Thoughts on "Friendship was magic", Dubs Rewatcher's Polygon article

I read "Friendship was magic: How bronies are preparing for the end of My Little Pony" a few weeks ago, and I remember remarking at the time how favourably impressed I was by the article's approach, especially given it was published in a non-fandom source. (Okay, it was Polygon, a gaming and entertainment site, not a mainstream newspaper, but nevertheless.) We even got an interview with a ponyfic author in Bookplayer, a rare thing even in good articles about our fandom.

Being behind the curve as usual, I've only now discovered the reason for the article's author coming across as so well-informed: because he was. The writer used his real name on Polygon, but it was in fact long-time fandom member and ponyfic person Dubs Rewatcher. (One of whose old fics I'll be reviewing tomorrow, plug plug!) Given he's been on Fimfiction since August 2011, and given I don't think he was new to the fandom then, I think it's fair to say he's been around a bit. Since this is a fandom blog, I'll use his fandom name here.

As for the article itself: it's generally a very good one. It's fair and balanced, for one thing. (Yes, I know that phrase is loaded, but I mean it here.) It doesn't deny reality and pretend that the fandom is as big now as it was in 2013, but nor does it take an apocalyptic view and opine that the moment the show ends the fandom will too. It also has one of the more clear-eyed brief takes on clop I've seen, though understandably Dubs chooses not to mention that term.

There's a very interesting section later in the article in which Dubs points out the vast number of people who've used skills they've picked up in the MLP fandom to help them in later real-world endeavours. There's inevitably a slightly bittersweet tinge here, since most of us know favourite writers, musicians, artists or voice actors who have moved on and are no longer active. Some have severed all contact with the fandom, some still embrace their brony history.

My one disappointment with the article is its insularity: a reader unfamiliar with bronies could get the impression that BronyCon was the fandom and that there were no other MLP conventions worthy of the name, nor even fandom life outside the US. Perhaps the fact that Dubs is American and researched his piece at BronyCon makes this tricky to avoid, but it is something that irritated me as a British brony. The end of the show will be as huge a deal for us over here as it will be for American fans. The end of BronyCon, perhaps a little less so.

Despite that niggle, I would urge anyone who hasn't read "Friendship was Magic" to do so. It's a good read and, while it probably won't tell an active fan much they didn't already know, it's nice to find non-fandom platforms still taking some interest in us in 2018 – even if it is from a "waiting for the end" perspective. Still, I don't intend to mope, and while there's life there's hope. Besides, I have a Pony convention to prepare for!