Fandom Wars: The 4 Generations of Fans

 As “The Force Awakens” run at the Box Office comes to a close, and the film gets closer to releasing on home media, Star Wars fans are still fighting about whether or not the film is any good. There are lots of questions fans are asking about the movie. The most popular is “Is this film just a rip-off of A New Hope?” 

Let’s consider that question for a spell. I think the question is as old as time itself. I can imagine 16^th century theater goers saying “Is Romeo and Juliet just a rip-off of Pyramus and Thisbe?” The correct answer is “Yes, that’s the point.”

Whether you considered “The Force Awakens” to be a high quality film is a question of taste. But ironically, if you are a Star Wars fan, you might be too close to the franchise to actually be a good judge of quality (like someone blinded by love). Only non-fans could really be trusted to give an unbiased review of the film. Fans tastes are probably heavily influenced by their age and during what era they first fell in love with the franchise. I call this my “Four Generation Theory” Here it is:

I have split fandom into four unique generations.

Generation O (birth = before 1979)
The Original Generation: This generation of fans would have seen one or more of the Original Trilogy films in the cinema. This generation is most likely to avoid using the term “A New Hope” to refer to the first film of the saga, preferring simply “Star Wars”. Among Generation O, fans may disagree on the quality of the three films. Some would say that the original film is the only true Star Wars movie. Some would cite the original film and The Empire Strikes Back as being the quality ones, and some would defend the entire original trilogy. Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, and Princess Leia probably had a big influence on their childhoods.


Generation E (birth = 1980 – 1990)

The Expanded Universe Era Generation: This generation discovered Star Wars on VHS (though their first Star Wars films could have been “Ewoks: The Caravan of Courage” or “Ewoks: The Battle for Endor”) New content published during their childhoods included Timothy Zahn or Kevin J. Anderson novels, the Shadows of the Empire media event, various CD-Rom video games and the collectable card game. Characters such as Dash Rendar and Grand Admiral Thrawn and Mara Jade are near and dear to the hearts of this generation. 



 Generation P (birth = 1991 – 2005)
The Prequel Era Generation: This generation would have been introduced to the Star Wars movies with the prequel trilogy. The Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones, and Revenge of the Sith are near and dear to their hearts. They find Jar Jar endearing, Darth Maul badass, and young Obi-Wan quite heroic. Slightly younger members of this generation may have been exposed to Star Wars through the “Clone Wars” cartoon series before any of the films. Generation P can probably name dozens of clones including Cody and Rex.

Generation S (birth = 2006 Onward)
The Sequel Era Generation: This generation might not have seen a Star Wars film until The Force Awakens or they may have discovered the series through Disney Channel’s “Rebels” or “Angry Birds Star Wars”. They may not be aware of the first two trilogies and probably think that Episode I was the first film released. This generation of fans will gravitate toward Poe Dameron, Rey and Finn as their idols.

With each generation having their own views of the films, it’s easy to see why fandom quarrels so much online. When people are super passionate about anything (religion, politics, sports) emotion can lead people to heated arguments about quality, canonicity, or a thousand other things. It can be hard to remember that everyone is entitled to their own opinions and there is no one correct answer, even to questions of canon.

Many fandoms even have etiquette laws to help fans remember that fandom should be fun. I would like to examine some Community Guidelines from the Harry Potter Alliance.

Positive Fandom
1. I will be kind.

2. I will remember there are many ways to be a fan.

3. I will make our community a welcoming space.

4. I will imagine people complexly.

5. I will respect and celebrate diversity.

6. I will learn.

7. I will teach.

8. I will give others the opportunity to grow.

9. I will practice self-care.

10. I will remember to be awesome.

A greater explanation of these rules can be found at http://www.thehpalliance.org/positive_fandom.

With so many Star Wars films being released in the coming decades it worth remembering that more Star Wars fans will be created every new day. We need to learn not to "Fan Shame". Comments such as “I’m a true fan because I saw the original film in the cinema” can be alienating to new generations of younglings. As we welcome in new generations of films and new generations of fans, things will change. But sometimes things must change or they are in danger of dying out.