#80s fandom

This week, we’re bringing you a piece of ancient fandom lore with our featured article on The K/S Netfan-Printzine Fan Wars - the clashes between the Kirk/Spock (K/S) print zine community and the online Star Trek fandom.

Print zine fans were authors, readers, and artists who, since Star Trek: TOS was on the air, forged the path in fan fiction writing. Before the internet, letterzines were the only means for fans to have regular and organized discussions with other fans. The K/S fandom, which sprang from the wider print zine community, was highly protective of their works and was adamant on staying out of visible spaces for fear of legal actions from Paramount.

The introduction of Usenet in 1979 ushered in a new generation of Kirk/Spock fans, many of whom were either oblivious to the print zine fandom, neutral towards its existence, or openly dismissive and hostile to these previous fans. The online Star Trek space was also not exclusively for Kirk/Spock fans but included other pairings from Star Trek: TOS, Star Trek: Voyager, and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. For online Trek fans, alt.startrek.creative and alt.startrek.creative.erotica.moderated were platforms where they could post fanfics without having to conform to traditions or worry about expectations from others.

While the Usernet fan groups grew into lively spaces, Kirk/Spock print zine fans began to feel at a disadvantage in terms of attracting new fans and that their favourite pairing was diluted in this online space. Another point of contention between the two communities was “elitism’’, as zine fans argue that not everyone has access to a computer and the internet, while online fans point out that not everyone wants to pay a yearly fee for letterzines.

The resulting culture clash included turf wars, blacklisting, and blanket statements by fans on both sides who fanned fires fueled by tribal alliances and relationships.

Curious how this epic fandom war went down? Head over to Fanlore!

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main masterlist

Billy Tepper

August

Marty McFly

All of You

The Best Comfort

Ponyboy Curtis

All Along

Johnny Cade

Something New

Night of Our Lives

Dallas Winston

With the greatest respect to Tom Baker, one of my very favorite things since coming back to Who fandom in this century is that it’s no longer Standard Whovian Orthodoxy that Tom Baker is THE Doctor, full stop, and all the rest are “other actors who played inferior versions of the Doctor.”

This week’s Featured Article is all about Admiral Piett!

This unlikely imperial favorite from Star Wars captured fans’ hearts with his quiet competence and surprising survival skills. From early zine appearances in the ‘80s to modern-day fanfiction and meta, Admiral Piett has inspired everything from serious character studies to affectionate memes. Fans debate his moral compass, write “What if Piett lived?” AUs, and refer to their fan club as the “Cult of Piett.”

Want to learn more? Check its Fanlore page.

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