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ALL POSTSDivided Fandom
<p>The following was published in TV Guide online today. Thoughts?
</p><p>Question: I'm curious — have you ever seen a fandom as bitterly and vocally divided as the Person of Interest fandom currently is? It feels like the Classic Coke vs. New Coke battle to me. No one (including me) is willing to compromise, and no one seems happy. Part of it is the death of Carter (it was a horrible mistake vs. it was necessary, let it go); part is the new direction of the show (episodic vs. serial); part is the new take of the characters (Crazy-Evil-Root vs. Reformed-Helper-Shoot-in-the-Kneecaps-Root); part is the new focus (ordinary people vs. the Battle of the Machines). It seems to come down to the fact that the people who loved Seasons 1 and 2 have hated Seasons 3 and 4, and vice-versa. Whether the episode is episodic or arc-based, half the fandom is angry about it. The show is finally getting critical attention and acclaim, but the ratings slip further every week. Given the deep and bitter divide, do you think there's any hope for a reconciliation that will turn the ratings around? Can this fandom (and show) be saved? — Linda O
</p><p>Matt Roush: From a purely critical point of view (as opposed to worrying about fandom in-fighting, which is a rabbit hole I try always to avoid), if Person of Interest weren't so polarizing, it would be a lot less interesting to me. I have always admired this show for not playing it safe, and while I hope the Samaritan arc will be contained to this season and the team moves on from their current exile to some new modus operandi next year — although I love the new HQ in the abandoned subway car — I'm excited by a show that continues to evolve as dramatically as POI does. Ratings are relative (see earlier question), and POI in what had been a very problematic Tuesday time period isn't a disaster, as something so off-brand might be expected to be (though I'm not surprised it trails the more mainstream Chicago Fire). So to me, the question here isn't about reconciling the fan base that still can't get over Carter's death (old news — and good news is that Taraji P. Henson is back later this season in a new Fox drama called Empire, which I'll be getting an early look at later this month) and who can't embrace Shaw (my current favorite) and Root for the roles they're now playing. It's about an audience's willingness to keep going on the ride with a show that I still look very forward to each week, because it's so different and unexpected. That said, I rather enjoyed last week's more conventional episode that felt like a classic "follow the number and save the kids" caper.
</p><p>http://www.tvguide.com/News/Ask-Matt-Twin-Peaks-Person-Interest-Greys-Anatomy-NCIS-Blackish-Arrow-1088199.aspx
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(Edited by LeverageGuru)
<p>My thoughts are here, since I don't want to clutter up the post above.
</p><p>First, the question is an obvious fake, as are most if not all the questions Roush, Ausiello and the rest post. Don't insult our intelligence by pretending otherwise. He's been trolling tumblr or the message boards and grabbed something from one of them.
</p><p>Second, WHAT "bitterly divided" (snort!) fandom? I gave up divided loyalties when I stopped arguing over who was cooler: Davy or Mickey (that's the Monkees for the young 'uns.) Yes, there's a faction (a small one) that can't get over Carter's death. But to describe the audience (I LOATHE the term fandom) as divided, much less bitterly so is idiotic. I'm sure there are small splinter groups who either are unhappy about Carter's death, or who can't handle change (i.e. from the original formula to the more complex serial storytelling), but hey-ho.
</p><p>Sadly, there will always be a small group of people, the fanatics that sadly lent their name and excessive behavior to the term fan (one of the reason I detest being called a fan). Some can't handle change, and others who believe that they speak for everyone who watches/admires/follows/whatevers whoever or whatever is on their radar. They don't. Just look at Twitter; it's already gone ballistic, and not in agreement.
</p><p>As for the ratings, I do think Roush addressed that issue rather well, if incompletely. Ratings can never be considered in isolation. They have to be considered in relative terms. We also have to look at not only Live + Same Day, but Live + 7 Day ratings. When POI was at 9:00, growth was around 15-20%, now it's 25-30% at 10:00. A lot of that can be explained simply by the fact people go to bed early or turn over to the 10:00 news, and DVR 10:00 programs. POI is doing vastly better than the last three programs in the slot, including the much adored (and hideous) <i>Good Wife</i> which has always been iffy, ratings-wise.
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(Edited by LeverageGuru)
The person who posted the question is a known flamer. The analogies she pointed out has been seen before. So doubt that the question's fake.
(Edited by ConcernedThirdParty)
<p>It's common knowledge that these guys troll the fringe message board, tumblr and the like, pick up stuff like this and interpolate it as questions to them, if not outright make it up. I stand by what I said.
</p><p>We're here to discuss the content, not what Roush may or may not have done to create the question.
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(Edited by LeverageGuru)
<p>Gotcha. I find it amusing that professional reviewers troll message boards, especially from places of good repute.
</p><p>With regards to fandom divide, I cannot think of one occasion where an issue like that led to a show's cancellation. It's pointless to even bring that up as a deciding factor.
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(Edited by ConcernedThirdParty)
<p>While I did like seasons 1 and 2 better than 3 mostly due to Root and Shaw being really badly executed in season 3, and the first two seasons just had this "nostalgia" sense to them, I really like season 4 since they've really improved Root and Shaw, the writing is far better, Melissa Scrivner Love isn't poisoning everything she touches, and the whole thing just feels vamped up. That being said, I do still miss Root and Shaw as recurring characters, since they were a lot more compelling back then. The show back then had a stronger element of mystery than it does now. Now what they're doing is just throwing thought-provoking stuff at you, and while that's good, it gives you more to analyze than more to look forward to.
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(Edited by TJlive800)
<p>Um, this aint a bitterly divided fandom. if this was a bitterly divided fandom almost every page would be have to be locked to prevent trolls, people would be yelling and insulting people on chat and forums.
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(Edited by Brenster23)
<p>This is idiotic...
</p><p>I started watching the show right from the beggining one week at a time and it simply grew on me. It is now my favourite show above Breaking Bad and Game of Thrones (don't kill me). I absolutely loved the first episodic season, the more serialised season 2, the crazy season 3 and the now awesome season 4. The show is growing, this is not CSI and we will always have a case of the week...
</p><p>About Carter's death, sad, i know but get over it... I don't see this sh*tstorm over Ned Stark's death: no one is imortal people.
</p><p>Person of Interest for ever!
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(Edited by TheSamaritanUknow)
- You* brought up the origin of the question--the person who posed the question is a published author (sorta) and frequent participates on various discussion boards, so I have zero doubt that she sent that letter into him. As a matter of fact, she's been posting it around quite proudly! She's also the person who started a POI Sharkwatch group on FB between seasons 2 & 3, if that tells you anything about her mindset and echo chamber she listens to.
(Edited by Kindaoffkilter)
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<p>I pretty much agree with everything you mentioned in your first post after the initial start of the thread, Guru. There is no "divide" in the fandom, it's just that small group who can't get over Carter. The TV ratings system has also always needed to be updated ever since the DVR came out; how they pull numbers today simply isn't enough to get a proper scope on any show's true standing.
</p><p>What's more is that I'd like to point out that the show has never lost its episodic roots (no pun intended). Without fail, there has been a number in just about each and every single episode; some just relate more closely to the overall storyline of the show itself than others. Truly, I consider the show a sort of hybrid myself and that's part of what I love about it so much. They take the approach of, "Who says the number can't pertain to the overarching storyline?" Lately, they've been doing a lot more of that (and I'm loving it!), but honestly, if one, such as a CSI fan, were to watch the show just to see how they deal with the new number each week, they could essentially do so and not be too lost if that's all they were focused on.
</p><p>Also, I do not like the terms "fandom" and "fan" either; I think it's different with each show because there's always some differentiating factor between all of them that you like about each one. For "fandom" I'd suggest something like "People of Interest" or "Bird Watchers" (though that second term probably just pertains to Finch fans, unless you think about it a little more deeply -- it'll come to you). As for "fan" I've just taken to calling us, especially the true fans around here who really understand the show, "Relevants" though some prefer "Irrelevants". Anyhow, that's just fun little stuff and my bird's eye view of the situation (pun intended).
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(Edited by CsPPP)