Greg responds...

I do understand. I totally understand that we took a big risk and I totally understand that not everyone is happy with it. FULL STOP.

What I'm at a loss to understand is what I'm expected to do about it.

Keep in mind, responses come after the work is concluded. Concluded. I can't change history and undo stuff that's already been done.

And, of course, I don't want to, either. Cuz I like what we did. (I mean maybe not every second of every episode, but the vast tapestry of the thing, certainly.) And, frankly, the majority of our fandom agrees, judging by numbers alone. So even if I could, whom should I make changes for? A minority of fans who want one change or a different minority of fans who want some other change?

Beyond that, I'll simply repeat what I've always said. Brandon and I have to be passionate about what we're doing. That means following our best instincts and hoping that a majority of the fans like the result. So far that's basically worked for us. Not for EVERY fan, but for the great majority. It may not always work, of course, but what's the alternative? That we write stuff we don't like, to maybe please a subset of the fandom? How would that work? I mean, if Brandon and I aren't passionate about the work, how can we expect anyone - ANYONE - to view it and feel passionately about it. It would be hollow.

And your post is resplendent with that very contradiction: you say we have "one of the most dedicated fanbases in history who performed a miracle resurrecting this show," and I would sincerely agree wholeheartedly. But I have to think that the reason the fanbase is dedicated and performed that miracle is because they basically like what BV and I are doing. I mean the miracle happened after the timeskip. If the timeskip killed the show for the majority of the fandom, then I have to assume they wouldn't have helped us come back, right?

I can see how you interpret all of the above into "it's my show I'll do whatever I want and I don't care what you guys want," but I don't think that's fair. It's certainly doesn't capture the gist of what I've said, even if in essence, it reflects the end result. What I'm saying is, "we're the creators of the show and we HAVE to do the show we want because the alternative is something that literally winds up pleasing nobody."

If that's off-puttiing, I'm sorry. But it does have the virtue of being honest.