I was following a few threads in many different groups about the canon of certain shows. When it comes to science fiction there are a few factors that need to be considered. One factor is the original intent of the author if we are talking about a specific novel like Dune. Another factor is his age and the generation where he perceives from. This is important because the culture of the time will affect his writing. Writers for TV shows fall into the similar parameters that I mention but they are not identical, a TV show can be owned by a corporation. For example, Doctor Who is owned by the BBC and has many writers. For now, let's talk about the Canon in regards to the author of books. Good novels will sometime end up in the media in the form of movies or TV shows some novels develop their own fan base, like Dune. So far I have seen two versions of Dune the theater version and a TV serial.
Both versions are based on the book but the writer has taken some liberties. When a person reads a novel they use their own imagination to set up the scenery. TV producers have to create the scenery and the background this is why you may see a difference between a movie and a TV serial or your own imagination versus the other two. Also, remember that TV producer's main purpose besides entertainment it's to roll in the cash in the form of advertisement, etc, etc, etc. So for TV shows the cannon is whatever the producers wanted it to be. The average science fiction fan doesn't see this because they don't care about a company's income or ratings if a fan likes the show, he likes the show and not all the fans are the same. Many fans get hot under the collar when their favorite science fiction show has been canceled due to the poor ratings. Something similar occurs when a movie comes from the book onto the big screen. The producer for the movie takes a big risk. The movie can generate income or it could become a flop. If a movie generates income, wait for the sequel. If it's a flop well then that's it.
Now let's talk about culture based on generation. (Boomers, millennials, and now the snowflake generation). Here is where novels, movies, TV shows go to separate ways about Cannon. For movies and TV shows based on a novel, it is a bit difficult to address cultural differences based on a generation. A good example is Doctor Who who is owned by a corporation like the BBC. To keep their ratings The Corporation will hire writers so they can keep in touch with the current generation and the writers will write to attract the current generation, which today is Generation snowflake. So Doctor Who has made major changes to their story; their characters to pacify generation snowflake which is the congregation of social justice Warriors of planet Earth. This is not new, many Battlestar Galactica fans saw some changes in secondary characters too. In the Battlestar Galactica franchise. The way they got around this by allowing the primary characters to remain the same, but the secondary characters could be altered by their gender with no major effect on the show.
There is a new version of the novel Dune. I understand that secondary characters may have sex changes and in many forums dedicated to Dune, you can see Troll Wars and Flame Wars about these changes ( one can also see them in the doctor who forums). It is okay to have a difference of opinion it is not okay to attack people based on their opinion that's called ad hominem and it is a cognitive fallacy. On the other side, I have seen Forum administrators banning people because of their opinion. Sad to say some of these administrators are themselves SJW. That is not a problem per se, it becomes a problem When administrators ban people because of an opinion. It is just poor form. I myself have been banned by different forums when I expressed an opinion. It is not my fault if the opinion starts a flame War. However, I've been banned because all of a sudden my opinion exactly considered to be trolling now. But I digress when it comes to science fiction and the factors that I have discussed there will always be a change in cannon. If the change is too great one can always stop watching the show may bring down to show ratings and the show will get cancel or the writers will change again to attract the audiences used to have. As for dune... Let's wait and see...
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