Things That Piss Me Off: Unauthorized Demands

You wanna know what really pisses me off?? When people think they're entitled to make a demand about something that they have no authority over. In this case, I'm talking about fans of a television show thinking that it should be up to them what happens on the show. 

  

So as you may know, I am a huge fan of the CW network's television series Reign which is based on the reign of Mary Queen of Scots, but doesn't pay attention to historical accuracy. It's not a historical account of Mary Queen of Scots but rather an adaptation or spin off of what might have happened or what could have occurred. Yet still, fans continually complain about how historically inaccurate it is even though that is not the goal of the show at all. The show also covers some rather controversial topics such as mental health, adultery, and in one instance, rape. When fans heard that there was going to be an episode in which the main character is raped, there was an uproar. Fans demanded that the episode not be shown and banded together, vowing not to watch the episode, endlessly accusing Reign of being historically inaccurate. They did all of this before they had even watched the episode and seen how the tough issue was handled, and despite the fact that many other major plot points in the show are also not historically true. 

    The fans believed that it was their right for the show to play out according to their personal wishes. Many fans stopped watching te show altogether, accusing the director of making bad decisions. 

     I watched the episode in question because I had faith that the show would handle the topic sensitively and gracefully, and I was right. Nothing scarring or too violent was shown, and at the end of the episode, a PSA was shown offering helpful options to victims of rape. I felt that the entire topic was dealt with very well. I believe the show overall is really great, and I never try to read too deeply into it since I know it is meant for purely entertainment purposes. But the other day as I was scrolling through tumblr, I came across this post that made me really angry:

This makes me so angry because it implies that it is the purpose of the show to bow down to the demands of the viewers. Yes, the opinion of the viewers is a huge part of the show, but television was not created to worship the wishes of some whiney teenage girls who don't like what's happening in the series right now. If you don't like the show anymore, stop watching it. Stop acting like you have the power, as a viewer, to make the show into whatever you want it to be. The show was created to entertain you, not to follow some set of rules you've designed for what you think will make the show better or more interesting. Until you're a professional producer or director or show runner, you have no authority to claim what a show should or should not be doing. This kind of stuff especially irks me because I know that sometimes these angry fans get their way! And loyal fans like myself and some of my friends get screwed out of being able to enjoy a perfectly good show because some upset fans decided to start a petition. It's ridiculous. But I guess it's like they always say, haters gonna hate, and fans have to suck it up and deal with it. 

-VaughnDL