To start my journey with fandoms, I'll recount what I thought about fandoms going into them in elementary school. In my mind, they were meant to clash against each other in a violent fury, both trying to prove which one was best. Survival of the fittest, if you will.
In truth, I had this mindset toward fandoms because of three famous rivalries: Star Trek vs. Star Wars (I'm a Trekkie), Mario vs. Sonic, and DC vs. Marvel.
In a world full of limitless options, there will be universes clashing with each other for the limelight. Because people always have different preferences, their creations will reflect those preferences.
I'll give an example. In the Star Trek fandom, it's a general cliche that all their plotlines end in multiple races of aliens coming together to solve a problem and establish a friendship. It's a reflection of the creator's desire for their audience to consider outside perspectives and negotiate ways to accept different individuals. Alternatively, Star Wars is regarded as a dramatic space soap opera known for its visual effects and epic fight scenes. The audiences have a similar taste in genre, but the target focus is very different.
The case between DC Comic superheroes and Marvel superheroes is an interesting exception. My introduction to this fandom was through the dark, gritty Batman comics that featured startling villains like the Joker, Harley Quinn, Scarecrow, Penguin, Poison Ivy, The Riddler, and Two-Face. Each villain brought something new and sinister to the table, and Batman had to juggle lives and resources to reestablish peace in an already crumbling metropolis known as Gotham City.
But Batman is but one universe in the DC collection. There's also the more light-hearted Superman who tries to win the heart of a reporter girl while discovering his identity as both a superhero and a normal civilian. There are deadly villains like Lex Luthor and General Zod, but they often don't come off as sinister as the villains in the Batman universe who are often suffering from psychological trauma and are clinically insane.
Other heroes include Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, The Flash, Aquaman, Cyborg, Zatanna, Swamp Thing, etc... Some are more renowned than others, but the variety allows for diverse audiences to interact and compare their favorite heroes and villains. Even if we disagree over which superhero or villain is best, we all share a common interest in the DC universe.
While having an assortment of fandoms under one big umbrella called DC Comics is already enough to spark conflict, new factors clash when Marvel enters the picture. Why is that?
Unlike the DC fans all united under one common name, there is nothing to tie us to the Marvel fans. What's worse is that over the last couple of decades, the Marvel universe has effectively clawed its way to fame with Marvel Studios producing strong, quality movies and having all of their movies accessible to the public through Disney+. No one can forget the astonishing $2 billion figures at the box office for Avengers: Infinity Wars in 2018, the mind-boggling $2.7 billion for Avengers: Endgame in 2019, or Spider-Man: No Way Home in 2021 with a whopping $1.9 billion.
The closest DC Entertainment Studios came to rivaling that number was with Aquaman at $1.4 billion in 2018. That's almost about half of its Avengers counterpart.
Bigger budgets mean more movies. More movies mean more attention. More attention means larger fan bases. Larger fan bases mean more opportunities for people to get defensive over their interests on the Internet. Many DC fans are jealous of Marvel's success and feel overshadowed. Many Marvel fans see DC as a joke that shouldn't be taken seriously. Thus, the clash of bitter feelings ensues.
In case it was not immediately obvious, I am a die-hard DC fan. I love Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, Batgirl, Aquaman, Green Arrow, Green Lantern, and even Booster Gold. I love these universes for their quirky characters and their unique (and sometimes cheesy) plotlines. You'll see me watching Batman Forever with stars in my eyes as my dad tells me to "stop watching that hokey crap." It is hokey, and I do see why no one takes it seriously. But it makes me smile, and that's what matters.
Once, a kid walked up to me and asked me this question: "Hey, what's your favorite cinematic universe?"
Because the live-action Sonic movies didn't exist yet, I answered "DC Entertainment" without a second thought.
As you may have guessed, the kid looked at me as if I said something culturally insensitive and started faking gagging noises. It felt like I was being personally attacked. They saw the look on my face and immediately stopped gagging.
"You were being serious?"
I nodded my head. "Let me guess, you like Marvel?"
"I'd die for Marvel."
The point of interest I'd like to call out with this interaction is when they looked up at me and saw my hurt expression. They suddenly remembered that I was a real person with feelings and opinions. Seeing my face and my response made them stop. They even apologized.
It's okay to have a friendly rivalry on the Internet and support your favorite characters. The problem starts when you push your love too far and try to convince other people to stop loving what they love. Interests are a part of our identity. Telling us to abandon our identities is toxic. Never forget that the people you talk to on the Internet are real and feel as much passion for their fandoms as you do about yours. Don't try to take their love and turn it into hate.
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Fandom Project
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