I've been looking for something to explain this strange world we find ourselves in.

The Big Bang (or any) Fandom

And I came across thie reddit post which had been shared on Tumblr which goes a long way to exploring this.

"Note: The following has hella generalization. If you feel like this doesn't apply to you, congratulations, let me slow clap it out.

Large fandoms--things like Doctor Who, or Supernatural, or Star Trek, or any superhero comic--tend to have unique and separate sides to them: curative and transformative.

Curative fandom is all about knowledge. It's about making sure that everything is lined up and in order, knowing how it works, and finding out which one is the best. What is the Doctor Who canon? Who is the best Doctor? How do Weeping Angels work? Etc etc. Curative fandom is p. much the norm on reddit, especially r/gallifrey.

Transformative fandom is about change. Let's write fic! Let's make art! Let's make a fan vid! Let's cosplay! Let's somehow change the text. Why is Three easier to ship, while Seven is more difficult? What would happen if ______? Transformative fandom is more or less the norm on tumblr. (And livejournal, and dreamwidth, and fanfiction websites, and...)

Here's the big thing: there's a gender split. Find a random male fan, and they'll probably be in curative fandom. Pick a random transformative fandom-er, and they'll probably be female. Note that this is phrased in a very particular way--obviously there's guys who cosplay and write fic, obviously there's women who don't. But men tend to be in the curative fandom, while transformative fandom is predominately women--and/or queer people, POC, etc. Why? Because the majority of professionally-made media is catered towards a straight white male demographic, leaving little room for 'outsiders.' Outsiders who, if they want to see themselves in media, have to attack it and change it--hence slash fic, hence long essays claiming that Hermione Granger is black, hence canons (edit: slipped up, sorry. meant headcanons) about trans characters or genderqueer characters.

And then curative/male fandom tends to view most things that transformative/female fandom does with disdain. Why? Because, in their eyes, it devalues canon. Who cares about knowing about Tony Stark's lovers if somebody's gonna write a fic where Toni Stark is flying about? Their power is lessened. Scream of the Shalka is unambiguously not canon--but it doesn't have to be in order for me to read and enjoy a 30k fic where the robotic Master was secretly in the TARDIS during Nine and Ten's time and they shagged behind the scenes. Canon? No, but who gives a shit?

Also, as transformative fandom tends to be an outsider looking in, they're much more likely to analyze the work from a queer/PoC/neurodivergent/gender perspective. If I come to /r/gallifrey and start to talk about how 'In the Forest of the Night' had a questionable portrayal of mental health/autism, I get blank stare. If I go on tumblr, I get a conversation. This is also where the 'overreacting, shrieking SJW' trope plays in, either because of a redditor's misunderstanding of terms and therefore assuming that a mild critique is a scathing one, or because the tumblr user in question is young/inexperienced and jumping the gun.

So, there you have it: /r/gallifrey's bashing of reddit is part of a larger split in how men and women tend to enjoy fandom, and a lashing against how fanfiction/related things addresses fandom because it's not the right "kind" of fandom. And also because tumblr is popular with teenage girls, and there's nothing reddit loves more than shitting on whatever teenage girls like.

EDIT: I was not expecting that an enormous conversation would come from this, and certainly not that I'd be gilded, sent to /r/bestof, and /r/goldredditsays. So, uh, thanks! I was originally going to edit and respond to some comments I saw, but I ran out of room, so I wound up doing it over here. Thanks for all of your interest!" - LordByronic on reddit

So we move on to the next season and there was definitely a shift away from group scenes, as Sheldon became the break-out star. There are a lot more individual nerd moments which focused on one character. Season Two still has some good group ones though and a few surprising additions.

Here’s my top picks from Nerdvana Season Two:

1. Worst Renaissance Fair ever
"That was not fifteenth century soap, my God those people need to learn you can’t just put “ye olde” in front of anything and expect to get away with it." - Sheldon






2. Getting funky
The guys just doing what they do, mucking about and having fun. Raj pours white liquid into the main dish of a stereo speaker covered in cling film.






3. Penny becomes a nerd
This has to be one of, if not the best Penny episode ever because its about her as a person and not just her as a romantic prop. Here she becomes addicted to Conan the Barbarian and forms a new connection to Sheldon. This was never repeated, sadly. “Like if Hulk were dating Peppermint Patty”









4. Klingon Boggle
Another fabulously nerdy opening scene. The guys speaking Klingon, something we don't see anymore.






4. Sheldon gets his L plates!
There’s nothing like Sheldon meeting outsiders and in the early years his pure brilliance via the everyday, set this show apart. The interaction with the DMV lady is incredible and I also love Sheldon’s response to Penny’s question “why didn’t you just get a license at 16 like everybody else?” WOW!





5. Rock, paper, scissors, lizard, spock
Decision making in 4A and probably one of the most famous nerd scenes. One of Sheldon’s best monologues. Priceless.






6. Mars Rover, come on over!
Howard gets the Rover stuck in a ditch trying to impress a girl. So good! Howard later finds out his mistake causes them to discover water on Mars. “It’s unclear how the Mars Rover got into the crevice, but one thing’s certain, the data which it has sent back contain the first clear indications that there may have been life on Mars. It’s a scientific discovery that has staggering implications for all mankind. Unfortunately, we’ll never know who’s responsible.”






7. Die Toaster Die!
Ever bit of The Killer Robot Instability is nerdtastic, but the opening scene kills it. Awesome!!!
Best quote - “Featuring one articulated razor-sharp killing saw, one polycarbonate grinding and flipping wheel, steel armour plate exoskeleton top and bottom, and enough horsepower to drive a 110 pounds of mechanized death from zero to holy crap in 4.8 seconds.” - Howard






8. Unreal friendship
Sheldon creates an algorithm for making friends, and takes it to extreme lenghts.
“A loop counter? And an escape to the least objectionable activity! Howard, that’s brilliant! I’m surprised you saw that.”






9. Movie madness
The guys use their mathematical minds to try to solve an everday problem. So funny.
“I don’t see a Sheldon-approved restaurant proximate to a Sheldon-approved theatre.”






10. Rockband
Raj squawking along to Rockband is both excuriating and all too realistic.
Howard: Penny, come on, we were just finding our sound.
Penny: You found it. It’s the sound of a cat being run over by a lawn mower.






11. Paintball traitors
With added Lesley, the only nerd girl the show featured in more than one episode. The team take on the other departments at Caltech.






12. Secret Agent Laser Obstacle Chess
I just love this, funny, daft and clever! The guys creativity and smarts made them so unique on a sitcom.

Opening Soon!!

Planning meeting for The Big Bang Theory (HQ's)

Episode 9.25

This is a test cover by Toad.




Awaiting the Showrunner: Dev... after S9 finale...