What the heck did I just walk into...?

[Phoenix237 353]

And that makes you awesome, IMO. Labeling a brony by whether or not they make fan art would be like telling someone they're not a Trekkie if they don't write Star Trek stories, or a Whoovian if they don't knit rainbow scarves. Every fandom is going to have more fans who just enjoy the source material and have nothing other than their enthusiasm to contribute. That doesn't make those people any less valid of fans, IMO.

 

However, the tendency toward that kind of labeling is part of what's got me down about this fandom - just after my somewhat euphoric introduction, I saw a LOT of that all at once, and it kinda hurt. That's why I've been so outspoken against it.

And I salute you for attempting to speak against things like this.

I myself have also tried to speak against this kind of things.

Sometimes it works, but everyone has their opinions.

And that's okay, as long as they are not being disrespectful.

Its just that right now people are on the edge right now and they are afraide of the future. They see only what they want to believe and not what actually is.

When people are in panic mode they tend to ignore all forms of reason and that's why there is this mutch negativity right now. They are not thinking straight and are acting on instinct alone.

 

In any case

I will say that this will eventually blow over. No storms last forever.

 

Also note that there are others out there who also are against labeling other fellow bronies, so no we are not alone against this form of labeling.

[Alex Kennedy 1,228]

Don't worry, it'll blow over soon enough. The new episode will come out and people will realize that Twilicorn isn't the end of the world, and everybody will just move on. There are always going to be people overreacting, but they'll calm down eventually.

[LeoPrism 25]

There's this moment you realize bronies are just humans after all, with all the regular human flaws... it can get you to the floor quite rough. Being a fan of a show does not make one a better person.

Anyhow, I still think bronies are the most sympathic, friendly, awsome community out there by far.

[Pixel Stick 927]

 

Its just that right now people are on the edge right now and they are afraide of the future. They see only what they want to believe and not what actually is. When people are in panic mode they tend to ignore all forms of reason and that's why there is this mutch negativity right now. They are not thinking straight and are acting on instinct alone.

 

Given the nature of the show this fandom in particular is based on, I find this disturbingly ironic.  Say what you want about the quality of the show, but the foundation of the show and its characters is in learning valuable life lessons about and through friendship.  Learning how to lean on one another for support in bad times, how to work out your differences and handle crises with grace and wisdom.  Learning how to be good friends to one another, come what may.

 

I would characterize a large part of the backlash I've seen lately as much more in the realm of "We're not getting our way!", and the fact that that apparent attitude seems so widespread makes me think that those very people who claim the fandom is being hurt by Hasbro's decisions have totally lost sight of what the fandom was based on in the first place.

 

Either that, or I seriously misunderstood what was going on from the outset.

[Scritches 92]

First, I just want to say I'm not an angsty, depressed teenager looking for affirmation or anything of the sort.  I'm a grown man with a wife, a house, a successful career, and a love for nostalgia and good TV shows.

It's always good to have people such as yourself in the fandom.

Did I just choose a particularly bad time to join the fandom or something?

Sad to say, you kind of did. But this isn't the first time something like this has happened and don't fret about it too much. This fandom has had it's up's and downs.

I hope it passes.

This too shall pass.

I've been with the fandom since 2011 and every major "crisis" that has hit the fandom has passed in time. Faust leaving the show, the mass youtube takedowns by "Habsro"(read that one over twice very slowly), to White Dove getting a cease and desist, the Derpy Debacle during season 2, and others. All of them have passed in time and things leveled out every time. The key to it all is to keep a level head about yourself, and help your fellow bronies do the same. If you need a helping hand(hoof?) then you can feel free to pass it my way. This fandom shall rise from this troubled time and we will stay the course for many years to come. I for one am here to the bitter end and I hope that you and everyone else can be there with me as well. We've made it through before, we'll do it again.

Edited February 13, 2013 by Leatherneck

[Betez 1,734]

I think you might have, not because of the show, but because of how people are acting. don't listen to the people bitching about Alicorn Twilight, it's not a big deal at all. Fighting Is Magic I feel hits closer to home for people. However, don't let the temporary negativity of the fandom get you down. Like I said, it's only permanent. I guarantee you that in a week or 2, nobody will be complaining about Alicorn Twilight.

[Pixel Stick 927]

 

Like I said, it's only permanent.

 

I'm sure you meant "it's only temporary", but that made me laugh.   (doo de doo, filing space, meeting the 100-character min-there we go.)

[Phoenix237 353]

I would characterize a large part of the backlash I've seen lately as much more in the realm of "We're not getting our way!", and the fact that that apparent attitude seems so widespread makes me think that those very people who claim the fandom is being hurt by Hasbro's decisions have totally lost sight of what the fandom was based on in the first place.

 

Either that, or I seriously misunderstood what was going on from the outset.

No I think you got it about right.

Some people are like this right now. I don't know why though. I mean Hasbor isn't exactly being like FOX was with the X-Files fans. If you don't know what I mean it's that Fox took down all X-Files fan sites and fan-work, etc.

It's just polle who are seeing that thy arn't getting thing thei way.

 

I think people are making a big deal out of nothing.

They should apreachate what we have and what we will receive.

 

I mean it's what I do.

I enjoy the show for what it is and not what I want it to be. And that's the way it should be.

Edited February 13, 2013 by Phoenix237

[Scootalove 10,689]

I know not a lot of people get used to change or don't want to. But since, the community is getting bigger everyday Hasbro is trying to give us what we need but people overreact over the little things like Fighting is Magic becoming c & d. And now, the Twilight alicorn thing and other issues, everybody is panicking and pulling their hair out. Pretty dramatic.

[Phaeston-e12 173]

Regardless of whether you agree or disagree with the decisions the Hasbro make on the show, it is their product and we have to accept that. The unfortunate side of thing is that we tend to give more notice to outspoken criticisms filled with personal emotions and opinions than a fair criticism that contains well reasoned arguments that tries to view from different perspectives.

 

As a person who loved read stories that requires you to think 'critically' which usually contained plenty of dark themes, perhaps there are few areas in the show that I find it disturbing. (The first book I've read voluntarily was My Sweet Orange Tree, written by a famous Latin American author which was about a kid with a tough childhood. I think I read it when I was 6 years old.) However, the way the show is the climate of the mainstream public entertainment show for the young audience. By studying the various aspects involved in the current series, I've learned a great deal of many things which I won't mention here since that would takes pages of arguments and explanations. But since I am quite interested in the children's fiction, the experience I've had with this show have been certain very interesting and enlightening.

 

I am not entirely sure about the general idea about 'enjoying something means not taking it seriously' which popped up multiple times in this post however. As a person who values education and critical thinking, a great deal of enjoyment comes from being entertained by other people's ideas, to think critically about those ideas, and to think what I can do with those ideas.

 

And because of that, I fail to see the negativity behind 'over-thinking' the show. There are quite a lot of masterclass literature aimed for children that contains complex ideas as well. Furthermore, the one thing I've agreed with the various discussions I've had with number of English professors was that a good children's literature must be able to evoke a response that starts and ends with a question. Therefore I find the argument that it's just a kid's story a fairly weak argument.

 

Perhaps it's just me. Since I consider myself to be an unusual case who has a bachelor's degree in chemistry and now trying to get a degree in physics while continuing my self-taught education in Art and Writing as well. Perhaps I have a scholastic mentality.

 

I would like to end this comment with a question however.

 

The one thing that I've noticed from a comment made by the lead story developer on his/her(because I can't remember)'s justification behind making TS a princess was that 'every young girl wants to be a princess.'

 

I must wonder if that's a valid argument.

Edited February 13, 2013 by Phaeston-e12

[Pixel Stick 927]

 

And because of that, I fail to see the negativity behind 'over-thinking' the show. There are quite a lot of masterclass literature aimed for children that contains complex ideas as well. Furthermore, the one thing I've agreed with the various discussions I've had with number of English professors was that a good children's literature must be able to evoke a response that starts and ends with a question. Therefore I find the argument that it's just a kid's story a fairly weak argument.

 

Perhaps it's just me. Since I consider myself to be an unusual case who has a bachelor's degree in chemistry and now trying to get a degree in physics while continuing my self-taught education in Art and Writing as well. Perhaps I have a scholastic mentality.

 

I have very much an engineering mind, so I totally understand how you feel there.  And I agree, enjoying the show doesn't mean we shouldn't take it seriously - in fact, that's part of my point about people losing sight of what the show was about in the first place.  The show encourages us to take its lessons seriously.  And I feel we should.  It's not just blind entertainment like so many other kids' shows have become - it's not just there for the sake of keeping a child occupied (and in many cases, making them want to beg their parents for toys).  It has real, believable and relatable characters that I feel compelled to care about, and as I said elsewhere, I feel the show has actually taught me a few things as well - lessons that we could all use reminders on.

 

And there's nothing wrong with being critical of the show.  I've never said we should just blindly accept everything Hasbro does because it's THEIR property and they can do whatever they want with it.  That is, in fact, the truth of the matter - they don't have to listen to us at all.  But I think it's healthy that we, as fans, do care enough about the show to want to influence it.  I just wish that when Hasbro does do something with the show that fans don't necessarily like, they wouldn't collectively throw a temper tantrum over it and threaten to fall apart as a result.  I like to think that we're more mature than that.

 

 

The one thing that I've noticed from a comment made by the lead story developer on his/her(because I can't remember)'s justification behind making TS a princess was that 'every young girl wants to be a princess.'

 

I must wonder if that's a valid argument.

 

I hadn't seen that comment, but here's my take on it: Gender stereotypes aside, it is true that many little girls do still dream of being princesses.  I don't think it's true that ALL of them do, but I get the person's point.  So seeing Twilight actually reach that point, when perhaps that was her true dream, is a good way to show that you CAN fulfill your dreams if you work hard at it.  (In other words, it won't just be given to you.)

 

That said, we should probably split off Alicorn Twilight discussion to the proper thread for that

[hawkflame 3,310]

And that makes you awesome, IMO.  Labeling a brony by whether or not they make fan art would be like telling someone they're not a Trekkie if they don't write Star Trek stories, or a Whoovian if they don't knit rainbow scarves.  Every fandom is going to have more fans who just enjoy the source material and have nothing other than their enthusiasm to contribute.  That doesn't make those people any less valid of fans, IMO.

 

However, the tendency toward that kind of labeling is part of what's got me down about this fandom - just after my somewhat euphoric introduction, I saw a LOT of that all at once, and it kinda hurt.  That's why I've been so outspoken against it.

 

 

I take it you feel like Spike there.

 

Anyway I think that there's an element of truth to what you say, but I think that it's less a case of outright labeling and more a case of people making assumptions.  The question is less "do you produce content?' and more " what kind of content do you produce?".And then people, whether consciously or not, basically measure themselves against others. 

 

 

Given the nature of the show this fandom in particular is based on, I find this disturbingly ironic.  Say what you want about the quality of the show, but the foundation of the show and its characters is in learning valuable life lessons about and through friendship.  Learning how to lean on one another for support in bad times, how to work out your differences and handle crises with grace and wisdom.  Learning how to be good friends to one another, come what may.

 

I would characterize a large part of the backlash I've seen lately as much more in the realm of "We're not getting our way!", and the fact that that apparent attitude seems so widespread makes me think that those very people who claim the fandom is being hurt by Hasbro's decisions have totally lost sight of what the fandom was based on in the first place.

 

Either that, or I seriously misunderstood what was going on from the outset.

 

 

Again I think what you're saying is true,but I think that there's a bit more to it.  The degree to which the fandom has taken a life on its own  in just 2 years and change is really unprecedented.  And the world of Friendship is Magic has really taken a life of its own in the fandom.  We draw fanart.  We make fanfiction.  We even give the background ponies personalities and names, names for some of whom have made it into *official products*. Hasbro had some stipulations for the show but otherwise they let the show and the fandom grow, and while they were still actively involved in the show, their guiding hand was more subtle for the most part. 

 

Basically, because of our growing emotional attachment to the show and the fandom, and Hasbro's otherwise relative "let them do what they want" attitude and relatively quiet form of interference we felt like we had an ownership of the show to some degree.  Sure, on an intellectual level we knew that we didn't and that the buck stopped with Hasbro, but because of our passion for and investment in both the show and the fandom, it sure *felt* as if we had a right to the property. 

 

But then every so often Hasbro hits us with buckets of cold "reality check" water reminding us that, "oh yeah, this *isn't* ours, and we have input only as long as hasbro lets us" - the editing of Derpy in The Last Roundup, the introduction of Cadence, etc.  And it happened that Hasbro just hit us with, not one, not two, but *three* such buckets in a row-not just Alicorn Twilight and the Fighting is Magic cease and desist letter, but also their stepping up of youtube episode takedowns not long ago.  And in a fandom that had felt so big and influential just months ago, this reminder of our ultimate powerlessness is a bit of a shock to the system. 

 

I guess an analogy would be like if your dad bought a gorgeous looking new Porsche.  He lets you take it whenever and wherever you want.  He lets you modify it even, new rims, kickass sound system, a new paint job, etc.  Then one day he decides to paint the car green and tell you you can't go to place X with the car.  Yes, you know it's his car and you don't own it, but you do get this feeling of "What the hell just happened?"

Edited February 13, 2013 by hawkflame

[Batbrony 16,055]

Don't worry about it friend, level heads will prevail in the end; things will quiet down drastically once the season ends and as we get some more concrete info on the future of MLP.  From what I can tell when I joined last year, a somewhat similar wave of bitterness swept through the fandom in anticipation of the "Wedding" episode, since a whole lot of bronies thought it was going to crash and burn, and I think we all quite clearly remember the awesome season finale we got instead!  Just keep calm and brony on everypony, and welcome to the forums Harvan! 

[~Master~ Button Mash 2,307]

 

But then every so often Hasbro hits us with buckets of cold "reality check" water reminding us that, "oh yeah, this *isn't* ours, and we have input only as long as hasbro lets us" - the editing of Derpy in The Last Roundup, the introduction of Cadence, etc.  And it happened that Hasbro just hit us with, not one, not two, but *three* such buckets in a row-not just Alicorn Twilight and the Fighting is Magic cease and desist letter, but also their stepping up of youtube episode takedowns not long ago.  And in a fandom that had felt so big and influential just months ago, this reminder of our ultimate powerlessness is a bit of a shock to the system.

Best analogue for the situation that I have seen yet. Hopefully after this they'll stop with the buckets and give us time to recover. They benefited just as much as we did when gave the fandom the most freedom. Too many of these shocks and its going to start biting them in the ass.

[Pony Of The Month 534]

The most annoying thing about this alicorn twilight drama, is that the people complaining about it are the same people who complained about the writers "pandering" to bronies. (The only "pandering" they've ever done was derpy talking, which was pretty awesome) And now that they definitely are not pandering to bronies, they're still not happy. What. The. Hell.

 

But honestly, I'd just ignore the negative ones. If they want to be unpleasable, than let them be unpleasable.

[Kelvocity 211]

I don't participate in the fandom much, other than reading EQD and posting on these forums every now and then, but I, like you of course, have noticed the craziness (duh). But, as it has been said countless times above, this is a (sadly) normal thing, especially for huge fandoms like this. With such a wide array of people who've put their faith in the show, it's easy for things to get out of hand and for members of the community to, per se, freak out. But rest assured, this is just a phase, and all will return to normal shortly.

 

Or longer than shortly.

 

Whatever. Either way, I am one of the people who isn't freaking out and never really has. I just watch the freaking out and roll my eyes, but in my head, because I barely ever roll my eyes over anything in real life... only in my head. Anyways...

 

♪♫ Don't let the crazy get you down! Don't let the falling hate turn your smile into a frown. When the tunnel is darkest that's when you need a clown, hey! Don't let the crazy get you down, Harvan! ♫♪ (You get an imaginary digital cookie if you know what I'm referencing, here.)

 

References that I doubt anyone will get aside, keep calm, enjoy the bronies that ain't freakin' out, and remember...

 

Do the thing of which is the opposite of a frown!

[SkyGust 71]

Dont worry. People are just going crazy about the alicorn thing, it will die down. But this is kind of a bad time, season 3 ends on Saturday, and we will have to wait a while for season 4 to come out. but hey, anytime is a good time to join, right?

[Pixel Stick 927]

Dont worry. People are just going crazy about the alicorn thing, it will die down. But this is kind of a bad time, season 3 ends on Saturday, and we will have to wait a while for season 4 to come out. but hey, anytime is a good time to join, right?

 

I had this script kinda going through my head as I wrote this post:

 

A fight breaks out in a crowded room full of ponies.  Fluttershy walks in holding a tray of cupcakes and looking cheerful.  "Hi, I made ..."  She sees the fighting, looks nervous and horrified, then glances around nervously and says, "Oh.  Okay, I'll just leave you to that then," and walks back out of the room.

[Circadian 1,273]

There always seems to be something people are freaking out about. It means that people care, and as long as they care the show will remain strong.

 

Yeah no, this 'Apocalypse Brony' thing is done on a week by week basis.

 

This fandom will be here for years, and that's something you can count o n.

 

You have very relevant avatar.

 

How the forums are making me feel right now:

 

[~/XC- BRONY\~ 310]

yea ill agree with about everyone.

 

My prediction is itll get bad up to the episode being shown then right after it the fandom will be back to its usual happy self ))))

[Pixel Stick 927]

yea ill agree with about everyone.

 

My prediction is itll get bad up to the episode being shown then right after it the fandom will be back to its usual happy self ))))

Here's hoping. . All I really want to do is have fun discussing this awesome show and what not. Make bad drama go 'way. 100 chars yay

[~/XC- BRONY\~ 310]

Here's hoping. . All I really want to do is have fun discussing this awesome show and what not. Make bad drama go 'way. 100 chars yay

yea I joined right before Keep calm and flutter on, and a lot of people were freaking out about that one right before it aired, after it aired, everything went back to being happy. I hope my prediction is right too!

[MadDoggyca 710]

Things come and go, any one that is or was part of the following know best what's its like going through changes.

 

The following are included

 

StarTrek (reboot after roboot)
Spiderman (and the recent and last comic 700#) killing off peter parker

Batman (and god knows how many reboots)

StarWars (ep 456 vs 123 vs remakes + disney aquireation lukus arts and the new starwars ep ever 2 year road map)

Pokemon (orginal season & 151 pokemon vs following season and expanding the number of species)

 

Even Mlp already had there hand full of up and down changes from G1 to G4 and ever one wants to forget about G3/G3.5.

 

point is ever thing moves on, changes, fans will ether incress or decress with changes but in the end there will be people and poines that will hold on for there entire life.

 

Don;t sweat it... enjoy it.

 

 

Little Trival, I personlly walked away from Pokemon after they finished Season 1 (the orginal 151 Pokemon species) The show became real meh, The card game became way to complex, and the video games became lustest in story and game play,  After all how many times do you want to replay the same RPG over and over agian trying to catch them all and being them all up to lvl 100.

 

I still enjoy the orignal season, Pokemon red/blue/yellow/snap n64, Stadium n64, & pokemon the card game gbc.

 

the quickest way to kill a fandom/fad is to make it overly complcated in all aspects of the production

 

Edited February 15, 2013 by MadDoggyca

[Alleviate 342]

I guess timing is everything (As I often say..) 

 

I mean, there's a few things happening now:

1. Twilicorn (Which I personally don't mind, as long as it's done well, which it will be.)

2. Fighting is Magic (which I've heard several rumors about including that they're working around the claim somehow...)

3. Mentally Advanced + Friendship is Witchcraft have both been copyright claimed, so they're relocating (Shame, I love those series'...Back up on their own websites though..)

 

Basically, Hasbro's having a little legal spasm, and it'll all be over in a week or so. (Twilicorn WILL be over in a few days though..)

 

And then there's the bros that don't really mind all of that, and don't feel the need to start a panic-thread, like most of us.

 

Stay bro-y, bro ^-^ (That's a word...)