This blog post is inspired by a video that was made by Alana King feat. Lynn Zubernis where they focused on being sad about Supernatural ending on 15 seasons (linked above). Lynn is a psychologist so she has a lot more experience about this than I do. I am going to be talking more broadly about all fandoms, all tv shows movies, fan fictions, whatever you call fandom, and why it’s ok to get emotional about those things. Most and pretty much all of this is from my own personal experience and from what I have seen online from others.
The first show that I ever got really into, owning all the DVD's knowing lots about it, having posters of it on my wall, was the show House of Anubis. I was probably about 10-11 when I started watching the show. Didn’t last too long mostly because I grew up and had different interest in the genre of tv shows that I watched. But I can still slightly remember my parents questioning why I love the show so much, and why I wanted to have all of these things from the show. Then I moved on to two new fandoms. One was for the movie The Maze Runner and the other for the tv show Teen Wolf. Again for the show, the same thing I did with the first fandom I was kind of obsessed with it. I enjoyed it a lot and I was really interested in it. Now unlike my first fandom where my interest changed, it was the show that made me want to move on, I didn't really like what they were doing with the show in the later seasons and now I have all of these things about the show that I don't want anymore. And my parents were probably expecting this and knew it would happen. But at the time I was really invested in the show and had a lot of passion towards it.
Supernatural has been the one constant fandom, the one thing in the entertainment industry, that I have not grown bored of have not disliked anymore, have not given up on. The first season that I ever watched live on television was season 12. When the finale rolled along I was a mess from what happened. There was a lot of things and it was 5 months before the new season would premiere. I'm quite close with my mother so I was telling her about it, still a little emotional about what had happened. She didn't understand why I was so upset about the finale, and why I was feeling the way I was feeling. In my mind it's probably because she is thinking "This is just a tv show, their just characters, why is she reacting this way". It wasn't until she started watching the show that I thought she began to understand why I was so invested in the show and why my emotions ran so high when some things would happen. I was sort of right, she has a better understanding of why I love the show, but still doesn’t quite get why I get very emotional about it. I was mad about how season 14 ended and was telling her about it. And she questioned why I was reacting this way. Not to mention that the rest of family doesn’t have even the slightest understanding of why I go to the conventions spending so much money, why I get so emotional about the show and what happens on it. But that’s okay, that’s fine. Because I know why I love this show and the people in this fandom understand why, and that’s all that really matters to me.
I knew that the ending of Supernatural was coming close, it was in the near future. I didn’t really expect it to be the next season, but I do understand why they chose to end it. They don’t want it to fizz out and for people to lose interest, they want it to go out with a bang! Winchester style. The other thing I didn’t quite expect was how I would react to the announcement of the show ending. When I opened the video from Jared’s tweet, because he was the first to post it, I did not expect to hear the words that the show would be ending next season. As soon as they said it, tears began just streaming down my face. Lots and lots of tears, even as I’m writing this I’m getting a little teary eyed. And I wasn’t the only one who reacted the same way to the announcement. From my point of the view and I’m sure others can agree, the fact that they wanted to tell us instead of the network, the fact that they made the decision together, all three of them, and wanted to finish off the show strong; the bond we have with each other, with the cast, the connection we have to the show is why I got so emotional hearing the words that Supernatural was ending. And again that’s okay, it is okay to be sad over this, and you’re not alone with feeling that about it.
There's a lot of talk especially from people who just watched tv shows to past the time or for some other reason that: these things aren't real, it's all fake, they don't really care about the fans, their actors everything they do at cons is an act (this one being quite recent from someone), or anything else people say about people who are really invested in something. They think it's ridiculous that we cry over characters death or meeting the cast, that we get angry over things the show does. They probably think it's silly and stupid and that we're overeating and need to calm down. Well, to me that's stupid. It's ridiculous to think that we can't have a strong connection like that between fans and cast members because their actors, their celebrities. They don't actually care about you or what you say to them. I can say with complete and utter certainty and confidence that the Supernatural fandom, the SPNFamily including fans, cast, crew, everybody who is a part of this show, care about each other. No matter what role they play into making this show a reality has a connection and a love for every single person in this family. Hell, that’s why we call it a family pretty much the entire time and not just solely a fandom.
Not only do we, and not just people in the Supernatural fandom, but everyone who is a part of a fandom has a connection to the show. We have a connection to every part of it, down to the last little thing. We have a connection to the characters, the storylines, to the shows, movies, anything that cause us to be happy, sad, angry, etc. We all as fans as a part of these fandoms have a truly solid tight strong bond to the things we love. And it's not just the show that we have a strong connection with, it's also the actors and cast members and guest stars, even the ones who have only done a couple of episodes. In the Supernatural fandom with call ourselves the SPNFamily, that's because of the leads of the show, all three leads including Jared, Jensen, and Misha called this a family. That family includes everybody. Whether you have been watching since it aired in 2005 or just joined recently. If you are a fan, a cast member, a crew member, whoever you are, you are a part of the SPNFamily. Some other fandoms I've heard names for are Earpers for the Wynonna Earp fandom, ClockBlockers for the Timeless fandom, and many many more are out there. These families and communities are built because of a strong passion from fans who all love and appreciate the same thing. A lot of these families help and save the lives of people who are a part of them. For some people, it's the only family they have, the only people they can turn to when they need someone. I have heard many stories from people in the SPNFamily that this show and family has helped so much and has saved their lives. I have made countless friends because of this show and this family, and others have as well.
So, don't listen to what anyone tells you about your fandoms and what you love. If they say it's silly or dumb and that you're overreacting about a tv show or movie. Don't listen to them. You know deep down that you have a family and friends who you can turn to and talk to who will understand and who can relate to you and is probably feeling the same way you are. If you want to be sad, be sad, if you want to get mad, get mad. Your emotions are completely justifiable, you know it, and your fandom knows it. If others don't understand because they don't watch the show or movie or whatever. Then that's ok, maybe one day they will, and maybe one day they won't. But that's ok. I want you to know, and I want you to always remember, that your fandom will understand, and your fandom or family or whatever you call yourselves will be there to support you. Always, no matter what. I also want to say a big thank you to Alana and Lynn for making that video and inspiring me to write this blog post. It was much needed and I am sure it helped others who weren't just me.