Not many things rile up a fanbase more than a drastic shift in direction with the characters or stories they love. Star Wars: The Last Jedi proved that Star Wars fans have a very difficult time accepting change in beloved characters. Iron Man 3 proved that no matter how clever the setup and twist, people will automatically jump to hate when the big bad of a film isn’t who they wanted.

Neither of these films are perfect, of course, but people have a very special distaste for when their personal expectations are not met. We wanted to see Luke fight Kylo and for Rey to be a Kenobi or Skywalker, but the film went in a more interesting and eye-catching direction. We, in our post-9/11 mentality, wanted the guy from the Middle East to be the Mandarin, a terrorist threatening national security and the safety of the U.S. citizens, but were shocked and even infuriated that the real threat turned out to be an American, creating a subversion and twist to an age-old Iron Man rivalry on the big screen.

I’ve been a fan of comic and movie stories for years. Indiana Jones was my go to film for adventure, and I was attracted to the ambition and grandeur of the Star Wars franchise. I enjoyed stories from both Marvel and DC comics. I exposed myself to all kinds of story-telling, and I can tell you that, even at a young age, I became aware of tropes and cliques in these stories. I am, of course, aware that nothing is actually original. Every story ever told was a borrowed story that’s been remixed, which doesn’t make them any less enjoyable. It just makes it seem more predicable. Picture my surprise watching Iron Man 3 at a young age, and discovering that the Mandarin was not the one who took over television screens across the country, but was merely a face for a sinister corporation.

Personally, I thought it was awesome. It was something I had never seen before. A bait and switch that made me second guess all elements in future pieces of media I watched. Yes, Iron Man 3 made me very paranoid after that first viewing, and I always looked for hints throughout different stories that might clue me into a secret villain or traitor. Iron Man 3 gave me an edge when it came to predicting a new kind of trope, so imagine my surprise years later when I discover people were upset with the Mandarin twist! It still baffles me, especially when you consider the fact that many in the past have criticized Marvel for being predictable.

Then there’s The Last Jedi, a movie so controversial, even mentioning the film’s existence will cause the fanboys to shout about how much they despise it. Some say that it is as bad as the Star Wars Holiday Special. These people can have their views on the film, as long as they can accept the fact that they view the film with a crippling, invalidating bias. When it came to tropes, The Last Jedi throws our expectations out the window in favor of something that keeps you focused. The film opened up and expanded my perspective of Star Wars and its potential. If they could pull of something this incredible and mind-bending, imagine what incredible ideas will come from the new films coming later!

This is why I like subversion. It can take characters we love or hate in unexpected directions. It pulls the rug out from under the audience and creates a sense of surrealism to the events taking place. It makes a journey more mysterious and engaging, keeping the audience on the edge of their seat wondering what in the world is going to happen. I’m always satisfied with the conclusion to well made subversive stories, like Iron Man 3 and The Last Jedi, because a bunch of elements with seemingly no correlation can culminate to a sensible and interesting conclusion.

There will always be some dissatisfaction from fans who wanted something and got something completely out of left field, even if the conclusion makes total sense with the context clues and in-universe explanations given. The important thing to remember is that these universes have a natural course that is written years in advance before their eventual execution on the big screen, so what they do set up now will be used in the next installment in a series. I highly doubt the overall structure of these stories is improvised. That would just be foolish.

In conclusion, stories that can catch me off guard but still have logical reasoning behind the surprise being revealed are stories I can legitimately say impressed me. I learn from my own reading and my dad about tropes and stories and writing techniques all the time, so when a writer can use an oddball writing strategy and make it work I can’t help but applaud. Again, no movie is perfect, but if I can enjoy the film, that’s all that matters to me. You do you. I don’t really care.