Ascended Fanon: Difference between revisions

{{trope}}

 

The case of the fan's explanations becoming [[Canon]].

{{quote|'''Fan''': "Chopper's birthday should be December 24th."

'''Odacchi''': "Okay." }}

{{quote|"You know me. I'm the guy who comes up with the deep meaningful names. Yep. In fact, "Rob Lucci" even means "steal the light," or SO I HEAR (had no idea)." }}

* The authors of ''[[Kinnikuman]]'' routinely adapted fan suggested characters into the story, both minor and major.

* In ''[[Digimon Tamers]]'', fans mentioned to the writer Chiaki J. Konaka, that clearly the character of Alice was a ghost. Konaka ''originally didn't intend this when he wrote it'' but when he looked back; admits that's a very possible theory on his webpage.

* ''[[Katekyo Hitman Reborn]]'': "Hibird" was the fan nickname for Hibari's unnamed pet bird. Upon hearing this, Akira Amano just made it canon, finding the nickname cute.

 

== Comic Books ==

* The controversial [[Spider-Man]] story ''Sins Past'' revealed that in the past, Gwen Stacy slept with Norman Osborn, without revealing when or why. [[Big Name Fan]] J.R. "Madgoblin" Fettinger pored through his back issues and found a time when it could have happened and a reason why she might have done so at that point in time; namely, that Osborn had saved her father from the Kingpin, she had gone to see him to thank him, and one thing led to another. After posting this theory on his website, [https://web.archive.org/web/20131028091230/http://www.spideykicksbutt.com/GreenwithEvil/DeFloweringGwen.html here], some of Marvel's writers found it and decided it worked, so they canonized it.

* It was a fan theory that the Marvel Universe is called Earth-616 because Fantastic Four #1 (the first Marvel Universe comic) came out in 1961 in month 6. Neither the explanation nor the date of FF 1 is actually true, but in the [[Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe]] other universes were numbered based on their first appearances and using this scheme.

 

== Fan Works ==

** Sometimes it also happens just from the discussion threads:

{{quote|'''Poster''': "So, given Unit 05's original personality, I would not be surprised if [[Stephen Colbert]] was the President of the United States in this story."

'''[[Word of God|Gregg]]''': "It's canon in my book!" (President Colbert later makes an appearance in the story.) }}

** Because they've never heard of event-scheduling being a textbook application of greedy algorithms?

 

== Film ==

* Subverted in ''[[The Birds]]'' in classic Hitch style. Suzanne Pleshette, who played Annie, suggested for her character's death that her ear should be found half torn off and bloody. Hitchcock sent her to the makeup department to let them make her ear look like that, but when filming the actual scene placed her body with her other side facing the camera so that the viewer never sees the torn off ear.

* There was a popular [[Fanon|fan theory]] that the little boy in an Iron Man mask from ''[[Iron Man 2]]'' was a young [[Spider-Man|Peter Parker]]. Tom Holland, who was cast as Parker when Spider-Man was brought back into the [[Marvel Cinematic Universe]], heard about this, he liked the idea so much he convinced ''[[Spider-Man: Homecoming]]'' producer (and Marvel Studios president) [[Kevin Feige]] to let him declare this to be [[Canon]].

 

== Literature ==

* In later ''[[Harry Potter (novel)|Harry Potter]]'' books, after [[The Film of the Book]] made "I shouldn't 'ave said that!" into Hagrid's [[Catch Phrase]], it then became one in the books as well.

** This has also been used for more minor errors, like when it was brought to her attention that Marcus Flint seemed to have repeated a year. [http://www.jkrowling.com/textonly/en/faq_view.cfm?id=16 Her response]: "Either I made a mistake or he failed his exams and repeated a year. I think I prefer Marcus making the mistake."

** Lupin's facial scars, which are never described in the books, have supposedly been appearing in fanart before his appearance in the third Harry Potter movie.

** Big time Harry Potter fan John Noe is a huge fan of the Auror Dawlish, who despite [[Informed Ability|getting O's in all his O.W.L.s]] [[The Worf Effect|can be bewitched and hexed by everyone including Neville's grandmother]]. Dawlish doesn't have a first name, and when Noe interviewed J.K. Rowling, she decided to give him the first name John, being named after John Noe.

** It's unknown whether it's this trope or [[I Knew It!]], but ''[[The Draco Trilogy]]'' popularized "Malfoy Manor" as the name of Draco Malfoy's family home. Seven years later, the name was used in ''Deathly Hallows''.

* The case of how Terry Pratchett came up with Hersheba in ''[[Discworld]]''. "Say Djelibeybi OUT LOUD. I must have had twenty letters (and one or two emails) from people who didn't twig until the third time round... Oh god...do they have them in the US? Should it have been called Emmenemms, or Hersheba... Hmm, Hersheba... Could USE that, yes, little country near Ephebe..."

* Someone suggested on the facebook of [[Erin Hunter|the author]] of ''[[Warrior Cats]]'' that there should be a [[Doorstopper|Super]] [[Expanded Universe|Edition]] about Yellowfang. A few months later, she announced that the next Super Edition would be called Yellowfang's Secret.

** Also, ''[[Dawn of the Clans]]'', the [[Fan Nickname]] for [[Prequel|the fifth arc]] is now the official [[Working Title]].

 

== Live-Action TV ==

== Music ==

* The song "Alive" by [[Pearl Jam]], wherein the lyrics are about a widowed woman who grows sexually attracted to her son because he looks just like his deceased father, a textbook example of [[Lyrical Dissonance]]. This hasn't stopped fans from embracing it as an anthem of celebrating life. Eddie Vedder, having written the song partly from his own experience, gradually found that what he saw as the "curse" of the song had been lifted by fans' more uplifting interpretation.

** This is the same case with "Bad Moon Rising" by [[Creedence Clearwater Revival]]. The actual lyric is "There's a bad moon on the rise," but it was often misheard as "There's a bathroom on the right." John Fogerty has been known to sing this line in live performances of "Bad Moon Rising."

** Likewise, in [[They Might Be Giants]]' song "Ana Ng" the line "Where the world goes by like the humid air" is often misheard as "Where the world goes by like the human hair." They occasionally sing the mondegreen instead of the original line live.

* Music software, but music nonetheless. Crypton's Rin and Len Kagamine [[Vocaloid]]s were originally supposed to be mirror personalities of each other, but fans interpreted them as twins. Crypton responded accordingly.

** Also Haku Yowane and Neru Akita, fan-created Vocaloids that have been acknowledged by Crypton as semi-official, to the point that they're making an appearance in Miku's game, ''Project Diva''.

* [[Devo]]'s "Whip It" was originally meant to be a inspirational song addressed to President [[Jimmy Carter]]. Naturally, though, people thought it was an [[Obligatory Bondage Song]] or about [[A Date with Rosie Palms]]. This amused them, and they kind of enforced the first interpretation with the music video.

{{quote|'''Jerry Casale''': "We didn't want to ruin it and tell them the truth, because they just wouldn't get off on the truth."}}

* After the chorus of Fall Out Boy's "This Ain't a Scene" was famously misheard as "I'm a little man, and I'm also evil, also into cats," friend of FOB member Pete Wentz and frontman of [[Cobra Starship]] Gabe Saporta made a Youtube video where he showed off a fake tattoo of a cat and said he got it because he was "also into cats."

 

== Newspaper Comics ==

* Without meaning to, Scott Adams made Phil, Prince of Insufficient Light, look similar to [[Dilbert]]'s boss. A reader asked if they were brothers, and Adams decided to indicate as much in a mini-arc.

** When Adams wrote a week-long series involving a cat character that he didn't intend to use again, he got a flood of fan emails not only wanting to see more of the cat, but all calling him "Catbert" even though Adams never named him. Adams himself said "When a group of fans spontaneously and unanimously name a character for you, it's a good idea to keep him."

 

== Tabletop Games ==

** There are also multiple (probable) nods to the fanfic ''Love Can Bloom'' in one of the [[Dark Heresy]] sourcebooks. Among others: LIIVI, the Vindicare Assassin, speaking a quote straight out of the game in ''[[Dark Heresy]]: Ascension''. One of the chapters even depicts a Vindicare stalking an Eldar Farseer.

*** Another fan-made character, [[Badass Bookworm|adept]] [https://1d4chan.org/wiki/The_Guy_Who_Cried_Grendel Castus Grendel] from [[Dark Heresy]] game logs ''The Guy Who Cried Grendel'' who, despite having neither good strength nor combat skills, managed with some lucky rolls to defeat several Daemons, an Ork warboss and assorted other big nasties). Referenced in ''Radical's Handbook'' (in the part chosen for preview, at that), along with some exploits and companions. ''Knowledge is Power'' also mentions some Adept Grendel working for Malleus in the same area, but says he's a psyker.

* In the ''[[Warhammer Fantasy Battle]]'' Storm of Chaos campaign, the members of an Orc fansite and forum ([https://web.archive.org/web/20120128181439/http://z3.invisionfree.com/Orc__Goblin_Warpath Da Warpath]) were getting increasingly annoyed (and increasingly vocal) about being sidelined in the campaign background. Some members were also writing background pieces and fan rules, such as Da Demolisher, one of the Orc Warbosses, falling off a bridge on his boar and the use of the [[Abnormal Ammo|Squigcannon of Gork]]. Then some of the later campaign newsletters came out, with references to an Orc Warboss falling off a bridge on a boar and squig-firing cannon...

* Heck, any [[Game Master]]s worth their salt under any system turn on their listening ears when their players enter a [[Wild Mass Guessing]] phase or burn the carefully-crafted plot down, at which point it usually overlaps with [[Throw It In]]. It makes the players feel smart.

== Theme Parks ==

* The names of the Hitchhiking Ghosts at ''[[The Haunted Mansion]]'' at [[Disney Theme Parks]] (Gus, Ezra, and Phinneas) were thought up by Cast Members, and eventually became popular enough in [[Fanon]] that it was semi-officially adopted.

 

== Toys ==

* Fans of ''[[Halo]]'' compiled info on the series in a ''Halo'' [https://web.archive.org/web/20120702163337/http://www.halopedian.com/Main_Page wiki] online. While wikis are good, they're not perfect. When the official ''Halo Encyclopedia'' was released, it was clear that it had copied material directly from the wiki because it duplicated some of its errors and flawed ways of presenting information. As the ''Encyclopedia'' is supposed to be canon, the errors are errors no longer.

** Not always. Several bits of fanon that had snuck into the pages, such a faction called "the United Rebel Front", or clear errors like the fleet at Reach being 750 ships instead of 314 and there being a First and Second Battle of Earth, were discarded later on the wiki despite being in the ''Encyclopedia'' because they were recognized as mistakes.

* ''[[Minecraft]]'' had beta 1.8 leaked to the public early by mistake. Instead of trying to rectify the problem, Mojang decided to have pre-release versions of the next update revealed to the public from now on in the form of "snapshots". The results were twofold: players can get a sneak peek at new features and bug fixes while Mojang gets feedback from the players about the snapshot so they can fix whatever bugs there are before making the snapshot official.

* ''[[Might and Magic: Swords of Xeen]]'' started out as fanmade freeware mod introduced as an enhancement to ''World of Xeen''; it was eventually authorized and published by New World Computing and 3DO as an "unofficial" bonus game, and was included in official compilations and re-releases.

 

== Web Comics ==

* [[Mega Man (video game)|Mega Man]]'s [[Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass]] behavior in ''[[Bob and George]]'' was originally just [[Rule of Funny|an unexplained joke]]. Then some continuity-minded fans noticed that [http://www.bobandgeorge.com/archives/index.php?date=000802&commentary=on an earlier strip] gave a surprisingly plausible reason for this behavior, and Dave Anez ran with it.

** A less important detail, mentioned [http://www.bobandgeorge.com/archives/index.php?date=011211&commentary=on here], was that Bob's scarf was burned and tattered, due to his suit being a scorched Proto Man costume.

** Dave Anez's entire MO was "Do what's funny on the spot, come up with an explanation later," so a large portion of the comic runs on this trope.

* [http://www.darthsanddroids.net/episodes/0076.html This page] of ''[[Darths and Droids]]'' shows the process in action. So ''that's'' where the [[Doing In the Wizard|midi-chlorians]] came from.

** [http://www.darthsanddroids.net/episodes/0491.html Then it's Jim's turn...]

* ''[[The Wotch]]'': Compare the [http://www.thewotch.com/?epDate=2005-07-08 first] canon appearance of the character Anibelle with [http://www.thewotch.com/?epDate=2008-08-12 the second]. Now consider [http://www.thewotch.com/?epDate=2005-06-10 this non-canon filler done by a guest artist] in between those two appearances. Yeah, exactly.

* Among the many submitted [[fanfic]]s posted on the website of ''[[The Class Menagerie]]'' by the comic's creator, there was one where character Mike Hopkins (a kangaroo) is revealed to be gay, pairs up with a wolf boyfriend and comes out. This became canon in the penultimate story arc before the comic finished: Mike, previously undeclared, admits that he is gay, and the arc ends with him running into a hunky wolf in circumstances identical to those in the [[Fanfic]].

I hereby declare all of your fantrolls to be canon.

Yes, even the shitty ones. }}

* ''[[Freefall]]'' has [http://freefall.purrsia.com/ff1500/fc01441.htm Nickel's new legs].

* In [http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2010-02-02 one of the Q&A strips] of ''[[El Goonish Shive]]'', the author acknowledges [http://elgoonishshive.wikia.com/wiki/El_Goonish_Shive_Timeline a fan-made timeline] for the series and declares in the commentary that he considers it canon.

* In the 4th [[Idiosyncratic Episode Naming|level]] of ''[[Rusty and Co.]]'', a fan dubbed the recently-introduced female elf band the [[Dixie Chicks|"Pixie Chicks"]]. The author, Mike, liked it so much he decided to "roll with it" and make it their official name. Check the comments section [http://rustyandco.com/comic/level-4-7/ here].

* ''[[Cucumber Quest]]'' has [http://gigidigi.tumblr.com/post/8795618268/questions-if-you-have-a-question-please-check Almond being ambidextrous]{{Dead link}}.

 

== Web Original ==

* A popular joke among the handlers on ''[[Survival of the Fittest]]'' during V4 was that characters who went inactive were fed to the [[Everything's Worse with Bears|inactivity bear]]. Then Megan Nelson went two weeks without a post, the admins dropped her into a cave, [[Take Our Word for It|a scream was heard]], and the rest is history. The bear's name is [[Fluffy the Terrible|Kenny]], by the way.

* For the [[Chaos Timeline]]: Some fan suggested that the head of the Socialist part of Germany should have the title "Oberster Politischer Kommissar", which became canon.

 

== Western Animation ==

* The makers of ''[[Adventure Time]]'' took a viewer's [[Fan Art]] character, Me-Mow the tiny cat assassin, and introduced her to the Land of Ooo in her own self-titled episode.

* "Squidward's Suicide" is a well-known [[Creepypasta]] about a [[Lost Episode]] episode of ''[[SpongeBob SquarePants]]'' where Squidward is [[Driven to Suicide]], and an intern at [[Nickelodeon]] trying to find the episode. (This may have inspired the whole genre of "Lost Episode Creepypastas".) Believe it or not, the story was referenced in the original airing of the season 12 episode "Randomland". In the door sequence, Squidward opens a door and sees himself with bloody tears, similar to an illustration from the original Creepypasta. Subsequent airings, however, removed this.

{{reflist}}

[[Category:Trivia Trope]]

[[Category:Continuity Tropes]]