Pulling out the emotional heartstring card, eh.
Well, as I said, I love Seaview on so many levels. From its beautiful (and award winning) architectural design to the feeling I still get whenever I see it again, even in its current decrepit state - the exact same feeling that I experienced as a 13-year-old upon first locating the house back when DS was still on the air. But as much of an emotional touchstone as the house is for me, I would still rather see a different house used in the Depp/DS film.
I can certainly relate to the feeling that for many fans Seaview IS Collinwood and no other house will really be Collinwood to them. I originally felt that way about Lyndhurst. As architecturally outstanding as it is, for the longest time I never fully accepted it as Collinwood. But that had more to do with the notion I'd had in my head that I didn't see Lyndhurst as the type of house that could have the closed off wings that were so much a part of the original daytime DS. But that wasn't fair to Lyndhurst because hoDS and NoDS aren't the original series and their Collinwood shouldn't be judged by what Collinwood is like in the original series because those films are completely separate from the original series. Interestingly, though, after seeing photos of Greystone, after seeing how Greystone was "enhanced" for the '91 series, and particularly after learning the completely different backstory of Collinwood, I instantly accepted it as Collinwood. I suppose for me acceptance is all about separating the original series from any and all other versions of DS - and having a different house be Collinwood goes a long way in helping that separation. Seaview as Collinwood is an icon I will always lovingly associate with the original series. But I don't really want to associate Seaview with other versions of DS because they aren't the original version of DS, nor should they be expected to be. They should be allowed to stand completely on their own.
Sorry. That's just the way
I feel.
And as for choosing with one's heart, well, often times our hearts will lead us down paths that we shouldn't go, paths that would be best for us to avoid. The heart isn't the most reliable or objective decision making organ.