Do you wish you had joined the fandom earlier?

[Evil Pink One 13,001]

Nope.....hahaha no offense... I loved the show because I wasn't influenced by the fandom at the point I started...

[Megas 27,069]

I joined pretty early actually. I wanna say when S2 was announced. I know it was between S1 and S2

[Astralshy 23,591]

Well, I joined the forum a month after I became a fan of this show. This one month is not so much time, so I would say no. The real and interesting question is rather whether I wished I had discovered the show earlier in my life. This would be definitely a yes and then I also would have joined these forums earlier.

[Savygriffs 5,022]

I actually joined pretty early, like 2011 or so.

So I guess I've been in the fandom since the beginning, or pretty close to it sfsnfkdnsf

[AveryGamerDude 4,640]

Oh, yes, definitely. I wish I've been on board since the beginning.

[JMTV99 1,348]

Yes! I watch The Hub back when it first came out in 2010, and I should've watch MLP when it first aired because I would've love it, similar to Powerpuff Girls.

[ExplosionMare 18,007]

If I had joined earlier, the only thing that would have been different is that I would have caught up on the show much earlier

[Splashee 28,537]

I think I joined at a good time, 2019. It was the last half of the last season, and I got to be part of that. I was also part of the early days, but only as a viewer of YouTube videos such a Brony Reacts.

[Twilight Sparkle97 395]

I was only 11 when it first launched, so I wasn't old enough until I turned 13 in 2013. So yeah, I wish I had joined it earlier. I have missed out a lot here on the forums. 

[Tom Gallagher 33,521]

I wish I was around during the peak of the fandom because it looks like an absolute blast looking back. 

I became a brony just as the show was ending. 

[Fluttershyfan94 5,738]

I discovered the show early but joined the fandom later and sure it might have been nice but honestly I feel like it was at the perfect time really. Though now definitely one of the OGs keeping the brony tradition alive hehe so you know got to do that. 

[Dark Qiviut 22,173]

I began following FIM ten years ago today and followed the peaks and valleys of bronydom over the years. On the whole, I don't regret being part of the ride at all.

[Twilight Luna 30,942]

I joined the fandom before season 8 came out. I wish that I had joined earlier. 

[Fluttershutter 2,122]

I wish I'd been comfortable at cons and things, same as all the other things I'm a fan of, but I'm basically first season Fluttershy.

[Miss 6,211]

It's rare when I contemplate myself being in the fandom at an earlier point but when I do a few things come up. 

1. I would be in high school and there were no other bronies there. 

2. I don't think there would be anyone I could talk to about it. 

3. People might've tried to bully me and I would have stood up for myself. Give these bullies a taste of their own medicine perhaps. 

4. When I discovered mlp:fim I was in college living in a dorm with my roommate (who happened to be a brony too). I had the privacy to do some self introspection and honestly I probably couldn't be able to handle all the emotion mlp gave me in the toxic environment of my old home. So yes I am happy I discovered it when I did. 

5. The only other thing that comes up are milestones, past conventions, possible friends, etc. that I could have been a part of in the fandom earlier. Of course, I was also in high school and didn't have a job and the job I did have ehhhhh. Conventions and travel would likely not have been feasible. 

[Fritzy 1,690]

When I first joined?  Nah I think I joined in right in time. All there were content wise was season 1 stuff and previews for the season 2 premiere which I believe I caught. This was The Hub days. So like a long while I’ve been here. 

[Pearly Marshmallow 391]

Of course. I wish I could've joined much earlier.

It would've been amazing to follow the fandom since the beginning; living the excitement for the release of a new episode, season, movie or special, the distinct controversies regarding some characters or movies (Derpy Hooves, Twilicorn or Flash Sentry just to mention a few), sharing opinions, sharing pieces of art with the fandom in any kind of form, whether it be a drawing, an animation, an edit, or a beautiful piece of music, attending conventions, being friends with the people who share the same love for the series...

To do all of that while the fandom was at its peak would've been absolutely glorious for me, because those are things I truly enjoy doing. I just seem to miss something from the old days of the internet in general that makes me wish it so much.

 

There are some factors that prevented me from joining in 2011 or 2012. To begin with, I was only 9 years old when the series first aired in my country and I didn't know how to speak or write in English properly. I think it would've made my first interactions with the fandom online a total disaster.

Even after, from 2014 to 2016 where I believe I had major chances. I have always been a very shy person and didn't really like to talk about the things that I like because of the fear that they might make fun of me. And being surrounded by people that were anything but respectful at the time didn't help at all. I slowly started losing that fear in 2019, the year when the series ended. It's very sad for me. 

[mlploverlizzy 289]

I was pretty young when i got into th fandom like VERY young around when the show began ive been a brony since season 1! 

[Gabi 10]

For me I kinda wish I stayed with the series, I got into Gen 4 around late 2013 and was hyperfixated on it for about a year until kids bullied out of liking it and after that I actually hated the series due to those past memories until last year when my best friend introduced me to the series and made me remember why I loved MLP all those years ago. Plus honestly if I never got into MLP I don't think I would've found out my true gender (Sorry for getting off topic) But yes apart of me wishes I got introduced earlier and stayed with it since the show ended and don't have any episodes to look forward to anymore, but at the same time at least I got to experience the fandom in it's Prime.

Edited July 24, 2021 by Gabi
Dyslexia go burr (Spelling mistakes)

[Lunaholic 892]

Not really. I'm pretty content joining the fandom as late as in 2021. As I see this fandom still running strong and I've never been that type of guy who has to watch the series or movies right when they come out. I'm glad I found myself a place to spend time now rather than never

[Will Guide 21,325]

I joined the fandom two months after season 3 ended so I was actually part of the show for like 2/3 of the run. For every season that came out since season 4 I thought it was going to be the last. So imagine my surprise were managed to get past season 6 and I've been in the fandom for at least half of it

[Clawdeen 12,110]

The forums I do. I liked mlp when I was a kid and I never really stopped liking it. So it’s always been apart of my life.

[Luna the Great of all the Russias 2,706]

I suppose? But I joined about nine months after the show started (about a decade ago today!) so I was already part of the fandom while it was in its infancy and got to see most of its development. I am not sure if this is correct, but I would guess that I started watching the show when it was just starting to explode in popularity (I got the impression that the fandom grew most rapidly during season 2). I would have liked to have joined it earlier for the sake of knowing what it would have been like to be a Brony back when the fandom was still very obscure (or before there was a fandom specifically associated with MLPFIM instead of MLP in general).

[Pearly Marshmallow 391]

41 minutes ago, Luna the Great of all the Russias said:

I suppose? But I joined about nine months after the show started (about a decade ago today!) so I was already part of the fandom while it was in its infancy and got to see most of its development. I am not sure if this is correct, but I would guess that I started watching the show when it was just starting to explode in popularity (I got the impression that the fandom grew most rapidly during season 2). I would have liked to have joined it earlier for the sake of knowing what it would have been like to be a Brony back when the fandom was still very obscure (or before there was a fandom specifically associated with MLPFIM instead of MLP in general).

Happy 10th anniversary! 

[dead account 2,703]

No, I'm glad that I discovered the show when it just ended. Because I made bad experiences in the past with other franchises. Over time, they would get ruined or become very horrible. But with FiM, I was able to watch it all in "one go" (it still took me some months, haha). I loved all of it and I knew this is the perfect thing for me to stick to. The book closed at the end, it's 100% completed and whatever Hasbro would decide to do afterwards, it can't affect nor ruin FiM anymore. It was such a huge relieve.  I'm just thankful to finally have found a show that was good from beginning to end, relatable, positive and all that. That's all I ever wanted.