Bronies! Are you ashamed of yourself? - UPDATED

[Idsertian]

Hm. I just assumed that bro was short for brother Oo. And that I would be a sis? A... Sissy? No wait, that's something completely unrelated... I guess that does answer my question, thanks! =3 I'm still not a Brony as such... Is there no fancy title for people that just like plain old regular ponies?

As far as a I understand it (and you probably already know this, but allow me to tread known waters for a moment), Brony is an amalgamation of Bro + Pony, initially used on 4Chan ironically, but has since been adopted by the fanbase. As I stated above, there is no rule to state that a woman/girl cannot be a Bro; thus, calling yourself a Bro or Brony would be perfectly acceptable. I believe the aforementioned term "Bro" is used to describe someone in with the crowd and always has his/her friends backs.

However, we (that is, the Brony crowd), take a slightly different view on this, ala you can call yourself whatever you want. Brony is used to describe a fan, the fanbase, or a male fan specifically. Some female fans prefer to be called "Pegasisters", while there are still others both in and outside the fandom (like you), who just call themselves fans.

The point of this long winded reply being: You can probably just get away with calling yourself a pony fan.

 

[VeneratedWulfen93]

40k is awesome. Collect it and tell anyone who asks that I play since it takes so much of my time up. However, I never noticed it being ostrisized or anything. In fact most people at my college even if they don't play it are interested in it.
I suppose it sounds a tad bad when I describe my unbeatable Dark Reaper Exarch, equpped with a tempest launcher that ingores cover and re-rolls wounds while being AP 3. Its a tad overwhelming but no more so than other geek jargon like in LoL and stuff.
I watch MLP as well and all my friends know, people can think of me what they want I'll never be ashamed for being myself.

 

[Playful Pony]

As far as a I understand it (and you probably already know this, but allow me to tread known waters for a moment), Brony is an amalgamation of Bro + Pony, initially used on 4Chan ironically, but has since been adopted by the fanbase. As I stated above, there is no rule to state that a woman/girl cannot be a Bro; thus, calling yourself a Bro or Brony would be perfectly acceptable. I believe the aforementioned term "Bro" is used to describe someone in with the crowd and always has his/her friends backs.

However, we (that is, the Brony crowd), take a slightly different view on this, ala you can call yourself whatever you want. Brony is used to describe a fan, the fanbase, or a male fan specifically. Some female fans prefer to be called "Pegasisters", while there are still others both in and outside the fandom (like you), who just call themselves fans.

The point of this long winded reply being: You can probably just get away with calling yourself a pony fan.

Well, that was investigative! Fun fact, the word 'fan' is derived from 'fanatic', fanatic is (in English dictionaries here in Norway anyway) defined as "excessive enthusiasm and frequently intense uncritical devotion". I guess people in general don't consider this to be the meaning of the word, but it does seem to fit well with what I know about a lot of fans of anything.

You know what, I think I'll just enjoy the stuff I enjoy and not bother defining myself as anything =p. There seems to be a kind of obsession from some to have a clearly defined identity summed up in a few simple 'titles' such as Brony, Gamer, Hipster or whatever.

It IS a bit annoying when people are being very inyourface with it. It's just as annoying as when Christians do it really, but it seems to be more common with fans of other things such as music, movies etc. At least it is to me, but then I don't socialize with religious people a lot (not by design, people around me simply are not religious! ... Well my grandparents are Mormons...).

 

[PsychedelicDiamond]

I... don't really feel like a prosecuted minority, you know? I don't think anyone looks down on me for liking MLP. I know that the fandoms reputation has gotten worse (For which it has no one to blame but itself)but i am not a worse person for being part of it. A fandom, after all, is nothing but a group of people who agree on liking one specific thing, other than we are all individuals.

And no, i wouldn't walk down the street with a Pinkie shirt. No one would get it and i'd just be making an idiot out of myself. It has nothing to do with being ashamed but i don't really consider my brony-ness to be such a defining aspect of myself that i would feel like i had to show it to everyone.

 

[TheIronRuler]

Why would I feel ashamed in liking a cartoon? It's nobody else's business what I watch.

.
The bar had been lowered so far that it already reached the center of the earth.
There is no lower place to go to.

I am disappointed in you.

 

[Rewdalf]

The first time I watched the intro I cringed.
But I didn't skip it...

I've got plenty of friends who are closet Bronies.
Not ashamed when they're in a group, but individually they hide it out in the "real world."

For me, it's fun to wear a pony shirt and see people's reaction.
Or listen to a pony mix CD in the car and catch weird looks.
I was ashamed the first few days, when I didn't quite understand the fandom quite yet.
But now I revel in it, and respect the community I've come to accept.

But, just like with any fandom, there are some who speak louder than others, and those usually don't represent the community properly.
That's who I'm ashamed of. People who make the fandom look bad. But then again, every fandom has that same group, so it's quite normal.

 

[Idsertian]

-snip-

Must...resist...magnet...joke...

But in all seriousness, yeah, that's the attitude to have. Like what you like and be damned to anyone else's opinions and definitions. It's what I do. I classify myself as a Brony, but I don't get up in people's faces about it.

Anyway, away with me, I have things to do.

 

[RJ 17]

The problem I see with this topic is that you're asking people to admit that they're ashamed of their own tastes. Can't say I've read every comment thus far, but I'd be surprised if there's very many (if any at all) people saying "Yes, my own taste in cartoons absolutely disgusts me. I can't believe I'm such a tool for having the gal to like a show that actually appeals to me."

For the record, I like the show, and no, I'm not ashamed about it. Is there a REASON I should be ashamed about it other than the fact that other people might not enjoy the show? Should I really give a damn about what they think?

 

[Tiger Sora]

I kept it hidden from my family for a while, I wasn't ashamed but I also didn't talk much to them, and I felt they didn't need to know.
That all changed the day I got my Rainbow Dash tattoo last summer, my mom bugged me to know what it was and why I got it. So I explained it, and it was now out I was a brony to the family, though my little brother did know before the rest.

Thenceforth I've been out of the closet. I wear my pony shirts with pride, carry now two pony tattoos on my legs (back of both calfs). He'll I'm going to be Rainbow Dash for halloween.

I've always had the personal motto "Fuck what anyone thinks of me, I'm my own person". Well ever since high school.

 

[Aaron88]

There will always be division amongst any group on what is cool and what is uncool. That is because generally speaking what is percieved as cool and uncool is a very subjective thing. This is generally speaking (i dont include those cardboard cut out people [read sheep] that follow the latest trends simply because others do).

More specifically to the topic at hand, speaking from the perspective of a former 40k, Warhammer and Necromunda player, one can see why there is a great divide on whether it is cool or not.

The tabletop game itself is enjoyable - the ability to create, paint and fabricate a backstory behind an army is perhaps the most enjoyable part. Playing the actual game is rather enjoybale too, win or lose.

However, there is a certain ammount elitism in this game. This makes it uncool. Elitism in anything in life is uncool. The fact that there is so much elitism and snobbery take away from the games enjoyment. I mean, after all there is nothing worse than being talked down to by a B.O laden, greasy haired, spotty loner across the table, simply because you haven't quite yet learned all the rules or have made some basic mistakes. (Those of you that have been into games workshop know the guy i am talking about, im sure) It is those minorities within the game that stick out in peoples minds as an example of a tabletop gamer, however unfortunate that may be.

That is why it is considered uncool by some, in my personal experience.

 

[itsthesheppy]

Why would I be ashamed? I'm too awesome and brilliant to be ashamed of anything. Maybe I'll recruit someone to be ashamed on my behalf, because I'm too busy being amazing.

 

[Latinidiot]

If you're ashamed of liking something, I don't think you actually like it. Do you? I mean if you yourself think it's wrong and therefore shameful to like something I wouldn't be able to like it! I certainly would be too uneasy with myself to actually watch it.

I do understand not being comfortable to talk about it in public knowing that other people might look down upon your... taste.

I do like MLP, and I don't mind saying it, because I don't try to cloud the nets with walls of text about why its better than anything animated ever. So I don't think I am a brony, I dislike the monniker.

 

[Brownie101]

I enjoy ponies, I get into the fandom, I own a T-Shirt and am writing a fic and I am unapologetically a brony. The old kind of brony, from halfway down first season when we were still a fledgling fandom. Not the kind now who call themselves bronies. They're generally pretty terrible. That being said, I don't walk around like "Ponies? Don't like 'em? SCREW YOU!" I may mention them off-handedly in conversation or make a reference to them as I am want to do with anything else. I don't wear the shirt in public, but then again I don't really wear anything that can tie me down to one particular interest unless you're already part of that interest, like a shirt with the WoW font saying "I'm only here because my server is down."

As for Warhammer, I don't think it's a terrible game, I just think it's outrageously priced.

 

[Lord Garnaat]

No, mainly because there's nothing to be ashamed of. Honestly, I see it being more unusual for someone to not like MLP, I just can't wrap my head around how someone could not enjoy something so objectively great in every possible way. So in short, no I'm not ashamed and no one else should be either.

 

[DoomyMcDoom]

I feel no shame in life, as life itself is nothing but an elaborate joke, that if taken too seriously, won't be understood.

To live a life where one thinks there's some purpose to strive towards, be that political success, monetary gain, corporate advancement, it's all meaningless if you do not enjoy what little time you have to live your life while you have it, this shit is short, and when you're gone, even though most people don't like to think of it, nobody is going to remember you for more than like, 1 generation at best.

As such, I see shame, or regret as negative to one's quality of life, live life as you are, as you want to be, not as someone else tells you you want to be, and in that life you will be happy.

I watch MLP:FiM and people who know me accept that, because I am me, I am not defined by a fandom, nor am I defined by the society in which I live, I've always done my own thing, and I honestly don't care if people think what I do is weird or whatever, I take care of myself, and I treat people with respect, and dignity, and therefor, others tend to respond to me in kind.

If you want to make fun of me, all it does is point out how much of a weak cowardly idiot you are to those who have known me, or do know me.
I am me, and people tend to like me, so when someone gets stupid about it and tries to make me look bad, they tend to get social backlash, why? Because insulting and attacking someone who's been nothing but a great guy, who's fun to hang around with, knows a wide variety of things about a wide variety of stuff, and tends to be both helpful and supportive of his friends, makes you look like a prick.


Even then, I've been insulted and talked down to for years for so many different things, I've begun to see patterns in those who insult me, and almost all of them struggle with severe insecurity issues.

 

[SL33TBL1ND]

It's a TV show, that I watch. Nothing to be ashamed of here.

 

[lord.jeff]

I enjoy the show but I wouldn't say I revel in my enjoyment of nor do I go about sharing my love of it outside of place I know it will be excepted, not because I fear judgment but because I know how little other people care.