Weeks 9-10; Cult TV - Buffy The Vampire Slayer

What role does Hills (2004) suggest the fans play in the construction of cult TV? How is new media central to this?

In this reading, Hills explains the different arguments that claim to be the creation of 'Cult TV', how a television series becomes known as part of the cult TV genre. One of these arguments states that, it is the fans of a show and their passion that create it's 'Cult' status. Apparently, cult TV cannot be promoted by the media industry, the writer's or producer's. The power lies within the fans; their loyalty and dedication to the series. The construction of cult TV hinges vitally on audience take-up and devotion. 

Fans create fan fiction, episode guides, commentaries, and production histories that all work together to create distinctive fandom. They create a market for merchandise and memorabilia of their loved television shows, collecting long after the show has finished airing. They analyse episodes down to the very last detail, and obsess over plots and characters, often looking into things further than the creators of the show could have ever imagined. 

Most fan activities take place online; fans gather in virtual spaces dedicated to a series and discuss and debate through and through. Hills (2004) believes that the Internet plays a large part in modern fandom, making it easier for fans to connect to other devotees, however, it has also played a part in making cult TV fandom mainstream. According to Kirsten Pullen (as cited in Hills, 2004) "it has achieved this by opening up the boundaries of fandom, allowing more people to participate in fan culture, and designating more television programmes..as worthy of fan activity". 

This aspect of new media, the Internet, is central to the fan's construction of a cult TV series, as it is a place where they can find one another and form a large fanbase, sharing endless ideas, opinions, and information about the show. However, it is also affecting the generation of cult status by rendering fandom and it's practices less distinctively 'anti-mainstream', think of the way goths dress in a certain way to differentiate themselves from the crowd..similar to the way fans of cult television follow these shows in a distintive and unique way. The internet is placing fandom cult tv into the catagory of mainstream genre, because, overall, "the internet-enabled fan practices will no longer be set apart from broader cultural norms, practises, and processes" (Hills, 2004, p.21).

In relation to Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the internet plays a big part in it's cult TV fanbase. Buffy is one of the biggest Cult television shows of all time, and has an enormous group of followers world wide. According to www.fanlore.org/wiki, a site about all things fandom, online fans participate in "the production and consumption of fanworks (such as fanfiction, fanart and videos), as well as activities like running and attending conventions, participating in discussion, and so on. Articles about the culture, history and experience of fan activities are welcome, too". Woah, dedication!

Fans have created many a website dedicated to Buffy, character analysis, further plot development, alternate endings..but this is only the beginning. I did a bit of research on the web to find out what kind of online activities Buffy fans participate in. The list is huuuuge! It ranges from merchandise auctions, gaming and role playing, poetry, visual art and crafts, debate and discussion, and file sharing.

I also an interesting quote online, originally from a 'Science Fiction Weekly' magazine interview Joss Whedon (creator of Buffy) participated in. Here's what he had to say about Buffy online fandom:

'You've developed quite an Internet-based following for Buffy. What do you think of that? Do you read fan comments, and do they influence your thinking about the show? Or do you ignore most of it? 

Whedon: I think it's really neat. I haven't had as much time as I used to to check in and see what people are talking about. [But] sure, I'll read the posting board. I'm always interested to see what people are responding to, and what they're not. To an extent it does [affect me]. For example, when I saw that people were rejecting the Oz character when he was first introduced, I realized how carefully I had to place him. I wrote scenes where Willow falls in love with him in a way where fans would fall in love with him too. You learn that people don't take things at face value; you have to earn them. It was clear that David was a popular figure fairly early on.'

This just goes to show how much of an impact fans can have upon their beloved television shows. In a way, they can manipulate the storyline. As Whedon says, he had to be careful about placement of a character because fans didn't like him. It fascinates me how much a viewer can impact such vital parts to a television show..just by writing about it on the internet!

References

Hills, M. (2004). Defining Cult TV; Texts, Inter-texts and Fan Audiences, The Television Studies Reader, in R. C. Allen & A. Hill. London and New York: Routledge. 

'Fan Activities'. www.fanlore.org/wiki, retrieved on 8th October 2012.

'Fanworks policy and history'. http://www.fanhistory.com/wiki/Buffy:_The_Vampire_Slayer, retrieved on 8th October 2012.