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NOTE - This has been needed in print form for far too long, so here you go. Enjoy and talk among yourselves.

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Mandel's Law and Rules of Canon
by Richard Mandel

version 1.0 - 2023/09/01

I didn't make these. They existed long before I came along, and most of these have been expressed in some form and in various ways by others through the years. All I'm doing is putting them together in one place in an easy-to-understand form for everyone's sake. The only reason I'm putting my name on them is because I'm the one setting them down in this form. If you have another or if you prefer the way somebody else has said or put part or all of these, then feel free. Okay?

Mandel's Law of Canon
     CANON is whatever it needs to be at any point in time and for any purpose necessary in order for the creator and/or owners of a given media property or franchise to promote any particular product.

Mandel's Rules of Canon
(i.e. what IS canon for any given media franchise?)

1. Canon

     Anything that appears in the prime medium of that property or franchise, or that the property owner or franchise holder officially declares is canon even if it doesn't appear in said medium.

     Prime example: the on screen rule for most video based media (if it appears on screen, it's canon)
     Secondary example: "It's in the book." This also includes rulebooks for all kinds of games

   Caveat: All forms of official canon can change over time per the whims of the property owner or franchise holder (example: the changing status of TAS with regards to the Trek franchise over the decades). This includes declared canon too.

2. Semi-canon

     Anything that appears in any form of media licensed or authorized by the property owner or franchise holder but is not included in any official CANON media format.

     Prime example: licensed publications (books, magazines, old style and modern video games, etc.)

     Secondary example: official newsletters, behind-the-scenes production materials, interview data with authors and creators or recognized franchise personnel and affiliates, etc.

Caveat: semi-canon sometimes becomes near-canon, as in used by the property owner or franchise holders themselves without ever being declared as canon, on in selected cases it can become declared canon (the Trek franchise is the prime example in both cases). Near-canon is a special form of semi-canon but it's still not official canon.

3. Fanon

     Anything done by the fans of a given media property or franchise

     Examples: fanzines, fanfics, other fan publications, fan video game mods or add-ons, any and all other forms of franchise print and artistic media, any and all fan produced audiovisual media, etc., all of which never receive official property owner or franchise holder authorization but are usually tolerated and sometimes even encouraged. It IS also possible for something that's fanon to move up the ladder to a higher form of canon status (semi, near, declared), and there are multiple examples of this.

4. Non-canon

     Anything that isn't CANON.

     This includes all semi-canon and fanon materials in any and all form. This doesn't negate any potential usefulness for these materials in any way. They're just not CANON. That's all.

     Caveat: Sometimes canon status is revoked for some things even if they previously qualified as canon and they become officially declared non-canon. Again, this is entirely up to the whims of the property owner or franchise holder (again the Trek TAS example).

I'm sure you folks could think of more and some of you might want to expound mightily on this, but remember the old K.I.S.S. principle. Keep It Simple, Stupid. Oh, and don't get me started on alternate realities, multiverses, and metaverses. That's a whole different ball of wax there, although some of the same principles probably still apply. As I said -- Keep It Simple, Stupid. XD

That's it, folks!

Description

NOTE - This has been needed in print form for far too long, so here you go. Enjoy and talk among yourselves.

--------------------

Mandel's Law and Rules of Canon
by Richard Mandel

version 1.0 - 2023/09/01

I didn't make these. They existed long before I came along, and most of these have been expressed in some form and in various ways by others through the years. All I'm doing is putting them together in one place in an easy-to-understand form for everyone's sake. The only reason I'm putting my name on them is because I'm the one setting them down in this form. If you have another or if you prefer the way somebody else has said or put part or all of these, then feel free. Okay?

Mandel's Law of Canon
     CANON is whatever it needs to be at any point in time and for any purpose necessary in order for the creator and/or owners of a given media property or franchise to promote any particular product.

Mandel's Rules of Canon
(i.e. what IS canon for any given media franchise?)

1. Canon

     Anything that appears in the prime medium of that property or franchise, or that the property owner or franchise holder officially declares is canon even if it doesn't appear in said medium.

     Prime example: the on screen rule for most video based media (if it appears on screen, it's canon)
     Secondary example: "It's in the book." This also includes rulebooks for all kinds of games

   Caveat: All forms of official canon can change over time per the whims of the property owner or franchise holder (example: the changing status of TAS with regards to the Trek franchise over the decades). This includes declared canon too.

2. Semi-canon

     Anything that appears in any form of media licensed or authorized by the property owner or franchise holder but is not included in any official CANON media format.

     Prime example: licensed publications (books, magazines, old style and modern video games, etc.)

     Secondary example: official newsletters, behind-the-scenes production materials, interview data with authors and creators or recognized franchise personnel and affiliates, etc.

Caveat: semi-canon sometimes becomes near-canon, as in used by the property owner or franchise holders themselves without ever being declared as canon, on in selected cases it can become declared canon (the Trek franchise is the prime example in both cases). Near-canon is a special form of semi-canon but it's still not official canon.

3. Fanon

     Anything done by the fans of a given media property or franchise

     Examples: fanzines, fanfics, other fan publications, fan video game mods or add-ons, any and all other forms of franchise print and artistic media, any and all fan produced audiovisual media, etc., all of which never receive official property owner or franchise holder authorization but are usually tolerated and sometimes even encouraged. It IS also possible for something that's fanon to move up the ladder to a higher form of canon status (semi, near, declared), and there are multiple examples of this.

4. Non-canon

     Anything that isn't CANON.

     This includes all semi-canon and fanon materials in any and all form. This doesn't negate any potential usefulness for these materials in any way. They're just not CANON. That's all.

     Caveat: Sometimes canon status is revoked for some things even if they previously qualified as canon and they become officially declared non-canon. Again, this is entirely up to the whims of the property owner or franchise holder (again the Trek TAS example).

I'm sure you folks could think of more and some of you might want to expound mightily on this, but remember the old K.I.S.S. principle. Keep It Simple, Stupid. Oh, and don't get me started on alternate realities, multiverses, and metaverses. That's a whole different ball of wax there, although some of the same principles probably still apply. As I said -- Keep It Simple, Stupid. XD

That's it, folks!