Hussar
Legend
Interesting little editorial post (well, ok, not so little, it's pretty darn long) from over at Tor.com. Find the post Harry Potter and the Canonical Paradox.
Her basic point can be summed up with this:
The article is a pretty good read, so, don't just stop at that one quote. But, the obvious parallels to D&D and various settings thereof are clear. Any time WotC or anyone else tries to change, amend, retcon, whatever any setting, there's a signficant fight brewing.
So, where do you draw the line? Should content providers simply leave well enough alone, moving on to new and different projects or do you want content providers to change or add to your favourite setting as they see fit?
Her basic point can be summed up with this:
There are plenty of fans who would prefer if Rowling left the Potter-verse alone. She got Harry’s story out, and now they want room to roll around in her sandbox without her continued input. The idea is that fandom has been filling in the information gaps with their own ideas for years now, their own creations. Every time Rowling puts her stamp on another piece of Potter media, or makes an announcement via Twitter, she’s drawing more lines for the fandom community to color inside. And some people wish she would just stop adding lines, stop making harder to color, stop ruining the beautiful pictures they had already put so much love and time and creative energy into.
The article is a pretty good read, so, don't just stop at that one quote. But, the obvious parallels to D&D and various settings thereof are clear. Any time WotC or anyone else tries to change, amend, retcon, whatever any setting, there's a signficant fight brewing.
So, where do you draw the line? Should content providers simply leave well enough alone, moving on to new and different projects or do you want content providers to change or add to your favourite setting as they see fit?