Enough, already, faithful readers.
I've been having a look, as usual, at the world of fandom, now more than ever. It's an ugly bloody place sometime, eh? Not just the personal attacks and the constant bitching, but the absolute assertion that each individual is 100% right! If you hate the RTD era, you're right, if you love it, and hate the black and whites, you're right, if you live in DWF and hate Skaro, you're right! Well, we're not, we're just giving opinions.
The fighting and the back biting that's been increasing in the last year is an unhealthy and disruptive thing. It takes away from the real reason we're ALL in this. The love of a programme called Doctor Who. When you think of it like that, it all gets a bit silly doesn't it? I mean, "I know something that's going to happen in the future!", "No you don't", "Yeah, I do... you're a cunt!", "Fuck you, you're a paedo!"... and all because someone mentioned a made up moster might be coming back in a Saturday teatime telly show.
The spoilers, per se, are a bad thing, in my opinion, they take away from the hard work done by the brilliant folks at Upperboat. It's unfair on them, and it's unfair on the millions of Not We who have episodes wasted because The Sun or The Mirror publish these spoilers. There are good spoilers though - the ones that illicit conversation and speculation. I mean, who exactly is Timothy Dalton playing??? It's great guessing. But to waste a pivotal scene or a big surprise for a bit of internet kudos from a couple of thousand people is a bit much, dontcha think?
The fall of the House of Lyon and the closing of DWF has its positives. Not the closure of that forum, of course, but the amount of people who've went, "hey, we can do that," and set up fora of their own. Personally, despite the success of Skaro, I have to say it's something I would never have thought of without my good friend Omega's Biscuit. It's his fault! But to see lot's of new ones spring up is heart warming.
But it's also an opportunity. It's a chance to underline the difficulties and the fractures of the past and to not citicise each other for being different but to embrace that difference. Fandom shouldn't talk with one big Cyber-voice, it should be many voices, talking, saying different things, having different opinions. I mean, I don't like spoilers, but if a spoiler site springs up and people want them, so be it. If an anti-RTD site springs up, again, I might not agree with that stance, but, hell, they're entitled to feel that way, aren't they?
The most important thing is that it's done in the spirit of the show and it's principle character. It should be respectful, nonconfrontational, it shouldn't waste it for others, it shouldn't be personal. This is about Doctor Who, ferchrissake! Why are we fighting?
Fans should choose a forum - or six, or ten - and chat and mix and mingle. We should each rely on the others' strengths for support and for encouragement. We should embrace the differences between them all.
I've made my point on trolls and nasties. To that end, I've deleted the contentious blogs I've made over the last year and I'll make a point of not publishing any more. To that end, I request the same in return. Let's get on with enjoying what are going to be some amazing episodes and a brand new Doctor. Matt and Karen deserve to be brought into a family of fandom not bickering with each other like five year olds, but pulling together in support of them.
It's time all the silliness stopped, so, for me, it has. With the advent of Outpost Doctor Who, Gallifrey Base, Planet Kemble's revamp and the soon-to-come Skaro Mark 2, as well as the stalwart of Sebastian at Doctor Who Online, there is room for us all, and petty arguments from the past should remain in the past.
So to everyone I've had a pop at, right or wrong, I apologise. I hold my hand out to you all. It's daft, it's childish, and, in the end, it's pointless. Let's move on together, in a place where we can say our piece without being ridiculed. It doesn't matter who I am or what my job is, it doesn't matter who AWF is, it doesn't matter how people have perceived DWF... it just doesn't matter.
Let's go forward in all our beliefs... and prove to the Doctor that he is not mistaken in his.
Happy Times and Places
Eddie
I've been having a look, as usual, at the world of fandom, now more than ever. It's an ugly bloody place sometime, eh? Not just the personal attacks and the constant bitching, but the absolute assertion that each individual is 100% right! If you hate the RTD era, you're right, if you love it, and hate the black and whites, you're right, if you live in DWF and hate Skaro, you're right! Well, we're not, we're just giving opinions.
The fighting and the back biting that's been increasing in the last year is an unhealthy and disruptive thing. It takes away from the real reason we're ALL in this. The love of a programme called Doctor Who. When you think of it like that, it all gets a bit silly doesn't it? I mean, "I know something that's going to happen in the future!", "No you don't", "Yeah, I do... you're a cunt!", "Fuck you, you're a paedo!"... and all because someone mentioned a made up moster might be coming back in a Saturday teatime telly show.
The spoilers, per se, are a bad thing, in my opinion, they take away from the hard work done by the brilliant folks at Upperboat. It's unfair on them, and it's unfair on the millions of Not We who have episodes wasted because The Sun or The Mirror publish these spoilers. There are good spoilers though - the ones that illicit conversation and speculation. I mean, who exactly is Timothy Dalton playing??? It's great guessing. But to waste a pivotal scene or a big surprise for a bit of internet kudos from a couple of thousand people is a bit much, dontcha think?
The fall of the House of Lyon and the closing of DWF has its positives. Not the closure of that forum, of course, but the amount of people who've went, "hey, we can do that," and set up fora of their own. Personally, despite the success of Skaro, I have to say it's something I would never have thought of without my good friend Omega's Biscuit. It's his fault! But to see lot's of new ones spring up is heart warming.
But it's also an opportunity. It's a chance to underline the difficulties and the fractures of the past and to not citicise each other for being different but to embrace that difference. Fandom shouldn't talk with one big Cyber-voice, it should be many voices, talking, saying different things, having different opinions. I mean, I don't like spoilers, but if a spoiler site springs up and people want them, so be it. If an anti-RTD site springs up, again, I might not agree with that stance, but, hell, they're entitled to feel that way, aren't they?
The most important thing is that it's done in the spirit of the show and it's principle character. It should be respectful, nonconfrontational, it shouldn't waste it for others, it shouldn't be personal. This is about Doctor Who, ferchrissake! Why are we fighting?
Fans should choose a forum - or six, or ten - and chat and mix and mingle. We should each rely on the others' strengths for support and for encouragement. We should embrace the differences between them all.
I've made my point on trolls and nasties. To that end, I've deleted the contentious blogs I've made over the last year and I'll make a point of not publishing any more. To that end, I request the same in return. Let's get on with enjoying what are going to be some amazing episodes and a brand new Doctor. Matt and Karen deserve to be brought into a family of fandom not bickering with each other like five year olds, but pulling together in support of them.
It's time all the silliness stopped, so, for me, it has. With the advent of Outpost Doctor Who, Gallifrey Base, Planet Kemble's revamp and the soon-to-come Skaro Mark 2, as well as the stalwart of Sebastian at Doctor Who Online, there is room for us all, and petty arguments from the past should remain in the past.
So to everyone I've had a pop at, right or wrong, I apologise. I hold my hand out to you all. It's daft, it's childish, and, in the end, it's pointless. Let's move on together, in a place where we can say our piece without being ridiculed. It doesn't matter who I am or what my job is, it doesn't matter who AWF is, it doesn't matter how people have perceived DWF... it just doesn't matter.
Let's go forward in all our beliefs... and prove to the Doctor that he is not mistaken in his.
Happy Times and Places
Eddie
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