Internet hipster or understandably disgruntled?

[author_by_night]

Here's a completely random question I'd love to hear your thoughts on: Is "it was better before it became popular/mainstream" ever a valid argument?

Discuss. This applies to pretty much everything - television, coffee places, bands...

Comments

[figliaperduta]

Valid ONLY in cases where the subject has undergone change as a result of becoming popular/mainstream--ie, a coffee shop that changed the coffees it provided because of lack of availability of ingredients on the new, wider scale. Television shows that altered their plotlines or characterisations because of a change in demographic.

Popularity does not by itself make something worse than it was. An individual may be less "into" it because it is popular, but that is a reflection of that individual, and not of the something itself.

Make sense?

[scionofgrace]

^ This.

Popularity (or lack thereof) does not, on its own, affect the value or quality of a thing. If anything, I'm happy when something of quality catches on, because it means that said quality thing is going to stick around for awhile, and more people are enjoying something quality.

The closest thing I've felt is seeing the same group of people who would have teased me for liking something back when it was unpopular/unknown later come to like that thing themselves and don't see the irony. But that doesn't diminish the thing I liked. Or, at least, I should hope I'm not that proud!

[sherrilina]

I agree with the poster above--if a TV show becomes wildly popular and then begins to make changes according to the desires of a vocal part of their audience, it is often downhill from there.

With fandom I can understand people saying they used to enjoy a fandom better before it became more mainstream, since sometimes the influx of new fans can bring a less desirable element depending on their age, what kind of people they are, etc.

[author_by_night]

With fandom I can understand people saying they used to enjoy a fandom better before it became more mainstream, since sometimes the influx of new fans can bring a less desirable element depending on their age, what kind of people they are, etc.

Oh, for sure - there's definitely a bit of a culture clash as well as age gap issues - I came into fandom as a teenager myself, but I had to adapt to the older fans, not the other way around; and even new fans who are adults might still be used to Facebook and twitter, where things are quite different. I've heard this is most obvious on tumblr - I can't really say for sure, I hardly ever use tumblr.

[blamebrampton]

Yes. There are pressures brought to bear by commercial success that can change a core product, and sometimes for the worse. It is not necessary that this happens, some creators have a strong vision that can withstand almost anything, but it does happen.

And there is also the case that mainstream success coincides with a creator going through changes in their own life that changes their relationship with their work, even if that's just getting older, which can affect how people relate to it. Young people who are attracted by emotional rawness are likely to be less attracted to reflective works from the same artist in their 40s.

That said, sometimes later works are better works, because they have more maturity and more time can be spent on them thanks to the artist's material success, which is why 'I like the old stuff better than the new stuff' as a default is an invalid position to take.

[author_by_night]

And there is also the case that mainstream success coincides with a creator going through changes in their own life that changes their relationship with their work, even if that's just getting older, which can affect how people relate to it. Young people who are attracted by emotional rawness are likely to be less attracted to reflective works from the same artist in their 40s.

That makes me think of Jewel. (Jewel Kilcher, not the rapper.) I loved her before she got older and stopped singing about how there's so much wrong on the world, but now, being roughly around the age she was when her music changed, I kind of get it. I still don't think the quality of her music is the same, but... I can better understand why she shifted now than I could back then.

[ragnarok_08]

I feel that it's valid only in cases where a piece of fiction undergoes a huge change because of becoming popular.

[chocolatepot]

Yes, if and only if the thing has changed since it became popular, which does sometimes happen.