EVIL PUPPET MASTERS

I know this post will probably make some people, specifically those from other FRINGE-related fansites/forums/blogs, mad at or affronted by me. I can’t just sit back and watch this anymore without commenting though - and I’ve been around the online fandoms long enough to have a thick skin for whatever backlash this may incite. If you don’t like this post or feel the need to vehemently disagree with me, then bring it. I will respect you more for fighting for what you believe in than for sitting in the corner on your hands and nodding along.

Before I DO say something, I will post my usual disclaimer that comes along with any of these blog entries that has IMHO as one of the categories. This post is coming from ME and ME ALONE. In no way should this be considered to be the thoughts or reflections of ANYONE in the industry (i.e., BR peeps) who I have the privilege of knowing and/or calling “friend.” I am not now, nor have I ever been, employed by Bad Robot Productions.

With that out of the way - what the hell is the deal with all of the FRINGE fansites that have popped up declaring they are the “most popular” or that they are “THE SOURCE FOR ALL YOUR FRINGE NEEDS” etc.? There is barely a trickle of information available for the show at this point - sorry guys, but there just is not that much to TALK about right now. Not on a daily basis at least. And, um, excuse me, but it is not even JULY yet. And the pilot that has leaked all over God’s green earth? Yeah, that was NOT the final cut - yet bloggers and websites and fans all over are throwing in their two cents…picking it apart frame-by-frame. Casting their votes NOW - for something that will not actually air in its locked form for another TWO MONTHS.

In what land of crazy did this become the norm? And please, don’t start in with how this is good for advertising. Showing ads for FRINGE during American Idol and pretty regularly during the summer? That is good advertising. Posting trailers, then posting trailers with some new scenes periodically - that works, too. The visually dynamic print ads that get the viewer even MORE curious - that’s good stuff. Ads showing up in magazines and sprinkled across websites all over the web, the actors making appearances at the upfronts and (hopefully) Comic Con, the creators giving interviews - I am ALL for ALL of that. But I’m sorry - I am not ready to pick apart the pilot when the BULK of the television audience has not had the opportunity nor the means to see it. And NO ONE has seen the final locked cut - so you could have someone bitching for 10 pages of a forum regarding the music, only to discover when the REAL pilot airs that none of that music was even used (mock me if you want - but you KNOW that is going to happen somewhere).

Leaking an early version of the pilot episode, and thus removing any kind of incentive to actually WATCH the show when it premieres…MONTHS before it premieres…just so people can hem and haw over it AD NAUSEUM on every flippin site online, until the last thing anyone wants to talk about is FRINGE? Guh…so not a good idea. I am not accusing FOX of leaking the pilot intentionally, but they did seem oddly “okay” with it…to the point that they actually ASKED fans who had seen the ILLEGAL DOWNLOADED VERSION OF THE UNFINALIZED PILOT to “let [them] know what you think!!!” Um, 4realz?

To make matters worse - the leaking of the pilot and the decision of some of these upstart FRINGE sites to post it or not post it, essentially turned into a pissing contest. A pissing contest that I got dragged into. For the record - I am not your referee. I do not run to BR every time someone asks me to. GOOD GRIEF, they would hate my guts right now if I did that. I know what fights are worth fighting for. And from THIS POINT FORWARD - I am NOT taking anyone’s side. Evil Puppet Masters is no longer affiliating with ANY Fringe sites, except for OFFICIAL ones. Just keep me the hell out of it, capisce?

I LOVE FRINGE. And I love the people who created the show, who are writing the scripts, who are editing and directing and producing and working behind the scenes. I want the show to succeed like you could not even possibly fathom. But all these pissing contests to see who can collect the MOST email addys from people affiliated with the show, who can get the most sites to affiliate with them, who can legitimately call themselves the END-ALL BE-ALL BEST SITE 4EVAH!!?1!!! for FRINGE…will HURT this fandom more than help it in the end. Especially this early in the game - right now, you are all having a pissing contest into an empty pool.

To be honest - if your intent to have the biggest baddest FRINGE site is due to your hoping to get recognition (from JJ, BR, Fox or whomever), or to gain online fame-like status, or to make a profit… then you will be disappointed. And you are DOING IT FOR THE WRONG REASONS.

The irony in all this is that my “major announcement” that I haven’t been able to actually announce yet is related to a new FRINGE forum - an officially sponsored one. EPM will be affiliated with this forum, because (a) it is official, (b) I am partly responsible for making it happen, and (c) none of those reasons above apply to my reason for doing this. I’m doing it because I love this show and the people behind it - I’m doing it because they asked me to - and I’m doing it FOR THE FANS.

Here’s a secret - BR does it all for the fans, too.

At least I won’t have to worry about anyone posting a link to the leaked pilot on this forum - they’ll be banned if they do Don’t worry - the official announcement for the new forum will be within the next couple of days. I just wanted to get this off my chest - and hope that the other FRINGE sites will make more of an effort to PLAY NICE. I’ve witnessed in-fighting in a fandom take a show down. It is not a pretty sight. Don’t kill this show before it even airs.

This entry was posted on Friday, June 27th, 2008 at 8:56 pm and is filed under Bad Robot, Fandom, IMHO. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.