I find your statement that my enjoyment of a bunch of 20-to-30-year-old novels 'dictated' anything
Indeed, I meant the showrunners, not the readers.
Showrunners should keep continuity in the media they are working in, not surprise fans by introducing changes from different media viewers may not be familiar with. The Marvel films don't suddenly introduce changes from the Marvel comics, with the expectation that film goers should have read the comics - they keep the films consistent with each other.