At what age do media franchise obsessions become weird and unhealthy?

[ZombieNixon]

One of my close friends has developed what is clearly an obsession with the TV show Firefly and its movie companion, Serenity. Now, I love both. Serenity, especially, is one of my favorite movies and some of the best science fiction out there. However, my friend has become convinced that he is an incarnation of Captain Malcolm Reynolds and has started trying to recruit the cast of Firefly out of our college peers. And...people are responding. x( It's creepy, I no longer feel as comfortable hanging out with these guys in the evening, and worst of all, it's begun to turn me off from what I liked about the series and the creative genius that is Joss Whedon. :grr:

:rant:

I know this is trivial compared to some of the other shit that goes down in people's lives, but:

How do you tactfully tell a good friend that a) he is a college student in 2006, not a rogue spaceship captain in the 26th century? b) it's weirding me (and others) out? and c) you should really have stopped acting like that in middle school?

[philosophie_en_rose]

1. I don't know.

My cousin and all of his friend all have vampire alter egos. They play some sort of live action game with it - but their games heavily melt into their personal lives. They're all about 22 or so.

My brother has a friend who is a "furry." Some of his friends dress up in costumes and attend conventions in big animal costumes. He just told them, "This is too weird for me." He's still friends with them, but doesn't dress up in a fuzzy bunny costume to find dates.

I don't know if there is an age-limit to playing make-believe. However, it is disturbing when someone can't distinguish between their real life and their fantasy one.

:shrug:

[FuzzySlippers]

8. "Dress up in a fuzzy bunny costume to find dates."

:rofl:

[philosophie_en_rose]

18. It happens.

:shrug: Apparently, it's a big subculture.

[tjdee]

2. You don't tell him, you just....stop hanging out.

Maybe he's just having fun? And if so, you don't have to have fun with him. Saying something, IMO, will only invite an argument. Maybe it's just a phase anyway. In a month or two, if he's still on this kick, then maybe you can say "You're weirding us out". I don't think he'll get it though.

On the other hand, I find my obsession with the very married and very foreign Shah Rukh Khan to be very, very healthy. :silly:

[ZombieNixon]

4. Shah Rukh is at least, a real person.

If I were Joss Whedon or Nathan Fillion at this point, I'd feel like William Shatner: "Get a life!"

[crispini]

3. I think people of all ages do this,

and I don't think you're going to be able to tell him without pissing him off. Good luck....

[Benfea]

5. If you think there's an age limit for that, you're sadly mistaken.

*looks at all the Trekkies*

[tjdee]

6. Dude, yeah.

At least ZombieNixon's friends are into something slightly cooler than Trek! I wonder how come it seems so many of those types of people are into Sci-Fi. You don't see too many conventions for people who are hardcore into....romance novels or something, or people who dress up like Sherlock Holmes.

[supernova]

7. Sherlock Holmes fans

Actually, there is a sect of SH fans who enjoy the books, shall we say, a little too much? Although, I think they might fall somewhere between trekkers and your friend in the obsession scale. These folks enjoy dressing up in period costume and acting out the books. And making forrays to all the sites in the books.

http://www.sherlockian.net/societies/index.html

[Benfea]

12. I'm a Ghost in the Shell fan myself.

Although even if there were conventions for that, I seriously doubt I'd go. I don't think I could handle some fat middle aged guy dressed up like Togusa.

[TimeChaser]

14. I've been to many anime cons

I don't remember seeing any GitS cosplayers, but I might have missed them

Wait... I did see one :)

[Benfea]

16. I just KNEW someone was gonna do that someday.

To be honest, I've thought of doing it myself.

I don't think I could handle an anime convention to be honest. There are certain TV shows and movies that I really like, and the rest of it is saccharine crap. I admit to watching the crap sometimes, but that's because I spent a good chunk of my childhood in Japan and it has nostalgic value for me. I really can't imagine being obsessive about it, though.

[underpants]

9. Well if the dmned guard post would stay up I could get on with my life

[TimeChaser]

10. NEVER!

Life's just so much more fun that way :)

[philosophie_en_rose]

11. Plus, it can be really sweet.

I saw Trekkers on HBO. It's not a bad way to live your life.

[TimeChaser]

13. I've made so many friends at conventions

I'm an Otaku/Gamer (anime and video games) rather than a Trekkie, but the idea behind it's the same.

[ScreamingMeemie]

15. Well...it's not my cup of tea and I would just avoid them, BUT look at all

the people who dress up in Revolutionary or Civil War costumes...down to having nothing machine made, and hang out every weekend with other enthusiasts. I see it kind of the same way, and some of those people are well into their 70's. :hi: good luck

[ChoralScholar]

17. I never did understand the people who said

"go out TONIGHT? What, are you KIDDING me? Desparate Housewives is on tonight!!!"

Television is just not significant enough to me to plan my schedule around it.