I mean . . . I think certain fans believe that creators owe them something. (They feel entitled.) I've been seeing it in Harry Potter fandom a lot lately, where fans will accuse the author of being a poor writer or even deliberately malicious for not appeasing them when it comes to certain aspects of the plot.
In my opinion, creators should follow their own creative vision, not pander to the demands of a fanbase. Mind you, that doesn't mean the creator's opinion is sacred. Fans and other readers are welcome to critique a creator's work; even to claim that their own ideas are better, because, well, sometimes they are. But fans who claim that a creator should have done things a certain way, not because it made better textual sense or for another critically grounded reason, but because the fans wanted it . . . are way out of line, in my opinion.
Fans don't have to be objective in their feelings, clearly, but when making more serious criticism objectivity is really important. You can say "I really wish x and y would be a couple," or "it would make more sense if the writer developed x and y's relationship in a romantic direction," but not so much "the writer must make x and y a couple to please me." (Certain fans have been known to claim the latter because they are part of the financial base of the creative media in question, as though being willing to buy that media gives them the right to dictate the content.)
It's the difference between responsible, reasonable, intelligent critique . . . and whining. Did that make any sense? I'm sorry for the rant, it really has become a pet peeve of mine. Hmmm. I may write an expanded post on this later when I have time.
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In my opinion, creators should follow their own creative vision, not pander to the demands of a fanbase. Mind you, that doesn't mean the creator's opinion is sacred. Fans and other readers are welcome to critique a creator's work; even to claim that their own ideas are better, because, well, sometimes they are. But fans who claim that a creator should have done things a certain way, not because it made better textual sense or for another critically grounded reason, but because the fans wanted it . . . are way out of line, in my opinion.
Fans don't have to be objective in their feelings, clearly, but when making more serious criticism objectivity is really important. You can say "I really wish x and y would be a couple," or "it would make more sense if the writer developed x and y's relationship in a romantic direction," but not so much "the writer must make x and y a couple to please me." (Certain fans have been known to claim the latter because they are part of the financial base of the creative media in question, as though being willing to buy that media gives them the right to dictate the content.)
It's the difference between responsible, reasonable, intelligent critique . . . and whining. Did that make any sense? I'm sorry for the rant, it really has become a pet peeve of mine. Hmmm. I may write an expanded post on this later when I have time.