I had a break for puberty, my youth & generally living a fun life for a while.....

 

That's me too. I took 10 years off, but I don't think that makes me a noob. If I was there in G1 like the rest of you, and just backed out for a while, only to come back. I was just taking a break as the property got less and less interesting. Classics, Alternators, and re-issues brought back the G1 spirit. That's why I came back. It had nothing to do with the movie.

 

I'm no less a "real" Transformers fan than anyone else here.

Sometimes, I'm really proud of being less of a fan! ;)

Sometimes, I'm really proud of being less of a fan! ;)

:thumb

LOL THEY HAVENT LIKED IT AS LONG AS ME THEY ARENT VALID BURN THEM LOLOLOL

 

You wanna actually quote a specific line where Tahu or I actually said anything like that or are you just flame-baiting? :/

 

Majin Tahu is saying that the movie is going to see a big influx of "newb" fans and is asking what we speculate may happen to the franchise/fandom as a result of this. I pointed out that "newb" fans have been steadily increasing for the last couple of years with the advent of Binaltech/Alternators and G1 reissues bringing back a lot of fans who'd left us in the 80s. I don't think either of us made a judgement call as to whether or not these fans were of any greater or less significance or merit as fans compared to those of us who have always been Transfans -- I know I certainly didn't.

 

There's a difference between making an observation, and making a judgement call.

 

As for the term "softcore noob," I was using that term loosely -- ya know... hence the "quotation marks." I don't know what else you guys want to call them -- "new fans" vs "old fans".... whatever. I'm referring to the fans who left the fandom and have recently returned to it. Let's call them "new fans" if you think that sounds less insulting than "softcore noob."

 

That's me too. I took 10 years off, but I don't think that makes me a noob. If I was there in G1 like the rest of you, and just backed out for a while, only to come back. I was just taking a break as the property got less and less interesting. Classics, Alternators, and re-issues brought back the G1 spirit. That's why I came back. It had nothing to do with the movie.

 

I'm no less a "real" Transformers fan than anyone else here.

Well, I was looking for some term to use to define your kind of fandom (i.e.: having had a hiatus). "Post-hiatus Transfans?" "Born Again Transfans"?

 

I dunno... let's just pick a name and stick with it - I don't care too much what you wanna call it, as long as we all agree to stick with the same terms.

 

Recommendations? Include terms for both:

 

(A) Long-term fans - those of us who have been Transformers fans since the beginning of G1 up till now without ever having stopped.

(B) Those of us who have become fans again after taking a period of time off being a fan.

 

I'll make a poll later this week where I'll post up suggested terms and we'll see which ones are the most popular. I would then suggest we just stick to using whichever is the most popular terms?

 

Here are some from me:

(A) Old Fans / (B) New Fans

(A) Non-hiatus Fans / (B) Post-hiatus Fans

Well I wasn't taking anything you said as an insult, Goktimus. Just clearing up that I think the 17yo majin ran into would probably be in a different group altogether from me, because I was kinda confused. There are some who were around during the '80s and in the same group as me, while there were others also around during the '80s yet more like that 17yo kid.

 

And I've just as much trouble as you coming up with a clear unambiguous term for either, hehe. Maybe the latter are simply casual enthusiasts? I'd say these casuals have a very transient interest. By comparison, fans feel a vested interest on some level. Even if some never complain about a thing, certain possible events or actions can bother a fan more than just the "oh well.. *shrug*" reaction that a person with only casual interest will feel.

Why classify fans? .. you like transformers, great. Welcome to the club. I don't think we should discriminate, categorize or label anyone. It just makes things very ghey.

I had a break for puberty, my youth & generally living a fun life for a while.....

 

That's me too. I took 10 years off, but I don't think that makes me a noob. If I was there in G1 like the rest of you, and just backed out for a while, only to come back. I was just taking a break as the property got less and less interesting. Classics, Alternators, and re-issues brought back the G1 spirit. That's why I came back. It had nothing to do with the movie.

 

I'm no less a "real" Transformers fan than anyone else here.

 

 

I broke off shortly after G2 ended. Transformers BWs!!!!!!!! WTF is that about????? :P :P :P :P

 

Missed out on the whole BW/BM phase. They were selling everywhere locally but unfortunately this wasn't Transforners to me. It also didn't help that I didn't have cable to watch either show at the time. :redface My resurgence back into the fandom was when TRU started releasing exclusives. The first two I bought Optimus Prime/Ultra Magnus. Never did have them growing up. :tfsad After that DW had just recently picked up the franchise license & Armada was just hitting the toy shelves. Gotta start somewhere I guess. After grabbing Armada Hotshot (one of the most hated TFs a of ever though I didn't know at the time) I found it different than any of the G1/odd RID figures I had bought before hand. Durable playschool construction/bright colours. Logically at the age I was I should have absolutely hated everything about this so called TF but instead didn't & from there on out was hooked.

 

So having collected nearly everything from Armada onward, with some BW/BM/RID/Universe thrown in I've been a pretty steady collector & fan of the franchise. The only line I have not bothered with thus far it the Titanium line with the exceptions of 3" Unicron, & the Ark. I'm not really into adult collector items. I'm a toy collector who doesn't keep anything MISB & prefers said TFs to be fun & durable, Alts are borderline for me.Great alt modes/articulation but not really toys in the sense A/E/C/Classics & the up coming movie line are.

 

I'd like to consider myself a long term fan but having only started with the TF revival known as Armada it's hard to be all that nostalgic about what has all come before hand. Accepting change in a franchise where everything's constantly changing from year to year has proven easier each time around for that reason alone. It may have been different if I had lived/breathed TFs for that missing gap of time between 92/2001 or stayed domant until Classics hit shelves this past year.

 

For anyone who hasn't bothered to to keep up with anything since G1 ended I can see how the movie designs/toys can be a bit wtf but for anyone who has followed/collected TFs for the last 5/6 years the change in asthetics is almost expected. I have yet to really be surprised by any of it. In fact, as ugly/deformed as they may come off I welcome a lot of it. This is one fan who has had enough anime formers/G1 homages (throughout A/E/C/Classics/Alternators) & is ready for something new & inspiring. :tfdance

For me I got chased away with Beast Wars. I still, to this day, hate that Blot so much. I will never own a BW/BM figure. The only animals I need are Dinobots and Ravage, kthx.

 

I took interest again with Armada as well, so my hiatus wasn't long. A few years. I started buying toys again during Energon, but I bought what Armada toys I thought were cool by tracking them down at cons, etc.

 

I have stuff out of Armada/Energon/RiD/Titaniums/Classics/Cybertron and of course G1 and G1 reissues. I think my break during Beast Wars didn't make me less of a fan in any sense. I just didn't want to deal with bullcrap.

 

That being said, I LOVE what I have seen of the movie so far, and am counting down the days to July 4th. The announcement of the movie wasn't what brought me back. I came back when Transformers turned into vehicles again.

 

As long as TFs turn into vehicles, I'm there. Even if the movie changed a lot. It's not G1 the movie, and I'm fine with that.

You wanna actually quote a specific line where Tahu or I actually said anything like that or are you just flame-baiting? :/

You wanna quote a line where I said that was directed at you? For all you know it was a social commentary on the war in Iraq, or something about the topic in general. You're the one calling me out on an assumption and flame baiting. Not me.

 

Majin Tahu is saying that the movie is going to see a big influx of "newb" fans and is asking what we speculate may happen to the franchise/fandom as a result of this. I pointed out that "newb" fans have been steadily increasing for the last couple of years with the advent of Binaltech/Alternators and G1 reissues bringing back a lot of fans who'd left us in the 80s. I don't think either of us made a judgement call as to whether or not these fans were of any greater or less significance or merit as fans compared to those of us who have always been Transfans -- I know I certainly didn't.

 

You called them softcore. When fans of a particular anything call new fans softcore, and newbs, it's an insult. It's the flat out geek speak way to say an outsider. It's like calling someone a fish at prison, or whatever.

 

There's a difference between making an observation, and making a judgement call.

Exactly my point. You observed my post, and then started passing judgement on who/what it was directed at. Stop preaching to me if you can't follow it yourself.

 

As for the term "softcore noob," I was using that term loosely -- ya know... hence the "quotation marks." I don't know what else you guys want to call them -- "new fans" vs "old fans".... whatever. I'm referring to the fans who left the fandom and have recently returned to it. Let's call them "new fans" if you think that sounds less insulting than "softcore noob."

 

It is less insulting, and you're well aware I'm sure. I mean, using the term softcore is pretty damn demeaning. It's the contrary to hardcore, someone who knows what they're doing, a regular vet. So stop using insulting termonology and then pretending you weren't, it's unbecoming.

...rrrrrrrrrriiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight... :igrot moving right along now...

 

For anyone who hasn't bothered to to keep up with anything since G1 ended I can see how the movie designs/toys can be a bit wtf but for anyone who has followed/collected TFs for the last 5/6 years the change in asthetics is almost expected. I have yet to really be surprised by any of it. In fact, as ugly/deformed as they may come off I welcome a lot of it. This is one fan who has had enough anime formers/G1 homages (throughout A/E/C/Classics/Alternators) & is ready for something new & inspiring.

 

Well said.

 

For me I got chased away with Beast Wars. I still, to this day, hate that Blot so much. I will never own a BW/BM figure. The only animals I need are Dinobots and Ravage, kthx.

Don't dog Beast Wars!! Transformers may not even be around atm if it weren't for BW!!

 

Remember the following accomplishments by Beast Wars:

1/ Popularisation of fully articulated robot modes.

2/ A greater emphasis on expressing details through superior sculpting as opposed to cheating with stickers.

3/ Ditto with paint applications, including the introduction of air-brushing.

4/ The quality of toys developed and established by Beast Wars gave rise to Car Robot (which were Beast Wars like highly articulated robots with highly detailed sculpting, they were fundamentally BWTFs with vehicle modes), which gave rise to Binaltech and Masterpiece (MP = BW/CR at a higher level).

5/ Best stories ever written for a Transformers television series.

6/ The only Transformers series to have won an Emmy.