TLC attempting to prey on Pony Community

[TwistedWindSox]

Criminy could you imagine how the price for a manky peachy would soar?   No more bargains anymore.

THIS!
There was an article recently about someone's pony collection (someone on this forum, I think!), and while that's super AWESOME that she got an article all about her collection, and a lot of positive pony publicity, some local sellers have marked their ponies WAY up... I talked to a seller about buying a small lot of common, okay condition G3 ponies (i think 15?) and she asked $100 for them! o3o I tried to tell her that they weren't worth that much, but she said that  "had read an article recently" and she "knew what they were worth" and that she could "sell them for twice that" so she was "really giving me a deal". I can imagine that even more people would see the TV show and think the same thing...

Other than that, I totally agree with what others are saying... This show seems to try to portray people in a not-so-positive light, and make them seem weird. :/ I'm sure people have already responded to the request, though...

[Argentum-Zeena]

Criminy could you imagine how the price for a manky peachy would soar?   No more bargains anymore.

That is the sort of thing that worries me. The thought of ponies being scalped like Monster High dolls... Just no. I like having at least one of my collectables easily found.

[Shenanigans]

I've seen the show and they don't paint the people in a very good light. It sorta reminds me of a freak show at a circus. Don't want any pony collectors looked at like freaks

[PinkRosedust]

Maybe I'm just optimistic, but I really don't think any of us needs to get too worried here.  Obviously most of the people in this thread aren't the type to want to participate anyway, which is good, but here's my two cents:  A few months ago I was visiting my TV-obsessed family in Minnesota and my sisters were into that "My Crazy Obsession" show.  I saw the episodes featuring the Cabbage Patch couple and the Mickey Mouse woman who moved to Florida so she could go to WDW every week.  Let's face it, the people who agree to be on these types of shows probably ARE a bit obsessive when it comes to their collections.  I don't think any less of people who collect Cabbage Patch Kids or Mickey Mouse memorabilia on account of lame shows like this, and I wouldn't think less of the MLP collecting community should some super-obsessive pony fan be featured on the show someday.  Calm down, fellow pony peeps.  It's all cool.

Well, of course YOU wouldn't think less of collectors - you're one of them! Think of it from a non-collectors' point of view though. :/

I also worry about prices going up because of this sort of thing. Sigh. I hope no one does this.

[babystarz]

Heck no. Collecting MLP is a hobby for me. I'm a normal person with a fulfilling life, a promising career and plenty of friends. I also have other hobbies. And none of that will be mentioned on a show about crazy obsessions.

[Argentum-Zeena]

Is the person posting on the Trading Post the same one who's been looking for collectors elsewhere? It would be horrible if there were a fake too

[Wardah]

Yeah it is possible this person isn't even from TLC. Maybe they are a scammer and they will try to ask for money. Or try something funny with checks.

[lochnessmomster]

Maybe I'm just optimistic, but I really don't think any of us needs to get too worried here.  Obviously most of the people in this thread aren't the type to want to participate anyway, which is good, but here's my two cents:  A few months ago I was visiting my TV-obsessed family in Minnesota and my sisters were into that "My Crazy Obsession" show.  I saw the episodes featuring the Cabbage Patch couple and the Mickey Mouse woman who moved to Florida so she could go to WDW every week.  Let's face it, the people who agree to be on these types of shows probably ARE a bit obsessive when it comes to their collections.  I don't think any less of people who collect Cabbage Patch Kids or Mickey Mouse memorabilia on account of lame shows like this, and I wouldn't think less of the MLP collecting community should some super-obsessive pony fan be featured on the show someday.  Calm down, fellow pony peeps.  It's all cool.

Well, of course YOU wouldn't think less of collectors - you're one of them! Think of it from a non-collectors' point of view though. :/

I also worry about prices going up because of this sort of thing. Sigh. I hope no one does this.

I hear what you're saying, I do... but I actually only got back into MLP very recently (I watched the show before I started up my collection again), and I have ALWAYS been a huge Disney fan. I don't know anyone who would stop buying/collecting CPK, Disney memorabilia, ponies, et al, over a show like this.  I've never thought of the collections being bizarre so much as the people who collect them and why.  I mean, seriously... I highly doubt those CPK people were doing it "just for the fun of it" and making themselves look weird on purpose.  I think they really were a bit strange.  For crying out loud, their Cabbage Patch dolls had a larger living space than they did!  TLC doesn't have to do much at all except find these people.  They make themselves look weird all on their own.  Same with the Mickey Mouse lady.  She bawled when the Disney Store wouldn't sell her a Mickey Mouse display that was used for decorating the shop.  Whether I was a collector or not, never in a million years would I think people are weird for having a collection.  But there are always exceptions to the rule.  If anything about this whole story bothers me, it's the possibility of pony prices going up.  Now THAT would stink. 

Edit:  I was just thinking... if these shows are meant to deter collectors, then it obviously didn't work on me.  I last watched "My Crazy Obsession" in March and I got back into pony collecting at the end of April.

[Beldarna]

Yikes.. We have a similar show here in Sweden called Outsiders. Once they did an episode with a girl who collect dolls (BJD etc) and they really lucked out in making her looking like a freak. The show made it look like she was parenting the dolls and saw them as her kids and talked with them, with them talking back to her etc. Afterwards I read online that she thought nothing of that, but the editors had cut and edited the film and interviews to make it seem like it, all for the chock value for the public. I felt so bad for the poor girl, she's forever marked as the dollfreak when all she wanted to do was to show off a fun and interesting collection. Not to mention how they made the dollcommuntiy look like..

I do not want this to happen here. This show on TLC is not just national, but international! Meaning I've seen episodes of it here in Sweden. Any person participing will not only show the US about their collection, but the rest of the Earth as well. Just, think twice before entering anything like this.

[Snapdragon]

Maybe I'm just optimistic, but I really don't think any of us needs to get too worried here.  Obviously most of the people in this thread aren't the type to want to participate anyway, which is good, but here's my two cents:  A few months ago I was visiting my TV-obsessed family in Minnesota and my sisters were into that "My Crazy Obsession" show.  I saw the episodes featuring the Cabbage Patch couple and the Mickey Mouse woman who moved to Florida so she could go to WDW every week.  Let's face it, the people who agree to be on these types of shows probably ARE a bit obsessive when it comes to their collections.  I don't think any less of people who collect Cabbage Patch Kids or Mickey Mouse memorabilia on account of lame shows like this, and I wouldn't think less of the MLP collecting community should some super-obsessive pony fan be featured on the show someday.  Calm down, fellow pony peeps.  It's all cool.

Well, of course YOU wouldn't think less of collectors - you're one of them! Think of it from a non-collectors' point of view though. :/

I also worry about prices going up because of this sort of thing. Sigh. I hope no one does this.

I hear what you're saying, I do... but I actually only got back into MLP very recently (I watched the show before I started up my collection again), and I have ALWAYS been a huge Disney fan. I don't know anyone who would stop buying/collecting CBK, Disney memorabilia, ponies, et al, over a show like this.  I've never thought of the collections being bizarre so much as the people who collect them and why.  I mean, seriously... I highly doubt those CBK people were doing it "just for the fun of it" and making themselves look weird on purpose.  I think they really were a bit strange.  For crying out loud, their Cabbage Patch dolls had a larger living space than they did!  TLC doesn't have to do much at all except find these people.  They make themselves look weird all on their own.  Same with the Mickey Mouse lady.  She bawled when the Disney Store wouldn't sell her a Mickey Mouse display that was used for decorating the shop.  Whether I was a collector or not, never in a million years would I think people are weird for having a collection.  But there are always exceptions to the rule.  If anything about this whole story bothers me, it's the possibility of pony prices going up.  Now THAT would stink.

I just don't like the implication that it's "okay" to laugh at someone if they're really, really weird. There's a huge difference between thinking, "Wow, that guy's a real weirdy" and setting him up on a television show to be mocked by millions of people around the country. A lot of these shows star people with potential mental disorders, or things they SHOULD be in treatment for; instead, they're filmed as "oddities," and the cameras keep rolling and everyone's just so excited for teh dramas and no one gets them any help.

It reminds me of that meme going around about video games - "anyone who is better at this game than me is obsessed, lives in his mom's basement and has no life; anyone who is worse at this game than me is a total worthless noob!" Let's face it: everyone has some weirdness in their life! That's because everyone is different; therefore, to someone somewhere, your everyday life seems "weird."

You might think, "oh, look at that weirdo CPK person, I'm not bad like that!" but with a little clever editing, you could look just as weird, if not worse. People don't voluntarily sign up to be made fun of, and no one "deserves" public mockery and derision for being an enthusiastic fan of something. (As long as they're not hurting anyone, I mean.)

I also wonder how fairly their show would treat someone who is underage, or who has a disability of some kind - because we have members who fall under both categories, and I doubt that TLC would give much of a hoot as to how eligible these people to be on television, so long as they get their ratings. Who cares if people's lives are ruined, so long as we get our viewers?

Here's my question to TLC: in ten years, are Jon and Kate Gosselin's kids going to be thanking you for the screen time you've given them, I wonder? The public mockery you've set them up for as they age, something they had no power to consent to? And similarly, will the pony collector you find to martyr be similarly thankful at your "kind" treatment of them? I greatly doubt it.

(Edited, sorry~Snap)

[Phekzhen]

Some people already think I'm "weird" for collecting G4 ponies, and some people think I'm "insane" for watching a show "made" for little girls. There's always going to be people who think anyone who spends time on a large collection is weird.

I think what the show is looking for is someone who is truly "obsessed." Like, giving up eating in order to buy ponies obsessed. Sometimes, they can't always find people this bad, so they have to edit it to make it look like someone is really "out there."

Shows like this are sometimes a good way to reflect on your own lives. Yesterday I watched MTV's True Life: I'm addicted to caffeine. Seeing people pound down 12-20 energy drinks a day was scary, because they had become accustomed to this and being up for 20 hours at a time, because their lives demanded it (being parents, working multiple jobs, etc). And there was another episode about people with neurofibromastasia, which my boyfriend has, and it made me realize how lucky he is. These poor people had huge disfiguring tumors and severe neurological issues due to NF, so it was a sobering look as to what might happen to him in the future.

We really can't "ban" people from contacting TLC, as we can't control what every single pony collector does, but it is good to inform people about what they're getting into.

[lochnessmomster]

Some people already think I'm "weird" for collecting G4 ponies, and some people think I'm "insane" for watching a show "made" for little girls. There's always going to be people who think anyone who spends time on a large collection is weird.

I think what the show is looking for is someone who is truly "obsessed." Like, giving up eating in order to buy ponies obsessed. Sometimes, they can't always find people this bad, so they have to edit it to make it look like someone is really "out there."

Shows like this are sometimes a good way to reflect on your own lives. Yesterday I watched MTV's True Life: I'm addicted to caffeine. Seeing people pound down 12-20 energy drinks a day was scary, because they had become accustomed to this and being up for 20 hours at a time, because their lives demanded it (being parents, working multiple jobs, etc). And there was another episode about people with neurofibromastasia, which my boyfriend has, and it made me realize how lucky he is. These poor people had huge disfiguring tumors and severe neurological issues due to NF, so it was a sobering look as to what might happen to him in the future.

We really can't "ban" people from contacting TLC, as we can't control what every single pony collector does, but it is good to inform people about what they're getting into.

I like this.  Well spoken.

[Pinkie21]

Some people already think I'm "weird" for collecting G4 ponies, and some people think I'm "insane" for watching a show "made" for little girls. There's always going to be people who think anyone who spends time on a large collection is weird.

I think what the show is looking for is someone who is truly "obsessed." Like, giving up eating in order to buy ponies obsessed. Sometimes, they can't always find people this bad, so they have to edit it to make it look like someone is really "out there."

Shows like this are sometimes a good way to reflect on your own lives. Yesterday I watched MTV's True Life: I'm addicted to caffeine. Seeing people pound down 12-20 energy drinks a day was scary, because they had become accustomed to this and being up for 20 hours at a time, because their lives demanded it (being parents, working multiple jobs, etc). And there was another episode about people with neurofibromastasia, which my boyfriend has, and it made me realize how lucky he is. These poor people had huge disfiguring tumors and severe neurological issues due to NF, so it was a sobering look as to what might happen to him in the future.

We really can't "ban" people from contacting TLC, as we can't control what every single pony collector does, but it is good to inform people about what they're getting into.

I completely agree with you. 

[Gonzo]

The only thing that could make this worse is if TLC decided to look into the brony community, and instead of all of the genuinely great art, music, and videos made in tribute to the show, they immediately stopped at the absolute bottom of the barrel (which they likely don't realize exists in every fandom and should not be confused with the entire fandom) and then lumped the collectors in with 'em.

A blatant lack of research really grinds my gears, even without the exploitation.

[apanda0622]

Did you see the first episode of Toy Hunters?  It was just as appauling as the TLC show.  That Jordan guy had no idea the value of a Care Bear.  And he has already invaded the GI Joe and Star Wars forums with most members wanting nothing to do with him or his show because of the first episode.

Just a heads up.

I'm going to be talking, via phone call, to Jordan Hembrough, of, "Toy Hunters", on The Travel Channel sometime this weekend. We chat at times on and off on Facebook, and he and his staff are the ONLY people on tv I trust to talk about toy collecting with. Why? Because they themselves are big time toy collectors themselves, fellow geeks, they have a business here in New Jersey where they sell the toys they hunt for from all over the US from collectors, and they sell at New York City ComicCon every year ( I purchased my G1 Donatello Ninja Turtle plushie from them one year at NYC ComicCon. X3 ). Jordan had Travel Channel create a section in their photo galleries for fans of Toy Hunters to be able to upload photos of their toy collections, and I was the first gal to do so, with my ponies, Fashion Star Fillies, Breyers, and other toys, and I think that caught his attention. X3

He saw my post about this on Facebook, and wants to help the pony community out with this whole ordeal.

If he can help us out, that would be awesome! Keeping my fingers crossed!