Onslaught Six wrote:Put it this way: Would you rather Dom love all aspects of the series and be a horrible moderator, or be a good moderator who finds issue with a lot of the material? I like a bunch of TF material but I know I'm a horrible moderator, because I'm touchy and a douchebag and I step out of line a 'lot.' (I was an administrator on another forum years ago and was not exactly a model example.) Basically, what you're doing is making the argument that Dom is not a "real fan" of TF and that's such a stupidly childish argument that I can't believe I have to defend against it.
And you're leaving out one thing entirely: Transformers is primarily a line of fiction designed to sell toys. And regardless of his thoughts on the fiction, Dom likes a good bunch of the toys. He even makes a lot of customs in his free time. One can hate every single shred of TF fiction but still find enjoyment in the line through the toys, and that's part of what we value. After all--the place is called 'TFViews,' and we actually kind of take that motto seriously. We accept 'all' views on the series, no matter how much we agree or disagree. For example? Sparky Prime hates All Hail Megatron, among other things. I think All Hail Megs is great. But I don't think Sparky is any less of a TF fan for that--or, perhaps more importantly, any less of a 'decent human being,' which is sometimes what it seems like you're accusing Dom of being.
(Similarly, I could point out that some of your opinions are quite contrary to some of the other members here, but we don't exactly go all-out attacking you over it either.)
I'd rather have a good moderator that doesn't condemn most Transformers as shit, and doesn't outright state that most fiction in general is a waste of time. At least my contrary opinions aren't condemning the entire Transformers line and those who are fans of it as useless drivel that are less interesting than a political state of address. Basically, all this guy is saying, is that only Beast Machines and a very scant handful of other titles are worth a damn, for the sole reason that they're based around some political rant, moral, or philosophical dilemma that he can ponder, and if they didn't have that, they'd be just as shit as everything else and he wouldn't even bother with them. I'm sorry, but that's not "a difference in tastes" to me, that's a direct insult to the franchise and its fans. This isn't a matter of being a "true fan", this is a case of him being a moderator of a board of a franchise that he clearly hates, has no interest in, and thinks everyone else is wasting their time fixating on. I wouldn't have even CARED if he liked Beast Machines, and wouldn't have laid into him NEARLY as much as I'm doing, had he just stuck to that. But the moment he started giving his idiotic, backwards-ass drivel on how writing in general SHOULD be done, and you let me know that he felt that way for nearly ALL of the different series in the franchise, I lost all respect for him as a Tranformers "fan", a moderator on here, and if he WASN'T a moderator, I'd block him and get him out of my life on here, in a heartbeat. As a writer myself, I feel insulted by his drivel, and I don't buy that he's got a degree in literature; no literature or creative writing teacher in the world would teach that kind of shit, at all. The only way I can think of to explain how he could possibly have that kind of opinion on fiction in general, is if he lived an intolerably sheltered life where fiction and games were off-limits for being "destructive to his intellect". And I'm not the only one who thinks him crazy for this; Sparky Prime is STILL arguing with him about it, and there's been plenty of others throughout this argument who say the same thing.
I'm sorry, but I don't accept him as a mod on here OR as a TF fan, not with the attitude he has shown, thus far. I'm not going to feel safe with a moderator on here who "does a good job moderating" but only comes on here because he has nothing else to do with his time, rather than out of a genuine love for the franchise, whichever parts it may be. He doesn't like escapism? Boo fucking hoo, that's what Transformers IS; he thinks "over-humanizing" characters is bad? Let's see him explain the fan affection for Waspinator, Rattrap, and Dinobot; he thinks characters should be used as tools and nothing more? Let's see him explain how Sari dodged the Scrappy bullet associated with other human characters in Transformers; he thinks stories aren't good unless they're pushing an author tract? Let's see him explain the popularity of Shattered Glass. Nearly every single thing he claims to hate about fiction is present in Transformers: engaging storyline not usually based around a moral, interesting humanized characters that aren't simply tools to push the story, and a great escape for fans. If he still wants to claim to be a Transformers fan, after this, then I honestly can't see how or why, nor am I going to believe it. As I said, if it was merely a difference in preference for shows, I wouldn't mind - as you say, there's plenty of Transformers franchises for everyone. But he went father than that; he condemned pretty much everything related to Transformers that doesn't fit into his backwards, sterile view of how "fiction' should work that NO ONE ELSE on here agrees with or has even heard of being taught, and by extension condemning the fans for liking it. No, I draw the line there. He's not a Transformers fan, in my opinion, "true" or otherwise, and he's certainly not the kind of person I want to meet IRL and shoot the breeze with, especially if it comes to something related to fiction. And he's not the kind of moderator I want or expect from a site like this. I'm not saying I'd be any better as a mod, with my quick temper, and I'm not even wanting his job, but with the argument I and others have had with him, over the past couple of days, over this shit, it's clear to me that he doesn't have the appreciation or the caring for Transformers in general to make a good mod, on here.
