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Saw this on Youtube and the first thing I thought of was the majority of people on this and other Transformers forums. Hope you agree.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QBeAjISBb2U

Warning: NSFW

It was kinda funny. It's a somewhat extreme way of looking at things, but there are probably plenty of people like that out there.

Rodimus Prime wrote:It was kinda funny. It's a somewhat extreme way of looking at things, but there are probably plenty of people like that out there.

Considering that 70% of the people here are like that, 5% discuss their dislike rationaly, 10% are snide and condescending toward fans in their dislike, and 15% actually liked the films I'd say the video heavily favors the majority of posters here.

I guess there's some measure of pride in being part of the 70%. Whatever pride that might be is horribly misplaced though. I'll stick with the vast numerically superior majority that enjoyed the films and aren't full blown Transformers fans. If these films taught me anything it's the immaturity of fandoms.

I think it's one of those squeaky wheel situations. People like that whine the loudest and get more attention than they should. Most of the people on this site are pretty sane and reasonable.

Capt.Failure wrote:

Rodimus Prime wrote:It was kinda funny. It's a somewhat extreme way of looking at things, but there are probably plenty of people like that out there.

Considering that 70% of the people here are like that, 5% discuss their dislike rationaly, 10% are snide and condescending toward fans in their dislike, and 15% actually liked the films I'd say the video heavily favors the majority of posters here.

And these figures are your opinion. Unless you read though every poster's every post regarding the live action movies, you cannot possibly state those as accurate. We all have our opinions of the films as well as other aspects of the franchise, whether it be toys, comics, cartoons, whatever. I am not disagreeing that there are a lot of fans who think of themselves as elitist, holier-than-thou, especially when it comes to the movies. And the Internet is the main outlet for nerd rage. Especially places like this, where most of us can stay anonymous and hide behind a screen name and spew our cerebral bile at others, especially when it's something different than what others say. I have done this on occasion, and so have you. We all think we're right, that's why we say what we say. The difference in posters is their ability to handle when they're told/proven wrong. Some are mature and open-minded and after some measure of defense of their point of view, they accept having been mistaken. Some don't. On the other hand, there are those who stand on their little soapboxes and preach at others about how they should behave and look at this wonderful TF Universe.

I guess there's some measure of pride in being part of the 70%. Whatever pride that might be is horribly misplaced though. I'll stick with the vast numerically superior majority that enjoyed the films and aren't full blown Transformers fans. If these films taught me anything it's the immaturity of fandoms.

That's probably the best for all involved. I've been a fan of Transformers since 1984 and have been around the fandom since I had internet access. (Before that I didn't associate with a "fandom" I was just 1 of a bunch of friends who liked toys, comics and cartoons.) I already knew of the immaturity of fandoms before the movies came out.

Rodimus Prime wrote:And these figures are your opinion. Unless you read though every poster's every post regarding the live action movies, you cannot possibly state those as accurate. We all have our opinions of the films as well as other aspects of the franchise, whether it be toys, comics, cartoons, whatever. I am not disagreeing that there are a lot of fans who think of themselves as elitist, holier-than-thou, especially when it comes to the movies. And the Internet is the main outlet for nerd rage. Especially places like this, where most of us can stay anonymous and hide behind a screen name and spew our cerebral bile at others, especially when it's something different than what others say. I have done this on occasion, and so have you. We all think we're right, that's why we say what we say. The difference in posters is their ability to handle when they're told/proven wrong. Some are mature and open-minded and after some measure of defense of their point of view, they accept having been mistaken. Some don't. On the other hand, there are those who stand on their little soapboxes and preach at others about how they should behave and look at this wonderful TF Universe.

I'm completely aware of the fact I'm generalizing. I've also been called stupid, racist, sexist, anti-semetic and homophobic (the last one is a real head scratcher, considering I'm gay) on these very forums. I came here at first with a post that was essentially a plea for civil discourse when, after RotF's release and the approach of DotM, I saw the general reaction of the fandom was verbal attacks toward the film series' fans. The general response to that thread was simple: "There will be no civil discourse."

That's probably the best for all involved. I've been a fan of Transformers since 1984 and have been around the fandom since I had internet access. (Before that I didn't associate with a "fandom" I was just 1 of a bunch of friends who liked toys, comics and cartoons.) I already knew of the immaturity of fandoms before the movies came out.

I can feel your pain on that, but I didn't reconnect with the fandom until the films. I'd heard all about RuinedFOREVER!!! and TRUK NOT MUNKEY!!! but paid it no mind really. What brought me here was, as stated, the violent reaction of fans and critics. I think it's sad and more than a little pathetic that both have taken it upon themselves to judge not only the films (which is fine) but the fans of the films (which is not).

But the people I feel sorry for are the new fans, the young kids who like when I was there age discovered Transformers and might want to connect with others who share their love of the series. This isn't like when I was young in the 80's, these kids can easily connect to the internet and find fansites. The reception awaiting them is one that will be delivered by a militant, unfriendly group of people no matter which site they chose. Bay's film series was the second great revival of Transformers in the public conciousness and right now the Transformers fandom is going to make sure that any new fans turn their back quickly and leave. If I was a young kid new to the series thanks to the films, came here and got the same reception I did my thoughts wouldn't be, "Maybe I can find common ground with them." It would be, "Screw these nerds, I'm outta here."

When Transformers is looping the toilet bowl again, the fandom will have itself to thank.

Yeah, there are quite a few people who are borderline psychotic when it comes to picking a side over Bay's films, regardless of which side they choose. IT'S A MOVIE!!! Yes, I am also passionate about my favorite stories, characters, etc., but I don't get all bent out of shape because people don't agree. I admit, I used to, especially when it came to Rodimus. But I grew up a little since. My opinions haven't changed, but I do respect the difference between mine and the opinions of others, as well as others having the same rights to state theirs. But I guess that's another thing about the fandom: as you said, more and more younger people (13-17) are filing into the fandom and bring their first-time-experience with TFs into it. Which means they look at the TF Universe with Bay- or Animated-colored glasses. (Just picking the most recent complete works; and I loved Animated) I won't comment much on Prime, because I have seen very little. What I did see I liked. Anyway, with younger people come less maturity. There are quite a few people who were around when G1 or even Beast Wars came out (putting us into our late 20s-30s) but I'm going to make an assumption (yeah, I know what they say) that fans 26 and older are in the minority to fans 25 and younger. I agree with you on the amount of exposure and diversity of venues available to newer/younger fans as opposed to us (as I said, for me it was comics, toys and cartoon; in that order, which is why I am a huge Marvel fan) but just as with everything else online and due to technology these days, people just don't vest as much interest and time into things, and thus don't get as attached. Things become less valuable in terms of emotional investment, and it's the same for the TF Universe. This is also somewhat Hasbro and Takara's fault, as well as IDW and other sources, as some characters and stories have become so bastardized, they lose all uniqueness and special relatability. (Is that even a word?) Perhaps the most famous example is Optimus dying. In 1986 it damn near broke my heart, and I wasn't even a big Optimus fan. Now, I just shrug when it happens. It kinda took me aback a bit in RoTF, but maybe because it was on the big screen and my ears and eyes were totally under assault. (In a good way )

OK, before I write a novel, let me just say that not everyone in the fandom is the same and not everyone is responsible for all the good or bad things that are said and done. I know you know this because in a previous post you broke the fandom up into percentages. But regarding your last statement, I have to disagree when you lump everyone together. It's not fair to those of us who are mature and smart enough to take a step back and look at things with a level head. And yes, I count myself one of these fans. I may have grown up on G1, but I am most certainly not TRUKK NOT MUNKY!!! and there's very little I dislike about the TF Universe as a whole when it comes to products, whether they be toys or series. I do have my favorites, but that doesn't mean I disregard others with different opinions. (I'm not saying you're doing this, I'm just speaking for myself.)

And lastly, I wholeheartedly disagreed with Roger Ebert on RoTF and DotM. I think he reviewed DotM so poorly just to spite the people who gave him crap about his RoTF review. But, he looks at it as a general moviegoer not as a TF fan, and it's just his opinion. Clearly, by the bank these films made, not many listened to him. I certainly didn't. Then again, I am generally opposing of critics of any kind, unless it's someone who's been there and done it before, which Ebert certainly hasn't.

Well Rodimus if it makes you feel better you're in that "civil 5%" I mentioned.

However I must recall that recently I was in line for Battlefield 3's midnight launch and one of the people in line was a father with his young son, the latter of which was playing with a toy Sideswipe from DotM. I made the passing comment that his son has good taste (afterall who doesn't like Sideswipe) and from that me and his dad got into a discussion about the films, which we both liked.

Soon after we got approached by another fellow, a rather large man with a G1 Optimus Prime shirt and the autobot symbol stickered onto the back of his iPhone. Knowing we were discussing the film series the first words in my head were, "Oh boy, here we go..."

When he spoke out in favor of our liking the three films, well, to say I was gobsmacked would still make me the master of understatement. We kept up our discussion until midnight when the game launched and we parted ways, but it was nice to be able to talk to a long time fan about the films and not have it resort to the usual ad homonim from them.

And that's the sad part. This discussion was the exception, not the rule. It has nothing at all to do with who liked or disliked what, but everything to do with civility and respect. Sadly the fandom at large knows nothing of these concepts, at least online. Could I be more respectful myself? Of course, however bear in mind that respect is earned by being respectful.

Capt.Failure wrote:Well Rodimus if it makes you feel better you're in that "civil 5%" I mentioned.

Sadly, where I live, I rarely come across people with whom I can have a pleasant conversation about Transformers.