Fandoms

It's so much easier to watch TV shows though the internet, we not only have a way to avoid commercial breaks as through certain channels we can get access to thousands of International TV shows. Fandoms are a huge part of the Internet, they're groups of people or fans that have an interest in a TV show, book, movie etc. and has an entire subculture focused around that interest. A social media platform that best suits fandoms is Tumblr. It's website where you can control the content you want to gain access to by being selective in the blogs you choose to follow based on what they post. There are so many fandoms that can be joined, and one doesn't need to be limited to just one. There are some fandoms that group together to create a large one, this is the case for the SuperWhoLock fandom.

This is a huge (and in my opinion one of the most annoying) fandom on Tumblr, it's a geared around three TV shows: Supernatural, Dr. Who and Sherlock. It's presence is HUGE and contains fans from all over the world. I'm a fan of Sherlock and think it's a great show, but I wouldn't consider myself to be a part of the fandom. It's a subculture I'm not a part of though I do know the ships, which is short for 'relationship' as fans put together two characters as an endorsement for a relationship that can be romantic, bromance, best friends, an otp (one true pair) or anything else in between.

These spaces are fascinating as you can witness and be a part of, if you want to, the passion for the myriad of interests out there. Fandoms also spread into music artists (often referred to as 'stanning'), video games, anime, celebrities or just people. This link sums up all the biggest fandoms on Tumblr, note the top three. I think fandoms are a great way to meet people with common interests, they keep the show on air, are a target audience for TV show producers, a great way for celebrities to reach out to their fans and can get more people interested in that subculture.

I've learned about a lot of TV shows through fandoms, namely My Mad Fat Diary, Some Girls, Downton Abbey, Orphan Black and kdramas (Korean Dramas). Fandoms demonstrate how the Internet really does bring people together and it's so much easier to find people who share your common interests. It demonstrates that culture extends into the Internet, there is attire, rituals, language, space, consumer habits, routines and beliefs that are a part of these subcultures. The Internet is a way for us to create more cultures, it isn't hindering our capacity for being human but rather helping it flourish or demonstrates how we carry over what makes use human into a space that many argue detracts from our humanity.

Here's the trailer for My Mad Fat Diary Series 1, Series 2 starts tomorrow (update: it has aired already)!