If Kripke & Co. had singled out a specific real fan and used her actual fannish identity, I'd see it as lines being crossed. But they're featuring fictional people, and not in a negative judgey way like Sorkin did. If people are embarrassed by their hobbies and surrounded by people who are unsupportive about them, the cure is to find new hobbies or more supportive people to surround themselves with.

It's not like anyone is being forced to put on Spock ears, y'know?

Well, there was that one time...

What happens at Star Trek Experience Las Vegas stays in Star Trek Experience Las Vegas, Perkins.

oops.

Sorry

I'd love to know what someone non-fannish and not fandom-adjacent makes of those episodes, but it's not like I know anyone to ask.

My single data point thinks that the convention episode is hysterical. My other single datapoint thought that the episode "Yellow Fever" (in which Dean was afraid of everything) was her favorite.

... so, yeah, not very fannish in their responses.

Our two data points agree about the convention episode, apparently. I'm not sure I recall my data point's reaction to Yellow Fever, but I acutely disliked the episode and probably tried to avoid discussing it.

(My gaming-fannish data point thought the convention episode was one of the best things ever. Like me, he was, I believe, having Acute Flashbacks.)

I would have called my sister a fannish-adjacent data point, since she knows about my shenanigans. But she dove deep into the world of Brokeback Mountain gay fic and hasn't surfaced yet, so I think she's exposed herself to all sorts of tinhattery.

She watched the first half of the convention episode and thought it was very funny--but Supernatural will never be for her because they're brothers.

My non-fannish data point also thought the con ep was hilarious. (He also has issues with my large internet presence, but that is a Protect Your Privacy issue, not a You People Are Weird issue.) I don't remember a strong reaction to Yellow Fever.

Wasn't Yellow Fever the episode concluded with that impromptu rendition of "Eye of the Tiger"? IMHO, funniest thing ever. So glad they aired it.

Snape won the childhood fanon pain poll. I can dig it.

I was thinking about Cassandra Cain today. I know they weren't doing comics, but she's got to be up there. Her father shot her in canon. I can only imagine what fic does.