Canon Pandering · 7:08am Oct 20th, 2015

Canon Pandering is a fascinatingly tricky idea. You'll see it pop up here and there. An episode will air, and then suddenly every story that featured Bonbon in it will add a chapter that retcons in how she was a secret agent working for Princess Celestia. This happened with Twilicorn a lot, with authors going so far as to edit past chapters, and artists deleting and redrawing their own illustrations, to ensure that their pony was properly princessified. Seeing this invaribly irritates me, which is why I use the somewhat derogatory term "canon pandering." The term is an ironic twist on pandering, that instead of the show creators humiliating themselves to obsequiate before the desires of the fans, it's the other way around. It's a concept that will exist as long as there is a show that people believe (or are forced to admit) is the one official source for pony.

But the fact is, that it's not so simple to say that canon pandering is always bad. I don't think there's anything wrong with people changing their story to fit with newly released show material. Heck I probably do it, somewhere in my bizarre alternate worlds that only retain a mere shadow of their original source. What bothers me is not people making Twilight a princess retroactively, or shoehorning in Sweetie Belle's magic practice, or having Pinkie wax poetic about her weird sister studying Rock Science. What really irritates me is that people seem to feel that it is obligatory.

I mean yes, there is the stray comment saying, "No you can't do that in your story, because you clearly contradicted what it says in the show," but the real annoyance is when people alter their own perfectly decent stories not because they want to, not because anyone asked them to, but because the show did it, so therefore they must conform. Personally, I see the "official" show, and every other fanfic or creation, as a source of inspiration. An opportunity, creative fuel. But just because it's fuel doesn't mean I have to throw it into the fire.

When I see something cool happen in the show, I think "Ha ha, that's cool. Maybe I can use that somewhere." And when I see something stupid happen in the show, I think, "Why the hell is Twilight's babysitter a princess? I'm never gonna use that!" Obviously if we disagree on what's cool and what's stupid, then I'll see stupid stuff showing up in other people's fanfics, but that's fine if they're doing it because they like the concept. Except A Canterlot Wedding; that's just objectively bad, and you should feel bad for liking it. But people who adopt canon into their story just to say, "Look, see how legit I am! I have to make sure never to contradict anything in the show, otherwise Hasbro will continue to completely ignore my existence," those people I just find myself rolling my eyes, and going to read another story.

And then there are people who give up their stories. There are people who give up their entire artistic inspiration, because the show did something they don't like, and they feel compelled for some godforsaken reason to uphold that as sacred at all costs, even the cost of their own creativity! There are people who can't write about Scootaloo being homeless anymore, so give up their Scootadoption story, or others who throw up their hands at their story because their ultimate villain the Smooze was stolen away from them by a silly episode about a reality warper throwing a tantrum. At those people, I just have to shake my head in despair. To think that someone would give up their good idea, because some show did something differently, it's just such a terrible loss. I wish I could show everyone how clear it is to me, how a show contradicting a story isn't wrong, but rather it's just a different story. It could be a great opportunity, sure, but nobody should ever feel bad if they choose to take another path, even if they're clearly writing derived stories out of their love for the original.

Sure if you get tired of it, it's fine, but don't let the show drive you away from itself, just because it had some retarded episodes! You can have your headcanons and eat them too! You're free to write whatever you want, and anyone else is free to love it no matter how closely or distantly it patterns itself after another work. Nothing is true! Everything is permitted!