*sits down on the story time mat*
hey so did any of you ever read that book when you were a kid, the one about the mom in the kitchen making soup for everyone? and one by one they come by and say, I love that soup you made, but could you please leave out [ingredient]?I donāt like the corn, or the beans, or the peppers⦠remember that one?Ā
and when she serves up dinner itās just some hot fucking salty water and sheās like you ungrateful little shits hereās your fucking hot salty water*
I think about that book a lot. Especially when it comes to ants in fandomās pants, and how they seem to want to exclude:
everything JJ did (that they donāt like)
everything Rian did (that they donāt like)
everything the characters say and do (that they donāt like)
everything the actors themselves say and do (that they donāt like)
everything the production crew says (that they donāt like)
everything the official social media accounts post (that they donāt like)
the literal content and implied themes of the films (that they donāt like)
and Iām like.. yāall just want some hot, salty water, thatās it, isnāt it?Ā
I mean, all humor aside, I get it, I do; I know what itās like to feel disappointed by something and feel like itās going in a direction you donāt like. I know what it feels like to feel like your fandomās been hijacked by a juggernaut that is the full embodiment of your DNW. And I know what itās like when something you love takes a direction that feels wrong to you, bothers you, just fucking isnāt what you wanted to happen. I get it.Ā
Itās okay to step away. Itās okay to just decide that it maybe isnāt for you. Life is way too fucking short to be willfully marinating in things you despise.Ā
But, like⦠at a certain point⦠if all you want is hot, salty water, donāt come for the people who like the soup. Weāre just enjoying the soup. We didnāt make it or define the recipe. Weāre enjoying some damn tasty soup. And yelling for hot, salty water isnāt going to take away how much we enjoy this delicious fucking meal.Ā
*I canāt remember the actual title of this book but I am sure someone out there does.Ā