I'm not sure if this is an adequate response to your thoughts (I really like this post, btw) . . . but my God! IMO, the burden of consumerism is on the shoulders of the creators. Like, if they want me to consume their product (and, for me, this would be in the way that *I* choose to do so), then they'd better fucking earn my loyalty and interest by producing a kick-ass product. I'm sorry, but if a band that I traditionally love puts out a very poor album at some point, I am not obligated to purchase said shit music, and I won't do it. But I would probably still go see that band in concert because I really love them in general and they would likely be playing live a majority of songs that I truly like. Statistically, that should be borne out. But what is this idea of media creators deigning to provide their product based on how a fan interacts with it? Frankly, they should be grateful they are experiencing success in such hotly competitive and unlikely careers. I feel that the creator should cow-tow to my demands, as a consumer, not the other way around.
That said, I know I feel differently about this than you do. I do not feel emotionally obligated in any fashion to do any of the things that you list above. But for those who do feel that obligation, I can imagine that these (IMO) outrageous expectations would be incredibly paralyzing.
Well, I guess I feel emotionally obligated to people I know, and the people I know (mostly through Ali) are often manga/comic artists or translators, so then I feel guilty that most manga and independent comics don't really appeal to me, and so I didn't buy them, and then when they post about how hard it is to get a job or how a book contract was canceled I feel super guilty. Stuff like this post which I was linked to the other day. I mean, I don't really know what to do with that, and authors make posts like that all the time. All the time.
And there's the way people constantly talk about supporting things that you liked, and it's like: how much support? Just watching the show or seeing the movie is never enough!
That said, I know I feel differently about this than you do. I do not feel emotionally obligated in any fashion to do any of the things that you list above. But for those who do feel that obligation, I can imagine that these (IMO) outrageous expectations would be incredibly paralyzing.
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And there's the way people constantly talk about supporting things that you liked, and it's like: how much support? Just watching the show or seeing the movie is never enough!
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