#being critical is absolutely necessary for better representation AND welcoming minorities in fandoms | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

supahstarrr · 3 days ago

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i have to admit that i'm kind of scared to say this. i've held this thought to myself for a bit but. honestly, i'm unsure how i feel about people demonizing the concept of voicing & having criticism towards fanganronpas as a response to proclaimed fans of fanganronpas who have criticism rooted in bad-faith that is expressed disrespectfully. to say criticism, even when it is constructive, is less needed due to fangans being "less established" is—although understandable to an extent—simplistic thinking to me as it disregards context.

fanganronpas aren't established media—they may not have much impact to the general population as they are not promoted in established industries. yet there will be impact that is noteworthy regardless as not only it has its roots and inspiration from already established media, but also its apart of a niche community that is an extension of a larger community (danganronpa). let alone a niche community that is built on taking inspiration from other projects that are established or not.

criticizing fanganronpas extends to being criticism towards danganronpa, then to tropes the series uses which exists outside of that series. and what i'd argue is the most important—criticism towards fanganronpas act as inspiration for other fanganronpa creators and can be an expression of your love towards the series. for people to demean all criticism as unneeded and a character flaw of somebody, to just group up criticisms rooted in love or concerns for representation with ones fundamentally in bad-faith, and to just disregard the complexities of criticism by reducing it to one form—is harmful.

this thinking towards criticism leans towards being exclusive when at times they can also be concerns for how a fangan may use tropes that perpetuate harmful beliefs ingrained in society and/or contribute to (common) limiting tropes attached to minorities in media . i feel wary to voice or even have criticisms towards my own representation that is commonly disregarded or stereotypical (with those stereotypes stemming from harmful and dehumanizing beliefs) in fanganronpas and danganronpa. my concerns of how black, tanned & brown or women, girls, & femmes or how queer characters are represented in fanganronpas don't just stop there. they don't just stop at danganronpa either. they extend to the representation outside of that art, because both fanganronpas (and danganronpa) are impacted by media (and society) outside of danganronpa.

i don't know how to feel really. i don't always have criticism, all of my spaces (like this blog) is not built from my criticisms on fangans, i don't always feel the desire or need to attempt at spreading my criticism around with tags and all, i don't always desire or need to attempt at bringing significant impact with my criticisms. yet still, i partially feel unwelcomed in the fanganronpa community just for having criticisms sometimes, even towards things that really matter. seeing how my race and skintone is represented in both danganronpa & fangans AND how fans in both of their communities respond to that representation & people who voice their concerns of that respresentation have made me disillusioned to the concept of a total "positive" space that doesn't allow criticism for the sake of comforting those who might not even be affected by the representation that *needs* to be criticized.

i feel too complicated about the discussion. i also dont think this way of thinking towards criticism also gets to the root of those proclaimed fans of fanganronpas who express their nonconstructive criticisms in harshness—which is entitlement, at times unhealthy parasocial relationships with the creator, and wanting to feel "owed" by the creator that is so insanely common in fandoms. its not that theyre voicing or having criticisms in the first place, its how they voice it or have criticisms based on negative attitudes with no valid depth behind it (which may disregard the narrative for the sake of personal tastes). instead, this thinking towards criticism risk shutting down vaild criticisms and concerns about the harm fangans may perpetuate and how they can contribute to regressive representation of minorities.

#sunny.txt #ive seen fangans perpetuate the “perfect victim” myth. ive seen fangans contribute to tired tropes of tanned and brown characters-#that stems from dehumanizing beliefs attached to specific racial minorities and a darker-skinned tone.#ive seen fangans treat their characters who are women and girls that are similar to already existing tropes stemming from misogyny #these things deserve to be met with concern. and/or even some criticism.#and yet fangan space continues to shut down the concept of voicing or wanting to be critical or have general concerns of a series #genuinely that sucks. like as a black person not only i feel constantly unwelcomed in the dr fandom but also fanganronpas #which sucks even harder. fangan spaces are more likely to promise handling representation of minorities with care-#AND promise to be more open and less hostile towards minorities in their community #because a good handful of creators and dr fans were critical and dissatisfied with dr's handling of minorities in the series.#a good handful of fangan creators and fans know the dr community can be hostile and is exclusive to minorities. especially poc.#its not as if i really expected fangan communities to be *that* welcoming. i mean they are an extension of the dr community #but how the fuck fangan creators and fangan fans want to promise those things while not wanting to be critical?#being critical is absolutely necessary for better representation AND welcoming minorities in fandoms #this all just makes me kind of sad #and like also. for criticism and concerns can be an expression of LOVE towards a fangan!!#im tired of people having such a simplistic view toward being critical (and even having concerns towards a media)#to the point that they shut down ALL criticisms . which actively shuts down criticisms on representation and possible #bigotry expressed in the media. which are very very very important kind of criticisms.#sigh whatever maybe im looking to deep into the “fangans shouldnt be met with criticisms bc its not established” whole thing #for me being critical most often is an expression of love towards art. fangans are art. so i will treat them the same way as i treat art.#keeping this post rebloggable since i doubt i will cause anything serious with this post. or well i doubt this will be spread around #since not many of my followers care about fangans #this whole discussion is literally just a very specific form of “fanfiction dont need to be criticized bc its not establsihed” discussion #which is mostly said by those who disregard or even justify that many fanfics handling characters of colors poorly or #using misogynistic tropes which may or may not be for the sake of centering men in their fics. sigh.

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