Transformers - ongoing series

[Dominic]

If it weren't for Dom's rantings about it I'd never know.

Hey, Prowl hates Walky even more than I do.

Cosplay should not count against a fandom (unless it's the eye raping kind where you get some huge fat hairy guy in an undersized Hermione Granger costume).

Hawt!

Okay, joking aside....and sexy.

Joking aside, really this time.... it is not the cosplay or most any other element of being a fan, it is the degree and combination. And, Potter fandom looks to be on the road to taking the place of the worst elements of Trek-fandom.

Unless it's how they dress on a day to day basis, then there's some psych issues there. But at conventions, movie premiers, or other related events, fine.

Generally agreed. But, again, the level of immersion for some of them.....

TWO-TIMING HUSSY

Dude, you do not own me. And, you have been in the room for worse, right accordion boy?

a wrestler for Dom...

I will be letting my beard out over the next few weeks as I no longer have time to shave. Make of that what you wiil.

And a big ol' question mark for JT...


Dom
-and this thread is going to end in sodomy jokes....

[BWprowl]

It is a question of degree. Potter fans have both degree and volume of fannishness.

And, yes, this conversation exists.

This is a variant of the fan-shame that Prowl has on occassion. He is sick of the worst elements of the fandom being the most visible/vocal.

Oh, my fan-shame doesn't come out of what defines which elements are worse and/or visible. I'm ashamed purely out of my decision to belong to a fandom that actively buys and collects toys. Society just doesn't see that as cool, and the scorn (imagined or not) that I feel when I carry the damn boxes to the register comes because I feel the need to *buy* physical evidence of my childish entertainment choices.

As such, I have NO problem with fans who write fanfic, or draw fanart, or do little musical parodies. And cosplay...have you ever been to an anime convention, Dom? People do some amazingly cool stuff (My friends and I cosplay a bit ourselves). You like to dress up as your wrestling fan-character and take pictures for MySpace, so what's the ish with my friends and I having some fun?



Being active about something you like is just the way most fans express liking it, and this hardly affects your life. It's not like people are coming up to you on the street and forcing you to read their house-elf gang-bang fanfic.

(Seriously, what is the problem with cosplay? Most football fans go to games dressed as their favorite players, for god's sake.)

[Gomess]

Dom keeps referring to "level of engagement" which I assume means he doesn't mind us cosplaying because he believes- perhaps foolishly- that we never get into character. It's the guys who go around actively pretending to *be* characters all the time that seem to scare/irk him.

Also: Glad you guys were game-accurate. Too many Jesses and Jameses out there! And where the heck are you? Those are some tall-ass walls.

*Took every means necessary to remove all evidence of his (admittedly good) cosplays from the web when he became self-employed*

*But is going to start again now that he's more self-assured and better at it*

[Mako Crab]

I was just wondering what Costa's hangup with Transformers fans only reading TF comics. What's the "so what?" of that statement? His statement seems to stem from the fan-backlash he's felt, so is he saying that if TF fans were more well-read and understood the conventions of the larger comic book industry, that they'd somehow be more appreciative of his work? And if so, then that's a naive statement to make. I know lots of fans that read both the TF comics and many others, and they still don't like Costa's writing.
But even if TF fans only read the TF comic and nothing else, so what? Was there some master plan to use Transformers to lure in readers to buy other IDW comics (possibly original IDW titles that they'll retain the rights to long after they lose the TF license?)? And if so, I'm guessing that crossover of readers isn't happening judging by his comment.

I sort of agree with his comment that TF fans kept buying his comic even though they hated it, though not for the reason that he stated. Of everyone I know that's disliked the book, they kept getting it in the hopes that it was going to get better. Everyone kept saying, "Wait and see," and everyone kept promising that it was going to get good, so they stuck it out.
So while the reasons they kept buying it may differ, the outcome was still the same. And personally, it drives me a little crazy too. When the fans keep buying a product that they dislike out of hope that it'll get good or just brand loyalty, it sends the message to IDW that they can crank out anything regardless of quality (Hearts of Darkness- I'm looking at you), slap the Transformers name on it, and know that they'll sell.

[Onslaught Six]

I don't generally know what goes on at the larger websites like ATT

ATT isn't larger. At this point, we may very well outnumber them.

[Dominic]

Dom keeps referring to "level of engagement" which I assume means he doesn't mind us cosplaying because he believes- perhaps foolishly- that we never get into character. It's the guys who go around actively pretending to *be* characters all the time that seem to scare/irk him.

This. Exactly. Aside from the foolish part.

Ah, you know what I mean.

Oh, my fan-shame doesn't come out of what defines which elements are worse and/or visible. I'm ashamed purely out of my decision to belong to a fandom that actively buys and collects toys. Society just doesn't see that as cool, and the scorn (imagined or not) that I feel when I carry the damn boxes to the register comes because I feel the need to *buy* physical evidence of my childish entertainment choices.

Well, uh, that is healthy.

was just wondering what Costa's hangup with Transformers fans only reading TF comics.

Read it without the hyperbole. And, yes, part of the stereotype of the person he is talking about is that they can only read literally. But, rather than proving him right, read it while filter the hyperbole and *then* try to respond to it.

But even if TF fans only read the TF comic and nothing else, so what? Was there some master plan to use Transformers to lure in readers to buy other IDW comics (possibly original IDW titles that they'll retain the rights to long after they lose the TF license?)?

That would make sense. Dark Horse made hay from that plan in the 80s and 90s. And, hell, Marvel arguably did that to a point.

IDW failed on this front because "Infestation" was shit.


Dom
-skipping "Infestation Volume 2".

[Mako Crab]

Read it without the hyperbole. And, yes, part of the stereotype of the person he is talking about is that they can only read literally. But, rather than proving him right, read it while filter the hyperbole and *then* try to respond to it.

I somehow seriously doubt that Costa had any cleverly veiled message hidden in his comments.

[Gomess]

"My audience's problem is they believe what I tell them! So I'll act like a douche and only the ones who realise I'm not REALLY a douche will win The Prize!"

That's not really a prize I'm interested in winning. And I know I've only read a couple of his stories, but to be honest, I find it hard to believe Costa wrote over anyone's head.

PETER DILLE AND FRANK SHIN HAHA SUBTLE

[Dominic]

The hyperbole that I was talking about in in Costa's comments during the contrversial interview. (Ya know, with some editing, that could be some good alliteration. Ah, but I am feeling lazy now.)

Costa made comments to the effect of "TF fans are insular and relatively few in number". That much is true. But, he said it foolishly, implying that there are only a few hundred TF fans on all of the forums and that they only read TF comics, not comics in general. (I suppose that raises the question of what Costa thinks of comics. Maybe he sees them as more than expansive enough?)

And, as I said, he made those comments to and about a population that is not known for its ability to read and process hyperbole and sarcasm.

Costa was writing over most of the fandom's head. He deviated from the approved template of stories, and the fans could not handle it.

As such, I have NO problem with fans who write fanfic, or draw fanart, or do little musical parodies. And cosplay...have you ever been to an anime convention, Dom? People do some amazingly cool stuff (My friends and I cosplay a bit ourselves). You like to dress up as your wrestling fan-character and take pictures for MySpace, so what's the ish with my friends and I having some fun?

I want to clarify on this.

It really is the level of immersion that some fans have that bothers me. Like Gomess said, it is the guys who cannot separate the hobby from life that irk me. And, yes, they do deliver on the stereotype of the obsessive and immature fan.

Every hobby has that contingent. But, some hobbies have more of that type than others. And, sadly the Transfandom seems to have incubated some of the more obnoxious sorts who cannot think outside of the genre or hobby.

As a clarification: My wrestling character was, (and might still be), a submission to the promotion. Any angle I write about that character is intended to be given to the promoter, as unlikely as it may be that anything will come of it. But, you do not seem me booking hypthetical matches and such.


Dom
-wondering where those compilations got away to.....

[Sparky Prime]

The hyperbole that I was talking about in in Costa's comments during the contrversial interview.

I really think you're giving Costa too much credit here. I would have to say I don't think he intended everything in that interview as literal, but at the same time I doubt he intended it as hyperbole. His comments are targeting and lashing out against the entire fanbase rather than a minor, yet extremely vocal, portion of it. The way he phrases himself and just some of the things he said in that interview, he suffers from the same "tunnel vision and lack perspective" he accuses the fans of having.