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This is what I'd write.
A couple of weeks ago, you asked for feedback on the Ashley situation. I didn't write back then as I hadn't seen the episode and didn't really want to be spoiled by the comments on your status.
Even though the likelihood is that you won't read this, or won't pay any attention, I want to at least add my own personal take on the situation, as I think it is quite different to a lot of the feedback you have received.
I was dubious at first about the idea of killing Ashley. But I liked it. It makes a path for Helen to become that darker, more morally ambiguous character from the webisodes, and we get to see the impact of what we've known for a long time - that Helen would outlive her daughter.
I also love the idea that not everything is neatly wrapped up with a bow. There was no body, so it was hard for Helen to find closure. But she had to. She had to move on. Life isn't neat, not everything is all perfectly boxed. And all too often there are no remains, little evidence.
I read in a recent sci-fi wire article that you are thinking of writing an Ashley story-arc next season in response to the backlash of the online fans. I must say that I was disappointed in this. I have long opposed so-called "sci-fi deaths". They're clichéd and often negate and trivialise the feelings of the characters who felt that loss. Whilst I trust your team's skills enough to know that they would not do this, I do feel that it would be a great shame to backtrack on such an unusual and very bold move.
In addition to this, it is important to remember that the online fandom is the minority, albeit a vocal one. Those that are content with the situation will rarely speak out, which is why I feel it's important to offer this alternative perspective. I think Joe Mallozzi's recent blog on the subject of fandom made a lot of important points on this subject.
At the end of the day, how many fans will be upset by Ashley being brought back and lose faith in a show that they considered bold and gutsy, compared with the number who are currently upset, but will get over that?
You made a big decision, a really bold move. And the upshot of that is that now we, as fans, are out of our comfort zone. We never really know if the characters are safe. Any one of them could be killed off. It gives a very real sense of danger which we often lose in the world of television, due to the prevailing heroes. And the potential scope for character development is wonderful.
It is not that I dislike Ashley, nor Emilie. It is simply that I believe you have made a decisionyou ought to stick by, and that listening to the views of fans is very different to being "bullied" into backtracking by various campaigns and threats. It is your show, your story and you should do what you feel is right, not what a vocal minority of angry, fans (Who I consider to have a deluded sense of ownership over the show) want you to do.
Even though the likelihood is that you won't read this, or won't pay any attention, I want to at least add my own personal take on the situation, as I think it is quite different to a lot of the feedback you have received.
I was dubious at first about the idea of killing Ashley. But I liked it. It makes a path for Helen to become that darker, more morally ambiguous character from the webisodes, and we get to see the impact of what we've known for a long time - that Helen would outlive her daughter.
I also love the idea that not everything is neatly wrapped up with a bow. There was no body, so it was hard for Helen to find closure. But she had to. She had to move on. Life isn't neat, not everything is all perfectly boxed. And all too often there are no remains, little evidence.
I read in a recent sci-fi wire article that you are thinking of writing an Ashley story-arc next season in response to the backlash of the online fans. I must say that I was disappointed in this. I have long opposed so-called "sci-fi deaths". They're clichéd and often negate and trivialise the feelings of the characters who felt that loss. Whilst I trust your team's skills enough to know that they would not do this, I do feel that it would be a great shame to backtrack on such an unusual and very bold move.
In addition to this, it is important to remember that the online fandom is the minority, albeit a vocal one. Those that are content with the situation will rarely speak out, which is why I feel it's important to offer this alternative perspective. I think Joe Mallozzi's recent blog on the subject of fandom made a lot of important points on this subject.
At the end of the day, how many fans will be upset by Ashley being brought back and lose faith in a show that they considered bold and gutsy, compared with the number who are currently upset, but will get over that?
You made a big decision, a really bold move. And the upshot of that is that now we, as fans, are out of our comfort zone. We never really know if the characters are safe. Any one of them could be killed off. It gives a very real sense of danger which we often lose in the world of television, due to the prevailing heroes. And the potential scope for character development is wonderful.
It is not that I dislike Ashley, nor Emilie. It is simply that I believe you have made a decisionyou ought to stick by, and that listening to the views of fans is very different to being "bullied" into backtracking by various campaigns and threats. It is your show, your story and you should do what you feel is right, not what a vocal minority of angry, fans (Who I consider to have a deluded sense of ownership over the show) want you to do.
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