've never quite understood.

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

Oh, the Harry Potter fandom specifically hasn't made me like the movies/books any less. It's fandom in general that has made me less patient with movies.

And as someone who's grown up with Bollywood, 3+ hour movies are quite acceptable to me (though possibly not some of the trashier qualities). IDK, I've found Western audiences don't like longer movies... I've never quite understood.

For me, it's that I am used to getting a narrative arc in forty minutes or less. Once I went to college, how many movies I watched drastically decreased.

[lady-with-cats.livejournal.com]

Hm. I've found my personal preference always runs to long and detailed, in terms of books and movies (and other media). I love crazy setups and worldbuilding and tangential plot-y things. I just want more, more, more from my fandoms! ;P

Forty minutes! Wow! Any particular recs with great (fast) setups?

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

Well, most American television shows... the pilot of Nikita did a particularly fantastic job of introducing the characters and the world and the main conflict AND a killer twist at the end in forty minutes.