"I believe that science fiction is as profound as you want it to be or it can be very simple entertainment, and I'm all for very simple entertainment. Every now and then we all need to come home, veg-out, watch something and not think too deeply about it. It's what you want it to be. We tend to steer clear of being pedantic; it's entertainment first, otherwise we'd be on a lecture circuit"
About this Quote
The subtext is industry-savvy. He’s speaking from inside a fandom ecosystem that’s perpetually negotiating status. Sci-fi is forever being asked to justify itself as “important” art, and the quickest way to do that is to get preachy. Flanigan pushes back: “pedantic” is the enemy because it breaks the contract. Viewers don’t come to be corrected; they come to feel. And when a show starts acting like it’s “on a lecture circuit,” it’s not elevating the audience, it’s demanding homework.
There’s also a subtle claim about agency. “It’s what you want it to be” hands meaning back to the viewer, not the author. That’s a quietly democratic take on genre: depth isn’t a badge bestowed by critics or showrunners; it’s something audiences co-produce based on mood, context, and appetite. Sci-fi survives because it can be a mirror one night and a blanket the next.
Quote Details
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Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Flanigan, Joe. (2026, January 17). I believe that science fiction is as profound as you want it to be or it can be very simple entertainment, and I'm all for very simple entertainment. Every now and then we all need to come home, veg-out, watch something and not think too deeply about it. It's what you want it to be. We tend to steer clear of being pedantic; it's entertainment first, otherwise we'd be on a lecture circuit. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/i-believe-that-science-fiction-is-as-profound-as-50852/
Chicago Style
Flanigan, Joe. "I believe that science fiction is as profound as you want it to be or it can be very simple entertainment, and I'm all for very simple entertainment. Every now and then we all need to come home, veg-out, watch something and not think too deeply about it. It's what you want it to be. We tend to steer clear of being pedantic; it's entertainment first, otherwise we'd be on a lecture circuit." FixQuotes. January 17, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/i-believe-that-science-fiction-is-as-profound-as-50852/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"I believe that science fiction is as profound as you want it to be or it can be very simple entertainment, and I'm all for very simple entertainment. Every now and then we all need to come home, veg-out, watch something and not think too deeply about it. It's what you want it to be. We tend to steer clear of being pedantic; it's entertainment first, otherwise we'd be on a lecture circuit." FixQuotes, 17 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/i-believe-that-science-fiction-is-as-profound-as-50852/. Accessed 12 Feb. 2026.
