Calling out "Fake" Fangirls

[AniaR]

So cracked recently published an article that while it's aimed at female cosplayers and female "nerds", after reading it I think it could be applied to our little bubble too.

With mermaids getting more and more mainstreamed, there's been a lot of vocalization on here and facebook about fears that it'll turn into a fad, some people wont be "real" mermaids etc. We've had lengthy discussions about it. (Many people saying mermaid's are the new vampire and people fearing a twilight like fan base)

My stance has always sorta been that I'm open to anyone and everyone becoming part of the mermaid world. Even look at how many members we get on mernetwork! The more mermaids reach popularity, the more people seek out professional mers for gigs, and tail makers. Keeps our little mer-economy going.

So I wanted to share a quote from you from the article,

You can't be a better fan than anyone else anymore. Memorizing issue numbers was always useless, but in a world with Wikipedia, it's outright embarrassing. The whole point of liking things is to enjoy them. More people means more fun. Even if you're a total sociopath, more people in your hobby means more products for you to enjoy. And if you want to turn it into a fight, someone who likes a character and creates a costume is actually closer to the comics creators than someone who just likes the character.

I think though it was intended for the comic genre area, it still sort of applies.

The article details a comic legends online rants about women who do cosplay etc, and he accusses them of so much nastiness, and now it's becoming a real thing on the internet. I already see this happening in our community. Mers judge each other by what tail maker they use, what materials their tail is made out of (fabric tails < silicone tails etc.) and people have started hating on others they've had no personal experience with.

Anyway, before you jump into opinions and replies in the thread, take a moment to read the article right here

[Merrow Fair Isle]

Thank you so much for posting this!

[Nate Walis]

I've seen this happen with so many niche interests that I was involved in that have gone on to become part of the mainstream.

The irritation of being amongst the first to champion something and then being looked at in askance by the shallow influx of newcommers who are simply following a trend and can't understand why people with whom they have nothing in common are suddenly involved in the latest scene is immense.

Of course then they lose interest when the herd moves on and you're left with the same people still keeping the thing going.

But now you have the stigma of not only being into something that the mainstream fails to understand, but also something it now sees as exhausted of all potential as well.

[Alveric]

On the other hand there are those who stay after the trend fades. They are the ones who bring in fresh new ideas then stick around to make them a reality. They are the ones who keep it all alive.

I've been around long enough to have been left on the beach several times as a fandom I'm a part of fades. I've never seen the stigma increase, only decrease, and make it easier for the next tide.

[Nate Walis]

On the other hand there are those who stay after the trend fades. They are the ones who bring in fresh new ideas then stick around to make them a reality. They are the ones who keep it all alive.

I've been around long enough to have been left on the beach several times as a fandom I'm a part of fades. I've never seen the stigma increase, only decrease, and make it easier for the next tide.

Seems I'm more cynical by nature.

[Mermaid Bella]

really, who cares! if someone wants to fangirl over the newest fad and it brings them a little bit of fun for a while why not
i ran into this issue when i was a cosplayer, i made all of my own costumes and had a blast but when i got into it, it was at the same time everyone sort of discovered it, so i ran into alot of people telling me that i was not good enough to be a cosplayer, just another "girl jumping on the bandwagon" this was usually said by people with professionally made costumes who had either been cosplaying for a few months, or two days longer than a few months. the older generation remembered when it was them and three other dudes, watching slayers in their garage with cardboard swords, they had a more the merrier mentality.

btw i didnt stop cosplaying because the fad was over. i had other reasons.