Have I missed the golden days of the fandom?

[Concord 1,982]

Hello!

 

Recently, i have noticed alot of people complaining about the show, some even complain about the fandom itself. From what i have heard, this never occured in the past. The next thing i'm starting to hear, is that alot of people are leaving the fandom, because it has dissapointed them. Now, i have became a fan somewhere in the end of Season 2, and only up until recently, i have joined the forums.

I just really wanted to know, is this all true? Have i really missed the golden days of the fandom?

I think this will be an interesting topic to debate on, and i am eagar to hear your opinions.

 

Thank you for your time.

[FoxyCryptid 4,330]

There's people that refuse to acknowledge season 2 happened, so it's been going on since the beginning. You just have to ignore the drama and busy yourself with the good parts of the fandom.    

[Pony Of The Month 534]

I think the show is doing great, but other bronies seem to believe that the show is "pandering" them. They get upset over the tiniest amounts of fan-service. I don't believe that fan-service is a bad thing, as long as it doesn't have a too large influence on the story as a whole. They're crying over spilt milk.

[Pinkie D Pie 1,036]

Well I only got into the fandom in April. but from what it seems some of the older fans of the show... the ones since the beggining are claiming it is on the decline. In my opinion.  it isn't. Look how much fan art, fan fiction, fan music, fan everything is still being made. No I think it is still in a Golden Age.

Edited December 28, 2012 by TGAP Babs Seed

[Starswirl the Trixie 975]

Hello!

 

Recently, i have noticed alot of people complaining about the show, some even complain about the fandom itself. From what i have heard, this never occured in the past. The next thing i'm starting to hear, is that alot of people are leaving the fandom, because it has dissapointed them. Now, i have became a fan somewhere in the end of Season 2, and only up until recently, i have joined the forums.

I just really wanted to know, is this all true? Have i really missed the golden days of the fandom?

I think this will be an interesting topic to debate on, and i am eagar to hear your opinions.

 

Thank you for your time.

Oh, don't worry, there have always been complaints. Back when I joined the fandom in early January everyone was panicking over whether Hasbro would start fighting with the Brony community. This terror was spurred on by the Deepygate fiasco.

 

Some have argued that the Brony community is in decline. There certainly are some problems in the fandom (ex. An influx of possibly less dedicated fans), but, for the moment, the herd is alive and well.

[Firelord Derpy 310]

Yes. Sucks to be you.

 

JK JK JK

Honestly though I never really got into the fandom much. I watch the show, draw art and mess around on the Forums but I don't really do any big live streams or things like that. I think though people are taking things too seriously and over doing things. While some people are expected to leave the fandom if someone leaves and is like "This fandom has lost it's true meaning according to how i think it should be!" Then it will leave a bigger imprint. 

Anyways so maybe some bronies are annoying and some are leaving but who cares? This is supposed to be fun and joyful not a cult that you can't leave.  

[be my waifu 2,842]

While I wasn't there when the fandom was just starting to gain hold, I've heard stories about how there was a time in the fandom with less drama, hardly any r34, and "Love and Tolerance" wasn't taken too seriously. Everyone got along, and many thought that this was going to be the best fandom ever, because it got off to such a nice start.

 

Of course they were wrong, as it somewhat fell to pieces soon after, but I do think there was a time where everything was going just peachy. Mind you, this was when /co/ still had pony threads, Ponychan was just getting started, and season 2 still hadn't even begun.

 

All of those stories I heard could have just been people looking at everything through nostalgia goggles, but I believe there's a modicum of truth to it. Sometimes I wish I was there when the fandom was just starting...

 

Edit: After re-reading my post, I found that the way I worded it made it sound as if I'm disappointed in fandom the way it is now... No, I still really like the fandom. It has it's rough patches, but I enjoy what the fandom does, and I've met some cool people along the way.

Edited December 28, 2012 by bluetrace

[DoctorWhovian1902 596]

I must have missed something too...I'm still seeing good days in the fandom; people are creating fan works, episodes are coming out, more people are becoming bronies, opinions are becoming more positive, you get what I'm saying? If anything we're doing fine. But, again, maybe I missed something too.

[Wubsie 1,123]

Hello!

 

Recently, i have noticed alot of people complaining about the show, some even complain about the fandom itself. From what i have heard, this never occured in the past. The next thing i'm starting to hear, is that alot of people are leaving the fandom, because it has dissapointed them. Now, i have became a fan somewhere in the end of Season 2, and only up until recently, i have joined the forums.

I just really wanted to know, is this all true? Have i really missed the golden days of the fandom?

I think this will be an interesting topic to debate on, and i am eagar to hear your opinions.

 

Thank you for your time.

A person dies everyday, someone is born everyday. People leave the fandom every once in a while, a new pony joins the fandom quite often.

There isn't a golden age or anything, the fandom is growing and getting better everyday.

Edited December 28, 2012 by Double D

[Mortimer 332]

Yeah, the fandom is growing larger and bigger everyday. The hasn't been on decay and it won't, so it's nothing to worry about.

Just because some people whine about the fanservice isn't something very important as they also must not cross the line.

[Jessper 735]

There always are people complaining. Everywhere.

There always are people arguing about what is really good and really bad. Everywhere.

There always are people sitting in the corner, drinking, and yelling "I wish it was like in the old times!" between the drinks. Everywhere.

There always are people who take it upon themselves to be the judge and the jury as to what makes one a real fan. Everywhere.

 

I mean... Just enjoy the good stuff we have, thinking about whether it was or will be better than it is will get you nowhere. People complain way too much.

Edited December 28, 2012 by Jessper

[PoniesPlease 365]

If you enjoy then fandom, then you needn't worry yourself about other bronies. They can whine about fanservice but in the end, if you're enjoying the show, you're enjoying the show. 

[Concord 1,982]

I see the word "Complain" in this thread. Just so everyone knows, i personaly am not complaining. I just really wanted to understand the situation.

I agree with almost everything everyone here writes so far. It's true that many people leave, but equally as many come by.

Eagar to hear more opinions

[Pinkazoid 3,493]

I thought you were gonna say the golden days of the forums, because ya'h sure missed those :vvvvv

 

But no, the fandom is been a "since the beginning" thing

[Concord 1,982]

I thought you were gonna say the golden days of the forums, because ya'h sure missed those :vvvvv

 

But no, the fandom is been a "since the beginning" thing

 

Would sure love to hear about the forums

How come they were the better times? What happened that the times now aren't as good as before?

[Pinkazoid 3,493]

Would sure love to hear about the forums

How come they were the better times? What happened that the times now aren't as good as before?

February through April were the best months in my opinion, awesome new members, and no pony seemed to have much problems, and if I'm not mistaken, we still had the chat room back then xD

[Yellow Diamond 7,569]

The "golden days" of any fandom are generally subjective. Those sorts of judgments tend to be rendered in retrospect rather than in the moment of the supposed high points. If I had to designate the current state of the MLP fandom, I would say it is one of continued expansion (or "aggressive expansion", to quote The Joker). More people are taking a serious interest in MLP than ever before in the show's history. Consider the media coverage over the course of 2012 and the sheer explosion of pony conventions.

 

The early days ("REMEMBER WHEN MY LITTLE PONY WAS GOOD?" "MY LITTLE PONY WAS NEVER GOOD.") were probably more intimate, so to speak, since the fandom was being fostered in the far reaches of the internet. Enjoying MLP definitely was not as "mainstream" as it is nowadays. I only regret not being a fan earlier because a.) it would have been enjoyable to watch the show unfold from the beginning and b.) being grounded in the early days of a fandom is something I have always wanted to do. But I would have rather become a Brony later than never have been a Brony at all.

[~Master~ Button Mash 2,307]

I've been wondering this exact same thing, and I've only been a Brony for about a month! Thinking about this leaves me torn, actually, between 1) I missed the mark by becoming a Brony so late and missing the best days of the fandom, and 2) that the best days of bronies have only just begun, and things can only get better with time.

 

And as much as I sometimes dwell on the possibility that the fandom I see is just a shadow of what it used to be, I always try to stay positive. Why? Because whether I like it or not, the fandom as it is now is my community, this is the family I came into. And instead of dwelling on the best days of the past, and lamenting on how they can never be again, I think it's my duty - and the duty of every brony and pegasister - to do their part to make the community, their community, the very best it can be. Dedication and love are the keys.

 

In all seriousness, I don't like the phrase "Golden Age," because while its a nice word to use in retrospect, it's inherently defeatist about the future. It implies that the past = always better, and that the future = inherently on the decline. If we declare the early days a "Golden Era," we've already thrown away any possibility of making a community even better than before in the present and future.

 

Every fandom evolves, it's just a fact of nature. The Brony community as it was during season 1 and the /co/ days is different from the community of season 2 and /mlp/, is different from season 3 and all it has left to show us. It's just how things go. People come, people go. New ideas come, old ideas go. The inter-community zeitgeist is always evolving, but is that inherently bad? No, it's just different. And what marks the difference between communities that succeed vs communities that fail is the ability to evolve, and always make the best of it.

 

We gotta seize the day!!

 

Just my 2 bits.

Edited December 28, 2012 by StratoPegasus

[chrisalis1 1]

I believe that it's still in the golden ages, due to the fact that a lot of fan art, fan music, fan videos, etc, are still being produced to this day (as stated before me). So no, I don't believe that you've missed the golden days.

[kirbyboi 588]

Season 3 is great in my opinion. 

 

 

Well, I guess by most bronies, the start of season 2 was considered 'The Golden Age' (I became a brony around the start of season 2, and considering most people did as well, that's my guess). But typically, you didn't miss out on much, and I wouldn't worry about it. However, you didn't have to wait for the new episodes of season 2 to come out, so in a way your lucky. And honestly, I never really knew there was a 'golden age' in the brony community. In that case, I think every season is like the 'golden age'. 

 

And MLP is just starting, there's gonna be way more seasons to come. So just sit back and enjoy the magic!

[Doctor-Whooves 288]

I like to think myself as one of the earliest bronies. I became a part of it watching the air of episode 7. And my answer is no. You didn't miss anything.

 

Some of you people don't really get what it was like to be a brony in those days. There were a very small number of us, probably only a couple hundred. The entire internet was opposed to us, and of course, we were all worried Hasbro was going to shut us all down with copyright. And although it was magical to see this fandom grow so large, I actually wasn't expecting it. I thought we were going to die out fast.

 

As for the show decreasing in quality, that's a complete lie. It's as great as it's always been. People leaving the fandom, because they are disappointed in it? Every fandom has and always had ragequitters. Some things never change.

Edited December 28, 2012 by Doctor-Whooves

[Archi the Atmomancer 564]

I don't see anything wrong with the fandom at the moment, but maybe that's just me. I don't see what people have to complain about; I like the occassional nod to the fandom, most episodes turn out well, and so what if some members are less "dedicated" than others? How does one measure dedicated? The amount of merch one has? Is it not enough just to enjoy a show and its characters?

 

Edit: Oh, and Doctor-Whooves? You have my everlasting respect for the several tons of crap I'm sure got hurled at you. Brohoof, my friend.

Edited December 28, 2012 by Archi

[Champion RD92 8,658]

Well I don't know about the fandom, but you certainly missed the golden days of MLP Forums. 

 

I think a lot of people are maybe complaining about the fandom because the more the fandom grows, the more annoying people there are in the fandom.

[Archi the Atmomancer 564]

There are annoying people in this forum? I've only seen one person I'd consider annoying and that's because they were being condescending and patronising towards someone who'd just taken a lot of flak for their bronyhood.

[Dusty Soul 2,611]

I found the fandom in April, and I have heard people that have been bronies since 2011 they complain about how the fandom has changed.  Here's the thing though, the fandom is bigger and diverse, there is no such fandom that doesn't have drama and such.  To me this is still the golden age as we are still growing, more music/art/fics are being made, and sites like EQD and this one prove this.  In reality MLP is still basically starting.  There was no golden age as were in the golden age right now.