mega thread The state of the Brony fandom (Numbers, Popularly, Future)

[Dreambiscuit 8,024]

Whether or not G5 is all that current fans want, no one will know unless they give it a shot. The nice thing is that G4 generated a lot of interest that My Little Pony could only dream about in earlier gens. There are fans now that are curious and very charged up about what may come next. Fans of Gen 1-3 probably didn't write off G4 before seeing it, and were probably glad they didn't. Fans of G4 may feel the same way when G5 comes out. All we can do is wait and see. 

[Lucky Bolt 34,914]

I personally don't ever plan on leaving the fandom regardless of G4 ending. But if other people are..well, that's their choice. 

[Savygriffs 5,022]

I agree with Lucky Bolt, I don't plan on leaving the fandom either. 

[Newman1651 35]

Just to let you know, I’m not doomposting or any negative shit. I’m undergoing a state of confusion and internal debate that will run the course of my time in this community. given the state of things now, I don’t know what to do and the frustration and stress hasn’t quite left me. Time after time, I have to vent and express my grievances about the future of the franchise and the community around it.

please you have to tolerate this sort of thing because Honestly, I'm experiencing moments of conflict and i have to sometimes vent considering i don't exactly know what to do. I want to still come up with concepts, premises and ideas for fanfic stories, but time after time, I look back at the state of this fandom and the ending of G4 looming over the horizon (some people are in denial that EqG will End without Hasbro announcing it) as well as it's legacy after it ends and during the hiatus and course of G5 and beyond. it makes me question what and why I'm here at a time when the community is experiencing decline and if there is any point in me staying.

Since production and development of FiM has wrapped up and ended. Looking back, I’m quite impressed it lasted as long as it did and here’s hoping the community doesn’t entirely forget about this Generation during the G5 Hiatus and the course of G5. And i hope people will still make fanart and fanfiction based around G4.It’s too good and too recognizable.

I do hope the G4 brony fandom will endure even after this Generation comes to a close and G5 comes.

As much as people are excited about G5. G4 shouldn't be forgotten. Something that has lasted and endured for nearly a decade and had a significant impact on internet culture should not be forgotten in a couple of years. It's just too recognizable to be forgettable.

I understand that you want to give G5 a chance but what about the legacy of G4's FiM and EqG? How will those be remembered and what will become of those in comparison to the past three generations of this toyline? I really hope these. will there still be discussion on G4, will there still be g4 fanart and fanfics still being produced and will this fandom continue to stay strong even after everything about G4 comes to an end? will the fandom forget about g4 or will it's cultural impact allow it to endure and perhaps outshine G5, if it turns out to disappoint.

I think someone else has brought up this question before, but will G5 have the same impact as G4 and how will that affect G4's legacy/longevity in the future? Would this cause G4 to be looked up to as the more superior show (and remembered a bit longer) or forgotten?

I Know it was meant to be targeted to young girls, but times have changed and people's attitudes and mentalities have changed. Dunno if Hasbro is aware of the unexpected longevity and success of G4 or if they did indeed catch lightning in a bottle and would never be able to recapture that former glory. Because I'd think that as a fresh start, they would try to go back to their roots and make sure the next generation targets the demographic it was designed for and nothing else.

Because i wonder. Will G5 just end up living under the shadow of G4/FiM? Despite us looking forward to how well G5 will turn out. That should be something to consider as well as looking up at G4 as the mroe superior generation if that does become the case.

I just hope the community doesn't experience a decline and decrease much worse than the one in 2006 during season 6. 

I’m really expecting this fandom to experience a sharp downturn or a complete collapse and die after G4 and EqG wrap up. Sure they may be still fans of those two franchise but how many? probably not a lot. Is anyone anticipating this fandom to crumble after G4 or if G5 turns out to suck? I am for sure.

It really sucks that a person like me, joined this community right at the time where everything is ending (around for a month and a half). FiM due to Season 9 being the last season, and EqG due to toys not selling and the spinoff overall hitting a dead end. It truly sucks and I feel both frustrated and regretful for not joining earlier.

I wouldn’t want to call myself a full on brony, more like a casual fan that does his own thing.

I never fully got into it but I’m glad it ran it’s course and lasted as long as it did, even when I didn’t join right up until it ended. I’m just hoping the community does not experience a much greater decline than the one in 2016. I don’t like to join Quiet and abandoned fandoms that have become small and incredibly niche.

I Have heard from this year that the fandom is actually declining very fast and that after either bronycon 2019, the last one, It might decline even more. and with the end of G4 and FiM, I’m anticipating a full on but gradual exodus leading to it ultimately vanishing. wouldn’t want to stick around if that’s the case. I mean it’s getting awfully quiet on places like deviantart, derpibooru and fimfiction.

Even I debate to myself over wether i should leave and move on to other things and stay and witness the decline and eventual niche status of this community. Or whatever remains. sometimes I think that blew my chances at joining and that it's best that I leave as quickly as a joined.

I have too many things in life to worry about, but all of this drama surrounding the end of ponies is adding to the strain i am currently struggling to bear. at the same time i want continue my admiration of G4 in discussions fanart and fanfics yet i feel that someday i might be looked at as an outcast for admiring something that is long gone. I'm torn right now over wether to leave and save myself from the emotional burden of seeing something i missed out end or staying and being forced to weather a possible decline and downturn and division in the fandom until the debut of G5. What do you think?

i love this community, but how long will it last int he wake of the finale? and will the fandom for Generaiton 4 truly endure like other fandoms of discontinued tv shows and franchises?

on a side note, After this spinoff is discontinued (which is pretty much inevitable contrary to what the "Not over till hasbro says so" people think). You think people will still remember this spinoff or will it fade into obscurity and be forgotten by all but a few? because once G4 wraps up i’m pretty sure the downturn that occurs afterward will result in it being effectively forgotten by the fandom.

And About EgG ending, 

 for one like myself, I think it's a foregone conclusion that the spin off will end/discontinue after Starswirl Do-over adaptation

I think Hasbro has already made up it's mind on discontinuing the spinoff as part of wrapping Generation 4. And before the Fim Series Finale, it seems. They are merely waiting until the time is right. likely scenario would be that this would just fizzle out at season 2 with no proper finale.

Though i have to wonder ifr Hasbro will ever attempt something Similar to EqG in the future. Or at least something that follows some of the concepts such as the humana nd pony worlds existing as separate dimensions as well as it's rules and concepts of cross dimensional travel and interaction.

I really should have joined back in 2010. too bad my homophobic family prevented me until now. i merely admired it from afar.

Edited June 26, 2019 by Jeric
Fixed carry-over formatting issues

[Usager 431]

The ending of this gen doesnt mean you cant keep feeding it with draws, storys, roleplays and stuff. This forum ls not gonna disappear, the fandom may have some loss but there is still gonna be people.

Is not that terrible. Also, you dont even know how g5 is gonna be. The brony thing was a pretty good thing for hasbro and i think they may want to repeat it.

[Quinch 1,119]

I can understand the worries about the fandom disappearing, even though I  don't believe it will happen. Yes, the scope of the fandom will decline, but given how much creativity it has fueled by now, I strongly believe that will continue going strong, especially given just how far off the beaten track a lot of it goes. From alternate interpretations of characters, different timelines, more OCs than you can shake a stick at, the FiM has built enough of its world to keep fans going for a long time, even once we stop getting new episodes. 

[Sunny Fox 5,929]

The fandom ain't going anywhere. G4 will still be here when G5 drops, and beyond.

[The MegaBrony 218]

I can still find fellow Bronies and SpongeBob fans, but not Fairly OddParents fans anymore. Does this tell you anything?

[Newman1651 35]

On 6/26/2019 at 2:05 PM, The MegaBrony said:

I can still find fellow Bronies and SpongeBob fans, but not Fairly OddParents fans anymore. Does this tell you anything?

i dont know

[The MegaBrony 218]

4 hours ago, Newman1651 said:

i dont know

The Brony and SpongeBob fandoms outlasted the OddParents fandom and will continue to be relevant unlike it.

[Steve Piranha 28,780]

I understand the concern. The fandom will definitely have a huge decline, I’m already seeing this in this forum . About the fan creation.... I’m not that sure. Derpibooru is still getting lots of art. The fanfic is not necessarily of fandom decline, I understand fanfic in general is declining in audience, making pony fic a collateral casualty, not because the fandom is declining 

[Newman1651 35]

2 hours ago, Steve Piranha said:

I understand the concern. The fandom will definitely have a huge decline, I’m already seeing this in this forum . About the fan creation.... I’m not that sure. Derpibooru is still getting lots of art. The fanfic is not necessarily of fandom decline, I understand fanfic in general is declining in audience, making pony fic a collateral casualty, not because the fandom is declining 

so what's your conclusion bsed on these observations?

based on what you said, im afraid this forum might become abandoned

[Steve Piranha 28,780]

22 minutes ago, Newman1651 said:

so what's your conclusion bsed on these observations?

based on what you said, im afraid this forum might become abandoned

Unfortunately, I’m inclined to agree regarding the forums. I was expecting these forums to be pretty active after the end, but it’s clear activity has declined, so it’s not likely to survive long 

[Newman1651 35]

Just now, Steve Piranha said:

Unfortunately, I’m inclined to agree regarding the forums. I was expecting these forums to be pretty active after the end, but it’s clear activity has declined, so it’s not likely to survive long 

only 300 or so online

I swear it's gonna fade into obscurity, at least until G5 comes along or is announced and begins. Assuming G5 doesn't turn out to suck.

As a newcomer i dont know what to do then. either i leave as quickly as i entered or keep staying in an already dead community and waste my life

[Newman1651 35]

I have heard that MLPforums is actually declining in users and this brought this concern back for me, as a latecomer who arrived right when everything about this generation and this community is ending or declining.

The community will definitely see a huge decline between G4 and G5 (if it ever comes) but how much time does this Community have before it completely dies.

 

I need an answer because I'm still divided and torn over wether i should leave or stay. MLP groups on Deviantart have gone quiet or no longer accept newcomers, fimfiction and derpibooru are declining in active users. same for the subreddit.

 

I dont know if i should stay or leave. tell me which one is best.

[CypherHoof 26,479]

It's up to you. There is no guarantee the fandom WILL remain, but no reason to assume it won't either.

There are plenty of other fandoms that survived their final season - Dr Who (who got new seasons, after a significant hiatus), Star Trek (that got new spinoffs) and so forth. Many fans are currently sad and not currently feeling creative though, for the obvious reason. We will have to wait and see.

[bigbertha 410]

The fandom isn't going to die. Just because the show ends, that doesn't mean people suddenly stop caring about the show and stop talking about it. So many shows have already ended yet still have people reviewing them and making fan art about them. There is no reason the same won't apply to MLP G4.

[Newman1651 35]

1 hour ago, bigbertha said:

The fandom isn't going to die. Just because the show ends, that doesn't mean people suddenly stop caring about the show and stop talking about it. So many shows have already ended yet still have people reviewing them and making fan art about them. There is no reason the same won't apply to MLP G4.

Though my friend here isn't so optimistic: https://mlpforums.com/profile/32537-steve-piranha/

 

2 hours ago, CypherHoof said:

It's up to you. There is no guarantee the fandom WILL remain, but no reason to assume it won't either.

There are plenty of other fandoms that survived their final season - Dr Who (who got new seasons, after a significant hiatus), Star Trek (that got new spinoffs) and so forth. Many fans are currently sad and not currently feeling creative though, for the obvious reason. We will have to wait and see.

https://mlpforums.com/profile/32537-steve-piranha/

 

my friend has a better idea of what's happening even to this forum

Edited July 7, 2019 by Newman1651

[Newman1651 35]

I don't know anymore . people are saying that it's stabilizing but others say it's declining. What's going on?

[MangoFoalix 24,898]

Maybe it is declining, I don't really know. I don't pay attention statistics.

[Newman1651 35]

Just now, TheTaZe said:

Maybe it is declining, I don't really know. I don't pay attention statistics.

I dont really know how G5' gonna affect the decline

[MangoFoalix 24,898]

3 minutes ago, Newman1651 said:

I dont really know how G5' gonna affect the decline

It probably won't. I don't think it will have the same appeal.

[Props Valroa 26,042]

It's surely declining, this isn't 2013 anymore. While the forums are not as dead as they used to be in mid-late 2018, they surely are not as active as they used to be.

[Newman1651 35]

Just now, Califorum said:

It's surely declining, this isn't 2013 anymore. While the forums are not as dead as they used to be in mid-late 2018, they surely are not as active as they used to be.

how about in other places, like Deviantart, reddit, or even fimfiction and derpibooru?

4 minutes ago, TheTaZe said:

It probably won't. I don't think it will have the same appeal.

i wonder why there are some blind idiot bronies excited for it

[MangoFoalix 24,898]

3 minutes ago, Newman1651 said:

i wonder why there are some blind idiot bronies excited for it

I wouldn't call them idiots. They can be excited for it all the want.