July Question Meme: Day Two

[rogueslayer452]

Asked by giallarhorn:

How do you feel regarding the generally increased scrutiny that accompanies a lot of shows and how it impacts your ability to enjoy shows?

I think critical thinking is important, of course, and I do enjoy reading and joining in the discussion that further examines the media that we consume.

However, some people tend to take it too far from actual critical thinking to just being plain negative. Fandom can become quite a toxic environment when such negativity about tearing down something someone loves, going so far as saying someone is the problem for enjoying a show they deem problematic, or always scrutinizing every little detail and pointing out what was wrong and why. Some people end up judging far too quickly, already making up their minds on something (especially if it doesn't fit into their little box of perfection) before it even has a chance on proving (and improving) itself. It's not just unfair, but the behavior and attitude that comes from such negative thinking is kind of immature, imho. It's one thing to have honest critique, it's another to get so hung up on and completely immerse oneself in negativity and thereby ruining the enjoyment for everyone involved.

As for me, while being within fandom can be difficult to get away from such scrutiny, it hasn't hindered my enjoyment for the things I like watching in the slightest. I'll listen to the arguments and discussions that I feel offer something to think about, and ignore the negative side of things that are just there to be loud noise.

Comments

[verdande-mi.livejournal.com]

This echoes my own thoughts very well! I believe much critical thinking, sadly, gets lost in the whirlwind of toxint Everything is not for everyone, and we all judge and see all media differently.

There have been cases where negativity have lessened my love and influenced my interest, which I really do not like and is why I try hard to avoid such thing in my fandom-circle.

[rogueslayer452.livejournal.com]

Yeah, it's unfortunate that actual discussion can be lost in the mass of everything else, especially on such sites like Tumblr where it's so easy to state an opinion and pass it off as fact, or declare that anyone who doesn't agree with said opinion is automatically wrong (leading for much wank bait). I mean, there are amazing pieces of meta that circulate, but nine times out of ten due to its formatting there's little way of actual engage in a discussion over there.

Fandom can sometimes discourage enjoyment from something, that's why I basically disconnect myself from said fandom. There have been a few instances where the two coincide with each other that I just nope out, though usually that's because I was already having problems with one and it just bled into the other. It's sad, honestly, when that happens, but I've learned that you can enjoy something without really being involved with fandom.