1. Introduction
[1.1] The interest of foreign fans in adaptations of Chinese danmei, or boys' love, web novels has skyrocketed since the late 2010s, particularly following the immense success of The Untamed (originally called Chen Qing Ling) television show in 2019. Its popularity has since extended well beyond the audiences already familiar with the Chinese entertainment industry and encouraged viewers to seek other titles of the genre. Consequently, many new fans have become active consumers of not only live-action TV adaptations but also other available components of the danmei transmedia universes (such as web novels, animations, and comic books).
[1.2] One example of such a title is the popular web novel Dumb Husky and His White Cat Shizun (2019; originally called Er Ha He Ta De Bai Mao Shi Zun—hereafter, 2ha). 2ha is set in a fictional xianxia world, a popular genre of Chinese fantasy based on Chinese mythology (Ni 2020). It tells the story of Mo Ran, a cruel emperor of the cultivation world (where warriors practice immortal arts of sword and meditation), who dies and is reborn into his fifteen-year-old body. The transmigration forces him to reevaluate his relationships with Chu Wanning, his former master (the titular Shizun), whom Mo Ran always loathed, and Shi Mei, his beloved fellow disciple. The book was later adapted into the TV series Immortality (n.d.; originally called Hao Yi Xing). Produced and set to be distributed by Tencent, Immortality allegedly received one of the biggest budgets among similar shows, which was largely attributed to the necessity for high-quality CGI effects.
[1.3] According to largely unverified rumors, the series was supposedly approved by the Chinese censorship authority in February 2021 and the date of release was then officially announced to be April 15, 2021. However, since then it has been delayed numerous times and as of April 2023, it has yet to be given a release date. This makes it more difficult for fans to engage in creative practices that normally serve as a way to increase participation and maintain their collective identity built through attachment to a specific media text (Tulloch and Jenkins 1995). In particular, without having access to either the episodes or promotional materials of Immortality, which often constitute the foundation of fan creativity, foreign fans are forced to find other ways to maintain their excitement for the upcoming series.
[1.4] I examine two prevalent participatory practices carried out by the fans of Immortality who are active on social media platform Twitter (now X). Said practices are treated as ways to maintain both fan interest in the series and the sense of collective fan identity despite the continuous absence of official content. Firstly, fans provide free marketing and promotions for the show. This is done through the investment of their personal resources, such as money, time, and skills, and results in organizing frequent giveaways of merchandise as well as (re)imagining the story in fan arts and video edits. Secondly, fans use their posting platform to ensure the increase of fandom unity. Such posts (also known as tweets and hereafter used interchangeably) often highlight the fandom's idea of authentic loyalty as being linked to perseverance in their attachment to the fan object. This cultivates a sense of exclusivity around the online fandom where only the best and most loyal can call themselves fans of Immortality. This emotional reward for their continuous engagement leads to fan satisfaction comparable to that which fandoms usually achieve from the consumption of official content.
2. Methodology
[2.1] Varis (2014) observes that while "ethnography […] can make a substantial contribution to the study of present-day […] digital culture(s)" (1), it is also a very diverse field "due to the various types of data and environments covered" (3). This article employs digital autoethnographic practice and long-term participative observation as an approach to studying fans and their activities in online social spaces. Ge argues that online experiences have become an intrinsic part of our everyday lives (2022, 1025). Additionally, despite the difference between the online and off-line fandom activities, these experiences essentially carry similar meanings and are performed to achieve similar purposes. In this case, I draw on digital ethnography to examine how fans of Immortality are able to maintain collective identity through continuous practices highlighting their perseverance and unwavering loyalty to the media text.
[2.2] In particular, this article focuses on a sample of posts collected on Twitter. Twitter is a platform that provides fans of different media content the opportunity to befriend and interact with one another, thus forming communities based on their common interests. Twitter is arguably one of the biggest and most accessible sites of its kind, which is the primary reason for my choice. It allows the fandom of Immortality—and that of the danmei genre in general—to build a community through the use of features such as following, tracking hashtags, commenting under user posts, and, most recently, circles that allow users to address only their chosen group of followers.
[2.3] The tweets examined in this article were all posted in the five-month period between January 2022 and May 2022. Although Immortality had been first postponed in April 2021, it was not until January 2022 that it became apparent that the suspension of danmei TV and web series would be indefinite. During this period of time, one can observe a significant increase in fan efforts to continue practices that build and maintain their collective identity. These activities are reflected in three relevant hashtags: "Immortality," "HaoYiXing," and "2ha." In addition to text, I was also interested in how visual content—such as leaked footage from the set of Immortality, photos of actors, fan-made memes, and more—enhanced and emphasized the emotional aspect of fan posting and their interactions. The findings are therefore based on the most prevalent trends emerging from the tweets, which reveal two specific types of creative labor performed by fans. The posts were grouped and examined accordingly. Since the purpose of this study is to analyze fan interactions and their influence on fandom identity, I determined that it is not necessary to directly quote or name any of the users whose posts were analyzed during the period of my observation.
3. Danmei and danmei-adapted web drama
[3.1] The loose translation of danmei is "to indulge beauty." The term denotes fiction that focuses on romantic and sexual interactions between two male characters. Danmei was initially the domain of original web novels serialized on publishing platforms such as Jinjiang Literature City (https://www.jjwxc.net), dedicated exclusively to boys' love fiction (Ge 2022, 1021). The previously mentioned TV show The Untamed was also adapted from the web novel The Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation (2015–2016; original: Mo Dao Zu Shi), written by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu. While far from being the first of its kind, the series' huge success has additionally been attributed to online promotional activities of Chinese female fans (Ge 2022). Indeed, a large section of danmei consumers have been generally identified as young women (Tian 2020, 190). This resulted in mainstream multimedia companies taking a chance on the danmei genre. Due to explicit homoerotic themes banned by the Chinese state, such representations were seemingly entirely erased from TV adaptations of said novels (Bao 2020). Thus, in order to retain some of the less overtly queer-coded intimacy between male leads, their interactions are often described as a "socialist bromance"—a moniker born of a 2015 meme referring to the Soviet-Chinese propaganda posters. Such narratives are often described as dangai. The term refers to TV shows adapted from danmei novels in which the romantic elements are all but removed. Thus, introducing homoerotic intimacy in the guise of friendship or brotherhood allowed many web shows to both stay relatively faithful to the original plot and attract a target audience.
[3.2] The broadcast delay of Immortality is most likely a consequence of decades of struggle between Chinese media creators and the apparatus of censorship. Zeng and Sparks observe that producing a Chinese television program involves "reconciling the divergent capacities of different participants—political, economic, technical, aesthetic and so on" (2019, 56). That is due to the fact that all media contents fall under the Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) political influence (Tai 2014). The criteria of a successful television venture thus encompass not only the financial and creative satisfaction achieved by the production company but also the cultural and economic aspirations of the CCP (Zeng and Sparks 2019, 57). In a like manner, the authorities are able to implement a ban on any creative content if it is perceived as either vulgar or violent (58). Thus, despite the initial increase in online visibility of danmei novels and comic books in the 1990s due to their influx from Japan, in 2007 the Chinese authorities undertook steps to tighten the reins on content broadly defined as obscene and erotic (Hockx 2015, 116).
[3.3] Taking this into consideration, the production of web series that were initially seen as a suitable alternative to more conservative traditional mass media in recent years has been radically limited. The expansion of the internet in China in the early 2000s had initially allowed web dramas to develop and evolve alongside it. According to Zhang, web dramas can be defined as "independent, co-operative or commissioned production by video websites, using new online media as the main broadcasting platform, using drama as the aesthetic form, showing in-depth historical, social and life aspects, and giving people a general impression of the world" (2018, quoted in Zhang 2023, 37). Zhang notes that the year 2014 was particularly prolific, as the total number of web dramas broadcast on various streaming platforms exceeded 205 (2023, 37). However, since the issuance of the "General Rules for Reviewing Netcasting Content" in June 2017, web dramas have become subject to deeper scrutiny. The act passed by the China Netcasting Services Association became a particular hindrance for danmei web dramas, as it officially banned homosexual content in web series. While general depictions of sexual acts, gay or straight, had already been thought to fall under the category of pornography, "dual association with homosexuality and pornography" has caused danmei series to receive even more severe examination (Yang and Xu 2017, 4).
[3.4] Adaptations of danmei novels released thereafter have thus encountered the additional challenge of seeking compromise between trying to adhere to the original content of the novel and not being able to portray homosexual storylines in any explicit way (Yan 2019, 33). Trying to bypass censorship has resulted in many strategies with varying degrees of success. For example, some creators opt to adapt their script from popular danmei web novels, as the copyright acquisition process tends to be less complicated and less expensive (Xie 2018, 57–58; Yan 2019, 36). However, such stories are then suitably gender-swapped or a female character is added in order to feature a heterosexual romance as the focal point. Revive (2016; original: Chong Sheng Zhi Ming Liu Ju Xing) is one example of changes that have now become a fairly common occurrence. Unsurprisingly, rewriting this essential part of the story usually causes frustration among fans of the original work.
[3.5] In other cases, the strict censorship regulations result in stories being reworked to emphasize what Hu and Wang (2020) describe as bromance-as-masquerade—"a representational strategy of depicting male–male romance under the guise of homosocial bromance" (1). While the notion of a masquerade denotes many meanings, its primary function is to disguise the romantic connotations between the two leads while retaining the subtext of romantic intimacy. TV series such as Beloved Enemy (2017; original: Jue Dui Zhengfeng) or S.C.I (2018; original: S.C.I Mianji) provided viewers with just enough ambiguous moments between the male leads to not spoil that fantasy. Those audience members who are unaware of the danmei origins of the story are likely to overlook the nonplatonic connotations; those who are aware may still enjoy the romantic interpretation. In his study of fan culture, Fiske observes that fans often use information about the artist present in the media content, such as TV shows, in order to "[increase their] power […] to 'see through' to the production processes normally hidden by the text and thus inaccessible to the non-fan" (1992, 43). This theory can also be modified and applied to dangai dramas, as the knowledge of the original text might enhance both the audience's understanding and appreciation of the complexity of the story that nonfans are excluded from. Due to such ambiguities, dangai dramas often conclude in an enigmatic manner that might either give hints to a happy reunion between the leads, as in The Untamed, or point to their death or eternal separation, as in Guardian (2018; original: Zhen Hun).
[3.6] Although Chinese censorship has always strictly regulated the release of nonheterosexual content, until 2021 danmei and dangai series had been able to adapt to those requirements and continue to broadcast. Just one month prior to Immortality's initial release date, another web drama took Chinese entertainment fandoms by storm. Bearing similarities to The Untamed, Word of Honor (2021; original: Shan He Ling) is a low-budget production starring then fairly unknown actors. It is based on a lesser-known web novel by Priest (who wrote, among other titles, Guardian). Taking these circumstances into consideration, the drama had generated almost no initial excitement. It was only after it began airing that more viewers (both in China and abroad) took notice of the show. It can be said that lack of association with big celebrity names and no high-profile promotional campaign ultimately helped the drama avoid harsher scrutiny and receive release on online platform Youku. Word of Honor went on to become a massive hit and propelled both leads Gong Jun and Zhang Zhehan to stardom. Nonetheless, soon after, Zhang was embroiled in a scandal and accused of being unpatriotic due to his past visit to the Yasukuni shrine, the controversial symbol of a Japanese revisionist approach to crimes during the two Sino-Japanese Wars (1894–1895 and 1937–1945). Within days, Zhang was blacklisted from the industry and any trace of his existence—including Word of Honor and his earlier dramas—was erased from Chinese streaming platforms (Jones 2021).
[3.7] To some extent, the rise and downfall of Word of Honor could be seen as a contributing factor to the consequent chain reaction that put the release of Immortality in jeopardy. The influence of this single event should not be underestimated, considering that the earlier dangai hit The Untamed had also once been the center of controversy involving what were termed morally inappropriate fan behaviors that eventually led to blocking fan-community platform Archive of Our Own in China. The popularity of shows such as The Untamed and Word of Honor thus seems to be a double-edged sword. On the one hand, they help normalize onscreen nonheterosexuality. On the other hand, they are often targeted for their lack of compliance with CCP's ethical and cultural standards. The recent scandals linked to TV adaptations of danmei novels seem to have prompted the authorities to start their steady expulsion of any visual and narrative elements signifying queer content. In September 2021, Chinese authorities announced the boycott of so-called sissy male idols and encouraged promoting what they termed a correct beauty standard (Zhang 2021). Needless to say, such phrasing is vague and leaves the interpretation of what is appropriate completely up to the censor. Since danmei novels in particular often contain "depiction[s] of overtly feminine and androgynous male characters" (Yan 2019, 35), many recent screen adaptations of such works, including Immortality, feature actors who could be said to have a "pretty boy" appeal. To ban such appearances with little to no explanation as to what kinds of onscreen portrayals are supposed to be avoided seems to constitute yet another pretext to withhold queer-coded shows from wider release.
[3.8] In June 2022, the National Radio and Television Administration (NRTA) introduced new regulations requiring all web dramas to obtain a streaming license similar to that given to Chinese films. Some theorize that it might be the CCP's further response to the increased popularity of danmei adaptations (He 2022). Indeed, in recent months there has been no major release of a danmei-adapted drama, even though many had already finished shooting and some are still in production. These ongoing, often unexpected, and unexplained legal changes certainly test the patience and interest of domestic and foreign fandoms alike. However, as discussed in the following sections, the absence of content has yet to deter fan activities related to Immortality.
4. Building collective identity through engagement in creative practices
[4.1] Digitalization has been credited with facilitating the transformation of fan culture from community-based to operating on large online social platforms (Yin and Xie 2018). Traditionally, studies focusing on pop cultural texts, such as cinema and music, have often primarily defined fandoms through the lens of the intensity of connection to their fan object (for example, Abercrombie and Longhurst 1998). With the rise of the internet, more scholars have also noticed the creative and interpretative potential of fan communities that nowadays tend to be treated as resources for the mainstream media (Jenkins, Ford, and Green 2013). In addition, interpersonal bonds developed by fans in cyber spaces are observed to have allowed them to experience a sense of community through the construction of collective identity based on their attachment to a media text (Tulloch and Jenkins 1995; Lee et al. 2019). It is therefore no surprise that fans often gravitate toward platforms such as Twitter, which seem ideal to host similar, constantly growing groups. Twitter does not require membership except for the initial registration and, at present, is free of charge. Virtual interactions allow fandom communities to transcend various social, geographical, or mobility-related limitations (Rodham, McCabe, and Blake 2009). With access almost all around the world, one can find information, observe discussions, and participate in events by following relevant hashtags. Fandom communities are thus often studied in relation to social media settings due to the ease with which these communication and behavioral practices can be digitally carried out.
[4.2] Digital fandoms have long been associated with the concept of "participatory culture" (Jenkins 1992). Yin and Fung (2017) further note that Western fans in particular tend to form communities, building a collective identity based on their interest in the same fan object. Their activities also incorporate consumption and production practices. This stands in contrast with fandoms such as the Chinese ones, where the focus is placed on an individual's experiences (Benecchi and Wang 2018, 286) and identity creation (Yang and Xu 2016). In regard to community building, Friedkin points out that individuals' attitudes and behaviors are often constructed so as to encourage interpersonal interactions (2004). In their work on fan identities, Lee and colleagues connect these mechanisms to the emergence of group cohesion, which then allows for the creation of "collective identity and group participation, [and] is also maintained reciprocally by interpersonal interactions among individual members" (2019, 1). In part due to their size, online fandoms are generally perceived as scattered, lacking a centralized leadership. However, as time passes, certain fans inevitably emerge as leaders and become the driving force of the community. Such fans "can inspire, motivate, and mobilize, and they do so with persistence and enthusiasm" (Jia, Hung, and Zhang 2019, 106). Other participants often feel drawn to them, adapting their opinions, as well as reciprocating and engaging with their actions. Lee and colleagues further observe that behavioral engagement and reciprocation of various communication practices are crucial for building a sense of group identity as well as maintaining fandom energy and creative productivity (2019, 2).
[4.3] It seems relatively difficult to pinpoint a single definition that would accurately describe the notion of fan engagement. De Vreede and colleagues dub engagement "an important psychological concept that impacts human behavior and choice across many domains including education, employment, leisure, and marketing" (2019, 1). Contextualizing the term within the specific realm of transmedia cultures, Evans (2020) theorizes that engagement is both a type of behavior and a form of response. The scholar understands it as discursively powerful because it is "seen as denoting a fundamentally positive experience and encompasses a set of relations between producers, texts and audiences" (21). The claim that an engaging experience is one that can draw a person in and retain their attention has been previously theorized by Erving Goffman, who defines face engagement as "all those instances of two or more participants in a situation joining each other openly in maintaining a single focus of cognitive and visual attention—what is sensed as a single mutual activity" (1966, 88). In the digital era, physical presence is no longer a requirement to be able to engage with others and evoke their emotional reactions. Moreover, similar interactions in fan communities frequently lead to the emergence of creative practices that transform audiences from passive consumers to active cocreators and distributors of the media text (Jenkins, Ford, and Green 2013).
[4.4] I employ the above understanding of the concept of engagement. Through a variety of communication and behavioral practices, online participants maintain single focus on activities that aim to transform and popularize their favored media text. This definition additionally corresponds with the fan classification proposed by Jia, Hung, and Zhang (2019). In their study of celebrity fandoms, the scholars divided fans into different categories based on their motives: casual fans, fascinated fans, devoted fans, dysfunctional fans, and reflective fans (114). This classification emphasizes the textual productivity of fan communities (Zwaan and Duffett 2016). I am particularly interested in the idea of a devoted fandom. There are some notable characteristics of this group that are discussed in more detail in the following sections. Firstly, devoted fans are described as "voluntary marketers—promoters" (Jia, Hung, and Zhang 2019, 116). They actively encourage others to purchase products promoted by or associated with the celebrity and to attend their events. As a consequence, they often emerge as "opinion leaders […] and participate in the planning of […] the management of fans" (116). Secondly, fans will also emphasize their idol's superiority through actions that may either directly or indirectly target other celebrities and their fans, aiming to mock and insult them. Peer pressure is also associated with these behaviors, as other fans are frequently forced to exhibit similar attitudes and defend what is considered to be theirs at all times. Overall, exhibiting similar behaviors is meant to establish both the connection with the fan object and a sense of belonging to this particular group. Through continuous engagement and mutual interactions, devoted fans experience psychological fulfillment and pride (116).
5. Building collective identity through fan practices of marketing and promotion
[5.1] Although the broadcast date of Immortality remains unknown, hashtag population on Twitter and the overall fan engagement in the period between January 2022 and June 2022 suggested continued enthusiasm for the show. This can be attributed to many factors, among which the most prominent one is the steady rise in popularity of Asian boys' love content. Madill comments on the particular appeal of boys' love to straight women outside of Asia, suggesting that consuming texts about romantic and sexual relationships between men allows them to disengage from the "cultural power differences that play out between men and women in [similar] situations" (quoted in Zhao 2022, n.p.). Noticing the potential, in recent months the US-based publication company Seven Seas Entertainment (hereafter Seven Seas) has released official translations of several popular danmei titles. By popular demand, Seven Seas started with The Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation, which is now a worldwide phenomenon, thanks to its TV adaptation, The Untamed. This was followed by two other novels written by the same author: The Scum Villain's Self-Saving System (2014; original: Ren Zha Fanpai Zijiu Xitong) and Heaven Official's Blessing (2017; original: Tian Guan Ci Fu). Like Immortality, the latter's television adaptation has completed shooting but its current broadcast status remains unknown. Soon after, Seven Seas announced the publication of 2ha, and its first volume was eventually released in November 2022.
[5.2] The book release of 2ha can be observed as the first important event that inspired further cultivation of fan attachment to the text and motivated the fan community to become active promoters of the series in the English-speaking sphere. In March 2022, soon after the book was announced, many Twitter users with a history of engaging in danmei and 2ha content proceeded to organize giveaways of the novel and related fan-made merchandise. Giveaways have always been popular among fans, since they are often presented as an exclusive event with limited supply, making them irresistible (Cisyk and Courty 2021, 1). The value of a giveaway thus lies in the potentially infinite unpaid fan labor carried out around the 2ha and Immortality brand, since it is the participants themselves who create promotional buzz and draw attention to the release. By retweeting the giveaway post and leaving a favorable comment—which seem to be the two most common requirements for participation—one can be chosen to receive the desired item. The book's exclusive availability in anglophone countries and relatively high shipping cost make these opportunities especially attractive to those who cannot find them in their own countries. Additionally, the more Twitter users retweet and engage with the giveaway posts, the more access giveaway organizers have to a number of new Twitter users who follow the participants but may not have heard yet of 2ha and Immortality. Therefore, for the price of one book, multiple large-scale promotional campaigns can be set in motion.
[5.3] Moreover, similar events contribute to the creation and validation of fan identity among other members of the community. Many giveaways require participation effort beyond leaving a short comment, such as posting photos of one's 2ha merchandise or sharing favorite scenes from the novel. This creates a sense of exclusivity around shared knowledge of the 2ha/Immortality transmedia universe, drawing a clear distinction between casual and devoted fans. Another common requirement is to be a member of the Immortality Discord group. While Discord is essentially another social platform for instant messaging, one often needs to be invited into specific groups, which in turn ensures more selectivity. Establishing similar giveaway conditions narrows the number of potential participants to those who are considered the most active and emotionally invested, therefore deserving of a gift. Such practices point back to the idea of hierarchies within fan bases proposed by Jia, Hung, and Zhang (2019). Hirt and Clarkson additionally state that "the focus tends to be on the variations among fans in terms of the relative importance that their identity as a fan has within the pantheon of other social identities that comprise their overall sense of self" (2011, 3). In the case of Immortality's Twitter fan group, the longevity of their attachment to the text is equated with loyalty and seniority over casual fans. Both these elements contribute to the building of their fan identity within the community.
[5.4] Another, comparatively less common, form of promotion in which devoted fans of Immortality engage involves creative labor, such as fan art and video editing. Jenkins states that shaping the youth culture of the new millennium has less to do with inventing new art forms and more with engagement and reshaping of the existing media content (2008). Indeed, Immortality fans often post their own interpretative drawings of the narrative, sometimes juxtaposing them with photos of the cast members. This additionally includes reimagining promotional materials of other projects helmed by the cast of Immortality and appropriating them for the benefit of their fan audiences.
[5.5] Such practices seem particularly important for the maintenance of fan identity within their community, due to the prolonged absence of official Immortality content. In her study of fan art and identity shaping, Manifold similarly argues that narratives play an important part in creating self-identity (2009, 8). However, sustaining an authentic self-identity seems to be dependent at least in part on social interaction with like-minded individuals (Gauntlett 2002, 103). Sharing fan art is thus a way to create and maintain collective attachment to the chosen media text. In a like manner, there exist many high-quality, fan-edited videos that are noticed and celebrated by the fellow members of the community. Such videos often portray the two main actors, Luo Yunxi and Chen Feiyu, as a real-life romantic couple, emphasizing their good chemistry. Overall, video consumption becomes another way of world-building and filling in gaps in both the text and the fans' identities. Fans gather around them, reposting and commenting, and therefore continuing the word-of-mouth marketing beneficial to both the show and the fan community.
6. Loyalty and experience as components of building collective identity
[6.1] Another characteristic of devoted fandoms is their conformity to behaviors exhibited by the majority and, in particular, community leaders. These behaviors can sometimes be "less than desirable" in the way they "mock, insult and bully […] fans [of other celebrities or media]" (Jia, Hung, and Zhang 2019, 117). As of April 2023, Immortality has been shelved for more than two years due to possible issues with censorship. In the face of such uncertainty, fans often find comfort in venting their growing annoyance through passive-aggressive comments aimed at a variety of targets, including other danmei and dangai dramas, as well as their fans. Many Twitter users join in, retweeting and adding their own comments to the growing thread of collective frustration, thus establishing a vocal, fairly united front. Such behaviors can be understood as expressions of their loyalty to Immortality, which constitutes one of the foundational blocks of fan identity.
[6.2] Those who actively consume queer media online often form part of other communities revolving around boys' love content. Many users who primarily identify as fans of Immortality and 2ha additionally engage with other novels and TV shows. Commonly known as "multis" (fans of multiple TV shows), such fans are nonetheless often the target of ridicule over their lack of loyalty to a single media text and thought of as casual fans. In other words, only those who display loyalty to the fan object can be considered knowledgeable about it and therefore permitted to identify with it. The concept of fan loyalty has been widely researched, especially on the example of sports fans (Mahony, Madrigal, and Howard 2000; Chen 2006) and there have been just as many debates over its definition. Some scholars perceive consumption as its key component (Lin 2007) while others think of behavioral standards, such as repeat purchases, as a better illustration of loyalty (Jacoby and Chestnut 1978). In their study of pop music fandoms, Zhang and colleagues (2015) also suggest that fan loyalty can be measured through one's involvement, satisfaction, and affiliation with the fan object. In my opinion, this is the most accurate way to examine the Immortality fan community, as it fits with the previously discussed idea of devoted fandom. Overall, fan involvement refers to behavioral and emotional devotion displayed by a fan, while satisfaction refers to both the positive and negative effects experienced by a fan as a result of their involvement with the fan object and other fans. Satisfaction can also significantly influence their further involvement. Finally, affiliation is specifically linked to fans and their fan club and focuses on both their individual and collective identity as fans of the fan object (11–12).
[6.3] Immortality fans cannot be perceived as a fan community in the traditional sense of the definition, as the object of their attachment is still missing. Instead, their involvement and affiliation are prompted by behaviors indirectly related to the TV series—in particular, comparisons of their own experiences to those of fans of other media content. In their posts, Immortality fans often describe their experiences as an exercise in patience and perseverance. Feelings of hope and expectations for the TV show are additionally thought of as foolish and frustrating, since they never come to fruition. Therefore, any complaints from fandoms of other fan objects are often met with passive-aggressive remarks and dismissal as less important and significant. Similar posts can be interpreted as a way for Immortality fans to place themselves in a position of superiority to others, both in terms of loyalty and experiences.
[6.4] In a like manner, Immortality supporters often turn to depreciative humor. Transcending the proposed definition of devoted fans (Jia, Hung, and Zhang 2019) as bullies of competing fandoms, many posts are targeted at the self and their community, serving as a self-reflective reality check. The employment of fan-made memes and relating them to the series is a popular practice through which one can express their mood. The humor is frequently related to two specific items: the postponement of the series and the worth of the current version of Immortality after it has allegedly undergone many rounds of censorship scrutiny. In the first case, fans use a variety of morbid symbolisms like ghosts, skeletons, and cemeteries. One of the popular examples, which was independently reposted by many fans, is a short clip of Hoshi of Korean pop band Seventeen dancing with a plastic replica of a human skeleton. This video reflects fan sentiments in regard to the low probability of Immortality's future release—so low, in fact, that it might not even happen within the lifetime of its current fandom's members. The second type of tweets involving the use of memes speculates on the nature and meaning of known modifications to the plot. Those suspicions inevitably lead to further doubt over the worth of the series in its current state. Originally a love triangle between three male characters—Mo Ran, Chu Wanning, and Shi Mei—Immortality had gender-swapped Shi Mei and cast actor Chen Yao, a woman. This choice understandably caused upset among fans, who wondered about potential repercussions of this decision for the direction of the TV series. As previously discussed, many production companies choose to purchase rights to queer web novels with the intention of turning them into heterosexual romance. In the case of Immortality, this choice might potentially marginalize the depiction of love between male protagonists and therefore diminish the series' worth in the eyes of its fans.
[6.5] Similar outcries can be interpreted as further testament to the loyalty of the Immortality fan community. Posts containing mockery of one's naive perseverance can be seen as self-awareness and resignation, but they also symbolize unwavering loyalty and devotion to the fan object. The continuous emotional investment allows the fandom to unite and maintain its collective identity. Even the self-deprecating voices of criticism are a clear articulation of support and care for the yet to be seen final product. As such, all of the less than desirable behaviors (Jia, Hung, and Zhang 2019, 117) discussed in this section are signs of loyalty, which constitutes a crucial part of fan identity creation.
7. Conclusion
[7.1] This article has discussed the two most frequently observed ways of building collective identity among the Immortality fan community interacting on Twitter. Despite the current lack of access to their fan object, the participants seem to exhibit characteristics typical of a devoted fandom. Fans strengthen their engagement with the fan object through performing roles of marketers and promoters. In addition, interactions among fans and with competing fandoms allow the participants to further cultivate their loyalty to the fan object. All of these behaviors contribute to uniting the fan community under one collective identity, boosting morale and making the wait for Immortality seem more worthwhile.
[7.2] The trends in posts discussed in this article additionally demonstrate the value assigned to time invested in carrying out creative activities that contribute to the maintenance of fandom unity as well as protection of the cultivated fandom experience. Considering that at present very little is known about the plot of Immortality, fans are not able to achieve authentic emotional satisfaction through the standard methods of text consumption. As a form of substitution, the previously discussed activities create an alternative foundation on which fans base their involvement with the TV show and one another. While the content is not there to be consumed, fan engagement and accompanying emotions are genuine. As a consequence, even fans who seemingly accept the possibility of never being able to watch Immortality do not see this as a valid justification for giving up participation in its fan community. On the contrary, some seem to interpret the prolonged postponement of the series as legitimizing their status of better and more loyal fans.
[7.3] As this article focuses on a sample of posts related to Immortality, more research would be necessary to estimate the impact of other postponed danmei adaptations on international fandom identities in months to come. However, the seemingly unwavering loyalty fans display in the face of limited exposure to their fan object might be an indication of how one's own need of being a fan sometimes transcends the fundamental condition of becoming one. In other words, at present it is not the content of Immortality but the concept of liking Immortality that has successfully united and mobilized fan efforts. In the future, it would be beneficial to see how this series—or further lack thereof—influences the dynamics of this diverse group.