EnstarsTwt 101: exploring the organizational characteristics of the online Ensemble Stars fandom

Being a fan is not anymore about merely binge watching one’s favorite media, collecting merchandise, and enjoying one’s passion and love in solitude. The conduct of activities as a fan can now be done within the context of a group, which is illustrated by the existence of fandoms over the years. Ensemble Stars, a Japanese joseimuke mixed media project, is among one of many growing fandoms in the 21st Century, with the said project being one of the most popular among its types, alluring audiences and thereby gaining fans beyond geographical boundaries. The fandom, primarily existing online, illustrates characteristics attributed to being a unique form of organization. This study, in particular, seeks to understand what these characteristics are within the context of the Enstars fandom, through an exploratory research conducted primarily with an online focus group discussion. The findings revealed characteristics about the following: (1) its members, who are known among each other through their favorite characters, or by the roles they assume based on their activities; (2) their interactions, primarily centered on and organized through discussions of narrative and casts; (3) their norms and regulations, founded on a collective idea of fostering a safe space, which arise when discourses occur either among individual members, with the media itself, or with issues of misinformation, and (4) their influence to larger structures and social actors, which influence the very media they are a fan of, attesting to its existence as an organization and not merely being a collective of individuals fans put together.