In honor of Comic Con I thought I would blog a bit about why fiction has such control over society's mind. Or at least, here is a preview why it has a huge part of me.
Fiction, whether it be in the form of television, movies, or books, has always had a hypnotizing affect of its consumers. Suddenly, actors lose their own names and are forever branded with the names of their characters, and names are no longer meaningless letters compiled together for identification purposes. You can't name your baby Clara anymore without assuming she will have the same brave qualities as Clara Oswald, or name your son John without anticipating he will have loyal attributes and will stand up for what is right. Pop culture has infatuated me from pretty much forever. The first show I fell in love with was Early Edition. Suddenly, I was no longer watching stories unfold, but I became invested in the lives of the characters. Kyle Chandler will always be Gary Hobson to me and the actress who played Erika will always be on my hate list (seeing her as Lassiters wife on Psych is very difficult). It is the first time I remember crying at a TV show because my beloved Gary was hurt or sad, and verbally cheering when he succeeded. I knew what it was like to live with a real hero. I knew what it looked like for someone to sacrifice for the well fare of others, but I thought men like my Daddy were rare. In fiction, I realized these men were the norm and selflessness was thought of as brave, not weak.
Life is never easy, and things go wrong. That just is how it is. You move, you become lonely. You're hurt, you're sad, you want to celebrate, whatever. You have stories to escape into. Suddenly, memories are no longer smell orientated or color orientated. They are story orientated. When I got my contract for my first book to be legitish published I was with my best friend and you know how we celebrated? She introduced me to this awesome show called Sherlock. We didn't get drunk, we didn't go out, we turned to Sherlock...and peanut butter pie. It's also one of those things that creates bonds you cannot explain. Heather and I are as different as night and day, and yet we are best friends. Together we have mourned cancelled shows (Chuck), dying characters (Supernatural/Sherlock), celebrated the rebirth of characters (Supernatural/soon Sherlock), escaped into fictional worlds in many a theater. Whenever we would have a bad day we'd get together and watch our favorite film. How many times did I see TMNT with you? And how many times did you watch Prince Caspian with me? But there is a bond with this common love. Don't believe me? Look at Comic Con. Talk about friends that come together every year to talk about things that don't exist. People dress up as their fave characters and are not laughed at, but asked to pose for a picture.
It provides codes that only can be understood. For instance, the lights flicker during a bad storm, most people would grab a flashlight and curse the storm, a fan would either grab the rock salt, or proceed to yell 'DOn't Blink! Whatever you do don't blink.' Go to an apple orchard, a normal group would oo and aahh over the fresh fruit and baked goodies, a fan would yell 'I hope your apple pie is freaking worth it!' and then stare suspiciously at ever scarecrow. New scales are produced. Such as on a scale of Power Rangers to Doctor Who how bad was it?
As important as the relationships are, there is another much bigger reason I love fiction. Joss Whedon has this quote that sums it all up so perfectly. He says the reason he writes is "to be the characters that I am not. I write to explore all the things I am afraid of." It's the same reason I write and become a fan. I want to be the leader like Caspian, someone who may make mistakes, but loves his people and would do anything for his God (Aslan) and his Kingdom. I want to be a dreamer like Peter Pan who believes the best in people even if they don't deserve it. I want to rely on my friends to get me through my most trying times like the Doctor and be brave enough to protect the people I love like his companions. I want to believe in something so strongly I am willing to lay my own life down to protect it like Merlin. I want to be needed and to make a difference like John Watson. Most importantly I want to be the person who loves the soul of the people around me, not to worry about what others think, or how they look, but to genuinely care about the well being of every person I encounter like Belle. Fandoms don't isolate you from society, in fact it's quite the opposite. They help us see the good in the people around us and make us want to be better people so that one day maybe someone will compare our actions to one of our heroes.
You may think Comic Con is a laugh and a waste of time, but look closer and you will see a group of people who have the ability to change the world. They are your inventors who see gadgets in sci fi and make them real, They are your writers who dream of better worlds for their characters. They are your actors who use their powers of persuasion to help those in need (Operation Smile). They are your teachers, who are showing our children how to use their imaginations and create a world we can only but dream of. They are the very best of us all, caring for one another no matter their race, gender, or cosplay. When one falls they all rise to protect them. We may have bonded over fiction, but the reality is there is so much more that keeps us together. Nerds unite and let's make this world one worthy of a movie.
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