G1 through g3 fandom becoming extinct?

[Mana Minori]

I know there are still many old gen fans hanging around, but things like old gen forums seem to be dead (even most g4 forums). Is the fanbase for the first 3 gens shrinking? Moved elsewhere? Or maybe I'm just not in the loop as to where all the old timers are milling around, these days. Am I worrying too much?
 G4'ers are so reluctant to discuss anything from g1 through g3. Its like pulling teeth
Will it continue to shrink as mlp progresses in the era of g4, and future gens?

[Carrehz]

Dude, have you even looked at the other threads on here? The Arena was around waaaayy before all that G4 nonsense came into the picture, and it'll prolly stick around long after G4's gone and all the sites and forums for it are dead.

If G4 fans aren't into the previous gens then that's their choice, you know? No point forcing the matter if it's not something they're interested in.

[Mana Minori]

Dude, have you even looked at the other threads on here? The Arena was around waaaayy before all that G4 nonsense came into the picture, and it'll prolly stick around long after G4's gone and all the sites and forums for it are dead.

If G4 fans aren't into the previous gens then that's their choice, you know? No point forcing the matter if it's not something they're interested in.

this is but one wesite, though. It may be active here, but what of other old gen Facebok pages, forums, dA communities, and the like? They're not so active, and that worries me. I don't want he legacy of the first 3 generations to be forgotten.

[Carrehz]

also, you've got to keep in mind - in general (not just for MLP), the older something is, the less fan content there is for it out there. People move on, you know? It doesn't mean they don't love it, it just means they're not interested in making content for it at the moment. Obviously that's not an absolute rule, but in general newer stuff is always going to be more popular anyway.

I've seen a fair amount of newly-created G1 stuff on Tumblr, though? And I mean, I barely even look on Tumblr, so. It's definitely out there? I'm not really sure I understand your concern, lol.

[LadyMoondancer]

I think MLP is actually more accessible to most fandoms in terms of "cross generational interest", by which I mean the fan of one generation also becoming the fan of a different generation--whether it's old fans getting interested in a newer gen or a new gen fan getting interested in older gens.

When I look at the Transformers fandom, by contrast, you can totally have someone who is only into Transformers Prime and no other gen, or only TF Animated, or only G1 Transformers, or only into the live action Michael Bay movies.  And if you are a fan of the goofier Japanese animes, like Beast Wars Neo or Beast Wars II, then prepare to be lonely, lol.  Whatever is newest gets the most fanart, whether it's good or not.  (Right now there's a lot of Robots in Disguise fanart, even though the series is just not very good.)

Interestingly, Beast Wars (not BW II or BW Neo, but the original BW) is widely viewed as having THE best characterization and story in Transformers, and yet I hardly ever see fanfiction, fanart, etc, for it.  But whenever there's a "what's your favorite show" poll, it always does well.  So I guess I would say just because you aren't seeing something being discussed much, or having much creator content, doesn't mean that something is unappreciated or forgotten.

[Carrehz]

So I guess I would say just because you aren't seeing something being discussed much, or having much creator content, doesn't mean that something is unappreciated or forgotten.

[Broken Irishwoman]

To be honest I feel like it's the opposite? There's retro stuff everywhere now, even non-collectors are becoming more aware of the (G1) pony world. I would hardly call that extinct... If anything, people are actually picking up on it?

[Taffeta]

I'm not sure why this is even a discussion point, to be honest. It's like saying "look, there are a lot of Star Wars fans. We're in trouble."

You're looking at it from the wrong angle. There isn't a comparison here. You're looking at the negative of what you see right now, but not thinking about the bigger picture of this community and where it has been to where it is now. The G4 community is nothing to do with it. We have G4 fans here too, but they are just newer members of our family, not competition. If the G4 only fandom is as successful after G4 ends, good for them. You said yourself, though, that some G4 sites have also gone. That implies that probably they will transition, too, once their series and toyline is gone. G1 ended more than 20 years ago. Some new pony fans are younger than that. So it's a silly comparison to make.

I've been in and out of this community 20 years and so have many people. That community was tiny. This is not a comparison with then. In those 20 years I have seen us go from a place where all trade lists had to be emailed to the TP owner, where there was only one ID site and where there were a total of three UK people in that community. I remember when there were no forums, and just email mailing lists, like ponypeople and dreamvalley, which was the only mode of communication. I remember when MLP was not a category on ebay (although it became one during G3). I remember a time when there were not pony meets, though now people take the Pony Fair and UK Ponycon as a natural part of the year, as well as there being lots of smaller meets. I remember when we didn't know about pony variants from some countries, and now we have members from those countries, like Greece, or Mexico. For every ID site that has closed, another has come in its place. Members have left and members have joined. This community is the product of 20 years of change and development and evolution.

The G4 community has nothing to do with that. Fans who want to be here can be here. Fans who don't don't have to be. We're not competing with them. Frankly, and I have to be honest, I don't like that this thread and your other one about creativity seem to be comparing the old and original pony community with the new. We were here first, we built the foundations, and we will be here when G4 ends. I would not be asking the question about G1 love, or even G2 or G3. If we're here now, so long after those ponies ended, we'll be here in the future, too.

I frankly don't care what the G4 only community do or don't do. It's their business, it's their community. I have no ill will towards them, nor do I think they should be forced to talk about older gens if they don't want to. There isn't a comparison between that part of online MLP and ours.

I have to admit I don't understand your rationale for this post or the one on creativity. The two of them so close together make me somewhat uneasy. I hope they weren't made in an attempt to undermine old MLP generations, because it really doesn't work. And if you are genuinely worried about the old generations, don't be. We've been here a long time. We have roots. We're not going anywhere.

Adding in response to what Regenveertje said - this is also very true. G1 retro stuff is really popular right at the moment. Primark has been selling MLP G1 stuff for several years, but only G1 stuff so far.  I had forgotten that, but it's a really valid point.

It's also true about anime fandoms. Most anime I like are obscure, but even the ones that aren't have a really fickle long term fanbase, apparently. ><

[kamakazee82]

i don't think it has anything to do with the fans, just the method of communication. i've seen a lot of message boards of MANY fanbases close up shop because a lot of fans are going to things like facebook groups and tumblrs and imgur etc etc the fans are there, but the communication means are really whats changing.

[Mana Minori]

I'm not sure why this is even a discussion point, to be honest. It's like saying "look, there are a lot of Star Wars fans. We're in trouble."

You're looking at it from the wrong angle. There isn't a comparison here. You're looking at the negative of what you see right now, but not thinking about the bigger picture of this community and where it has been to where it is now. The G4 community is nothing to do with it. We have G4 fans here too, but they are just newer members of our family, not competition. If the G4 only fandom is as successful after G4 ends, good for them. You said yourself, though, that some G4 sites have also gone. That implies that probably they will transition, too, once their series and toyline is gone. G1 ended more than 20 years ago. Some new pony fans are younger than that. So it's a silly comparison to make.

I've been in and out of this community 20 years and so have many people. That community was tiny. This is not a comparison with then. In those 20 years I have seen us go from a place where all trade lists had to be emailed to the TP owner, where there was only one ID site and where there were a total of three UK people in that community. I remember when there were no forums, and just email mailing lists, like ponypeople and dreamvalley, which was the only mode of communication. I remember when MLP was not a category on ebay (although it became one during G3). I remember a time when there were not pony meets, though now people take the Pony Fair and UK Ponycon as a natural part of the year, as well as there being lots of smaller meets. I remember when we didn't know about pony variants from some countries, and now we have members from those countries, like Greece, or Mexico. For every ID site that has closed, another has come in its place. Members have left and members have joined. This community is the product of 20 years of change and development and evolution.

The G4 community has nothing to do with that. Fans who want to be here can be here. Fans who don't don't have to be. We're not competing with them. Frankly, and I have to be honest, I don't like that this thread and your other one about creativity seem to be comparing the old and original pony community with the new. We were here first, we built the foundations, and we will be here when G4 ends. I would not be asking the question about G1 love, or even G2 or G3. If we're here now, so long after those ponies ended, we'll be here in the future, too.

I frankly don't care what the G4 only community do or don't do. It's their business, it's their community. I have no ill will towards them, nor do I think they should be forced to talk about older gens if they don't want to. There isn't a comparison between that part of online MLP and ours.

I have to admit I don't understand your rationale for this post or the one on creativity. The two of them so close together make me somewhat uneasy. I hope they weren't made in an attempt to undermine old MLP generations, because it really doesn't work. And if you are genuinely worried about the old generations, don't be. We've been here a long time. We have roots. We're not going anywhere.

Adding in response to what Regenveertje said - this is also very true. G1 retro stuff is really popular right at the moment. Primark has been selling MLP G1 stuff for several years, but only G1 stuff so far.  I had forgotten that, but it's a really valid point.

It's also true about anime fandoms. Most anime I like are obscure, but even the ones that aren't have a really fickle long term fanbase, apparently. ><

I'm sorry you don't like my topics, but I do have a right to express my fears and concerns.   Do I not? While some may think that they are baseless, the fact is I personally don't see the older fandoms thriving, save for this one active site, and some art groups on dA. And that wories me. I am genuinely concerned, here. That's what it boils down to. So you saying that you don't like my topic comparing new and old generation (I see massive content and activity for g4) hurts. Yeah, the oldbies set the foundation and there have come more than there has been, in the beginning, but I still fel scared and worried   for the older gens as far as fandom and fanmade content, as time continues, and I believe that its not fair for you to basically scoff at my feelings in the way that you worded it. It was very rude and hurtful.

[Leave a Whisper]

Lol no. Just because a fandom isn't online as much, doesn't mean the fandom is dying. The younger crowd seems to forget that Online is not the Only Way to keep a fandom going. Its relatively new in the grand scheme of things. How on Earth do you think fandoms survived Before the advent of the internet? Star Trek, Doll Collectors, Comic Fans.Do you think they were chatting it up on the net way back when? Plus some of us have passed on the love to our kids.

Also please remember that the G2 and G3 fans are coming into their own as teenagers and young adults.

[lunar_scythe]

A lot of it is simply collectors move in waves:  for a while, everyone was going to facebook and not coming to forums; now I am seeing more activity here and less on facebook.  We older collectors tend to be most active at certain times of the year, too; just like how when it's off season for a tv show, there is less fan activity.

[Carrehz]

Taffeta, Leave a Whisper, as usual you two hit the nail on the head.

I'm gonna be honest, I don't get this "let's preserve the fandom!!" kind of attitude at all.. in general, not just for MLP, as I've seen it for other things. People move on, stuff changes, fandoms/communities/etc slow down and sometimes die and y'know, that happens? It's a part of life. Honestly I think we've done pretty well, considering. There's a _lot_ of G1/G2/G3 stuff out there still, there's new stuff coming in all the time.. the fact that all this is still going on, what, 30 years after G1 should show that it has staying power, I would've thought.

[Taffeta]

I'm sorry you don't like my topics, but I do have a right to express my fears and concerns.   Do I not?

Of course you do, but you need to remember, so do I. So do all of us. And if you open a discussion like this, you invite responses. Some of those will disagree with you. Some of those will challenge you. And you also need to think about what you said, and how those things might make other people feel.

I dislike disharmony between generation collectors. I also despise comparisons. Comparisons imply that something is superior and something is inferior. In a collecting sense, or a fandom sense, that can only ever end badly. I don't want competition with the FIM community. I am not interested in their digital media or fan output, because that's not my community. If I wanted to be there, I would be. But I'm not. I'm here. And I think that is true for a lot of us. It doesn't matter what another community puts out, because the people in this community are here for a reason. And if we are here, we're here because we love this fandom and this product...even if our way of doing so isn't the same as theirs.

That is pretty much what I said in my original post, only paraphrased to try and make it easier to understand.

Because I dislike disharmony between generation collectors, it bothers me when someone comes up with the kind of post that is essentially derogatory to this community in some way. I don't think it was unreasonable to ask about the motivation behind it, because two posts in a few days by someone who principally posts in the FIM sections is going to get anyone a little bit on edge. I don't want the rivalry that was there in the past to flare up into something nasty again. I like that our different communities can do what we like without being forced into comparison with each other. I don't like that the FIM community should be made to like G1-2-3 if they don't want to, and I don't like people coming here with a view of the G4 community and saying we don't match up. Whatever your motivation, that can't possibly end well. And instead of taking it as a personal insult, I'd just like you to stop and think about what you are asking, and how much you actually do know about the community you say you are worried about. It seems to me like you are trying to see it through the G4 way of doing things, but G4 didn't even exist when this community came into being, and so obviously isn't going to be the same. Nor does it need to be.

Your information is also lacking; the Arena is not the only G1-2-3-4 pony forum.

The thing is that FIM is and has been from the start a different kind of generation. It is driven by the cartoon, not the toys. That lends itself to way more fanfiction and digital media. Also what others have said about generation probably applies. I wrote MLP fanfic as a kid and as a teen, but I don't do it now. You can't expect all G1 fans, for example, to act the same way they maybe did when G1 was out or had just disappeared. That doesn't mean this community is in decline. As someone who has been here to observe it over two decades, I know the different stages it has been through in its evolution. People all have different reasons for loving MLP, and this community welcomes all of them. I think overall it has become a stronger place for cross-generational fandom, because people get into a newer generation but often end up then collecting others as well.

For that reason, I find the aspersions cast on our fandom's creativity and community both 'hurtful' and 'rude', to use your own language. This community was here before FIM. It will be here after FIM. I really hope that when FIM ends, we might one day end up with one whole community, rather than separate strands - but even if not, it won't be until FIM ends that we see how that fandom really is. I think at this point this fandom is the stronger, because it has self-perpetuated without any help from Hasbro or Hasbro products over a long period of time. So if you genuinely are worried, there's really no need to be. But even if you are, you also have to accept that your premise itself is an offensive one - telling people that the community they love and belong to is inferior and dying, and not accepting it when they disagree.

[Carrehz]

Taffeta I want to marry your most recent post. Just. So perfect You literally said everything I wanted to but wasn't sure how to put it, haha.