Is the Brony fandom unstable in a way?

[Loriem 639]

I have noticed something upon joining this fandom a while back.

 

Bronies have VERY few common consensuses. The only few things that most of us have in common is the fact we watch the show and take part in fan stuff. On other things, we have people from ALL aspects of any arguments or personality.

 

This isn't necessarily bad, it actually means we can spread out to many more people. Which also means we are likely to be able to have people on just about every part on every argument, race, religion, and political siding to exist

 

But, does this make us unstable? Aside from loving the show, we often enough have debates, argue about things from the show, and fight each other on all sorts of things.

 

I am not saying debating stuff like politics is bad, I actually think it is semi-good. But in your opinion is the fandom stable and likely to stick around? Or likely to collapse into smaller fandoms or groups? 

 

[Champion RD92 8,658]

Just because we may disagree on a lot of issues like Twilicorn or anything else, I don't think that means we are unstable or the fandom is gonna split apart or anything.

Edited March 4, 2013 by Champion RD92

[Veronica The Miffvixen 232]

It's as stable as Illinium... And I'm not talking about Il-98, I'm talking like Il-118 kinda unstable. This fandom makes Unihexiennium look stable in water! Wow, I'm getting way too nerdy right now!

[Zacharias 191]

I don't think this has anthing to do with the diversity of the people in the fandom. In fact, the only problem I see here is that we're bound to get exaggerated drama situations every once in a while. (You all know what kind of things I'm pointing at right now)

[Fhaolan 4,483]

There's a slight problem with this poll, in that stability is being used to describe longevity. That's not necessarily a good assumption. Things can be unstable, and still last a long time as long as growth is equal to or exceeding losses.

[Shanks 10,816]

I don't think we are any more unstable than any other fandom out there, if anything we have it more together than most other fandoms do. If you want to see some dysfunctional fandoms try checking out the Sonic and Star Wars fandoms sometime, now that is the stuff of some truly epic flame wars.

[Veronica The Miffvixen 232]

I don't think we are any more unstable than any other fandom out there, if anything we have it more together than most other fandoms do. If you want to see some dysfunctional fandoms try checking out the Sonic and Star Wars fandoms sometime, now that is the stuff of some truly epic flame wars.

The Sonic fandom doesn't count. It's beyond unstable. It's like a million apocalypses constantly happening and repeating, creating a fabric of shattered space-time filled with inexplicable chaos, as the very fundamental mental states of its denizens constantly disintegrate, get glued back together, shatter again, and go through and endless cycle of repair and reconstruction following by fragmentation and ruination, on loop for all time. Merely entering that place is to forfeit a great deal, if not all, of your sanity.

[Soviet Spy 31]

The diversity does not make us unstable, it makes the fandom stronger. People that are different do, contrary to popular belief, get along better than two people who are very similar. Each person brings something different into the fold, and that's great.

[Fluttershyfan94 5,742]

I believe that we are a rather stable fandom. It's good that we are a diverse group of people, otherwise it wouldn't be any fun. What i think is fun in this fandom, is because how diverse it is.. You are destined to find people that share your interests, i'm not only talking about ponies. I'm talking about things like cars, other cartoons, video games, books, music and so on.

 

One of the reason for why the brony fandom is so creative is probably because we have a lot of people in different categories..

 

We don't have to have a lot in common to stay strong as a fandom.. All we need is to follow the shows morals, be friendly to each other.. Love and tolerate, we just have to tolerate each others different opinions..

 

The debates might actually weaken our fandom, but as long as we debate in a civilized manner and follow the morals from the show. We should be able to debate without weakening the fandom. We should be able to have debates in this fandom without destroying it in the process.

 

Basically, our diversity is probably what keeps us strong.

[Shanks 10,816]

The diversity does not make us unstable, it makes the fandom stronger. People that are different do, contrary to popular belief, get along better than two people who are very similar. Each person brings something different into the fold, and that's great.

That is not always the case but yes there are far more cases then people realize where people who are similar can get at each others throats. I think the diversity is the greatest strength of this because it exposes people to different perspectives they might not have otherwise been exposed to making them recognize that people who are seemingly polar opposites are in fact not so different after all. It is a lesson that is hard to learn and easy to forget though as I did kind of jump on Castorochiaro in this thread a few days ago and feel really horrible about it. Sure I stand by my opinion but I am not going to sugarcoat that I acted like a complete jackass.

[Mutemutt 773]

Generally as a group increases in members it becomes more unstable. It's as you said people have different opinions and debates and argues break out more often since there are more opinions to go around. It's a pretty normal thing for fandoms I believe.

 

I'm not saying that the fandom will collapse though. Things won't fall apart unless everyone stops loving the series/fandom suddenly. 

 

EDIT: Woah woah woah. Sorry it's been a while since I took sociology (even though I love it). I had it backwards; groups become more stable, in the sense that people can come and go and the group will still survive. I still stand by what I said about there being more differences among opinions though.

Edited March 4, 2013 by Cota

[fluffpudge 148]

I think it's only healthy for there to be disagreements in a group. It'd be kinda creepy if everyone saw things the exact same way on every single item in the fandom! With such a diverse group as this one, there's obviously going to be separate opinions.

 

It only grows to be an issue if the people want to make it an issue.

 

There's a difference between having an opinion on something and pasting it everywhere you go, whining about it the entire way, provoking others with opposing opinions. 

 

Other than that, I think the brony fandom is perfectly fine as is. While I'm not pleased with quite a number/group of the members, it's just my opinion and nothing more- and that's healthy for the group. (:

[Clover Heart 978]

I think there may be a confusion of terms going on here. I think what you're talking about is the brony community. I can't say where that falls, really. In my opinion, though, I think it's a good thing that there's a lot of variation in the community. It means that a fan isn't just X, Y and Z, and anyone anyone who doesn't fit X, Y and Z isn't going to be shunned from the group. Everyone can find other fans with similar interests and similar views to each other. At the same time, we can talk to people with other views, if we so choose, and can learn about different viewpoints and broaden our minds. Still, it's not a requirement that anyone has to talk with anyone on something they disagree with. I feel like there are a lot of different options for an individual within the community, and I feel that that's an asset, not a weakness, of the group. If anyone chooses to engage in conversation that upsets them or hang around people they don't care for, and it makes them feel unwelcome in the community, that's their choice, and they don't really have anybody to blame but themselves. There -are- other people to talk to, and nobody is forcing you to talk with people you disagree with.

 

At the same time, nothing about our community says that we have to have a consensus upon anything. It's not like we're a political group which is taking an official stance on issues. The only requirements of being part of the MLP community are liking MLP and wanting to be a part of the community. So I don't think that "being divided" upon anything really means anything. Unless it had to do with, like, a huge difference within the show that people were taking sides on. I mean, even if you say we're divided on some issues, we're under no obligation to take an official stance on things or "unify." So not agreeing on issues, to me, seems like a moot point.

 

However, in your terms, speaking of fandom, I think as long as there's a show, there will be a fandom. It doesn't matter if, hypothetically, all MLP fans couldn't stand any other MLP fans. The fact that there are still fans means there's still a fandom, and it doesn't matter if there's a divide in opinion about anything.

[TailsIsNotAlone 3,695]

I'm not at all worried about the community's future. There are plenty of differences, but what we do have in common is more than enough to hold us together. Besides, if we agreed on everything we'd all get bored.

Edited March 18, 2013 by TailsIsNotAlone

[generic11052016 52]

I would not say stable nor unstable. We tend to have close ties with each other mostly, and we share a lot about the show and our creations.

However, we have our conflicts. The biggest I seen personally is with OCs. People tend t make and share their creations, and granted yes there are the good constructive critics, but for almost every OC out there I tend to see some rude complaints and comments. An OC is an OC and theyre special to us individually. We need to respect that.

[APonyToRemember 31]

In reality, I feel that the MLP fandom is rather stable and is a great place to voice your opinion because most ponies on here respect each other and their opinions. I feel that the diversity of the group makes us stronger as a whole and can actually further extend the longevity of MLP as long as we all stay true to our roots and remain respectful, I think we'll be fine. I would honestly hate to see this fan base go and I hope that the lessons provided in the show can be taught for many generations to come. Great question, love and tolerance every pony <3 take care

[Loriem 639]

Just to be clear, the question I asked does not represent my views, it is there to get a thing going so I can see what others think. 

 

But mainly I like having diversity, it is fun, and in a fandom that at least preaches love and tolerance, I can seeing diversity here being MUCH more acceptable than elsewhere.

[Betez 1,734]

I feel like we are pretty stable most of the time, but certain issues do make us easily take sides, and almost start a civil war. For example, ALICORN TWILIGHT

[Bucky McGillyCuddy 956]

I think it's just a little unstable at times and that it boils down to some Bronys being way too attached their favorite characters of the show and becoming really defensive about them. Might be just me but that's how i see it. Did i even answer the question haha...

[Harmonic Revelations 8,835]

Yes, we're constantly chemically reacting with the environment around us. As you can see, when presented with even the smallest, insignificant change (Like adding wings to a character) they will react violently and mellodramatically. 

Edited March 6, 2013 by ☣Harmonic Revelations☣

[Jammo 986]

A homogenized "we all think the same" fandom would be a very bad thing. There's no growth when there's no diversity. Different opinions allow each other to understand the differences and gain a wider perspective. There will still will be fans closed off to embracing other ideas and opinions but that's human. So bronies are no more "unstable" than any group... Just like everything is more stable than sonic fandom. . The Middle East, the Korean Peninsula, Uranium.. Much more stable than Sonic fandom.

[Sonicrules831 520]

I think everything will be fine. We all have our differences but we aren't going anywhere. The Brony Community is still growing and will continue to grow. Things will calm down and be alright. I'm certainly not leaving this fandom. I enjoy ponies too much

[FoxyCryptid 4,330]

The Sonic fandom doesn't count. It's beyond unstable. It's like a million apocalypses constantly happening and repeating, creating a fabric of shattered space-time filled with inexplicable chaos, as the very fundamental mental states of its denizens constantly disintegrate, get glued back together, shatter again, and go through and endless cycle of repair and reconstruction following by fragmentation and ruination, on loop for all time. Merely entering that place is to forfeit a great deal, if not all, of your sanity.

Maybe that's what happened to me, it would explain a lot XD. 

 

 

On topic, I think it's more that a lot of us just like a good debate, and to someone looking in from the outside a heated, yet still civil debate can look like a fight. 

[Zygen 6,066]

I think it would be pretty boring if we where all the same general type of people Xd. But I think that even though we're very diverse and we disagree on alot of different things we still have learned to be tolerant of each other and accept our differences through MLP, and for the most part things stay that way.

 

Sure we have our fights, but really isn't that just a great way to learn to understand each other better to some extent? I mean how many of your good friends have you NEVER NEVER disagreeded or fought with? exactly, most close friendships and the such have fights, its not the end of the world really. We're still here and we still love each other. Or atleast I do .

 

So I think while we can argue on things and disagree, we're not falling apart anytime soon, heck even when we do disagree we're pretty stable compared to many fandoms and communities.

[Shawn Parks 1,798]

"This fandom is going to die due to instability and diversity of the people involved."

 

 

 

Or at any rate, I think that this video is funny.