Retronym/Headscratchers

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.


  • Why do people do this??? Why can't you just call the first installment by its actual name, it's not like people will be confused without that handy little 1 at the end.
    • Because the name only might refer to the franchise as a whole.
      • We do that in Sailor Moon fandom; in the first season, "Sailor Moon" was just Sailor Moon, referring to both franchise and season. But when it was continued into Sailor Moon R, then S, then SuperS, and finally Stars, "Sailor Moon" referred to the entire series, and the first season is usually called Sailor Moon Classic.
    • Because people do get confused without the disambiguation. For instance, if I say the plot of Star Wars is a tepid fantasy, am I referring to the first movie (in which case I have an arguable point), the original trilogy (in which case I have much less of a point), all of the movies collectively (in which case I have practically no point), or the entire Expanded Universe as a whole (in which case I have no point whatsoever, and should be Dope Slapped for saying such a ridiculous thing)?