Bronies?

[Thunder Boomer]

The one thing that gets me, though, is how "brony" seems to imply maleness. I identify both as a fan of the new show as well as collector...and I'm a girl...can I still be a brony? Do I want to be a brony? Labels are confusing.

While "brony" was first meant as a term that meant male pony fan, it's expanded much further than that. You can be a girl and still consider yourself a brony. If you are a fan of FiM, enjoy FiM fanart/fanfics, identify on some level with the Chan mentality, and understand the pony memes then you can call yourself a brony.
There was an argument once on the RP forum I'm a part of. The qualm was about why the forum creators had not added a gender option to the board profiles. The simple answer was, "Regardless of gender, we're all "bros" here."

The only parts I don't like are the Faust-worship (she's great for designing the world and characters, yes, but she wrote my least-favorite episodes in the series and I wish the other fantastic writers would get some credit)

The Faust worship bugs me. . . I mean reeeaaaalllly bugs me. Especially when they start giving Lauren Faust credit for cartoons she didn't create. (As an animation geek, this ignorance really drives me nuts). Maybe it's because I've already sold my soul to another cartoon creator/artist and can't call her "god" or maybe it's because of a deep hatred of Hellfans . . . I dunno, but I just can't stand it.

 

[McPonyBurger]

It think it's kinda funny how back when i joined this forum back in 2007, among the first thing anyone said to me was something along the lines of "always nice to see some male MLP fans!". And now there are so male fans that if you were to gather all of their testosterone you could fill the grand canyon to the brim with it. =P

Anyway, the one thing i CAN NOT STAND about this brony revolution is how so many of them seem to feel the need to constantly diss the older MLP versions. Example: Pretty much since the invention of youtube, i have quite regularly been watching MLP related videos on the site: episodes, commercials, "AMV's", and so forth. And until FiM came along almost all of the comments on those videos were positive. But now, the majority of those videos are flooded with comments about how the classic ponies are "awful" and "suck" and how we should all thank God that Lauren Faust created a version that doesn't. Blast it all, it makes me so angry to hear things like that! I mean, i can understand why people who first became interested in MLP through FiM can find the old versions to different to enjoy them, but why do they have to express their dislike in such harsh and rude ways? That's what get's me the most; not the disliking in itself, but the rudeness.

Oh well, i suppose that's just the way most young males speak. I belong in the "young male" category myself so i should know (i personally try to be polite, but most guys my age that i know are very rough around the edges). I suppose the fact that the MLP fanbase used to be mostly made up by females is what made it a somewhat friendlier place than most other fanbases to begin with. As well as less, well, perverted than most fanbses tend to be. And now that there are tons of male fans, there is an inevitable rise in antisocial behavior and sexually explicit fan-creations.

 

[Plumeria]

It think it's kinda funny how back when i joined this forum back in 2007, among the first thing anyone said to me was something along the lines of "always nice to see some male MLP fans!". And now there are so male fans that if you were to gather all of their testosterone you could fill the grand canyon to the brim with it. =P

Anyway, the one thing i CAN NOT STAND about this brony revolution is how so many of them seem to feel the need to constantly diss the older MLP versions. Example: Pretty much since the invention of youtube, i have quite regularly been watching MLP related videos on the site: episodes, commercials, "AMV's", and so forth. And until FiM came along almost all of the comments on those videos were positive. But now, the majority of those videos are flooded with comments about how the classic ponies are "awful" and "suck" and how we should all thank God that Lauren Faust created a version that doesn't. Blast it all, it makes me so angry to hear things like that! I mean, i can understand why people who first became interested in MLP through FiM can find the old versions to different to enjoy them, but why do they have to express their dislike in such harsh and rude ways? That's what get's me the most; not the disliking in itself, but the rudeness.

Oh well, i suppose that's just the way most young males speak. I belong in the "young male" category myself so i should know (i personally try to be polite, but most guys my age that i know are very rough around the edges). I suppose the fact that the MLP fanbase used to be mostly made up by females is what made it a somewhat friendlier place than most other fanbases to begin with. As well as less, well, perverted than most fanbses tend to be. And now that there are tons of male fans, there is an inevitable rise in antisocial behavior and sexually explicit fan-creations.

The really rude remarks about the previous generations bother me, too. I can see not being a fan of the previous generations, but I'm not sure what there is to gain by outright bashing it all. To each their own, though I guess.

And just to clarify about my previous comments in this thread, because I think they may be seen wrong, I think male MLP fans are great. I've got nothing against them. I really like seeing the social norms being broken and males liking what is stereotypically a female show/toy. I don't necessarily correlate male fans with bronies, though. To me, I see them as two separate entities. My husband really loves Friendship is Magic, probably more than I do (and while he likes the previous generations, he's just not as into them because he really enjoys FiM *because* of the show), but I don't consider him part of the "brony" phenomenon.

 

[dusty gusty]

have a love hate thing with this whole ordeal. My husband claims himself under the title, and I absolutely LOVE watching the show with him, he's still annoyed that the first season ended. However, I can't stand the people who have decided as they know everything about the show they therefore know everything about MLP. I know, this sounds kinda "more nerdy than thou" or snobby in a way, but it really irks me. I am all for passive mlp fans, or fans that aren't necessarily AS into mlp as me, or other collectors, but some of the painfully stupid comments I've gotten lately on my mlp related art on DA or even on the forums just **** me off, as they are clearly from people that have no clue what the context of the art/ topic is, and thinks that since it has to do with MLP, it's automatically FIM related. This is something I'm kinda dreading about this year's local anime conventions.

 

[tehrin]

I'm not exactly sure how I feel...

Granted, I LOVED MLP as a little girl in the 80s. I was obsessed with it. However, my only dealings with it during adulthood have been reminiscing about 80's stuff, or wandering through the store thinking "Hmm, I'd like to buy one of the new ponies" but not going much further than that.

If it wasn't for FiM, I don't think I would've gotten back into MLP at the same level. Though I have been on a girly toy collecting kick. After buying up Monster High dolls, I'm happy that the FiM toys in stores are a lot lighter on my wallet. XD

I don't really mind there being bronies. My husband teases me and calls me a brony. XD Although I'm really more into the G1 stuff honestly... Although I DO love FiM. :3

I think the only time it REALLY bothers me is when I see adamant FiM fans talking negatively about the 80's cartoons and toys. The G3.5 stuff, I can see. And sure, looking back at old cartoons from childhood is NEVER the same. The Care Bears movies were my favorites as a child but I can't sit through them all grown up as nostalgic as they are. But it's like, if you're gonna get into the fandom, at least know and appreciate your roots. Doesn't mean you have to go ga-ga and collect the 80's stuff. But don't knock it. If it weren't for those characters, toys and old cartoons, we wouldn't have FiM.

 

[Cathariel]

I used to go on ***** a lot, then it started disgusting me after I became a brony. Then I went to Ponychan a lot. Now that place is starting to creep me out. I pretty much only haunt the /toy/ board anymore. At least all you old school mlp gods seem pretty sane.