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Jade's Musings
Epic Rant About Fandom... last modified: Saturday, September 13, 2014 (12:41:05 AM) My feelings were hurt a bit today... It comes down to a question of being a fan of something... What does being a fan mean? If you can't recite, every word, every lyric in another language does that make you a poser? Even if you still watch every episode? Get every new album? Stalk their Facebook and Twitter constantly isn't that enough?
Or are you still not a fan? Because I am going up to MSG I have been trying very hard to learn the lyrics to some of my favorite X Japan songs... I have never had a gift for other languages... When I took French all the way through high school I had to work at it, it was a constant battle. In fact everyone knows I LOVE Sailor Moon, and yet I only know by heart the full Japanese lyrics to two songs! Sailor Moon has an insane amount of music, just because I only know the lyrics to two songs, does that mean I am not a good enough fan? That I don't love listening to Anata Sei Janai even though I don't understand it? If anyone has ever listened to X Japan, it's interesting because you don't realize it but I would say maybe a good 40% of their music is in English, and I who have at times trouble with the British accent have a problem understanding what Toshi is singing. I swear I can't be the only one! For example their song Jade a few of the lyrics Toshi is using a synthesizer and he is half singing half speaking the lyrics. When he puts the full power in his voice behind the words I can understand him, when he is talking/singing I have to look those lyrics up! I have to do research, because I can't hear the English words, I can't differentiate them at all! So it takes me MUCH longer to learn the words, than say an MB20 song, and even with MB20, there were a couple of songs I had to go look up lyrics too because of the occasional word salad! Weekend is not my favorite, but it is one of the most entertaining jump up and down head banging songs X Japan sings? However the lyrics are sung at Billy Joel We Didn't Start the Fire Speed! Which makes it triply hard to learn when the language is not my native tongue. So am I a poser? Not a fan? Was I the only one in our group that realized the full version of Without You was released last May? I believe so... However I am apparently not much of fan of anything... Because I can't quote every single episode of Sailor Moon, Doctor Who, or Sherlock. I don't know all the lyrics to every X Japan song in Japanese and English, I don't know the lyrics to every Sailor Moon song ever written. Oh, and I also don't speak Japanese! But you know what! I love all of these things and I am going to continue to let my freak flag fly! I can be a fan however I want to be!!! Whether it's writing fan fiction, painting, cel collecting, or humming along to a song instead singing the lyrics because there is no way I can sing along without word salad... I will be however I want to be, and I can't let anyone take it from me, and you can make disgusted faces at my word salad, and you can tell me I'm not a fan! But you are in the WRONG, AND NOT I!! We should stop judging each other by level of epic fandomness and just enjoy hanging out with other people who enjoy what we enjoy! So ends my soapbox rant, I had to lance this boil somehow, it helped, but now I've made myself cry LOL. So what do you think? And how do you express your fandom (s) ?
I''m not sure what got your panties in a bunch over how others think about you, especially in a hobby, but let me say that only the more socially inept of the anime fan base care about the "true fan" ideology. These are the people you''ll find at a convention who know every episode and every factoid about a seiyuu/producer/artist ever released. They''ll tout how they "deserve" things because they''ve invested so much time in that anime or person''s career. The reality is that money talks and the "true fan" BS walks. If you have the funds, you can buy almost any kind of limited collectible, memorabilia, concert tickets, etc. available. If an annoying fan cites that you''re not a fan because you don''t know the words to a song, casually mention that group''s concert that you''ll be attending. That is, if you need the validation. The best advice I can give you is to just be yourself and stop worrying about what others might think about you and your dedication. These people aren''t paying your bills, so they shouldn''t influence you so much. Most of the adults I know in this hobby could care less if you know the lyrics to the OP or can recount what happened in a particular episode of a series that was released a year ago. BTW..I can''t sing any of the Japanese Sailor Moon songs. Doesn''t bother me or make me less than a fan.
Ditto Cutiebunny. Don''t sweat it. Being a fan has nothing to do with memorizing songs and reciting lines. In fact, I don''t see how either would enhance the knowledge and appreciation of a work. You can be a fan, but be a scholar first. Having insight into the themes and artistic integrity of Sailor Moon, which clearly you do, based on your collection, is the most credible form of fan appreciation (to me, anyway). |
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