Tuesday Tech

Happy Cinco de Mayo!

Because yesterday was Star Wars day, a lot of information about the future of the Star Wars franchise was released and rumors spread.

I grew up watching the Star Wars movies, never really sure which movie came first, but non-the-less enjoying them.

Now three more movies are coming out - and that's only in relation to the main story line. Spin-offs have been announced, like "Rogue One."

And now, another is rumored, and it's one people have been speculating about since the character first made an appearance - Boba Fett's origins.

Some information was detailed in the prequel trilogy about this bounty hunter, but not much is known about him.

Of course, this is "rumored," but the story I found on it is here: Fan favorite Boba Fett is reportedly about to get his own 'Star Wars' movie.

This brings up an important topic: Fanservice.

The first time I heard a TV show incorporating a fan-named background character into their regular programming, I thought that was awesome, "people are actually listening to the fans." Well, this was probably not the first time I heard or have seen this happen, but it was the first time I truly recognized what was going on.

This didn't end well for the TV series and they quickly renamed the character as the fan name wasn't entirely PC (politically correct) or sensitive.

I know other series, both TV and otherwise, do fanservice to appease die-hard fans, but at what cost?

Don't get me wrong, when I "ship" two characters, I live for the 30 second moment they share on screen together, be it just a look or standing next to each other - and I know a lot of people feel the same way. What bothers me is when creators, writers, directors, whoever, incorporates largely accepted fan ideas into their original work.

I'm glad they are listening to the fans, but so often when people do this, they sacrifice what they originally had going for them. Stories take bizarre turns, characters become less like themselves, situations become forced, none of it is really healthy for a story.

Personally, I believe listening to fans, maybe arranging positioning and team-ups so that fan favorite characters are seen together more often works. It feeds the fans, the artists, the fan-fiction writers, without compromising the original story. And fans seem to be ok with this. As a business person, I fully believe in listening to your customers. However, sometimes they don't know what they are asking or wanting.

As a fan of shows and series, I trust what the creators have envisioned for their series and I don't want anything to steer them away from the natural growth of their story. As a writer, I appreciate that stories grow on their own and changing them too much - just to incorporate fan ideas - can become detrimental to the story.

Just some thoughts. Remember, trust your vision and ideas, interact with your fans. If a fan idea seems organic to your story, then incorporate it. If it's not, well, maybe a side, "non-canon" story may be in the works, just to show your appreciation. :)