"Everyone's entitled to my opinion ..."

"CrimsonAgent93" cracked his mental knuckles, prepared to go to war.  He slid the headphones over his pierced ears, cranked up the tunes, and typed out his comic book review.

"This crapfest offends me!  Joe Low can't type his way out of an open phone booth and Sy High should pull the pencil from his orifice so he can see what he's drawing for once.  It's nothing like THE version of the book that I grew up with, which of course was the DEFINITIVE version of the character.  So if you like toilet paper that sucks sewage through a dirty straw, this is the one for you."

So how seriously should be take Internet critics?  Frankly, my contempt for these intellectually dishonest parasites grows every passing day.  Hiding behind a pseudonym grants false courage to the "reviewer" which gives that person license to spout off without accountability.

Knowing that snark is easier to write than something well thought out and eloquent, the writer works himself into a lather ... or is that "blather?"  And for good measure, let's start the name-calling because that's "always" funny.  In fact, it's been funny in every blog entry for the last six months so repeating it should make it even more hilarious, right?

Besides, he's repeated the lie enough that he doesn't care if it's not the truth.  It's time to make another blog entry.

But let's not check out the source of our ire.  Heaven forbid we should confuse ourselves with potentially contradictory facts. 

With one's ignorance firmly in place, the "reviewer" readies a few names and begins to type ...

                                                                * * *

My distaste for Internet critiques began a few months ago ... actually, it was more along the lines of I'd reached my saturation point with them. I make no secret of my out-of-control fetish for all things Kryptonian.  My view of Superman doesn't favor one version over another.  Instead, I look for the unique charm of each interpretation, much like how I enjoy Doctor Who in its myriad forms.

I also enjoyed the JJ Abrams relaunch of Star Trek.  I thought it had plenty of decent acting and action (although I think my retinas are scarred from all the lens flares).  I especially enjoyed the concept that this was an actual alternate timeline and the classic Trek of my misspent youth still existed, even if Mr. Spock wasn't in it any longer.  That way, Classic Trek sill existed ... but the movie audience's attention would now be focused elsewhere.

Also, in September of 2011, DC Comics did a reboot of their mainstream comic book line which included Superman.  Now, Superman was greatly affected by this in his origin seemed to have changed except in the basic premise of Neo-Moses found in the bulrushes of Kansas (no time spent as Superboy, his early days in Metropolis were spent as the Social Activist of Steel, his adoptive parents were dead, his uniform now resembled armor while no longer possessing the red trunks worn on the exterior, and Lois Lane was never his love, merely a good friend).

Creatively, it was a bold move.  Contemporary comic books are so tied up in their own continuity that sometimes consistency with a story that was published before most comic fans were born that it took real guts to break away from 75 years of continuity and start anew.  Also, sales were pretty bad so it was a calculated gamble that actually paid off when DC retook the #1 sales position in the comics industry for a couple of months.  In fact, during the last year, a relaunch of Aquaman outsold The Uncanny X-Men.  I'm tickled to see the day, I tell you.  Anyway ...

Immediately after these franchises were relaunched, I read way too many rants, many of them from friends who I expected to be a lot more eloquent and well-reasoned.  Suddenly, "Jar Jar Abrams" was supposed to have "ruined" Star "Track," past and present, forever and always and every actor in the new movie should have turned down their paycheck, rather than "steal" the roles from the original actors (some of whom have died prior to this movie, most of the rest are not exactly going to enter the Olympics to take the Gold in gymnastics, if you know what I mean).

And The Man of Steel was similarly "ruined forever," even before the first issue of "The New 52" (the number of mainstream titles that DC published as well as a reference to 52 alternate Earths in their continuity) hit the stands, even before a single page of artwork was drawn and shared with the community at large.  DC was "turning its back on older fans" and "going to drive away all their readers" because they were no longer publishing "THE" Superman.

(Before you ask, yes, all quotes are from actual posts that I've read and rolled my eyes at)

In both cases, these judgments were made by people who had never seen the movie, hadn't read the comic books, and had no intention whatsoever of doing so.

Granted, I understand the feeling of disenfranchisement that comes with change.  However, the vehemence of the reactions took me aback.  I mean I'd listened to the "fans" dissing John Byrne revamping Superman in 1986, Michael Keaton portraying Batman on the wide screen, and then the howls of outrage when he left the role to Val Kilmer.

Now how does this relate to creativity?  (or was this just an excuse to rant against the current level of social platform criticism ... well, now that you mention it ... )  We've discussed rejection in earlier editions of this blog.  If you don't remember those, feel free to check out earlier editions of this blog (and a refresher is always encouraged).

One roadblock many writers/artists/actors face in presenting their talents to the public is the possibility of receiving negative feedback.  Too much weight is given to the other party, putting them in charge of our attitude towards ourselves and our artistic endeavors.

One local theater group had a Facebook page to promote their shows and a volunteer to provide the site with continual content.  Well, the theater took down its page for fear of someone posting something, anything, negative.  A few weeks before, another local theater group received a trollish posting and the other fans of the acting troupe pretty much tore the offending writer a fresh, and much needed, orifice. But this group preferred to cut themselves off from free publicity, rather than endure just one sling, just one arrow of contrary opinion.

Too many potential Oliviers have never set foot on a stage for fear of someone telling them they lacked talent.  Manuscripts sit in locked drawers -- or worse yet, never written at all -- because of a writer's fear of a bad review or a rejection slip.  And sometimes, the negativity becomes more believable when it's delivered by a so-called friend.  Also, it's all too easy to fall into the negative mob mentality.

But the only way you can never fail is to never make an attempt at success.  You'll miss 100% of all the targets you never aim at.  And the only way to never receive a negative review is to never put your talent out for display.

But you should never let that stop you.  If someone has a criticism that's useful, see if you can apply it.  If the feedback comes from someone who can't articulate their opinion or justify their judgment, let their words roll off your back.  If they can't criticize without name calling or ridicule, drop them like a live ember.

Frequently, I've found that many critics are, to be honest, so full of crap that their eyes should be brown.  Most people who have the time and inclination to assess your work really have no basis for judging, except if it appeals to them on a level that they can't put into words.  I mean if a piece or performance works in a way that the person enjoys it, that's good.  But as a creator, you want to know why.  Keep searching until you can find that critic who has the words to help you grow as a creative entity.

If you're like me, you'll find your worst critic (in terms of both quality of judgment, usually) is yourself.  That's why putting a different set of eyes to your work is important.

***

"CrimsonAgent93" adjusted his glasses and rested his fingers on the edge of the keyboard.  He pondered what he was going to say as well as the reaction.  Was he looking for "attaboys"?  Was he seeking ego gratification?  What if the source of his snark happened to read his review?  What if that guy didn't read it?

Would it worth the time and effort to create a blog entry?  Would the work improve?  Would the sun shine a little more brightly tomorrow?

Just whose mind was he trying to change? 

"CrimsonAgent93" turned off his monitor and considered his next words carefully.  For once ... 

***
Just a couple of quick aside here ...

First, thanks for putting up with my irregular schedule lately.  I've had to get some rush projects done but I hope to put out (he said "put out") a couple of entries a week for a few weeks.

Second, check out www.audiomoviesclub.com.  Mary Hackett heads up a great team of performers, writers, and technical people who put out all-ages friendly, reasonably priced audio adventures, or "the best movies you'll ever hear."  Get in on the ground floor and enjoy their terrific stories!

Third, my friends Jim Amash and Teresa Davidson run a page on Facebook called Buster's Boosters.  Buster was a beloved cat who left this world too soon, but with a lot more love than when he came here.  Jim and Teresa have worked for various comic book companies, Archie Comics in particular, and are helping repay Buster's owner for medical expenses incurred while trying to save the animal.

Go to https://www.facebook.com/BustersBoosters where Jim and Teresa are selling original art pages from various comic books they've worked on as well as original sketch commissions.  The pages are VERY reasonably priced, many as low as ten buck a page, and you can often pic up entire stories filled with your favorite Riverdale friends.  So if you would, please help my friends help their friend while giving yourself a one-of-a-kind work of art.

Meanwhile, what's the worst or best criticism you've ever received?  Let me know at bkmorris56@gmail.com or leave me a comment below.  See you in a few days!