FANS ARE GOING TO SEE IT ANY WAY THEY WANT - THE RHETORICS OF THE VOLTRON: LEGENDARY DEFENDER FANDOM

Aug 24, 2026

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This dissertation explores the rhetorics of a contentious online fan community, the Voltron: Legendary Defender fandom, and how identity markers shape harassment. Focusing on queer and/or female participants, it examines antis—fans who targeted others through blackmail, stalking, death threats, and sexualized accusations. Using ethnographically and autoethnography-informed survey methods, the researcher documents trauma tied both to harassment and to the show’s criticized ending, including the killing of the woman of color lead and marginalization of the queer character. It also reflects on research ethics and provides steps for future methodology.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages206

Reading Time8 h 39 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Acknowledgments

Introduction and Research Focus

Ethnography and Autoethnography-Informed Survey

Ethical Considerations in Representing Trauma

Findings on Harassment Patterns

Motivations of Antis and Shipping Conflicts

Forms of Abuse and Accusations

Impact of the Show’s Ending

Contributions and Recommendations for Future Research

Closing Dedication

"FANS ARE GOING TO SEE IT ANY WAY THEY WANT": THE RHETORICS OF THE VOLTRON: LEGENDARY DEFENDER FANDOM Renee Ann Drouin A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate College of Bowling Green State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY May 2021 Committee: Lee Nickoson, Advisor Salim A Elwazani Graduate Faculty Representative Neil Baird Montana Miller © 2021 Renee Ann Drouin All Rights Reserved ABSTRACT Lee Nickoson, Advisor The following dissertation explores the rhetorics of a contentious online fan community, the Voltron: Legendary Defender fandom. The fandom is known for its diversity, as most in the fandom were either queer and/or female. Primarily, however, the fandom was infamous for a subsection of fans, antis, who performed online harassment, including blackmailing, stalking, sending death threats and child porn to other fans, and abusing the cast and crew. Their motivation was primarily shipping, the act of wanting two characters to enter a romantic relationship. Those who opposed their chosen ship were targets of harassment, despite their shared identity markers of female and/or queer. Inspired by ethnographically and autoethnography informed methods, I performed a survey of the Voltron: Legendary Defender fandom about their experiences with harassment and their feelings over the show’s universally panned conclusion. In implementing my research, I prioritized only using data given to me, a form of ethical consideration on how to best represent the trauma of others. Unfortunately, in performing this research, I became a target of harassment and altered my research trajectory. In response, I collected the various threats against me and used them to analyze online fandom harassment and the motivations of antis. The primary patterns from the participants in my survey demonstrate a community that was heavily influenced by online harassment from a vocal minority and attacked in both physical and digital spaces, facing slurs, doxxing, death threats, and, primarily, accusations of supporting child pedophilia and incest, as antis falsely claimed characters non-antis favored were related or underage. Further complicating fans’ trauma was the show’s ending, in which the woman of color lead was killed, and the queer character marginalized, resulting in a community left questioning if their harassment was worth the levels of trauma from both antis and the show itself. This dissertation contributes to our understanding of what online harassment looks like, how identity markers shape the rhetorics behind harassment, and what future studies are necessary to better address such harassment. Additionally, through my experiences with harassment, I option several steps future researchers should consider when performing, teaching, and planning research methodologies. To the victims and survivors of online harassment and, as always, my Nana, Myra Gallagher Arasimowicz ACKNOWLEDGMENTS There are countless people this project and I are indebted to for their trust, support, and faith. First, I want to thank all my participants who entrusted me with their truths and traumas. Without you, there would only be an empty page and my lingering frustrations over fandom. Your willingness to share with me is the only reason I succeed. Many of the participants were or became friends of mine. I want to extend an additional level of affection for the folks of HWriteTeen, our old fandom writing group. You were there for me during the worst of the trauma, and I carry you in my heart forever. To my newer friends, your kindness and patience during this process has carried me across the finish line. Thank you, my online neighbors and friends. To my coheart (Brandie, Bailey, Lena, Brian, and bonus Annie): Thank you for the laughter, love, and kindness. Above all else, thank you for giving me a family in Ohio. There is no group I’d rather be in meetings, conf

FAQs

What is the main focus of the dissertation about the Voltron fandom?

The dissertation examines the rhetorics of harassment within the Voltron: Legendary Defender online fan community, with particular attention to how identity markers shape those interactions.

Who are “antis,” and what actions are discussed?

Antis are described as fans who performed online harassment, including blackmailing, stalking, death threats, and sending sexual content, and who targeted others for opposing a preferred ship.

How did the show’s ending affect participants’ experiences?

The dissertation connects participants’ trauma to the show’s widely criticized conclusion, including the death of the woman of color lead and the marginalization of the queer character.

Aug 24, 2026

Upload by Rhys