Letting Your Darlings Go

Comics, like any hobby or interest, has its fans. They vary from newcomer to longtime enthusiast, from casual to hardcore. Most people who have been both longtime and hardcore fans tend to be the most passionate: they can tell you everything about their favorite character, comic, show or what have you. Superhero fans, in particular, tend to be particularly loyal. There's really no rivalry in fandom that equates to the level of enmity that is DC vs. Marvel, Star Trek vs. Star Wars might be the closest, but no two companies have been so diametrically opposed as DC and Marvel comics, and perhaps that's a problem. In the superhero genre of entertainment, we're seeing troubling trends and issues with fans of the respective Cinematic Universes, as well as comics in general. Marvel's comic division, in particular, seems to be under siege.

One can argue the level of enjoyment one receives from their entertainment: what I find enjoyable may not interest you at all. That's the beauty of having multiple genre in a medium. Superheroes are synonymous with comic books, but the width of comic stories out there is vast; and yet, the most dedicated fans dogmatically adhere to their vision of the character.

To which I say this: Kill Your Darlings.

I understand how important these characters are to people, in fact I've got these same attachments myself. There is a rather sad current of joylessness to that level of obsession though: how much must a writer, artist or director be to your singular vision of the character you love? Are other interpretations not allowed? Who gave you this authority to pass judgment, just because you have a complete run, can quote the first movie released and cosplay as your favorite character all the time?

You still don't own the character, the character owns you.

I see this vitriol online towards Rotten Tomatoes, which is merely an aggregator of movie critic reviews. There seem to be a lot of angry fans in regards to negative reviews of DCEU movies, and a lot of weird retaliations: badmouthing reviewers, calling Marvel movies overrated... is this all really necessary? The DCEU's initial offerings were of a darker lean, and while I may not have personally liked them, I can understand and respect that there are people out there who do, so why can't these same obsessive fans, who purport to love the characters and support them, proceed to be the worst possible ambassadors?

On the comics end, we have a lot of controversy with Marvel and, on a related note, the rise of the angry fans of ComicsGate.

With ComicsGate what started with a few angry voices has now become... slightly more angry voices. It's amazing what the echo chamber of the internet does for people. Having worked at a shop pretty much since 2008, I've yet to hear the level of vitriol in person that I see on social media. And it seems as though these people are in the minority, because I've yet to hear about any of these people going into a store to boycott or shout their ideology to people.

ComicsGate recently published a list of creators to boycott, and most of them were creators who are socially progressive, who voice their opinions on social media. Some are people who don't even work in superhero comics. I will say two things in regards to this matter:

1) ComicsGate, kill your darlings. Let's face it, superhero comics for the most part were created for adolescents and children. Yes, storytelling has evolved and become more compelling for adult readers, I read them myself and consider myself an adult. The feverent obsession with every creator and every publisher to conform to your narrow view on what a "good comic" is is laughable at best, and going online to complain about it will change no minds.

2) While you may feel better arguing online, you make no impact on a book's bottom line. Comic shop employees, the ones who talk to regulars and to new customers alike, we're the ones who are the gateway to the medium. Some of us recommend books based on what we like, some of us let our customers guide us to their picks... it doesn't matter what our style is. We're putting books in hands, and you can be damn sure that the creators whose names you've blacklisted are getting sold, because comic book stores exist to sell comics, not follow the incessant rantings of the select few.

My point is this: the love of an interest, a hobby, can be very strong, but when it drives you to irrational behavior, it may be time to sit back, evaluate things, and maybe remove yourself from your white hot dedication to what you supposedly love. Love means sharing your joy and enthusiasm, not holding the beloved item back for no one else to covet but yourself. I love comics, I have for 30 years, I plan on continuing to do so. I may not enjoy or even read every book ever published, but that doesn't invalidate the books I don't read or enjoy.