Ah, woke culture...
The bane of everybody and their fandoms.
It's one thing to know that the marginalized deserved better and should have but it's another to bully somebody for simply disliking a movie based on assumed politics.
People don't want too obvious politics in the media they consume. If there are politics, not only people would want to seek it out but make damn sure it's story and characters first and not politics.
If the politics are the driving force, no matter where you lean, then it's propaganda.
People don't like propaganda.
Especially by people who think they know best.
And woke culture is exactly that. People who think they know best and think they have the entitlement to decide what people can like or dislike based purely on political standings and think something can just sink based on politics alone, even when politics isn't the end-goal. Disagree with them with the slightest due respect, you will find yourselves being called names. They honestly think if you like this, you support the politics and maintain that politics that made the world bad. It's a set of ideas that people will, of course, disagree with, but the woke crowd doesn't understand that human thought at all.
In the fandom, the youngest members who don't know much about fandom history and that older people are in the fandom thinks they know best by saying they should only ship this because it's 'pure' and doesn't glorify anything problematic or like this, because it has whatever progressive thing. All they want is healthy and the same age; seriously, even give a couple that only has just two age differences, they'll call it pedophile.
While fandoms have always been fiery, in recent years, it's grown venomous. Think gatekeeping to a ludicrous extent (for example, now shipping had always been serious business in fandoms, but no age differences are tolerated in any capacity and then there's the Given situation where fans are frantically trying to gatekeep shippers because they don't want them to 'taint' a gay product; it's gay and no one of those people ever brought up the fact Given is a yaoi. And all these are the young fans with the oldest around the early twenties.) and thinking nobody could like this based on the lack of progressivism or the promise thereof.
I have been in fandoms for over a decade already and I hate the puritan mindset of new fans that I want to push away from. I want to tell them they are not the be-all-end-all to people who have been in fandoms for decades. They should instead learn about fandom history and common sense. I have seen an uproar about AO3 that the puritan fans want to be discarded, instead of learning fandom history and just how significant the site is. I was damn glad AO3 won the Hugo Award because that shut them up real good and just how much support poured in from just the room alone; looking at so many people standing up in the award room is awesome and heartwarming.
It does not help that the media encouraged it through articles and mediums. Disney is an offender here since they seemed to prioritize politics over telling a good story. I'm pretty sure Eisner would put his foot down on politics when from whatever I saw, he's more a visionary who just wanted people to have fun.
This is not to say progressivism is bad. It's the opposite. However, calling people names and guilting them by calling them -ists and/or -phobes is not the way to go. Especially when most people never once call it to attention based on their criticism. If they have criticism based on politics, it would be either forced down their throats or something they note after they watched it. I recall people calling Wonder Woman feminist after watching. Those are what brought up after the fact. If people note something is wrong with the writing of politics, they will say it after what is put out there for all to see.
Considering politics had been in stories for a long time long before woke even came out, woke could only be considered woke if it's forced and made a priority above all reason, forcing people to be lectured. You can still have politics in entertainment but it shouldn't be the only thing going for it and make it above storytelling. Because storytelling is the most important feature with if you have politics that is worldbuilding and natural and not 'here, you dummy, this is what you should know and if you disagree on any level including storytelling, you are this and that' sprinkles on the cake.
Woke media AKA the people writing the articles are only out there for brownie points. It's their ego they based their politics around because apparently, that is where they think they have the moral high ground. Even try to disagree civilly and you will be called names while they will place themselves as the superior being, rather than equal who respects what the other thinks, not even just the agree to disagree thing. None of that rationale, just superiority.
Their common scapegoats are the white man and men in general, regardless of color, and their proclaimed love is the white and/or one Asian woman or the women that were presented foremost distinctly when they are LGBT. They will ditch POC characters if it suits their needs like Finn, the entire Alita cast, and the supporting POC cast in that new Rambo movie that wasn't a villain. Look no further than the Star Wars ST. They will bully anybody who doesn't revere Rose, Holdo, Rey, and Kathleen Kennedy but have no problem dismissing Finn, Poe, the ST, the OT, and PT characters, and the Clone Wars and Rebels characters.
Instead of celebrating Captain Marvel and Alita, they demanded a contest, not because it's capitalism where the movies have to vie for consideration, but because one female is not written out front as a feminist icon out front instead of letting the story let it stand on their feet, saying that the progressivism is overall the best over storytelling or fun and like the Joker situation, believed it is a bad movie that is regressive from the get-go but if you know anything about the damn movie, it is not that. And Alita the movie is feminism in its own right. And they didn't even care to know Alita the source material. Let me tell you, I was planning to watch Alita because it's a manga/anime adaptation to see if it adapts the story to the big screen well but giving the woke media, an addendum was added that I'll be watching it out of sheer spite for their incompetence.
Instead of giving Joker a chance, they demonized it from the get-go as some incel narrative when the actual movie is not about that. And Arthur Fleck is not that. At all. They're still doing it with Joker getting Oscar nominations; I'm pretty sure even if Joker just got one nomination, then they'll whine. Again, Arthur Fleck is not an incel; people who watch the movie know this to be true and people who even take a look at knowing the damn spoilers. Seriously, just thinking about it makes me want Joker to win all the awards out of utter spite.
Okay, here's the thing, woke culture, yes, you can call out the Oscars for various things. Hell, I call them out for not appreciating animation as anything more than just for kids. But the Oscars isn't going to be the end-all-be-all and don't expect the Oscars to go woke immediately when Joker is nominated. Hollywood being woke is not the same thing as actually understanding the actual cause. Woke does not equal true equality.
Woke culture is like that. And these are the infamous instances I know of.
They believe they are better from regular moviegoers to casual fans including people who have different cultures thus different ideas of progressivism. China and Japan called out American woke culture a couple times last I know. Now I just have the imagery of Kiku and Yao snapping at Alfred for not respecting their culture and Alfred sobbing into his burgers and fries because the nation he is representing is in the mayhem.
The woke people have a platform and a degree that apparently puts them above people who don't know.
Look, Lindsey Ellis has problems with the arrogant vibe in her videos too which is why I don't watch her often even though I know she could offer insight.
But not even she is at the level of woke culture.
Woke culture means abandoning something you love as soon as it depicted something not progressive or as it should've been.
If you abandon it for that alone, I don't know what to tell you.
I know people grow to dislike something based on some storytelling issues or something forced down their throats unnaturally. I know the feeling. VLD is one such example where the writing continues to decline and just the potential is lost because the showrunners don't understand how to create a natural story, just in their mind, a dark story without any substance where characters are puppets moving set-piece to set-piece.
At the same time though, despite the issues with story and characters and even the badly written politics in it, VLD is still loved. Even though the fans have admitted the later seasons have tainted their reasons for loving it, they will still love it because it's something they love. And spite is also a good motivator too.
Because spite is probably one of the most powerful emotions out there.
And that's not getting into woke culture's love for subversions and deconstructions instead of y'know to embrace cheesiness and wholesomeness. And that's weird too. Because when they are seemingly reasonable, they appeared to embrace the wholesomeness and cheesiness.
Before going off into crazy town with their rhetoric.
Deconstructions and subversions do have a place in media but it shouldn't be the only thing. You can have your realism, but there is nothing wrong with cheesiness and drug-induced writing. For all the problems Ryan Murphy has with his shows, nobody could have possibly made Glee as infamous as he did. There are no copycats because it is that one of a kind and not even Glee fanfiction like Dalton could even reach that level of infamy. They could get the soap opera melodrama down but not whatever the writer had been smoking when writing the series. Dalton only got the OHSHC vibe but not the canonical drug writing.
However, be sure, that letting people love something as 'problematic' shouldn't say they are the worst -ists and/or -phobes in the world. It means they love the dang thing and are well-aware of its flaws but still love it all the same.
But woke culture doesn't understand that. All they get is problematic elements dominate the entire thing therefore the work is bad. Instead of just acknowledging the flaws and still loving it because it made you happy, the problematic stuff is declared as 'here is the bad stuff, you shouldn't do the bad stuff, and this stuff is bad for glorifying this bad thing'. The last thing is not common sense.
It is great to bring attention to problematic elements in what you love. It's important to be critical of stuff you like because you see the flaws yet you still love it. The flaws don't bother you as much as you know that it's not perfect but you appreciate it nonetheless.
However, bring so much attention to the problematic elements and saying it's the death knell of something is repugnant.
People could still love it. Even with the many problematic elements and flaws told and known, nothing should be stopping you from liking it. Nobody is saying that you can't like this thing. I honestly don't care if you like or dislike the entertainment I mentioned in this post. You do you.
If you like the sequel trilogy Disney Star Wars, all the more power to you.
If you like VLD, more power to you.
If you like Captain Marvel, all the power to you.
And yet woke culture continued to attack geeks and calling them names. While it would be true there would be -ists and -phobes somewhere in this world, I never once recall fans are supposedly the worst -ists and -phobes in the world simply because of their reasons for not liking a movie. They have issues with pacing or characterization or that it's just not Star Wars or just something unrelated to politics, moreover writing issues and potential.
Because if they used ad hominem, they should have the upper hand, right?
I want to laugh right now because calling names is not right.
And all towards people who have legit criticisms. From people who genuinely wanted a better product. From people who love it all the same.
Listen, these geeks and the Fandom Menace (which I am calling for these guys) are evidently the vocal minority.
The woke culture is absolutely not seeing the general audience who also called them out. Because these guys are casuals. Because they don't see the failing toy sales that are bought from regular people who like the product enough to buy it. Because they don't see the general audience is the one who actually has the final say. This is why Disney is desperately trying to get back to this general audience after the Last Jedi fails.
The woke media have presented themselves as irrational idiots who believed they have the power to change the minds or manipulate the people.
They don't care about the actual cause.
They don't care about the people who are hurt over a single flick.
They don't care about the criticisms from people who genuinely support the cause.
All they care about is their own conceit.
They can hide behind progressivism and say you are an -ist and/or -phobe solely because you don't like a 'progressive' movie. Forcing their politics and credentials down your throat as if saying you are stupid and can't make your own decisions. Even from your own fucking culture.
Yes, the cultural imperialism in woke culture is a major hot button for me. If you can find a previous post from me, you would know cultural imperialism is horrendous and cruel.
I have a lot of issues with the woke culture.
On one hand, they appeared to want progressivism as fast as they can. Which should not be feasible, given how much human history is concerned.
They could bring attention independently from recreation to politics and point out what is wrong on how it's told.
However, woke culture is not wise.
For example, in Disney Star Wars, if you don't worship Rose Tico, Rey, Holdo, and Kathleen Kennedy, you have deemed a -ist because you don't love 'strong women'.
When they should be called WAHmen, women who perpetuated the system because singularly they are women and therefore superior to all men, even the men are just working in tandem.
They don't care about Ahsoka, Padme, Leia, Mara Jade, Mon Mothma, any woman who is not sequel trilogy.
They don't care about other POC in there who should deserve their screen time like Finn, Luke, and every male in the sequel trilogy and not in the Disney Star Wars trainwreck.
Look, feminism's definition has been debated then and back but there is no issue that people just want better written female CHARACTER, not FEMALE character. Don't make it a priority of identity and politics first over what should be important for entertainment really, story and characterization.
Putting politics first and forcing characters to move in that path abnormally all because you want to push your politics is distasteful.
If people wanted politics, they can seek it out.
However, in the world of entertainment, they would rather have the subtlety of politics.
For example, Persona 5 can get political at times but no one had given it a hard time. Fans have noted its politics but there are no harsh outcries about it in the likes of Disney Star Wars. And yet it is popular enough that even non-gamers should at least hear about the Persona series by now.
Fans don't have much of an outcry when Hamilton came out. While that play has a lot of issues, its politics is not what people have a problem with. They enjoy it certainly in spite of its political undertones.
Again, if there were problems with its politics, it would be noted and taken into account on how it's portrayed.
But the politics in those works came from the heart and not from a place to promote some kind of propaganda.
Just look at FFVII. Its green message came from the heart, not the Saturday morning cartoon who just want you to recycle without giving any kind of nuance. Looking at you, Power Rangers Megaforce.
Politics is a touchy subject unsurprisingly. Both as a story idea and what is unintentionally getting out there because people would see it as reflective of the author, instead of y'know just the exploration of ideas.
But if there is a vital politics in a work that came from the heart, it wouldn't be surprising that it would be praised, especially when it didn't draw too much attention to it.
When it's part of the story naturally, it wouldn't be called out as woke. Not when it doesn't seem to be the forefront but rather part of the worldbuilding.
Hell, even Square Enix knows the cross-dressing Cloud is important to fans as to the natural progression of the story. They know they have to be careful with some stuff because the global sphere demands something but they also know they have to keep up-to-date with the modern sensibilities. Given JRPGs are globally successful, it's not surprising that entries are getting modern and to adjust to how it would work worldwide sensibly. Just look at P5. P5 is still Japanese in what it's tackling, let's get that out of the way, but considered how globally popular the Persona series is, it seemed to fly over the heads of those who don't understand Japanese politics.
And even then these 'modern' JRPGs focused on story and characters first, balancing with the politics so that the story doesn't detract from what made fans love it in the first damn place.
Because in Japan, if you get too political where the audience expects a good story, then you will really die out. The audience expects a good story going in or at least something holding their interest. Shounen Jump made it clear through their actions that if something doesn't stick to the wall, then they will drop you.
You can have your politics but keep it to a minimum or don't bring too much attention to it that people will notice it instantly you are trying to lecture them. Because they are the ones who get to decide what they lean towards.
But woke culture doesn't care about subtlety or entertainment.
All they care about is forcing your face into whatever food you are given and tried to tell you 'THIS IS IMPORTANT AND YOU SHOULD LEARN THIS WHEREVER YOU ARE AND YOU ARE DUMB IF YOU DON'T AGREE WITH EVERYTHING INCLUDING FLAWS IN A STORYTELLING MANNER'. All they care about is to make things as pure as possible.
And not the good kind of pure here.
And I'm referring to how everything had to be healthy.
Not caring they are refusing exploration and fun. Just the story potential of exploration. And unadulterated fun.
Woke media and the woke culture, in general, refused to get to the program of common sense.
Instead of allowing people to dislike a simple movie, they go as far as ad hominem.
Instead of having stories made from the heart and a natural place to progress, they want all politics upfront, not caring how much it would disrupt the story and characters.
Instead of allowing people to have fun, they would force people to face something they believed they have the power to convey.
Instead of allowing people to explore something, they want healthy and pure. Fluff with no substance. And not the good kind of fluff.
Instead of just allowing opinions to be opinions even politically, they just want to posture themselves as this superior person.
Instead of moving on and allow people to move on and create better, they want people to create better ASAP but in their terms.
I would be happy to see woke culture die out.
But they shouldn't get the wrong idea that progressivism is bad from woke culture dying out.
If anything, they should learn that people are smarter than woke culture likes to portray them as and that entertainment can have progressivism and politics if it's subtle and natural. They can have their politics if it doesn't force it down their throats and hit them over the head with a sledgehammer.
Woke culture, as a whole, will fade. I don't know when but if more people are going to call out woke culture and point out what is wrong with these people who are in a position of power is not doing the right thing exactly, then woke can lose steam.
Because woke culture has to lose against rationale. When woke is nothing but common sense, the woke have to discover and recognize that people have opinions, have the right to it and that not everything has to focus primarily on politics alone and that should carry a work.
Woke culture could fade away as soon as rationale and actual progressivism move forward, not forced piss-poor rep only approved by the radicals.
Because woke culture is the epitome of radical intersectional feminism.
Not the moderate or realistic or reasonable or sane kind of intersectional feminism.
It's just disheartening to see Star Wars, Star Trek, DC, Marvel, Doctor Who, and so forth be destroyed by fools. Fools who don't care about what came before or what made the product famous in the first place or just hate the damn thing and believe they can do it 'better' than their predecessors.
As a fan who has been in fandoms for over a decade, these fools deserved to be called out for their idiocy.
What we can hope that these franchises need more love than ever and need to move on and create better of what these franchises are remembered are. Fans shouldn't lose hope in a time where these works need love than ever. Even if it's broken by the current treatment, the fans can express their love by creating fanworks and letting their imagination flow.
Love and passion are what kept fandoms alive and we do need these emotions in a time where fandoms and its subsections are ostracized for nonsensical reasons. But remember, that this love doesn't mean loving the entire dang thing, you can dislike some elements and so forth, but you could love in spite of the flaws. Then again, add spite if you want, considering spite is a potent emotion. Because since the works I mentioned earlier being wrecked by woke culture, I'm pretty sure spite for the woke people would work as a motivator.
As for the general audience, I will say this: You do you. So what if you aren't passionate about the stuff I mentioned earlier? You have your own opinions and have the right to it. And naturally, you have more common sense than these woke people anyway.
