History Main / FanMyopia

** Assuming that the work is more popular than it really is -- people familiar with it agree on the ''quality'' of the work, but it might still be a CultClassic or AcclaimedFlop, even if later VindicatedByHistory. This can frequently result from the fact that once a work falls out of the public consciousness, typically the only people still talking about it are the people who always liked it--shifting the conversation to an unreservedly positive one, which gives the impression that the work was or is now universally well-liked when there's still a SilentMajority that remains indifferent or negative as much as ever.

-->-- '''Anya''', ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer''

A SubTrope of OpinionMyopia, the more general phenomenon of a person believing that everyone else shares their opinion about something. See also FanDumb, the natural consequence of Fan Myopia, which usually comes from total loss of perspective about the importance of one's favorite work.

** Assuming that the work is more popular than it really is -- people familiar with it agree on the ''quality'' of the work, but it might still be a CultClassic or AcclaimedFlop, even if later VindicatedByHistory. This can frequently result from the fact that once a work falls out of the public consciousness, typically the only people still talking about it are the people who always liked it--shifting the conversation to an unreservedly positive one, which gives the impression that the work was or is now universally well-liked when there's still a SilentMajority that dislikes it just as much as ever.

** Assuming that the work is more popular than it really is -- people familiar with it agree on the ''quality'' of the work, but it might still be a CultClassic or AcclaimedFlop, even if later VindicatedByHistory. This can frequently result from the fact that once a work falls out of the public consciousness, typically the only people still talking about it are the people who always liked it--causing fans to believe the work has been VindicatedByHistory, when no opinions on the work have actually been changed and the voices who hated it have just moved on.

** Assuming that the work is more popular than it really is -- people familiar with it agree on the ''quality'' of the work, but it might still be a CultClassic or AcclaimedFlop, even if later VindicatedByHistory.

** Taking over for a LongRunning series' creator who DiedDuringProduction or otherwise stops working. This means that whoever is ''actually'' newly in charge must answer to the fans or else risk their wrath for ruining their late hero's creative vision. Conveniently, said hero is dead, so the fans can insert their own {{Fanon}} into his or her mouth.

* Misusing PlayingWithATrope to make their favorite work look "deeper" and justify the use of "bad" tropes. A particular favourite is the {{Subversion}} and the {{Deconstruction}}, which are considered hallmarks of a clever and well-made work -- but these fans don't particularly understand what those ''are'', and thus we get examples that are Administrivia/NotASubversion and Administrivia/NotADeconstruction. UrExample are also popular, as these fans like to think that their favorite work has the most ''extreme'' examples of tropes they like.

* Believing that their favorite work [[TropeMaker invented]] or [[TropeCodifier codified]] a trope that was [[OlderThanTheyThink already firmly established]].
** Accusing another work with a similar premise of being a [[TheyCopiedItSoItSucks rip-off]] of their favourite work, when [[OlderThanTheyThink the accused was created first]].

** Assuming that the work is equally popular around the world. Different parts of the world like different things, and some things may be [[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff more popular]] or [[AmericansHateTingle less popular]] outside their country of origin. Many other works are obscure outside certain countries -- this is a particular problem for {{anime}} fans, who don't realize that only a few works are well-known outside Japan, and fewer of ''those'' are well-known outside the United States, even if they are [[NoExportForYou available elsewhere]].

** By the same measure, fans can also end up concluding that stuff they ''didn't'' like was much less popular and more hated than it really was and assume that everyone else shares their intensely negative view, even if it was objectively fairly popular.

** Going from the opposite direction, assuming that any perceived problems with the series ''must'' be the result of outside interference besmirching the creator's perfect vision, ignoring that creators are very capable of screwing up on their own terms or having different beliefs on what makes the work good. Even in cases where there actually was [[WhatCouldHaveBeen a documented change in production]], fans tend to inflate this into [[FanPreferredCutContent an imagined "good version"]] when they know nothing about how it would have actually turned out.

** Going from the opposite direction, assuming that OnlyTheCreatorDoesItRight and therefore that any perceived problems with the series ''must'' be the result of outside interference besmirching their perfect vision, ignoring that creators are very capable of screwing up on their own terms or having different beliefs on what makes the work good.

** Going from the opposite direction, assuming that OnlyTheCreatorDoesItRight and therefore that any perceived problems with the series ''must'' be the result of outside interference, ignoring that creators are very capable of screwing up on their own terms or having different beliefs on what makes the work good.

* Constantly spouting {{spoiler}}s without warning. This derives from fans not understanding or caring that most people aren't so obsessive as to consume their favorite work fully at the earliest opportunity. (Or, to put it another way, unlike [[BasementDweller these guys]], some people have lives.) They assume that everyone they talk to will know everything there is to know about the work, including the spoilers. The worst manifestation of this combines it with the constant references and in-jokes, meaning that they're making spoiler jokes that might [[MemeticMutation leak out in the wild]] without the general public even ''knowing'' it's a spoiler -- and thus ruining their experience of the work if they ''do'' decide to consume it.

* Listing the name of a FanFic in an example without identifying the fic's parent work (if it's not obvious from the fic's title itself).

* Misusing PlayingWithATrope to make their favorite work look "deeper" and justify the use of "bad" tropes. A particular favourite is the {{Subversion}} and the {{Deconstruction}}, which are considered hallmarks of a clever and well-made work -- but these fans don't particularly understand what those ''are'', and thus we get examples that are Administrivia/NotASubversion and Administrivia/NotADeconstruction. UpToEleven and UrExample are also popular, as these fans like to think that their favorite work has the most ''extreme'' examples of tropes they like.

* Failing to realize that a joke or comment is [[ShoutOut actually a reference]] to something that was [[OlderThanTheyThink already famous]], known here as the WeirdAlEffect. It's usually a function of age -- the fan is too young to be familiar with the older work -- but still definitely a kind of myopia.

* Adding images that are Administrivia/JustAFaceAndACaption for the pages where they're added.

* Failing to realise that a joke or comment is [[ShoutOut actually a reference]] to something that was [[OlderThanTheyThink already famous]], known here as the WeirdAlEffect. It's usually a function of age -- the fan is too young to be familiar with the older work -- but still definitely a kind of myopia.