"Y'All Jus' Jellus!" The Scary World of Fandom

[Deleted]

The raping fantasy reminds me of Ione Skye's character in A Night in the Life of Jimmie Reardon. Jimmie (River Phoenix) has a girlfriend, but he sleeps w/ Ione Skye on the side. So, for their tryst, he dons a ski mask, pretends to break into her house and attacks her while she's reading in bed. She screams and tries to get away until he finally rips the mask off and tosses the knife to the floor, complaining that he feels silly and can't go through w/ it( therefor, giving the dark fantasy a comedic edge). So, maybe the girls who write about being raped by a celebrity somehow get off on it? Like a roll playing game?

[january]

So, maybe the girls who write about being raped by a celebrity somehow get off on it? Like a roll playing game?

Could be. Semi-OT: I knew a girl (in her mid-20s) who used to get off on rape fantasies. I dated one of her exes, and he told me she used to ask him to "break into" her house in the middle of the night and hold a butter knife to her throat. I guess she would always wear old clothes so he could rip them apart without worrying. He said it felt totally wrong and he didn't like doing it, but she loved it.

I personally think it's unhealthy and weird. I know everyone has different things that get them off, and that's okay, but when you think of all the actual rape victims in the world...it just seems wrong.

[Deleted]

How sad is it that upon seeing these words, I immediately assumed it was fanfic in which OB is raped?

I was thinking the same thing when I first read it. And what's sadder is that I actually became relieved when I realized that he was the rapist and the storywriter the victim.

[Deleted]

I'm not kidding when I say I feel slightly queasy after reading this thread. I must be soooo naive, I had no idea this shit was going on. Death threats, obsessive homosexualisation (?) and celebrity rape fantasies are waaaaay beyond my scope.

I'm going to bed and I pray I don't dream squicky dreams tonight!

[snacktastic]

As a therapist, I will tell you that as far as fantasies go, rape fantasies are fairly vanilla. And so is fanfic. Really it is a safe way of exploring certain fantasies. Now, on the other hand, I had a client who used a vacuum cleaner and his own feces to get himself off and man, I wish I could get rid of that image from my brain. (that's why I share it with you, so you can feel my pain--details changed to protect the innocent)

As far as the whole gay thing goes, what also annoys me is the whole "I hope he's not gay because then he can't be my boyfriend." And I think, gay or straight, you will probably never meet him so why the fuck do you care?

[Deleted]

katiebear3 said:

Anybody think the rise of fandom is connected with the disappearance of religious belief and an ethnic/familial indentity basis in a post-war, consumerist society?

anybody?

Don't know about that - but I seriously doubt that Charles Dickens ever had to put up with some nutjob sending him death threats because he killed off Little Nell. It's a relatively recent phenomenon (it seems to me, anyway).

As for the rape fantasies and rape fics... Christ Almighty. That's just wrong on so many levels.

Okay, mine's relatively minor. I'm a Dr. Who fan and hang around the 'Outpost Gallifrey' forums a fair bit. Anyway, you might be aware that they've been filming a new Dr. Who series - and recently, Christopher Eccleston, who stars as the Doctor, decided that after fulfilling his one-year contract, he didn't want to play the part any more. Pretty reasonable decision, yes? An actor deciding he wants to move on and do something different? Disappointing, perhaps, but nothing to get worked up over, you might say?

Jesus, the forum exploded. Rants, flames, the whole bloody lot. Apparently there were even death threats directed at Eccleston. They had to close the entire forum for about two days so that everyone could calm down. Even after that, I remember responding to one guy who claimed, in all apparent seriousness, that because he'd left after only one season and that, because the news had been released after only one episode had been broadcast (through no fault of Eccleston, it must be said), the series had been 'damaged', the fans had every right to be 'screaming for vengeance'. Good God, do they think they own the guy or something?

[pepper67]

Anybody think the rise of fandom is connected with the disappearance of religious belief and an ethnic/familial indentity basis in a post-war, consumerist society?

Well, if you combine fandom and religious belief, you get Biblical slash.

[january]

Anybody think the rise of fandom is connected with the disappearance of religious belief and an ethnic/familial indentity basis in a post-war, consumerist society?

I'm not sure, but I think the internet has played a huge part in the recent rise of fandom. Before the internet, fans had magazines and posters to stare at, they could write fan letters and make up fantasies about their favorite stars on their own -- a kind of solitary activity, with maybe some of their closest friends involved. But these days, fans can go online and get instant feedback from other fans; they can form livejournal groups and the like, and fandom has this whole sense of community that it didn't really have before. And for people who might not have a whole lot of friends in real life, this sense of community and belonging can be really inviting and can cause the fandom to become more meaningful and intense for them.

[fiona3]

snacktastic said:

As far as the whole gay thing goes, what also annoys me is the whole "I hope he's not gay because then he can't be my boyfriend." And I think, gay or straight, you will probably never meet him so why the fuck do you care?

Amen. It pisses me off, too.

Like "'Oh my god, y'all. Celebrity X can't be gay. He is my imaginary boyfriend and one day I will meet him and he will fall in love with me and we will get married and will be very happy together !!!111!!!1“<br>
Yeah ... right. Freak.

[roseland]

As far as the whole gay thing goes, what also annoys me is the whole "I hope he's not gay because then he can't be my boyfriend." And I think, gay or straight, you will probably never meet him so why the fuck do you care?

I have to say this doesn't bother me THAT much simply because I guess I understand it. I don't seem to be able to crush on gay men or married men. It's stupid, yeah, but as soon as someone I'm crushing on gets married, all those giddy, oh-isn't-he-the-dreamiest, fun feelings just dissipate. To me, it's not so much about being gay as it is about being unavailable. It's ridiculous, I know, to let reality assert itself on my fantasy boyfriends but I can't help how my mind works. I just want to clarify that I never wish that someone weren't gay. It's just that when I do find out someone's gay, they go from "Wow, if only I had a chance at that..." to "Yeah, he's cute and good looking but I'll never have a chance so moving on..." I know I'll never have a chance at any of them but having that fact brought home to me via their marital status or sexual preference just seems to make it impossible for me to see them as a sex object.