The Fandom Soap Box Rant

There's a couple of things I've kept (mostly) to myself in relation to the upcoming Star Wars movie, The Force Awakens.  I feel like if I enter into that sort of a conversation right now with some folks, I run the risk of entering into an argument similar to "the prequels are bantha poodoo and need to be banished from the face of the planet and thrown into the Great Pit of Carkoon".  I don't really desire to get in the middle of a heated fandom discussion like that right now, so - for the most part - I've kept my thoughts to myself about the new movie.

I've also tried to refrain from doing what I do - writing.  Not necessarily writing things down like fan fiction or the like.  But brain writing.  The kind of writing that isn't physical pen to paper, but it's when your brain waves do fun things like Oh, man, Shada.  Think about it.  Think what would happen if [highlight for Shada's crazy fan theory/personal weirdness]Poe Dameron was somehow mentally hijacked by Kylo Ren, and he's been implanted into the Resistance as a sleeper cell agent to help bring them down[/end Shada's crazy fan theory/personal weirdness].

But as the release date gets closer and closer, I can feel myself slipping on both of these things.

I find myself wanting to jump into the conversations that start with:

1. "Well, JJ better not screw it up because then we'll have to call him Jar Jar Abrams for the rest of his life."
2. "You know there's going to be so much lens flare you won't be able to see anything."
3. "It's just going to be a rehash of an old story with more graphics and less heart than the original."
4. "Disney is just going to f*#$ it all up because the Mouse rules all!"
5. "Disney has taken marketing to the extreme!  This is insane!  It's on everything from make-up products to collegiate football gear.

But my non-confrontational personality makes me step back and say, "Nope.  Nope, nope, nope, nope."  However, inside, my little inner hot-head makes her appearance, dusts off her soap box, and then unleashes fannish hell-blabber to whoever is around me that I trust most: close friends, close family, or my husband.  And now, this blog.  So lets's starts this thing off - in order:

1. Honestly, we're not going to end up calling him "Jar Jar Abrams" for the rest of his life.  Number one - because it won't suck that badly.  And number two - because you could come up with a lot better insult than "Jar Jar Abrams" if you really wanted to.
2. Does it really bother you that badly?  Any worse than the old-fashioned screen wipes from the original Star Wars?  Or the Yoda puppet in The Phantom Menace?  Or Sebastian Shaw's Force ghost being swapped out for Hayden Christensen?  Okay, fine.  If it bothers you that badly, ask and you shall receive.  J.J. talked to Stephen Colbert, and here you go: J.J. Abrams Promises Less Lens Flare.
3. There is the basis to this argument?  Do you have some concrete evidence of the plot line or access to the script?  Have we seen anything that's pointed to there being no "heart" in the trailers?  (Really, I've seen a lot of emotion portrayed there, actually.  So I dunno - I think you're going to be surprised by just how much this movie makes you feel...on multiple levels.)  And more graphics - when we're actually kind of reverting back to more sets, life-size props and vehicles.  Yeah, I don't agree with either of these.
4. Has Disney effed up your Marvel universe?  I can't say they've been 100% perfect, but no one ever is.  Now, I'm not even a comic book fan or a super hero fan, but I have really enjoyed these movies.  And I've talked to lots of other people who are comic book fans and super hero fans who really love them, too.  You're going to have a dud movie now and then no matter what studio you're working with.  It happens.  You can't please everyone all the time.  
5. I have 3 words for you: Phantom Menace promotions.  Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, and KFC.  Kentucky Fried Chicken, people.  C'mon.  It's not like this hasn't been done before.

And that, my friends, is my soap box for the day.  I know I said in my original post that I will have opinions that people won't agree with, and that's fine - because there are opinions that I don't agree with.  But that doesn't mean I'm going to bash someone for them if they share them.  Share away, but be respectful.

Be fans and be friends - because that's what this is really all about.