Fandoms are all around us. Anyone who has ever been on the fandom section of tumblr has feels for their OTP and ships something so much that it hurts, but the common population has no idea what any of these things mean.
This column will fix that by educating the common people on the fandom members surrounding them on Columbia’s own campus.
This week focuses on “SuperSam the Superman Superfan” aka Samantha Duncan, CC ’16. Sam grew up a lover of superheroes and cites Batman as her first hero. However, when her mom got her a copy of the 90s show Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, Sam immediately fell in love with the man of steel and became actively involved with the fan culture when she attended San Diego Comic-Con in 2010.
Talking to Sam about Superman is like talking to Sarah Palin about going rogue. You’ve opened Pandora’s Box.
I heard her go on about what a strong character Lois Lane is and how she truly is an independent woman, a hero in her own regard. She mentions Superman’s relatability as her favorite thing about the hero. When I pointed out that he is actually an alien, she answered, “It’s so complicated. You want to be Batman but you’re not Batman. You’re Clark Kent. The way that he struggles to fit in is super relatable. We all struggle to fit in.”
Just part of Sam's collection of memorabilia.
