People love to complain. I can tolerate the one or two negative reviews you get from respectable websites and YouTube channels. I don’t have the patience for the dozens of videos attacking every popular release we get these days, usually originating from lesser-known sources.
As a viewer, you would be happier if you spent your time celebrating the things you love instead of attacking the properties you hate. Do you know what happens when you scream and whine because Marvel ruined your favourite character? You get angrier and more miserable.
There is a reason why stress is so common among short-tempered individuals. Better Health blames high blood pressure, headaches, and anxiety on uncontrolled anger. In other words, every time you scream at strangers online because they hated what you liked or liked what you hated, your physical and mental health suffers.
But then again, a 2005 study in the Environmental Health And Preventive Medicine Journal (The Japanese Society of Hygiene) found that male workers who don’t express their anger are more likely to develop high blood pressure. So clearly, this topic is more nuanced than we realize.
Nonetheless, we can all agree that whining endlessly about fictional characters is unproductive and pointless. That said, some arguments have challenged my perspective in recent weeks. Many viewers watched The Rise of Skywalker and moved on. They may have logged into IMDB or Rotten Tomatoes to leave a negative score, but a week later, the movie was the last thing on their mind.
Most fandoms are not nearly as toxic as they appear. Many people consume media in relative silence, without engaging their fellow fans online. I respect that attitude. Then, many of the seemingly obsessive YouTubers I dislike are not as obsessive as I assumed. They lean into the negativity to please their fans, which, in turn, benefits their wallets.
They know that a doctored picture of a bitterly weeping Amber Heard in the thumbnail will attract views, likes, and comments. The public loves bad news. They want to revel in other people’s failures, and online pundits lean into those attitudes to increase traffic, which makes sense.
Although, you can also criticize them for sowing the seeds of division and making the infighting among fandoms even worse. Then again, that infighting isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Think about it. Why are people rioting against Marvel these days? Why do they attack every Disney release?
They feel betrayed. A franchise (the MCU) they supported religiously for over a decade keeps accusing them of being misogynistic for disliking the low-quality films and shows released in recent years. Marvel won’t change unless fans express their displeasure. They want to make their voices as loud as possible until the company backtracks.
Look at Star Wars. The prequels were unmitigated financial triumphs. They made billions. Usually, Hollywood responds to money. They will pursue every profitable project. You would expect them to make even more Star Wars films in the vein of the prequels. But the backlash online was so loud that Lucas Film is finally going back to the drawing board.
What does that mean for the stance I mentioned earlier? I don’t know. I refuse to engage with overly negative online spaces. They are tiresome. But I appreciate the function they play. Personally, I prefer to ignore what I hate.
I only embrace the negativity when something shocks me with how bad it is. If you enjoy swimming in the muck, go ahead. But don’t blame me if you succumb to a heart attack one of these days.
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