Well, amidst the highly active discussion over in the Clark Quiz Poll, Labrat asked this:
The thing is, I must be well out of the loop, because I don't actually recall ever noticing these instances of 'fanon' before.
Does anyone have any specific examples they could post? Seems I've missed all the obvious stuff over the years. [Goofy] I'd be interested in seeing some of what I've been oblivious to. Should be equally interesting. Might even be the case that with my memory jogged I'll recall that I actually was aware of them and they've just slipped my mind over time.
So I thought I'd start a new thread so this subject doesn't get lost.
I believe that many points of fanon are a direct result the absence of introspection on the show. I know I've read several episode rewrites (or even extentions) that have made me stop and think: Wow, I never thought of that while I was watching the show, but it makes *so* much sense. Lois or Clark's emotions and rationalizations for the way they behave are something we can only speculate on, but they are very real aspects that make up their characterizations. When we take these speculations and incorporate them into fanfic, we supplement the show's canon. Reading story after story in which many authors either draw the same conclusions or mimic what they've seen in other stories, causes us to create a new and improved canon in our minds. Fanon.
I'll go ahead and list a few off the top of my head, then everyone else can chime in with their own.
Numerous authors have made Clark cry, and believably so, in their stories.
Canon: Clark doesn't cry.
Fanon: Highly emotional situations will bring Clark to tears.
Possibly due to rating restrictions, or the nature of the Superman myth, or even because Clark is just a darned good guy, we never hear him curse on the show. More than a few authors have included Lois and/or Clark swearing in their stories. Some people may still believe this to be too far out of character, but for me, when Clark curses followed by another character's introspection: Lois flinched. He never cursed. Only when he was *really* angry.
Probably a poor example, but I'm sure you know what I mean.
Canon: Clark doesn't curse.
Fanon: Clark curses when highly emotional (scared, angry, frustrated, etc).
Here's one where the line is kind of blurred, at least for me. Lois's furniture is highly uncomfortable. It looks to be that way on the show, but I don't think it was ever strictly mentioned. Several authors have made it a point to describe Lois's furniture as decorative, but uncomfortable.
And what about that endearing curl of hair that's always falling over Clark's forehead and so tempting to brush back?
I'm searching my brain for more right now, but I thought I'd go ahead and let others start adding theirs, too.
Sara
