In Return of the Jedi, Obi-Wan says: “Many of the truths we cling to depend greatly on our own point of view.” That line meant as a retcon for a plot hole has become the perfect metaphor for fandom itself.Truth in Star Wars isn’t fixed. It changes depending on who you are, when you joined, and what you believe. For some, the Original Trilogy is the only truth. For others, the prequels are sacred. For Gen Z, Disney’s sequels and shows are the real Star Wars. All of these can be true at once but not to fandamentalist.
When fans treat their truth as the only truth, they stop listening. They call new content “heresy.” They attack actors. They cling to nostalgia like it’s a life raft. And they use phrases like “from a certain point of view” to dismiss anything that challenges their version of the story. The lesson from Obi-Wan is simpler than it seems: truth is subjective. Two truths can coexist. But in the digital age, where social media rewards outrage and binary thinking, that nuance gets lost. We’re entering what I call the Digital Dark Ages—where fandom isn’t about love anymore; it’s about control.
This post is adapted from my doctorate research on the intersection of religiosity and fandom.