raul grau
Jul 30, 2005, 02:24 pm
<img src="http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/columns/oneshots1.jpg" hspace=10 align=left border=0 alt="One-Shots logo">By Daniel Devlin (maveruick41484), ddevlin@gmail.com
Are We Men? Nay! We're FANMEN!
"Fanboy or Fanboi is a term used to describe someone who is utterly devoted to a single subject or hobby, often to the point where it is considered an obsession. The term originated in comic book circles, to describe someone who was socially insecure and used comics as a shield from interaction, hence the disparaging connotations. Fanboys are often experts on minor details regarding their hobbies, and they take these details extremely seriously. The term itself is often used in a derogatory manner by less serious fans of the same material."
-Wikipedia
I look with some dismay on the above definition. I consider myself a fan of comics, of sci-fi, of horror films, of this so called "geek music," but not to the extent with which Wikipedia goes to classify a fanboy. I'm not a fanboy by their definition, nor, I suspect, by anyone's definition.
But I'm getting ahead of myself. I'm a twenty-something college senior. Every week, my best friend (by whom this term was coined) and I have what we have affectionately call "comic book Wednesday" where, you guessed it, we go and pick up our books for that week at the local comic shop. It's gotten to the point where our friends expect it. If they don't see us walking around campus with our books that week, they'll ask "What's wrong? Nothing good this week?"
My friend and I frequently sit and eat dinner, discussing continuity, great fights, industry news, and character developments, and postulating on the direction in which a particular book seems to be going. We're intimately familiar with the pasts of our favorite respective characters and books (me with the X-Men, he with Spider-Man) and can discuss, at length, the sociopolitical ramifications of certain story arcs, and the social (and sometimes industrial) commentary of certain characters.
Wait, what? Sociopolitical ramifications? Social commentary? Doesn't sound like the comic books you know, does it? Nor does it sound like the archetyped "fanboy."
And we're not fanboys. We're fanmen. Yeah, yeah, laugh it up.
I can sit and draw comparisons between Shakespearean or Grecian character archetypes and Yorick Brown. I can discuss the politics of House of M vs. the Bush White House. I could go toe to toe with anyone on why comic books represent a truly alive form of art, and why the characters, in and of themselves, are more human than most other forms of media.
But I digress. The point is, everyone knows a fanboy...the guy who hangs out at the comic shop, wears comic book related shirts, discusses why V for Vendetta is better than all of the crap being published today (and, granted, that's probably true), but then still goes and shells out fifty bucks a week on the crap he's just dissed on. He uses comics to create another world, a better world where nerds who are persecuted like him have fantastic abilities and are respected and loved and somehow always end up getting the impossibly hot girl. He is socially inept, and he likes it that way. Talk to girls? Hah! Not unless they've died and come back to life at least twice.
The fanman does buy his books, but he dresses well. That is the first sign of a fanman: the ability to dress himself. He reads and loves the books and characters, but not at the expense of his friends, with whom he doesn't discuss comics, mostly because they couldn't care less. He can debate real world politics and Shakespeare and a whole variety of other topics as easily and as readily as he can discuss Grant Morrison's run on We3. He is not defined by his love for comics; instead, he is refined by it. His comic book hobby is just that: a hobby, not a lifestyle. He recognizes comics (and, for that matter, movies, video games and any other sort of typical fanboyisms you can think of) for what they are: escapism. A way to forget about the day for a few minutes, or hours. He reads his comics, watches his movies, plays his video games, and then is done with them. Yes, perhaps he discusses them (with a fellow fanman), but he does not allow himself to be so wrapped up in the false world that he finds it difficult to escape. The fanman can accept change in the character. He does not look at the Magneto from Fatal Attractions and say "that's not the real Magneto. No one has ever written Magneto as well as Claremont, and no one ever will, so I hate this story because it's not the real Magneto." The fanman accepts the story at face value, and then sees the intrinsic social value of the story. The fanman loves and appreciates the characters, but understands that they are not necessarily the most important part of the story...indeed, the fanman looks more at what the story is saying, at the social commentary above all else.
The fanman spreads his love for comics to his friends, but not by giving them the Onslaught trade paperbacks, or a story so entrenched in the history of the character that no one would ever understand it...he gives them works they can appreciate on a cerebral level. I, for instance, bought one of my best friends a copy of Craig Thompson's masterpiece Blankets for her birthday. Now, she is reading Y: The Last Man and Ex Machina and recently asked me "what in the hell did you do to me?"
The fanman is well read. He has read American Gods and understood it. He read through all of the Sandman stories. He has read Shakespeare, and Nietzsche, and the Morrison Manifesto. He reads the paper every morning, watches the news at night (even if it is only The Daily Show) and keeps up on current politics, because he is interested in the social climate. He thinks Powers is as good a cop story as Law and Order: SVU, and can debate you about that until the bitter end.
In short, ladies and gentlemen, I would wager that most of you out there are, in fact, fanmen (although Comixfan most certainly does have its share of fanboys, so help me god). The fanman is, essentially, the metrosexual of the comic world. He dresses well, likes to chat up the ladies, can speak intelligently about a variety of topics, comics included, and always, always puts his friends first. At least until the next issue of Ultimates 2 comes out.
<center><hr width=75%></center>
Danny Devlin is well aware that he has dissed the female fanbase out there, and would like to offer his sincerest apologies. He just felt that there was no need to extol the virtues of an already amazing group of Fanwomen, and knows that a true Fanman makes the ladies feel special 24-7.
<center><hr width=75%></center>
One-Shots is an ongoing, revolving column, ready and willing for your contributions. Please read over our <a href="http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/forums/showthread.php?t=32883" target="_blank">guidelines</a> first, and then send your submissions to Raul Grau at columns@comixfan.cjb.net.
The opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the writer, and are not reflective of Comixfan or its staff.
Are We Men? Nay! We're FANMEN!
"Fanboy or Fanboi is a term used to describe someone who is utterly devoted to a single subject or hobby, often to the point where it is considered an obsession. The term originated in comic book circles, to describe someone who was socially insecure and used comics as a shield from interaction, hence the disparaging connotations. Fanboys are often experts on minor details regarding their hobbies, and they take these details extremely seriously. The term itself is often used in a derogatory manner by less serious fans of the same material."
-Wikipedia
I look with some dismay on the above definition. I consider myself a fan of comics, of sci-fi, of horror films, of this so called "geek music," but not to the extent with which Wikipedia goes to classify a fanboy. I'm not a fanboy by their definition, nor, I suspect, by anyone's definition.
But I'm getting ahead of myself. I'm a twenty-something college senior. Every week, my best friend (by whom this term was coined) and I have what we have affectionately call "comic book Wednesday" where, you guessed it, we go and pick up our books for that week at the local comic shop. It's gotten to the point where our friends expect it. If they don't see us walking around campus with our books that week, they'll ask "What's wrong? Nothing good this week?"
My friend and I frequently sit and eat dinner, discussing continuity, great fights, industry news, and character developments, and postulating on the direction in which a particular book seems to be going. We're intimately familiar with the pasts of our favorite respective characters and books (me with the X-Men, he with Spider-Man) and can discuss, at length, the sociopolitical ramifications of certain story arcs, and the social (and sometimes industrial) commentary of certain characters.
Wait, what? Sociopolitical ramifications? Social commentary? Doesn't sound like the comic books you know, does it? Nor does it sound like the archetyped "fanboy."
And we're not fanboys. We're fanmen. Yeah, yeah, laugh it up.
I can sit and draw comparisons between Shakespearean or Grecian character archetypes and Yorick Brown. I can discuss the politics of House of M vs. the Bush White House. I could go toe to toe with anyone on why comic books represent a truly alive form of art, and why the characters, in and of themselves, are more human than most other forms of media.
But I digress. The point is, everyone knows a fanboy...the guy who hangs out at the comic shop, wears comic book related shirts, discusses why V for Vendetta is better than all of the crap being published today (and, granted, that's probably true), but then still goes and shells out fifty bucks a week on the crap he's just dissed on. He uses comics to create another world, a better world where nerds who are persecuted like him have fantastic abilities and are respected and loved and somehow always end up getting the impossibly hot girl. He is socially inept, and he likes it that way. Talk to girls? Hah! Not unless they've died and come back to life at least twice.
The fanman does buy his books, but he dresses well. That is the first sign of a fanman: the ability to dress himself. He reads and loves the books and characters, but not at the expense of his friends, with whom he doesn't discuss comics, mostly because they couldn't care less. He can debate real world politics and Shakespeare and a whole variety of other topics as easily and as readily as he can discuss Grant Morrison's run on We3. He is not defined by his love for comics; instead, he is refined by it. His comic book hobby is just that: a hobby, not a lifestyle. He recognizes comics (and, for that matter, movies, video games and any other sort of typical fanboyisms you can think of) for what they are: escapism. A way to forget about the day for a few minutes, or hours. He reads his comics, watches his movies, plays his video games, and then is done with them. Yes, perhaps he discusses them (with a fellow fanman), but he does not allow himself to be so wrapped up in the false world that he finds it difficult to escape. The fanman can accept change in the character. He does not look at the Magneto from Fatal Attractions and say "that's not the real Magneto. No one has ever written Magneto as well as Claremont, and no one ever will, so I hate this story because it's not the real Magneto." The fanman accepts the story at face value, and then sees the intrinsic social value of the story. The fanman loves and appreciates the characters, but understands that they are not necessarily the most important part of the story...indeed, the fanman looks more at what the story is saying, at the social commentary above all else.
The fanman spreads his love for comics to his friends, but not by giving them the Onslaught trade paperbacks, or a story so entrenched in the history of the character that no one would ever understand it...he gives them works they can appreciate on a cerebral level. I, for instance, bought one of my best friends a copy of Craig Thompson's masterpiece Blankets for her birthday. Now, she is reading Y: The Last Man and Ex Machina and recently asked me "what in the hell did you do to me?"
The fanman is well read. He has read American Gods and understood it. He read through all of the Sandman stories. He has read Shakespeare, and Nietzsche, and the Morrison Manifesto. He reads the paper every morning, watches the news at night (even if it is only The Daily Show) and keeps up on current politics, because he is interested in the social climate. He thinks Powers is as good a cop story as Law and Order: SVU, and can debate you about that until the bitter end.
In short, ladies and gentlemen, I would wager that most of you out there are, in fact, fanmen (although Comixfan most certainly does have its share of fanboys, so help me god). The fanman is, essentially, the metrosexual of the comic world. He dresses well, likes to chat up the ladies, can speak intelligently about a variety of topics, comics included, and always, always puts his friends first. At least until the next issue of Ultimates 2 comes out.
<center><hr width=75%></center>
Danny Devlin is well aware that he has dissed the female fanbase out there, and would like to offer his sincerest apologies. He just felt that there was no need to extol the virtues of an already amazing group of Fanwomen, and knows that a true Fanman makes the ladies feel special 24-7.
<center><hr width=75%></center>
One-Shots is an ongoing, revolving column, ready and willing for your contributions. Please read over our <a href="http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/forums/showthread.php?t=32883" target="_blank">guidelines</a> first, and then send your submissions to Raul Grau at columns@comixfan.cjb.net.
The opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the writer, and are not reflective of Comixfan or its staff.